Project Life Page Two - On Day One

Second double layout completed for the boys' album.  I am pleased with it, but am finding it very slow going.  From editing the photos, to getting them developed, and then configuring which type of protector to put the photos into - before you even start to fill the pockets. 

Despite all the above, I know that this is the best way to scrapbook and document the boys' lives.  Their showcase layouts and albums are lovely, but still miss out the majority of the journalling and the day to day events.  I am nothing if not ambitious, and this type of format will also incorporate my pregnancy journal, and my blog posts of their lives to date, so I always find that the organisation of everything is the key to completing the project successfully. 

Here's the left page, "Boys Meet World":

 

The top two photos are of Henry and the bottom one is of Lewis.  We are very fortunate to have had Tara visit us so early, as she was the one who took the bulk of the pictures. 

 

Here's the right page, "On Day One":

 

 

The top layer of photos are of Lewis (with Moira) and the middle layer are of Henry.  I love quotes and keep spending more time on the internet to find suitable ones!

 

Only as high as I reach can I grow

Only as far as I seek can I go,

Only as deep as I look can I see,

Only as much as I dream can I be.

Karen Ravn

 

And both pages as a double:

 

 

I am quite amazed how happy I am to be using my oldest supplies, and the oldest techniques: vellum, sticking bits of paper onto printer paper to superimpose the printing onto confined areas and the like. I am very happy to have used this piece of paper - I don't think I would have in a different style album format and really like the energy it adds to the spread.   

 

I am also working on a more up to date part at the same time, and find I am using up loads of rub-ons  and a paper pad with stickers and die-cut embellishments - all things which I thought I would never use!

 

I have decided not to worry to try and get all the journalling on the exact same page - I will fit that onto the next page, and do a couple of days at a time.  There will be less journalling as the time goes on, and as I hopefully will be more up to date, it will be easier to plan in real time. 

 

Supplies:

Bazzill Basics cardstock

K and Co Que Sera Sera "Butterfly Garden"

K and Co Mira Tag Pad

K and Co Juliana Die Cut Sticker

American Crafts Remarks Rub-Ons

Quote Sticker included with Creating Keepsakes

Stampin' Up Papillon Potpourri stamps

American Crafts Thickers Black Tie Velvet letter stickers

Making Memories star ribbon

Blue Vellum

Occasions Assorted Craft Stickers (nappy pin)

My Mind's Eye Love Me Do "Head in the Clouds" patterned paper

Cloud 9 Designs Alyssa's Garden Quote Cards

Denim Basics Pearls - Kaisercraft

Sizzix Scalloped Square Framelits

 

What do you think - do you scrapbook in this method?  What are your views?

Thanks for stopping by.  :)





Twenty Two month update

Every day, you are interacting more and more with each other - you set the giggles off in each other, and also the naughtiness! You are trying my patience frequently and becoming ever more acrobatic in terms of climbing, jumping on furniture and attempting to push the TV over!

Daddy has started this game called "Flying Baby" and you both absolutely love it.  The photos in this post were all taken 13.05.13.  You both adore playing with Daddy when he is at home. 

 

Henry in the air ....

 

 

Lewis at flight take off. 

 

 

Henry on the launching pad ... 

 

And over we go. 

 

 

 

Hovering up in the air ...

 

And full steam ahead. 

Lewis, whilst you are really good at flying! you are going through a weird phase of not eating proteins or home cooked meals.  It is very exasperating and frustrating. 

You both are much better with a spoon now and have been feeding yourselves after a fashion for quite a while.  You won't win any prizes for neatness but then that's what life is about!

23rd Apr - I have had a cold for a few days now, and was sneezing quite a lot.  You both thought it was so funny when I kept throwing my head back and emitting an enormous "aaaa-aaa-atchoo!" You do that quite often now and I think it is just so funny. 

29th Apr - Henry, you were hilarious today - you still think the things you see on TV can be touched and are alive.  You followed Upsy Daisy's bed with your hand around the TV and you think "In the Night Garden" is a great laugh.  The episode with Iggle Piggle and the tiddle was a scream!

