December Daily 2013: Foundation Pages

Ok, I'm going to say right up front, I love December Daily. 

This year, I chose a SN@P album - the red leather one - with their various pocketed page protectors. I added a few elements in advance but my plan is to leave room for pics first and then add things in as I go along.

What I did make in advance was a bunch of 5x7 pages for the 6x8 page protectors. I used watercolor paper that I cut down to 5x7 and a lot of glitter. And I mean a lot of glitter. There's something about Christmas that calls for glitter in my world.

And I made a plan. I sat down with my album and my calendar and added little notes in the pockets so that I know what's happening throughout the month. It's helping me think about what kind of pictures I need to take each day and how many I need.

Here are my foundation pages.

 The opening page.

Here's the back side.

I also added some pages from an old Christmas book that I cut up. Then I randomly put them in pockets throughout my album. I'm going to move them around as I need. I'll probably add more glitter. I mean, why stop now?

Here's a close up of that glitter star page. I used Wendy Vecchi's Embossing Paste and Tim Holtz's Distress Glitter in Platinum. The glitter didn't stick to the embossing paste so I sprayed the whole thing with a coat of sealer. It worked like a charm.

I love how these triangles turned out. It's lots of embossing powder and glitter. Yup, I had fun.

And some glitter drips. I think I may have gone too far with glitter drips but I'm leaving it in because I can always take it out and make a different page if I want.

And finally, some modelling creme from Viva decor through my Blazonry 6x6 stencil, some glitter and some glitter splats.

As you can see, my color scheme is gold and silver glitter and green. And I point that out because there isn't any blue in my plan. Oh, I know there will be blue in the album but it's not a part of the big picture - I just had to point that out because me not using blue on every page is worthy of a mention.

Thanks for stopping by!

Cathie

A Lot of Gelato...My New Class and a Layout

I'm teaching a new class tomorrow at my LSS, The Paperie, called A Lot of Gelato.  This class is all about Gelatos and the amazing things you can do with them. I've talked about Gelatos before but I've come up with few ways to use Gelatos that maybe you haven't thought of before.

We're going to make 2 layouts in class. This one is full of my favorite techniques.



And this layout...



Well, I can hardly wait to share how easy it is to make this colorful and fun layout.

If you're local and you would like to learn more about Gelatos, you can call The Paperie and reserve your seat. There's always room for one more!

Thanks for stopping by!

Cathie

A Lot of Gelato...My New Class

Hey all,

I'm very excited to share a look at one of the pages from my new class, A Lot of Gelato, that I'm teaching at my LSS, The Paperie, on Saturday. In class, we're making two layouts and here's a look at one of them.



I've been wanting to scrap this photo for ages and I couldn't be happier with how it turned out. Gelatos are just the prettiest and they are so. much. fun.

Here's a closeup of the title...



I'm really excited about this class and I'm excited to share all the wonderful things that Gelatos can do.

There are still seats available, if you're local and interested. Just call The Paperie. It's going to be fun.

Thanks for stopping by!

Cathie

A Scrapbooking Reset.

Wow, it has been awhile. Life sure has a way of getting in the way doesn't it? But if I'm going to be honest, the real reason I haven't been blogging is because I have been trying to figure out something out scrapbooking-wise. And because honesty takes awhile, you might want to freshen your drink.

I scrapbook because it's fun.  For a long, long time, that was enough for me. It didn't matter that my pages sat in albums or boxes and it didn't matter that no one ever looked at them. No one. Not even me. Hardly ever.

This summer it started to matter. It mattered that my kids, who love to look at the pages I make about them, didn't know where I kept their albums. And if they did stumble across them, they couldn't lift those big 12x12 albums off the shelf.

I needed to figure out a way to make my scrapbooking more accessible to my family.

I thought about trying Project Life again.
I thought about making only mini-books.
I thought about scrapbooking in my art journals.
I thought about doing all these things at the same time.

And while I was thinking, I was also scrapping. Not as much as usual but I made a mini-book about our summer vacation and I made 12x12 pages for design team projects and blog posts.

And then in September, it was time for Week in the Life.  I love Week in the Life and have been doing it for years.  This year, I settled on the Simple Stories SN@P album with divided page protectors.  And putting all those pictures with all in those stories in that little album...well, it started to make sense.

