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Passion on Paper: Tribute Album is My Latest Scrapbook Obsession
 by Heidi Swapp
Mesa, Arizona
Featured in Legacy - Autumn '03

In February 2003 my father-in-law, Ron, turned 60. For his birthday, he wanted all the people he loved to meet him in Grand Cayman for a "Meet Joe Black" birthday party. We wanted to buy Ron something significant for this special birthday, something you can't buy in a store, so I was asked to compile a book of letters and photos that would be sent to me by all who would be attending the party.

I wanted to create a unique and interactive book. I wanted Ron to sit for a long time and open every nook and cranny to find all the letters and all the memories. I wanted it to be a journey for him.
 
I am lucky enough to know Steven and Donna Smilie, owners of 7gypsies (manufacturer of albums, journals, paper and other scrapbook supplies), and Steven agreed to bind the book for me.
 
I printed some letters on cardstock so I could bind them directly into the book, and some on letter-weight paper so I could tuck them in envelopes and pockets.
I had a wide range of photos to work with, and I decided not to try to organize them chronologically. Instead I grouped them by people.
 
I arranged the pages in the order I wanted from front to back, then we separated the book into pieces that would bind from the right and from the left.
I think that my sewing machine was the most important tool in creating this album. I sewed in pockets and places to tuck things. I sewed together little books that were bound into the album, and layers of photos so they would flip up.
The book took about 42 hours to complete. It isn't one you can just flip through; when it's open, it measures more than 3 feet wide. You have to note the little page numbers on each layer to know precisely how to close it.