{DIY} Paper Bag Souvenir Scrapbook

By Deborah Pace Rowley

My daughter Shannon created this darling Souvenir Scrapbook for her friend Abbi who is going on a trip around Europe with her grandparents. She made it out of some paper bags, some lace, and two buckles from Hobby Lobby. I think this project cost her about $5.00!

She wanted Abbi to have someplace to collect all the small souvenirs from her trip that would otherwise get lost along the way. Each paper bag had an image of what she was to collect in that paper bag.

This bag is to hold pressed flowers from some beautiful Italian field or Swiss mountainside.

This bag is for pocket-sized maps that she collects along the way. 

This bag is for the tickets stubs from plays or concerts that she attends. 

This bag is for menus from quaint sidewalk cafes and restaurants. 

The key is for hotel key cards or some other type of souvenir from her hotels. 

This bag can hold any little treasures that Abbi finds on her adventure. 

This is my favorite bag. Shannon included some confetti for Abbi to throw off the Eiffel Tower. Then she can add her own souvenir from this iconic landmark to the bag. 

There are a few other pages that I didn't include here and then the front cover says Europe 2013.

To create this book, Shannon simply cut the bottoms off 10 paper bags. Then she choose black and white images online and ran each paper bag through our printer. She tested the placement of the image on a white piece of paper first and then taped the paper bag directly above the image and ran the piece of paper through the printer again. She didn't have any problem with the printer jamming or getting hung up on the paper bags. 

Once all the images were printed, she glued the cut sides together with a hot glue gun. Then she added ribbon and lace to hold the whole book together. Both the buckles and black lace she picked up at Hobby Lobby. 

The lace was perfect because it had the holes she needed to stick the buckles through. And the package of buckles came with their own brads to secure them to the book. I thought this was such an original and fun gift idea. Imagine the possibilities!

A souvenir scrapbook the kids could add to on vacation...

Or that a senior could compile on a college road trip...

How about a souvenir scrapbook a child could create to make his or her stay at Grandma's and Grandpa's house even more memorable.

Or a souvenir scrapbook a family could create of their old house before they move... or their new house once they arrive. 

What type of things would you collect in a souvenir scrapbook for a brand new baby?

Or what items would you cherish in a souvenir scrapbook from your wedding day? 

I guess the real question is, Where will your next paper bags take you?