Pioneering the future of scrapbooking...
Written: Mar 27 '03
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Product Rating:
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Pros: Easy to use and economical... Acid-free & photo safe!
Cons: Vinyl pages can become scuffed or tear...
The Bottom Line: The Pioneer EZ Load Mulberry scrapbook is a beautiful album that can be used to store special occasion photos that will be cherished for years.
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| susan1118's Full Review: Pioneer E-z Load Scrapbook 12x12 Textured Mulberry... |
Scrapbookers, memory keepers, and photo freaks all need a place to keep their treasured pictures and mementos… I am a self-described “scrapbooking-junkie”. After trying various types of albums and books, I have come to appreciate the simple and economical Pioneer Albums.
Pioneer 12x12 easy-load albums fit any standard 12x12 paper – Specialty paper is available in different prints and patterns at your local craft supply or scrapbooking store. Pictures can be mounted on the paper with tape or glue. Pioneer provides a lifetime warranty with each album: If anything should go wrong with any Pioneer photo album or it's pages Pioneer will repair or replace it at no cost.
Availability & Price?
I have seen the Pioneer Mulberry Album at a few local craft stores, as well as in the craft sections of supercenter stores like Target and WalMart. I purchased the album about 6 months ago at my local Target for $15. I have seen the album priced slightly higher at specialty craft stores.
Appearance?
Mulberry paper is a traditionally handmade paper, where the process is considered to be an ancient art that originated in China around 105 AD. The paper is rough and very natural looking, having been made from the bark of mulberry trees. The Pioneer Mulberry Album has a cover that is made of mulberry paper (hence the name). The mulberry paper is a thick, rich cream colored paper with various lilac, pink, and yellow flower petals pressed into the paper. The album cover has some leaves and other greenery pressed into it as well. The flower petals and pressed leaves are evenly dispersed throughout the paper, yet in no specific pattern. The naturally uneven texture of the paper can be felt on the cover of the album. The album is protected by a clear vinyl “jacket”, which wraps around the album (protecting the mulberry paper from damage). This happens to be one of the most elegant photo / scrapbooking albums that I have ever seen!
Durability?
First off, Pioneer manufactures all their products to be archival, photo safe, acid-free and PVC- free. This is important to prevent discoloration and deterioration of photos with age. The Album comes with ten “EZ load” page protectors, where each “EZ load” page protector is a made of two sheets of clear vinyl that are seamed together on three sides, with the top side open. The topside is left open because this is how you load your scrapbook pages into the album. The 12x12 scrapbook pages that you create can be placed back-to-back in the EZ load page protector in order to create one “page”. Pioneer provides a 12x12 piece of white cardstock in each vinyl page protector. This cardstock can be used to mount photos on, it can be removed, or it can be left in between the scrapbook pages you create. I usually leave the cardstock in between the scrapbook pages that I created in order to provide extra reinforcement to the page protector.
The Pioneer vinyl page protectors are uniform across their product line. I have seen heavier vinyl used with other brands of albums, however I have always found the Pioneer page protectors to be sufficient. The vinyl page protectors will encounter normal wear and tear, such as possible scuff marks or tears in the vinyl. If this happens, you can easily fix the damage with a replacement page protector. Pioneer sells replacement page protectors in packs of five, which can also be used to expand the album with.
The album is held together with stainless steel screw posts. There are two of these posts that screw together through the binding to hold the cover and pages together. When you purchase expansion page protectors for your album, Pioneer will provide extra stainless steel screw posts to expand the book with. I have never encountered a problem with these posts (no rust, no breaks), and I do not find it necessary to always use the expansion posts when adding more pages. I would say that for every 10 – 15 pages that I add into a book, I need to add on another screw-in post.
Why Pioneer?
The Pioneer Mulberry Album is the perfect design for capturing a lot of special occasion photos and memorabilia. My mulberry album houses all of the candid, nonprofessional pictures that were taken by friends and family at my wedding as well as snapshots from the engagement, bridal shower, and honeymoon. The mulberry paper dresses up the basic Pioneer album, making it somewhat of a “special occasion album”. Anyone from a beginning scrapbooker to your most advanced and knowledgeable scrapbooker can count on Pioneer albums as an easy and photo-safe way to compile cherished pictures and mementos.
Recommended:
Yes
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Epinions.com ID:
susan1118
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Location: Philadelphia, PA
Reviews written: 10
Trusted by: 4 members
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