I was nervous about changing my page size. I've been a 12x12 scrapper since the beginning. My style has changed and evolved but always on a 12x12 canvas. But I decided to try scrapping smaller pages at  The Paperie's annual Fall Retreat - to see if I liked it. And that's what I did the whole weekend long. I scrapped a few 12x12 pages but mostly it was smaller 6x8 pages.

And I liked it. I have plenty of room for artistic fun and I can add as much journaling as I want to the back of my pages.  I'll never give up 12x12. That large canvas is just too much but these smaller albums are the perfect size for flipping through whether you're 2 years old or 6 or...older. And I like that.

I can't help but think that this whole journey was not just about being able to share my pages with my family but finding a way for me to enjoy them. These little albums feel like books and I love books.  I especially love making and reading books that are full of my stories.

So, that's the story of my scrapbook reset. I'm excited. It feels good because change is good, right? And the timing couldn't be better because December Daily is right around the corner.

Thanks for stopping by!

Cathie

a Little Pan Pastel, a Little Gelato

hi Friends!

Popping by oh, so quickly to share some pictures from the class I taught at my LSS, The Paperie, this morning. I called it a Little Pan Pastel, a Little Gelato because that's what we used to make 2 fabulously layered mixed-media layouts.

 Some people made these two layouts using a sticker element sheet from Fancy Pants' Trend Setter collection, Gelatos and Permanent Red Pan Pastel. Inspired by these two layouts.

 

And some people made layouts using Fancy Pants' Swagger Collection and Permanent Red Shade Pan Pastels inspired by these two layouts.

It was such a wonderful group - I had a fabulous time. I love sharing what I love.  I love seeing how they take my instructions and make their own art. It was awesome and a great way to spend a Saturday morning.

I hope you find some creative time this weekend.

Thanks for stopping by today!

Cathie

My Friday: Week in the Life

Today, my LSS, The Paperie is having their Week in the Life crop. It's going to be great fun and I'm sorry to miss out. All of my family is in town this weekend, so I will filling up on family time - I can hardly wait.

So, I'm sharing the pages I made about Friday for my Week in the Life Album. I'm going to drop my finished album by The Paperie today. If you're local, you can stop by the store and have a look.

Here's my mixed media page.

And my photo enlargement...

...which is part of this spread.

And here's a closeup.

And the second spread.

And the closeups. Here's one side.

...and the other side.

And here's the third spread.

I didn't have enough photos to fill out the whole spread so I covered two pockets with a piece of pattern paper and used stickers from Simple Stories' Smarty Pants collection element sheet to write out a quote I have pinned on Pinterest. You can see my board of quotes and thoughts here.

And here are the closeups...

And the other side...

I wrote on the photos using my Faber Castell pens - it's an easy way to get my handwriting into my album. That's something that is important to me.

And finally...

And that's how Friday looks. It was a busy day - Fridays usually are around here.

I'm going to take the weekend to spend some time with my family but I will be back next week to share the rest of my Week in the Life pages - Saturday and Sunday.

Have a wonderful weekend!

Thanks for stopping by today!

Cathie

My Thursday: Week in the LIfe

This week, I'm sharing the completed pages from my Week in the Life album.  In case you've missed it, here's Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday.

Here's what our Thursday looked like.

First, the mixed media page.

Here's the first spread.

I forgot to mention that on Wednesday -right in the middle of Week in the Life - I decided to repaint our living room. Things got a little crazy around here but I kept going with Week in the Life. This enlargement was definitely a snapshot of our Thursday.

And here's the other side...

And the next spread...

And some closeups - of one side...

and the other...

And the final page...

And that's how our Thursday turned out. It's usually by this point in the Week in the Life documentation and putting together process that I can see the patterns emerging: the trains, the video games, the routines. I love knowing that those parts of our everyday life are captured. 

I hope you're enjoying my Week in the Life album. You're definitely getting a look at my everyday.

Thanks for stopping by today!

Cathie

My Wednesday: Week in the Life

This week, I'm sharing the pages from my 98% finished Week in the Life album.

So, let's have a look at Wednesday's pages.

First up, the mixed media page.

