A Mini Album for Practical Scrappers

Today on the Practical Scrappers site we are sharing some Mini Album ideas with you. I hope you have checked out the other GORGEOUS mini's over there! Also, we are running another card contest - check out all the details here. First entries are due by Wednesday January 30th - I hope to see some familiar names in the entries!! Oh, and yes, the page says 2012 but that's just a typo!!

Okay, back to today's post topic.

As I was searching for pictures to scrap the other week I came across some cute ones of Christine and I from her Parent and Tot Gymnastics class (see this post for the layout). They were still in those folded cardboard holders that you get for all your kids sports team pictures. I was about to throw out the holder when I was struck with the idea of turning it (and several of the other ones just like it that I found at the same time - I do have 3 kids after all!!) into a mini album. Since I am not purchasing supplies and actively stash diving right now, this seemed like a super idea. Very PRACTICAL even!! I do have stacks of left over cardboard that I could have used instead to create the album but I liked the idea of being able to slide journaling cards or extra photos into the sleeves of the album.

I think it's time for some visual explanations!!

These are the photo cards that I'm talking about. We have a LOT of these kicking about - gymnastics, soccer, field hockey and dance! I started by punching holes into the fold, lining them up so I'd have one long side and then one short side all the way through the album.

Like this.

Then I pulled out my scrap drawer. I have recently moved to a larger drawer - not to encourage me to keep more scraps but because I wanted to be able to keep anything that was not a full 12x12 sheet in here. My previous scrap drawer was only able to hold papers that were a maximum of 8" wide so my paper racks could get a little messy with odd sized papers getting crushed etc. Plus, the larger drawer allows me to dig through everything more easily.

I also have a bag of my plain card stock scraps. These are all Stampin' Up scraps and at this point I haven't decided if I want to amalgamate them with the patterned paper scraps or go through my big drawer, pull out other card stock scraps and create two scrap piles. One for patterned paper and one for card stock. 

But that is not important for this post, just a glimpse into my current organization dilemmas! If you have suggestions or opinions be sure to pop them in the comments!

After going through all my scraps, I pulled out several large pieces of card stock in colours that made me happy. No thought was given to colour matching at this point.

I did the same with my patterned papers. Once I had a good choice of both card stock and patterned paper, I started playing around to see which patterns could feasibly go together and which card stocks coordinated. 

Eventually I ended up with something that looks like this.

My front cover. 

I covered the photo cards with papers and then sewed everything together adding a little heart shaped charm onto the bottom. I haven't (obviously) figured out a purpose for this mini yet but was thinking that I may create a book of people I love ... or something like that. You'll just have to stay tuned!!

Rather than comment a ton on my thought process (why the heck did I pair cupcakes with a distressed frame image, and other random bits) I'm just going to give you the photos of each page as they stand right now.

I kind of consciously didn't make this flow from page to page but did try to connect each page to the one opposite it - especially if they were drastically different prints, colours or styles. All in all, I'm quite happy with this! I will mull over how to use it for a bit. For now it's sitting on my shelf in my scrap room, waiting!

Oh, this is what one of the larger inserts looks like. I can put pictures here or lots of journaling. Or both!

And one of the smaller inserts looks like this.

One last view of my mini - because it's my blog and I wanted to show it off again! LOL!

Thanks for "tuning in" today. I hope I've inspired you to look at something you might normally throw away in a different light. I realize it's not feasible to keep everything but every now and then it pays to keep some things!

If you haven't seen my big announcement yet today please go to layoutaday.com (after 8AM PST) to see what's got me so excited - hope to see you back here after you do!

It's almost December Daily Time Again

Can you believe it? If you're American you are probably still in a Turkey Coma today or you've been at the malls since 4AM scooping up some great deals. Up here in Canada we're in full Christmas Prep Mode. As many of you know, I have two jobs right now. (Why two you ask? Not sure ... it just ... happened!) Anyway, BOTH my jobs are ready for Christmas. Pier1 Imports started putting out the Christmas product in mid-October (basically right after our Thanksgiving) and The Upstart Crow (my local job) got their halls decked this past weekend. So ... I'm in a Holiday Mood!! Beware!! I may start singing Christmas carols and  hanging lights!!

