nyd 2014

When I saw that the January mood board at Jot magazine said to think confetti and celebration, I knew this photo of my friend Carly and I throwing a bag of confetti into the air on New Year's Day would be perfect.

The mood board also said to mix in string, so thought I would string my layout components across two pieces of twine. The top row is 3 doilies I folded in half over the twine and then I placed another piece of twine below it and strung my photo and embellishments along it. I really love the added dimension the row of doilies adds.

I don't think I have a single purple item in my entire stash, so I misted some Studio Calico mistable thickers purple for my title. I filled a small glassine baggy with sequins and layered a few die cuts from Maggie Holme's Open Book ephemera pack. I added in a few pieces of seam binding and some enamel dots. I just tried to tuck items behind others wherever I could to fill up the line and make it look nice and bulky.

More die cuts and the ''you and me'' is from a 12x12 cut apart sheet from the Open Book line. I used a few small clothespins to 'hold' everything on the string

I punched some patterned paper with my confetti punch and used my hole punch to punch some gold glitter pow paper. I then painstakingly glued each individual confetti piece onto the page.

Also, pink ombré woodgrain paper? My three favourite things in a patterned paper all on one sheet. I think my head almost exploded the first time I saw it. This piece from the Open Book line is my new all time favourite piece of patterned paper. I can't even believe I used it instead of hoarding it.

I had a lot of fun with this mood board. I love seeing all the different ways everyone in the link party is interpreting the mood board.

december documented days 1 to 12

I'm posting December 1 through 12 today of my December documented album using the Hip Kit Club's November kit.

Dec 1 is my mom's birthday. I layered a shipping tag with one of the kraft numbers on a gold doily and a few enamel dots.

Dec 2- since the day before was a see through pocket, I did the same thing for today's number, however with a silver doily. I love the Elle's Studio journaling cards that came with the kit.

Day 3 was all about Andy's favourite Christmas movie. He calls it the "Christmas tree movie" so I added some enamel dots to a wood veneer tree and tucked some Tim holtz film reel behind the shipping tag.

Day 4- I added in some things from my stash and those pink thickers were one of them. I thought they went perfectly with the colours of the kit.

Dec 5- I cut apart the paper with diamonds and just used the grey and turquoise ones to make this mini layout.

Dec 6 was my mom's birthday celebration, so I thought it deserved a large 6x8 photo. I used the Maggie Holmes clip to hold the number on. I love the way it looks sticking out the top of the album.

Dec 7 was all about writing out our Christmas cards. I'm going to add one of our Christmas cards to the album using the basic grey attach me stickers.

Dec 8 was visiting Santa. I have to add a 3x4 photo of Andy visiting santa last year because he looks so different!

Dec 9 dinner with friends was a mini layout and I cut some triangles out of the patterned paper to match the kraft 9.

Dec 10 was an average busy December day of errands. I added some of the studio calico silver rub on stars to the calendar page. 

Dec 11 was a huge snowstorm and Andy was sick, so it got 2 pages. I love the wood veneer letters that came with the kit.

Dec 12 was decorating our gingerbread house, so there were lots of photos. I just adore how much Elle's Studio stuff came in this kit. Her Christmas line was just amazing this year!

This is all I have done of my album so far, but I really want to finish it before January ends so I really have to get working. 

splash

I just love the sketches at Paper Issues. I've participated in every Sketchy Saturday so far and my most favourite layout I have ever made was actually based on the first Sketch. But I'll be honest, I really struggled with this sketch. It sounds weird, but I don't like circles. I have a hard time using them and they're just my least favourite shape to use in scrapbooking. 

But then Cassie Box posted this layout and it just blew my mind! Of course I didn't have to stick with circles, I could make the sketch my own. After thinking a bit and then deciding on using photos of Andy jumping in puddles, I knew my shape would be clouds.

I've had this old wood veneer frame from Crate Paper for ages and finally found the perfect project for it. It's not exactly cloud shaped, but it has the same characteristics.

I cut two more photos into cloud shapes and I won't even tell you how long it took me to make a cloud pattern... it's embarrassing how long and in the end, I still had to trace something. I am so not artistic like that!

I also used some wood veneer clouds that came in an older Studio Calico kit.

I lightly misted some Studio Calico clouds and rain drops and randomly placed them around the page. I also punched some clouds out of vellum and placed them behind some of the clouds and one of the pictures for some added dimension.

The background paper is Studio Calico too. This was definitely way, way out of  my comfort zone using such a big pattern as my background paper, but I really love it. 

Another Sketchy Saturday is in the books. I definitely get a little too excited for a new sketch to come out and I think it's safe to say now that two of my most favourite layouts ever are based on Paper Issues sketches. Thank you Paper Issues and Cassie for the inspiration this month!

november project life

I did all of our November Project Life spreads using Crate Paper Notes and Things line and Maggie Holmes' Open Book line. I know I've said it many times before, but I just adore these lines. I was a little late to the game trying to order them and every online store I checked only had part of the lines. Then I found Paper Issues and they had almost every item I wanted and the owner offered to order me the items that they didn't have! Amazing. My order shipped crazy fast (the day after I ordered) and I could not be happier with my experience shopping at Paper Issues. Their customer service is out of this world.

I was really excited when I got all the lovely product to fill the remaining pages of our Project Life album with it. I decided to stop our album at the end of November this year and will just document December with my December Documented album.

My youngest nieces first birthday party, seeing Book of Mormon, swim class, and preparing the garden for winter. I love that "e" tag that came in the Open Book die cut pack. Perfect for a photo of sweet Evening Grey.

Celebrating Brandon's birthday with all my friends and Andy playing so sweetly with his dollhouse. That Good Times card is the perfect shade of hot pink.