One day, I changed the bed.  Finding the base sheet was threadbare and had a split in the middle, we went to throw it away.  Before we did that, however, Daddy had a little game with you and played ghosts in the sheet and made spooky noises "oooo oooo ooooooooohhhhh oooohhh".  Lewis, you took it all in your stride and were quite phlegmatic and loved it when Daddy covered you with the sheet too.  Henry, you didn't recognise Daddy and really didn't like it.

Lewis, you are presently Henry's shadow and follow him everywhere around the house. 

I got the ball pool out again yesterday (13th May) and I really wish I could capture on film the absolute joy and delight you both express when I tip all the balls out of the bag very slowly over your heads.  You really love to see all the bright colourful balls tip over you and the volume of giggles and happy screams was quite astonishing! 

I introduced eating with two spoons on 1st May after Roberta's recommendation, and it really did make sense as a precursor to eating with a knife and fork.  Sometimes it also gives you more ammunition to fling food around, but thankfully that is happening less frequently as time goes on.  I thank you and the carpet thanks you! 

Henry you also said "Old McDona" on this day. 

Daddy and I went into the garden on Friday, 5th May and Henry you were playing football in the garden with Daddy.  You also very clearly said "NO" on this day and I have been hearing it more frequently ever since!

Saturday, 4th May - Daddy likes to have a hiding place for sweeties and he regularly goes to these places to pull out little treats for you.  Today Daddy changed the hiding place and Lewis, when you went looking for "wee wee" Henry pulled you by the tank top from the old place to the new one!  I don't really approve, but Daddy thought it was so funny. 

Monday, 5th May - Henry - "Am" = Ham. 
Tuesday, 6th May - Lewis - "All gone!" As clear as a bell. 

I can't wait to see what you do next! 
With lots of love
Mummy x

May Scrapology Card Challenge - Use your Stash!

 This month over at Scrapology, I challenged the DT to make a card using stash!  I often sit down with a specific target in mind to use something up.  Well in this case - it was file folders. 

Many, many moons ago, I bought a huge kit from K and Co from the shopping channel, as you do when you first start crafting.  I had been diligent and used up things, gave most of the last bits away, and thus the kit had gone.  However, there were still a whole wodge of file folders lurking about - funny bits of card in all shapes, sizes and colours.  I kept them in a small drawer, along with my pearls and bling, and every time I tried to open the drawer, it would get stuck because of these dashed things!

One day I got so fed up that I thought "right - you will be my next target"! And so I got to and started cutting them up. 

 

The above card used up some eyelets - don't look at my wonky sticking of the different rectangles!

 

 

A male card - you can see the crease in the file folder, but I could live with that.  Also using up some ribbon. 

 

 

The file folder is the dotty design above - also did some stamping for another male card. 

 

 

Stamping on the tag - recycled from a friend at Christmas! and the pink file folder is also covered with flowers. 

 

 

Can you see a theme developing?  I used up photo corners and the decoupaged rose which I cut out and stamped on the banner.

 

Probably the most simple - using up rub-ons, and the crocheted flowers with the brads in the middle.  I could live with the distressed rub-ons - as the card was folksy in feel. 

 

 

The above is probably my favourite - I used up some stickers from the Pound shop, lots of flowers, eyelets and that butterfly felt ribbon.  I love the colours and I put lots of Stickles on the flowers and butterflies. 

 

I stamped the background of the card, and used lots more Stickles.  The die cut swirl was in my "miscellaneous" bag where I fling bits and leftovers of previous projects to use again.  I matted the file folder on light pink paper and sticklesed around the border.  ("Sticklesed" - a new verb! :lol:)

 

The above used stickers, and the flower.  This time, I actually used the folder as a folder - how original of me - whoo! :D

 

 

Probably the card I liked the least - I am not a fan of sludgy Victorian colours, but I know some people love them.  The file folder was the base of the flower - this time I was more concerned at using that patterned paper up!