Must. Wait. Til. December. 1st!

You know what can't wait until December 1st? My December Daily. I am featuring my foundation pages over on the Practical Scrappers site today (check it out here) but for all you loyal followers, I thought I'd share more pictures and (maybe) more insight into my process. Oh and if you are wondering just what is a December Daily, it is a project started by Memory Keeping Guru Ali Edwards designed to help you record the daily goings on during the Holiday Season. You can check out her blog for more information here and see what she's prepared to use this year here. This is my 3rd year embarking on this journey with her (and thousands of like minded memory keepers out there!)  You can find my 2010 album here and 2011 here. Both of these albums use digital templates that I purchased from Ali Edwards and this year she is offering them again but I have decided to try my hand at making my own. I've downloaded a trial version of Photoshop Elements with the assurance from Greg that I can have the full blown version whenever I want (it was actually a birthday present that I haven't cashed in yet!) We'll see how it goes. I may break down and buy hers in the end!!


So, what have I got ready for 2012? I'm sure you're all dying to see some pictures, right?
Well, here you go ...

This is my cover. I had another set of the same Teresa Collins Christmas album covers that I used last year so I just covered them with layers of white paint, stencils and other bits. 

And this is what the album looks like at the moment. In previous years I have had every single page ready to go - all I needed to do was add pictures, journalling and some embellishment. This year I want to leave room for a bit more creative freedom so my pages are pretty unfinished (as you will see). I'm also hooked on the Art Journal look so a lot of my pages will be more art journal and less traditional scrapbook page.

This is a close up of my cover page embellishments. I am using mostly Echo Park papers from various Christmas lines (some have been in my stash for a while so it's time to use them up!) The frame was one I found in the clearance bin at Michael's several months ago. It was originally turquoise but a couple coats of some white craft paint and some brown ink distressing and voila! 

The insides of the front and back covers look like this.

And the back cover is a blank canvas waiting for inspiration to strike!

While digging through my stash trying to figure out what to use for the cover I found these pieces of raw chipboard. They were almost the perfect size to fit into the Teresa Collins covers! They are also what prompted the art journal idea as they lend themselves nicely to being covered with all sorts of things!

These are the art journal-esque pages that I have started so far. Some are messier than others and to be honest I'm not sure where this is going to end up, but the journey should be fun! 

These are the back sides of the pages above. As you can see, some are covered in patterned paper, some are covered in more paint and some are still raw ... I'm leaving myself lots of room for play this year.

Here's a close up of some of the texture I've got going. 

I've got a variety of supplies set aside and ready to add to this album. My day numbers (see below), lots of different journalling tags and cards, papers, scraps, paint, stamps, inks, stencils and some transparencies that may go in front of these art journal pages as day dividers if I don't feel like putting the numbers over any art. I can't wait to see how it all comes together!

As for my numbers, here is what I've done.

 Pretty simple. I felt that the pages themselves were going to be quite busy so the numbers needed to be bold enough to stand out but simple enough to let the artwork take centre stage. As you can see I have not attached them to any of my pages. I am determined to assemble as I go this year!

A close up so you can see how I popped up each star to give dimension.

And #25 got special treatment ...

Well, I hope you enjoyed this look into what I will be working on this December. I'd love to see your December Dailies if you are working on one this year. Please leave a link in the comments so I can come and  check out your work!

Hallowe'en Mini Album for Practical Scrappers

I posted a lot of pictures of this Hallowe'en Mini over at Practical Scrappers - I hope you are following us over there! We've got our spook on lately - did you see Kerri's wreath from yesterday? ROCKING!!! Check it out here.

