Scrapbook Adhesives

What types of scrapbook adhesives should you have in your stash?

There really is no best glue, or even best types of glue, to use when putting together your layouts and pages. That's because we're all different and want different things when it comes to our projects.

The truth is that you use adhesive quite a bit for scrapbooking. Every layer that you add to your layouts will need to be glued down. It is very important to make sure that you follow some simple rules, to ensure that your pages will last for many generations.

Keep It Safe - Keep It Acid-Free

In the past, people used to use school glue, rubber cement, or scotch tape on their pages. Most of these products are not archival quality, and unfortunately, the pages created with them had a short life.

Why? Well, many of the older adhesives are acid based adhesives. It is this acid that does not react well with photographs.

Photographs also contain acid in them, that is placed there during the development process. When you take those photographs that contain acid and combine them with paper, adhesive, or ornamental details that contain acid, a chemical reaction can occur. When this chemical reaction happens, it will eventually discolor or deteriorate the actual photographs. This is why when you are shopping for scrapbooking supplies, like adhesive, you will want to look for acid-free products.

Luckily now there are many different types of archival quality scrapbook adhesives that you can use to safely create your pages.

Common Types of Scrapbook Adhesives

When looking for an adhesive, you will need to choose the right one for the job. As we discussed, you are going to want to look for a pH neutral or acid-free adhesive, but there are also other considerations.

For example, did you know that there are both wet and dry adhesives? Wet adhesives are basically some type of glue. There are many different types of wet adhesives, including paste, glue sticks, and spray adhesives. Examples of dry adhesives include tape and tape runners, glue dots, and photo corners.

To Glue or Not to Glue? That is the Question

For beginners, the biggest concern when it comes to scrapbook adhesives is using it on photographs. If you are just starting out, you will need to think about how you want to attach your photographs to the scrapbook pages.

Are you okay with applying an adhesive directly to the back of your photograph? If you are, then you could use double-sided tape or a tape runner to adhere your snapshots to the page. However, if not, then you might want to use photo corners instead. Photo corners hold your pics in place on the page, without permanently adhering them. By using photo corners, you can remove and replace the pictures easily.

Additionally, you will want to spend some time thinking about how you want to secure the other papers and embellishments. Tape runners are a good bet. They are easy to use, convenient, and as long as they are acid-free, also safe to use.

To sum it up, you can't put together layouts and pages without scrapbook adhesives. However, you need to be a bit careful with the adhesives that you are purchasing. Be sure that you read labels and use them properly, so that you, as well as future generations, can display and treasure your cherished memories for years to come.

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