I hope this post has given you some inspiration as to how to use up some unlove items in your stash.  I was mostly pleased with how the cards turned out - they went as a present to a friend for her birthday and she said she was pleased with them as she doesn't make cards herself. 

As a prize this month, I have put together a kit - you guessed it! - from my stash.  It is vintage in feel, with peachy and teal tones. 



I would love to see what you have made from your stash!  Happy crafting! x



FOR SALE!

I am going to try and direct traffic to here, so that I can just list everything substantial for sale in one place. 

Add on paypal, postage/courier charges to all prices:

• Woodware trimmer, plus 8 blades plus storage case - £25
• Clip it Up System by Renee -  Basic Tier plus Upper Tiers, plus loads of swivel clips and some plastic embellishment wallets - £50

There's loads of other little bits to go like stamp sets, BULK! patterned paper etc, and I will try and list it as and when. 

There will be a table top sale at S and D Crafts, Iver, Buckinghamshire which I am doing this Saturday, 11th May with the smaller items so if you're available, come and grab a bargain! 

Epiphany

Well - actually, I've had a couple over the past few weeks -

Firstly - yes, I really am emigrating to Australia- or going home - and things will be sitting in storage for quite a while.  There is a difference between knowing it intellectually, and having the realisation of what this change means in practical life terms.  In reality, I won't have access to most of my craft tools and bulk supplies for ages and ages - certainly not at Mum and Dad's, maybe not in rented accommodation - and maybe not until we buy a house, however long away that might be. 

So therefore it really didn't make sense to hang on to certain things.  My philosophy up until now has been "hang on to it - it will always come in useful, and I could always use it here or there .... " Well, I haven't done a bad job - but I will have moved on again in a couple of years, so time to let most of it go. 

I have been destashing and decluttering a good while now.  I freecycled my fibres and other bits of wool and materials.  I gave away my lovely stash of antique buttons and other vintage clunky bits.  I have pulled useful bits out of magazines and filed them - haven't quite finished that process, but nearly there.  A solid week at that, and it will done. 

Now for the bigger stuff!  I've now sold my Cricut and most of the cartridges.  This has been firstly inspired by this epiphany, but secondly - we need the money.  Thirdly - I need to downsize.  Fourthly - I will aspire to a Silhouette Cameo at some point.  I've been wondering how people have done stuff lately, and all of a sudden it just dawned on me.  That is what I need!

So the selling will continue, and I will just keep going through things and thin them out. 

Secondly - I am changing the way I scrapbook the everyday stuff.  You could call it "Project Life" - but I've been scrapbooking my holiday projects like this for a few years now.  I called it "functional scrapbooking" - and really it is just using divided page protectors.  I suppose I am moving back to a decorated photo album - but more importantly - which also tells the stories in more detail than a normal scrapbook page. 

I will still continue to do showcase layouts - but really only for very special photos, or if I feel like being arty.  I need to fit in more photos, and more stories - but where I will differ from Project Life (or maybe not the theory, but how most people do it) is that I won't be restricted to a page per week.  It will be in chronological order, but most importantly, it will celebrate my boys' milestones as they happen.  Just as well I've been semi-up to date with my blog posts about the boys! I've also written the seminal stuff on our calendar, so that week to week, I can easily scoop it up to go into that scrapbook page.  I don't need so many supplies - I can use office stuff if I have to - but I can just print out the photos, slot them into a few slots, and even scribble some journalling onto a scrap piece of paper, and come back and fill it in properly later. 

That way, I won't get too behind with their chronology, no matter what other madness life decides to throw at us concurrently.  At least, that's my plan - at the moment, it seems as clear as a bell as to how it will work - we will have to wait and see. 

In the meantime, this is my first double page:

 

Left:

 

 Right:





I've already noticed quite a few pros and cons in this new process:

Pros

• I can go through and slot in photos as and when
• I use a LOT of stash! and from a load of different manufacturers
• Cheaper for photo developing in the longer term
• I was already using a lot of old stash, but I've managed to use somethings from very very early on in my scrapbooking life!

