Marketing for Romance Writers Magazine September, 2019 Volume # 2, Issue # 9 | Seite 16

AUGUST, 2019
SCRAPBOOKING
By: Liese Sherwood-Fabre
The Enduring
Interest
in
Scrapbooking
Scrapbooking
offers a means for
people to preserve
memories—
through photos,
news clippings or
other announce-
ments, or other small mementos such as
ticket stubs or programs. While it became
a much more commercial endeavor in
the 1990s, its roots go back much fur-
ther. The first use of the term
“scrapbook” (meaning a book with blank
pages for pasting items onto them) was
recorded
in
1821.
The
verb
“scrapbooking” first appeared in 1879
and was popularized by Mark Twain.
Prior to the rise in preference for this
term, a person would merely “scrap.” (1)
Even before the term “scrapbook”
gained popularity, the practice existed.
People recorded personal thoughts and
experiences in blank-paged journals and
diaries since the Middle Ages. By the
Renaissance period, “commonplace
16
books” were used to record quotes and
notes from different sources. The inven-
tion of the printing press provided more
access to books and other printed materi-
als and keeping notes on all these ideas
represented people’s response to this first
“information overload.” (2)
By the 1800s, as newspapers and
other daily or weekly publications flour-
ished, information became much more
transitory, changing with each edition of
the paper or magazine. To preserve items
of interest, many read with “a pair of
scissors in hand” like Louisa May Alcott;
ready to “scissorize” and paste their
“gleanings” into scrapbooks. The popu-
larity of this hobby also affected newspa-
per production. Dailies would actually
provide short articles of interest
(sometimes from foreign papers as well
as other publications) labeled “for your
scrapbook.” (3) As popularity of the
hobby increased, it shifted toward a more
feminine pursuit. (4)
Marielen Christensen ushered in the
modern age of scrapbooking at the 1980
World Conference on Records. At the
invitation of organizers, she displayed
fifty scrapbooks with
her
unique photo-
graphic and record-
keeping system that
resonated with partici-
pants. Afterwards, she
returned to Spanish
Fork, Utah, and opened the first store
dedicated to scrapbooking. (5)
With the popularity of Pinterest and
similar sites, the collection of memories
and photos has moved into the digital
age and increased sharing among enthusi-
asts. At the same time, holding a concrete
bit of history has not completely faded
away. When certain events occur, such as
the election of Barak Obama, newspapers
still sell out despite extra print runs. (6)
With the commercialization of the
hobby, it has also become more social,
with stores or friends inviting others to
create albums together, sharing designs
and ideas (7)—as well as sharing the goal
of preserving a bit of history. (8)
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