This is a sheet of brown paper that was covering my desk for a few months. I replaced it with new paper and kept this one for collage. I love how it turned out.

Here's the first spread.

This is my girl, Mac. She's over 15 and a great subject because 15 year old dogs...well...they hold still. Mac has some great expressions, too - I'm glad I'm capturing them. I borrowed the "Hey Girl" stamp from my friend, Krista, and stamped it in gold.

And here's a closeup of the other side. These are pics from my weekly gymnastics date with Ben.

And then the next spread.

Here's a closer look.

A scenic shot from my car (we travel this route almost daily), Gabriel playing with his favorite stuffies, Mac sniffing Ben's basket of pretend foods and Ben playing with his trains in one of his many Thomas shirts.

And the other side is all about taking out the garbage. It's amazing how the mundane becomes a photo shoot when kids are involved. That's one of the beautiful things about Week in the Life. I wouldn't normally take my iPhone with me when taking out the garbage but because it was Week in the Life I did. Otherwise, I would have missed these shots.

And the final spread...

Which shows...

Ben buckling up his own car seat -he insists on doing it by himself. You can also see my clean art desk and my Week in the Life Album on my kitchen counter.

And on the other side...

...you can see some pictures of Ben playing with his trains. And then some shots of our trip to pick up Gabriel from school - the rainy sky and the hall way with his open classroom door. I'm really glad I thought to snap that one.

And then finally...

The boys playing on the our and some selfies with me and them. I love taking selfies with my iPhone. The quality isn't always the greatest but I like how it captures the interaction of me with my guys. It feels very real to me.

All the supplies, except the stamps which came from my stash and my friend, Krista, came from my wonderful LSS, The Paperie. They're having a Week in the Life crop this Saturday, September 28. You should definitely go and put your book together. The Paperie always has a wonderful selection of supplies - I'm sure you can find anything you need to finish your Week in the Life Album and there is nothing like a finished Week in the Life album. I can't make the crop but I'm planning to leave my album at the store so if you're local, you can pop by and see it.

Thanks for stopping by today!

Cathie

My Tuesday: Week in the Life

hi again!

Back to share the Tuesday pages from my Week in the Life album.  This year, my Week in the Life started on the second week of school which was actually our first full week of school. Gabriel started Grade One this year so there have been a lot of changes for us - my Week in the Life definitely reflects us trying to find our rhythm. 

Here's how the day played out...

My daily mixed media page...

 ...and the enlarged photo.

I took this photo of the sky with my iPhone. It's really quite striking even if it doesn't look like much here.

 I took Gabriel to school and started my first day as parent volunteer. I help out his class and other teachers that need a little something done. If they don't have anything for me, I volunteer in the library. I really love it and wish I could volunteer more than one morning a week. (ps: Thanks to my friend, Krista for the SC wood veneer scissors and apple.)

And after school, I ran some errands and picked up Ben from my mom. She takes him on "adventures" every Tuesday morning.

Here are the closeups...

 You can see our morning coffees, Mac waiting to come in, an attempt at potty training and my trip to Costco. I took a picture of my groceries on the belt...you know you're a scrapbooker when...

And here's the other side...

A mixed media card to fill in a space, my mom's front door, a selfie in her entry-way mirror and a jump hug from Ben when he saw me.

And another spread...

Here are the closeups...

Me and Ben in the car, waiting to pick up Gabriel, a pic of Gabriel's school and the beautiful blue sky, a shot of Ben and one of Mac sleeping.

A list of some of the things I packed for Gabriel's recess during the week - I did this at the crop. I needed a filler card and my friend, Kelly, suggested this idea. I love it - thanks, Kelly!  Gabriel playing his 3DS in his underpants and pajamas and a selfie in my favorite shirt.

And finally, a look at some of the things that are a part of our home right now.

You can see that we're still hanging onto summer hats, sandals, soccer cleats and sweaters but there's also slippers because some mornings are cold. And, of course, there are trains everywhere. This is Hiro - he's one of my favorites.


All of the supplies for this page came from my LSS, The Paperie.  They're having a Week in the Life crop this Saturday, September 28. You should definitely go and put your book together. There is nothing like a finished Week in the Life album.

And that's a look at my Tuesday.

Thanks for stopping by!

Cathie