As I said in my other post, I got the original idea for this mini from a self-paced workshop called The Boo! Book over at Big Picture Classes. This was over 2 years ago and the instructions and materials have sat untouched in my stash since then! Yikes, eh? As a part of my One Little Word (there's another project that hasn't had it's proper attention!) I have been focusing on my Scrapbooking this year. I've done a pile of layouts that I am really proud of! So many memories and stories put down on paper which makes me so happy!! Well, now there are a few more memories in the can!!

Without further ado, here is my All Hallows Eve Memories mini.

The letter stickers are Jenny Bowlin (from 2 years ago!!), the washi tape is new (Teresa Collins) and the buttons are from my stash.

The metal frame was in my stash and I wasn't sure how I was going to use it. I really like the added vintage feel it gives to this album. The orange letter tiles are new Studio Calico.

Okay, now to the inside spreads. I used Jenni Bowlin large Bingo cards (also 2 years old) and backed them with patterned paper (old MME - Spider's Web).

2004 

"Marley's 1st Hallowe'en. Greg took her "trick or treating" to a few neighbours in the townhouse complex on 57th. Marley used an old black handbag as a loot bag. We ate her candy!"

Wasn't she just the cutest little lady bug you've ever seen? Hard to remember her that small!

2005 

"We made the Ladybug costume fit for another year, got a real loot bag, put up some decorations and generally got "into" Hallowe'en a but more. Marley may look nervous (on the left) but she quickly got the hang of things!"

2006 

I was attempting to give the impression of a full moon with the circle of card stock and all the gems. 

"We added Paige to the fun this year. She also made a cute ladybug! Marley decided to be a cowgirl with her pink (Mark's Work Wearhouse) cowboy hat! Marley was very into the treat getting this year. Paige not so much!"

2007 

More old Jenni Bowlin products - this time the black buttons. 

Below I took a piece of black card stock and ripped one edge before attaching the tag to it. The orange arrow is a Studio Calico sticky note that I doodled on.

"The Princess and the Ladybug - First year in our new house. We had over a hundred kids come by and Marley got her first "real" taste of what a trick-or-treating haul can be!"

2008 

I also got the mini Hallowe'en Bingo cards! I was keen!! The black tile letters are Jenni Bowlin mini chalkboard alphas - also 2 years old. Not sure why I'm telling all this but hey, I'm a sharer! Similar products are still available if you are keen to make something like this for your own family memories!

I took the girls to The Great Big Boo this year so these pictures were taken just before we went into the show. They were not taken on Hallowe'en night but are the cutest shots of my kids in their costumes from that year!

2009 

A Panda, a Fairy and Hannah Montana!

"This year Christine (a.k.a LC) joined the Trick or Treating fun. The Ladybug costume had been donated so LC got to be a Panda Bear. Griffin's birthday is Oct 28 so we had a pre-trick or treating party for him. Going out with the cousins made the experience super fun for all!"

2010 

Another pre-trick or treating birthday party for Griffin. Greg's sister and their cousin both lived in neighbourhoods that were not super family friendly so coming to our candy rich subdivision was a good deal for them. They've since moved to better neighbourhoods so we don't do these parties any more. Kind of miss them!

"This year we had a Chicken, a Princess and Hannah Montana came back again. So cute!"

2011

"The Good Fairy. Kitty Cat. Wicked Witch."

I didn't do any journalling but did include pictures from a new activity the girls got to do last year. Friends nearby had a fire pit going with marshmallows and sparklers. It made for a late night (and a school night to boot!) but the girls are already asking if we are going to do it again this year!

Well there you have it. My new Hallowe'en mini. I've got plenty more Bingo cards and papers etc so I can add to it over the next few years. I finished it off with some ribbon strands - not something I normally do but I quite like it on this!

Thanks for coming by today. Hope you are enjoying your weekend. I've got more scrapping plans for the rest of this weekend - hope I can get to them!