Bella Blvd Studio Blog: Creatively Documenting Teens With Leanne

"@13", by Leanne Allinson.

Hey Everyone! It's Leanne here today sharing an easy way to get your story written down. Sometimes I find it really hard to get my teen son to chat. Like most young boys his age, he is rather non-verbal, other than to ask me what there is to eat! But I still want to capture his every day and document what life is like at age 13. I certainly don't want to make it a struggle either so my solution is document any observations I make in list format.

The "I'm Currently.." style of recording information is incredibly helpful. It is easy enough to come up with a list of "I'm currently reading..." or "I'm currently playing..." etc. I have typed my list and answers directly to a Daily Details card from the Snapshots collection, with a "Random Thoughts" subtitle appropriately written down the length! This doesn't mean I don't have conversations with my son, rather that I can gather this information without too much harassment on my part!

My chipboard title has been made from the Blueberry Sienna Alphas. I trimmed the straight edge off the letter 'B' to create a number '3' and simply used the 'I' as a number '1'.

The rest of my page was created using the colour palette from the photo. For this style of journaling, I love to use portrait shots with minimal distractions in the background. It allows the reader to focus mostly on the story I am trying to convey. The grid style layout of patterned papers balances the photo with the journaling as well as adding interest to the adjacent spaces with layers of embellishments or candid cards.

To complete the page, an arrow sticker is mounted on foam tape which directly links the photo to the journaling. If you ever struggle with recording your memories or just aren't sure what to write down, there are many "list journaling" techniques to try out. I highly recommend this method of creating lists even if it is to get the basics documented. It's my opinion to better have something documented rather than nothing.

Supplies:
Max: That's My Boy, Shark Attack, Borders, Treasures & Text, Trinkets, Candid Cards; Trick or Treat: Daily Details; Snapshots: Daily Details; Everyday Bookplates; Sienna Chipboard Alphas: Blueberry; Ciao Chip Elements: Hearts & Stars, Symbols; Enamel Dots: Blueberry