Visiting Andy's future preschool for the first time, seeing Ryan Adams, poker tournament, crazy snow wall, and finding out I need a root canal/I have an abscessed tooth.

Those gold glitter thickers are some of my favourites, but I'm running low on them so I mix up the upper and lower cases to spell the words I want. I used my trusty Dymo label maker with gold tape on the bottom left pocket.

I used a slick writer on the top right photo, however it's running out of ink so it did not photograph very well. I love that mint green with gold polka dot card that came with the Notes and Things journal card set. I could definitely use a bunch more of those. Also, I just love those gold foil thickers!!

Decorating the house and tree, hockey games, book club, sledding and the very early arrival of my dear friend's baby.

I really love those gold foil phrase stickers, but they are impossible to photograph.That deer head card was perfect filler for photos of decorating for Christmas.

Derek took his nephews to a Sabres game, so he journalled about it for the album. Love when he does that! I really liked that some of the journal cards from Notes & Things have dimension to them. The card on the bottom right has the pink tag layered over the card and then a label layered over that and they're both sewn down. It really adds something extra to the album to not have everything flat. I love a lumpy album!

Hard to believe another year of Project Life is done. To be honest, I still don't know what I'm going to do for 2015. 12x12 again? Monthly again or go back to weekly? Jump on the 9x12 train? Do 1 12x12 album for our family and a 6x8 just for me? I probably should have decided all this before January 1st, but here we are almost a week into the new year and I'm still undecided. Oh well. For now, I'm just going to continue taking photos and keeping memorabilia and it will all work out in the end.

Have you decided what you're going to do for Project Life this year? 

favourite andy

Every Friday, Kim, the owner of Hip Kit Club, posts a weekend challenge to the Hip Kit Facebook forum. I always have great intentions of participating, however as we are sorely lacking in daylight these days and I work Monday to Friday, I am never able to get a layout finished and photographed in time.... until now that is. 

This weekend's challenge was to use a grid to document some highlights from 2014. Derek and I have talked a few times that I should do a layout using all the photos I take of Andy sleeping. I frequently sneak into his room at night and take photos of him. Especially if Derek is working a late shift, I always go in, take a picture and text it to him. This challenge was the perfect way to document my favourite photos I have taken this year. 

I have wanted those wonky wood veneer stars since they came out and I was never able to find them. I was over the moon when I was able to purchase two packs recently from a woman online at a very reasonable price. I'm pretty sure you're going to be seeing them on basically every project from here on out.

Derek and I like to joke and say that sleeping Andy is our favourite Andy. He is just so sweet, adorable and peaceful when he's sleeping. I can't get enough of it.

This quote is on one of the journalling cards from Crate Paper's Notes & Things line. The card is pink though and just didn't work with this colour scheme. I typed the same sentiment onto a grey shipping tag that I cut to the size I required and then adhered a wood veneer cloud.

My motto usually is "if you don't know what to do, stick a doily on it".

Or stick a gold chipboard camera on it. 

This was such a fun challenge and I was so happy I was finally able to participate. Looking forward to the next one.

december documented album and cover pages

I can't believe that Christmas is over already. It is hands down my favourite holiday. I spend so much time thinking about it, planning for it, spending money for it, and then it seems like it is over in a flash. Thanks to this amazing project though, I am able to keep Christmas with me for a little bit longer.

I used the November hip kit club kit and embellishment kit for my December Documented album this year. I absolutely loved the colours in the kit. All of my favourites for Christmas. I also used some items from Hip Kit's December Documented kit and some items from my stash. 

For the album, I used a plain chipboard Handbook that I covered in 2 coats of Gesso and 3 coats of white acrylic paint. I then covered it with a layer of Mister Huey's Shine, however it got a little splotchy. 

For the front, I just glued the "December 2014" wood veneer from Elle's Studio. To the spine, I adhered a frame and a wood veneer snowflake that I added silver glitter embossing powder. 

For the cover page, I used a page protector with 12 2x2 spots. I just added little bits and pieces to each pocket. I just love the see through element to most of them. 

And this is what it looks like outside of the album.



Since we actually decorated our tree in November, I added some photos of my favourite ornaments to the back of the page. 

I used a 6x8 photo of one of our trees on the next page and strung the letters spelling 'merry' like a garland across the photo. 

On the back of the photo, I printed this December calendar at 6x8 and just layered that amazing gold glitter tape with some washi at the bottom.



Right now I have up to Day 12 done and am really hoping to have everything done by the end of January before I lose my Christmas steam.

Have you done a December album? If so, please link your album in the comments, I would love to check them out!

the tilt and all is calm all is bright

Today it is old photos, old product, but new layouts. I was in a scrapping frenzy in November and really wanted to use up some older kits I had. The kits and photos are from 2012.

When I was pregnant, Derek and I bought Andy this 'ugly Christmas' shirt on clearance at Target. By the time Christmas came, Andy was almost too chubby to fit into it. The day we decorated the house, we put him in this outfit and set him in the chair for some photos. He tilted his head to the side and this will forever be one of my favourite photos of Andy.

I layered some stickers alone the side of the photo and a shipping and tag and label beneath for some added dimension.

Wood grain Thickers are my favourite. I have many packages in many fonts. They are such a great neutral for a title on any layout. I love that silver doily at the top. It was perfect for a Christmas themed layout.

I made this 8 1/2 x 11 layout about some of my favourite ornaments. A little stitching between the rows is definitely needed!

I backed two of the sqaures with gold POW paper. I just love that stuff. It is the prettiest gold colour.

Thanks for looking and I hope to post the first part of our December album in a few days. I really need to get going on that before I get burned out on Christmas.