When it comes to crafting holiday scrapbooks, it’s not necessary to make every page as electrifying as the Griswold’s home in “National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation.” Rather, there are plenty of ways to celebrate the season with more subtle touches. For example, instead of going to extremes covering your pages with bright colors, large graphics and other extreme elements, consider softer embellishments that don’t overpower your photos or mementos. After all, if you want the focus of the layout to be your family’s treasured pictures, then attaching tons of extraneous bells and whistles will only interfere with this goal. Conversely, featuring too much white space on your layouts can be just as distracting. When I want my photos to be the highlight of a holiday-themed spread, I typically reduce the number of elaborate embellishments and include a few relevant poems or quotes, such as:
“Perhaps the best Yuletide decoration is being wreathed in smiles.”- Unknown
“At Christmas play and make good cheer, for Christmas comes but once a year.”- Thomas Tusser
“Christmas is for children. But it is for grown-ups too. Even if it is a headache, a chore, and nightmare, it is a period of necessary defrosting of chill and hide-bound hearts.”- Lenora Mattingly Weber
“Oh, for the good old days when people would stop Christmas shopping when they ran out of money.”- Unknown
“May the spirit of Christmas bring you peace, The gladness of Christmas give you hope, The warmth of Christmas grant you love.”- Author Unknown
“Like snowflakes, my Christmas memories gather and dance – each beautiful, unique and too soon gone.”- Deborah Whipp
A Christmas Tree
One little star on the top of the tree,
Two little presents underneath for me,
Three silver ropes twisted around the tree,
Four colored lights shining prettily,
Five shining balls flowing silvery.
Oh, what a sight for use to see!