Birthday gifts for and from digital scrapbookers

Since we are in birthday mode this month, I (Katie) thought it would be the perfect time to post about birthday gift ideas for the digital scrapbooker in your life. It is also a great time to think about what kinds of projects you as a digital scrapbooker could make to create meaningful gifts for others. Our team has been brainstorming up some great ideas for gifts and I’m so excited to share them with you!

FOR THE DIGITAL SCRAPBOOKER:

• A gift certificate to a favorite online store. This is my favorite gift to give because I can even send it via email (nice if you have family that lives far away like I do). Gift certificates are also my favorite gift to receive because I get to go digi shopping! If the recipient is new to digital scrapbooking, you might want to give them a few suggestions on what types of products they might consider using their gift certificate for.
• A gift card for The Daily Digi would be a fabulous present because the recipient would be able to try out a bunch of designers all at once! For only $5 you can give the gift of multiple high quality kits from the community’s best designers! My Dad bought my Mom a $60 gift to The Daily Digi for Christmas (smart guy!) so now she can by the files each month.
• Printing layouts is one of the biggest costs of digital scrapbooking so a gift certificate to a local photo processor (like Costco) would be appreciated. I had a difficult time finding online printing sites that offered gift cards, but I’m sure they exist (or will soon).
• Supplies like blank dvds and cds are great for backing up data. CD cases always come in handy. Thumbdrives are a fairly inexpensive gift that any digital scrapbooker will appreciate. An external hard drive makes a wonderful gift for anyone who takes a lot of pictures and/or collects a lot of digital supplies.
• The hybrid/digital scrapbooker will enjoy items like modge podge, a cropodile, blank board books and albums, ribbons, blank envelopes, and heavyweight paper. See Steph’s recommendation here.
• 12×12 (or 8×8) frames for the digital artist to display some of their creations. Blank albums and page protectors are also a very thoughtful gift.
• A stylish laptop bag. There are a lot of fun ones in stores like Target and Office Max or you can find some really creative styles on ETSY.
• Ergonomic digital scrapbook gifts like a laptop stand, or a new mouse. See my post on ergonomics here.
• Online education. This is such a fun gift to give. With all the options available, you can give anyone the gift of learning. Digital scrapbooking, photography, journaling, and design principles are all taught at wonderful sites like Big Picture Scrapbooking, Get It Scrapped, and Jessica Sprague. A gift certificate to any of those sites would be a much appreciated present!

FROM THE DIGITAL SCRAPBOOKER:

As a digtial scrapboker, you have the ability and supplies to make unique and meaningful gifts! This list could go on for pages! Here are a few ideas to get you started:

• A single scrapbook layout is a very meaningful gift. I often create a page for someone in my family who is having a birthday and post it on our family blog. It doubles as a card and a gift! I later send them a printed version of the page. I have given my parents blank albums to put these in, or sometimes I will frame the layout for them.
• Scrapbook layouts or even an album. I really can’t think of a more meaningful gift! I put my heart and soul into creating layouts so when I give them away, I really feel like I am giving a true gift.
• A digitally created card is a thoughtful way to remember someone on their special day. See my post on digital cards here and find a few more tips on this post.
• Hybrid projects and albums. I gave my nieces these sweet little abc & 123 albums, and my daughter loved her little school planner that are featured on this post. The same post has several other good hybrid gift ideas as well. The party post from the other day also has some fun ideas for gift bags and even printable games that would be great for gift giving.  Sunghee has some adorable hybrid projects on her blog to inspire you. The hybrid chick is an amazing resource for these type of ideas as well!
• Use digital word art and your photos to create one-of-kind pieces of art to give as gifts. Frame them to make them extra special! See my post on writing on your photos for more ideas.
• Sites like Shutterfly, Costco, and Scrapbook Pictures, all have fun photo-based gift products that make it easy to give something personal and creative.
• Calendars made from digital scrapbooking supplies are perfect for gift giving. Personalize your project by adding in family birthdays as well. See Steph’s great calendar post here.
• Turn your photos and/or scrapbook layouts into miniature masterpieces with Something Blue Studios magnets. These are really unique gifts and especially great for grandparents so they can show off their grandkids right on their refrigerator! Also a fun idea for students with lockers! These magnets are super thick and very high quality. I’ve ordered more than 50 of them over the past few years for gifts and I just love them – and so have the recipients!

Isn’t it fun to think of all the things you can do with a few digital supplies? Everyone on your gift giving list will think you are amazing when you give them something you have created. And if you have a birthday coming up, you might just want to forward this post on to someone who wants to make your day extra special. They will appreciate the hints!

P.S. Today’s GIFTaway winner is Kim N who was randomly selected from those that have purchased THE DIGI FILES so far this month!  Kim, you won a $10 GC to Michelle Underwood, check your inbox!