Cons

• Maybe it is this page, but I wanted to make it special - so still very time consuming
• I will need to go back to editing a bunch of photos at a time, to upload them to a digital processor
• You need to have a vision of how your pages will come together over the divided page protectors - I can really see the beauty of buying "Project Life" kits, which are already coordinated and cut to size.  That would save HEAPS of time, but then I wouldn't be using up my own stash!

It is my first double page with this new process, after all.  So I am sure it will get quicker!  But it also means a new way of working too - organisation by theme, rather than what I had before.  I've also started to go through and refine my organisation of stash - alphas into big chipboard, and now smaller letters.  A Cropper Hopper for quotes and journalling labels, stickers etc.  Then if I decide I want a quote on one section, I can go to that Cropper Hopper to file through.

So - a whole new way of looking at almost everything scrapbooking related, that's for sure!

Supplies:
Bazzill Basics Cardstock
Patterned papers: First Edition "Up Up and Away" paper stack, Kaisercraft Hey Birdie collection "Hightail", plus unknown scrap from a stack I was given nearly 9 years ago
Cricut Home Accents cartridge "Family" (my last use!)
Basic Grey White Chocolate Chip "Beckham" micro chip stickers
Pink Paislee "Captivating" sticker book - blue alphas
MM Star and Tiny Alphas on White
Artemio Felt "Baby and Bears"
PSX Designs "Fairy Tales" stickers
Autumn Leaves "Romance of Spring" clear stamps by Sande Kreiger
MAMBI rhinestone words "Beautiful"

If you've made it this far, phew! well done. Thanks for joining me in my journey.  :)

Sketchy Scrappers Layout April

Hello everyone -

This is the sketch that the lovely Sandra set for us this month over at UK Scrappers:

 

And here is my take on it:

 

The pictures are of Lewis taken on 31.12.12 when they got a bag of balls from their Aunty Katrina for Christmas.  Lewis loves playing with balls and even though the main picture is out of focus, I just adore the expression on his face as he is having so much fun!

 

Tara cleaned out some of her baby supplies a little while ago and I inherited some bits off her.  She gave me a really cute pack of epoxy stickers which were of baby animals, toys and some letters.  Weirdly enough, some of the letters were covered in epoxy resin and some weren't.  It was easy enough to replicate this for the "t" by covering it with Glossy Accents and you can't tell the difference. 

 

I found it difficult to just stick to the sketch and kept feeling like I wanted to add more. But less is definitely more, isn't it?

 

Supplies:

"Scoot" Element Stickers Echo Park

Jo Sonja Acrylic paints:  "Cornflower", "Sunflower", "Seedlings"

Cardstock:  Bazzill

Patterned Papers: Echo Park Splash - "Big Dots", "Big Stripes", "Mini Stripes"

Occasions Assorted Craft Stickers

 

Also entering this into the Echo Park challenge for NSD about someone you love - and I certainly do love Lewis - at all times of course, but especially when he is having such fun like this! :)

 

Thanks for looking! :) x





NSD Challenge - Echo Park Summer Card

Well, I have managed to do at least one challenge on  (Inter) National Scrapbooking Day - a quick card whilst my toddler twins are asleep!

The first challenge on the Echo Park Blog was to create a card that celebrates summer.  This was quite easy for me to do, as my current favourite range to scrap with is Echo Park.  It is lovely, bright and graphic, and I love that the ranges intermingle with the common use of colour. 



 I think it will be a great teenage boy birthday card.

I raised the end two surfboards and the flipflops on foam pads to give the card some dimensionality, and outlined everything with a sand coloured ink. 

Supplies:
EP Paradise Beach "On the Shore" - card background
EP Splash "Big Waves" - the blue wave part!
EP Paradise Beach "Hang Ten" - surfboards
EP Paradise Beach "Flip Flops" - see a theme developing here!

I found the Making Memories Noteworthy Tiny Alphas "Tara" which went perfectly with the card.  Thanks for looking!