What do you do when an adventurous year on the Becky Higgins PL Creative Team ends? I guess you start a bloghop!
Thanks to Jess for organizing, this is the first of twelve blog hops. At the end of this post you can hop on over the next blog to continue viewing more Project Life inspiration!
This month I have one spread to share from my 2014 album and my title page for 2015. Both incredibly simple, a trend I’d like to continue for the rest of the year.
First up, the end of my 2014 album.
Since many of my favorite memories from the month of December were already documented in my December album, I already knew I’d be shooting for just one full spread of non-holiday related memories and stories to finish up the year.
After gathering up the photos I wanted to include, I quickly jotted down some of the accompanying stories and a few other notes about the month, and decided to simply write them out on white cardstock. I used a stamp from Studio Calico to create the box at the top of those cards, wrote ‘around here’ in each of them, and then journaled the notes I took from December.
I’d love to keep things simple in 2015 by sticking to the basics and journaling about the month using those tried and true journal prompts like “around here” or “i want to remember”.
A little trick I wanted to point out for anyone new starting out with Project Life. There are numerous pocket page designs to choose from, but sometimes I feel that it can make the process overwhelming. I’ve mostly stuck to Design A over the past 3 years and I’ve learned to not let it limit my placement of photos and cards. Instead of forcing myself to use a 4×6 photo/card in a 4×6 pocket, I just staple (using the Tim Holtz Tiny Attacher) the two together to keep them in place.
Similarly, if I have a vertical photo that I want larger than 3×4, I just expand it to make a 6×8, spreading over several pockets. If you’re looking for more inspiration about using enlargements in your spread, check out the Studio Calico Day by Day class. This week’s lesson focuses on just that and includes a spread I contributed just for the class. Registration is open through the end of the month and it’s a class you won’t want to miss if you’re just starting out with Project Life.
Onto 2015!
The simple theme continues with my title page. I had a pack of these page protectors on hand that are filled with 2″x2″ pockets. I cut it down to be 5 pockets tall and 2 pockets wide and alternated black and white photos and patterned paper. Then filled in the remaining pockets with stamps and embellishments. You can find the ‘good memories’ stamp in Ali Edwards 2015 digital date stamps set. I printed it on vellum and then slid it into the pocket.
What are my plans for 2015?
LESS, OVERALL
Ideally in 2015, I’d like to end out the year with only one 12×12 album by creating spreads monthly instead of sticking to a weekly format. In total I created 79 spreads last year! While I accomplished a lot, I’m ready to step back a bit and create a little less. In the past 3 years I’ve created 7 albums (including my 2010 album), and while I love them, I don’t want to overwhelm my boys in the future with tons of albums.
MORE INTENTION
I take a lot of photos. I also write down a lot of stories. Weekly documentation for 3 years has trained me well. But I don’t need to include all my photos in Project Life. And not all stories need to be told. I want to include the ones that really mean something, that really tell the stories of our day to day right now. So my goal with 2015 is to tell stories that really capture who our family is. I also hope this leads to longer stories in some cases.
Below you can check out what some of my former Creative Teammates have been working on with their Project Life albums.
January Blog Hop Links
Please note that these are fun and optional blog hops. If you don’t see your favorite former team member, please visit their individual blogs to see what they are up too!
