I have been scrapbooking for a LONG time. Over 20 years. I have used Pioneer, Colorbook, K&Co, Ms Grossmans (yes they sold more than just stickers), Creative Memories, We R Memory Keepers, etc. You name it I likely tried it once. If I liked it I used it more than once. Way back Ms Grossmans had the corner on the best quality scrapbook. However, they didn't continue selling them for very long. Then there was Colorbook Post Bound Albums and they were the best post bound quality I could find for a long time. I will admit the best quality in my opinion back then was always Creative Memories. Their lifetime guarantee and quality put them way above the competition, but if you didn't want to scrap with a white page and didn't like the idea of gluing a whole patterned page down as your background, well it wasn't an option many of us decided to use exclusively. They were hard to get without knowing a consultant since online shopping wasn't really a thing back in 2000, at least not for me. Lets face it, limited options for scrapbooking and the price was enough for me to keep them saved for those "Special" albums. Weddings, Baby, etc. Everyday albums were still post bound. Then a house fire destroyed everything. Every picture, memento, gone. It took years, but I decided to start over. When I did, the old ways of scrapbooking had changed a lot. Gone were the little mom and pop stores I loved to shop at. You were stuck to main commercial stores like Michaels, JoAnn's, Hobby Lobby. They didn't have the fun unique things those little locally owned stores had, but I found some albums I trusted the quality of. We R Memory Keepers became a staple for me. I still used one CM album for "Special" things, but I had found my new quality everyday album. Binder style was simple to add pages to. I put about 50 pages into an album and was finding that they were not only CRAZY heavy, and though they were sturdy, they still had a bit of wobble when you were handling them. I found out about Close To My Heart and decided to try their albums. The binder style Legacy albums were more sturdy than the We R Memory Keepers albums and even though they were a tiny bit heaver, once the 50 pages were in they had less wobble, but it was still present. Now, bring on the reason for this post.
CTMH Post Bound Albums! I removed 50 pages from one of my binders and put it into the CTMH Post Bound Album. It was noticeably lighter. Not only that, but the album was way more sturdy with very little wobble. It also still has a clean look and style. I did decide to purchase the 1.5" extended style posts and the spine expanders because, well lets face it, I take a LOT of photos and use most of them in my albums. I have also started using Flip Flaps and various types of page protectors that are not the normal 12x12 size. I love the options! Unlike the Binder Style, I don't have to worry about the rings warping and having a page fall out or anything like that. Even though none of my CTMH Binder albums have done that I do worry about it. It does happen with We R Memory Keepers albums. Once it is in a CTMH Post Bound Album it isn't coming out. Yay for my pages! So there you have it. Post Bound Albums have made a come back in this house. It may not be as inexpensive as the ones I was using before, but it is less expensive then CM and I generally don't put a price on quality since for me, that is the most important part. It needs to last the test of time. I want my kids and their kids to enjoy these albums long after I am gone. Instead of just shoving pictures into a photo book, I love creating pages where a little of me shines through. My Grandma scrapbooks and when I have had the wonderful opportunity to look through them I see her in every page. Not just the events and photos, but my grandma is present through each album. Each page. And I love it.
Regardless of what style album you decide is best for you, get those photos in an album! You can do as little or as much scrapbooking as you want! We have options where you just slide your photos right in! Picture My Life Cards can replace a photo and provide a quote, journal box, or pop of color!
Happy Crafting!