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Scrapbooking is also a method for preserving a legacy of written history in the form of photographs, printed media, and memorabillia contained in decorated albums, or scrapbooks. more...

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Historically, scrapbooking was a tradition similar to storytelling, but with a visual and tactile, rather than oral, focus.

History and Overview

Scrapbooking with photos has been around since photographs became available to ordinary people. Old scrapbooks tended to have photos mounted with photomount corners and perhaps notations of who was in a photo or where and when it was taken. Modern scrapbooking has evolved into creating attractive displays of photos, text and memorabilia. As of August, 2006, the commercial scrapbooking industry celebrated 25 years of existence, as started by Marielen (pronounced "Mary Ellen") W. Christensen of Keeping Memories Alive, the world's first official scrapbooking store (which then had a different name), headquartered in Spanish Fork, Utah, USA, in 1981. (Please see www.Scrapbooks.com/History.php for complete detail.)

Scrapbooking as a hobby has taken off in the recent years, most probably because of the world's first commercial website about it, www.Scrapbooks.com, started in 1996 by Keeping Memories Alive. Another reason may be the strong social network that scrapbooking can provide. It is now a multi-billion dollar industry with a large number of companies creating scrapbooking products. Across the world, "scrappers" or "scrapbookers" get together and scrapbook at each other's homes, local scrapbook stores, scrapbooking conventions, retreat centers, and even on cruises. Scrappers share tips and ideas as well as enjoying a social outlet. The term "crop," a reference to cropping, or trimming, printed photographs, was coined to describe these events. This hobby has surpassed golf in popularity: one in four households has someone playing golf; one in three has someone involved in scrapbooking.

In the late 1990's, many scrappers followed the example of Keeping Memories Alive and opened stores to turn their hobby into a business. Unfortunately, within approximately 5 years, many of those stores were forced to close due to a downturn in the economy and the fact that many store owners mistakenly assumed that loving to scrap was enough to run a retail store. Many owners simply didn't know HOW to run their stores. During this time, more multi-level direct sales companies were formed. Several were closed due to mismanagement, while others weathered the tough times. It also gave rise to a new breed of business - the home-based retailer. Companies arrived to provide information for women who wanted to break out of the direct sales mold and go out on their own. While vendors had traditionally stayed away from the home-based market due to fraud, they began to warm to the idea of the non-traditional sales channels as a way to get their products in front of more consumers through home parties and workshops. Working with a company like this enabled them to tap into legitimate home-based retailers.

Read more at Wikipedia.org