Bella Blvd Studio Blog

Acrylic Words: A Mini Album's Best Friend

  This week on the Bella feed, it's been all about the Acrylic Words! I've been having an absolute blast working through this 4x4 mini album, using my collection of acrylic words.  They of course belong on layouts and on my Bible pages, but I've found a new love of putting them everywhere on my mini album.

I started out my 4x4 album with a little title using the Illustrated Faith Homespun Alphas, and I represented my color palette for my album using some vintage buttons.  I love to start mini albums this way, so that I keep a cohesive color palette for the entire project.

I let this photo from a local wetlands trip be the centerpiece of the beginning of the album, because I loved this summery, yellow flower!

In mini albums I love to include little pockets for journaling.  For this particular page, I sewed the edges of the photo, so that I could slide in a tag.

For this acrylic word, I simply stitched the ends onto my plastic sheet protector.  This way I could still customize the back of the page any way I liked.




I thought I would include a little tutorial for how I created the decorative tabs for non-sheet protected items.  I simply punched my Bella papers as shown below, and then I stitched them directly onto my tags and photos!

For this acrylic word, I simply adhered it to the edge of my photo!  I love the way it makes the photo pop!


This rainbow divider was made out of a trimmed down clear-cuts!  They are amazing for mini albums because the Illustrated Faith clear-cuts are thick and sturdy!


I'm still working in this little mini album, so it's not quite finished, but I wanted to share what an asset your Bella Acrylic Words can be to any mini album.  I finished this section with a selfie, and this perfect "Smile" acrylic!

 

Thank you so much for stopping by to check out my mini album today! I really hope you got some inspiration for your next mini album, and I hope it includes some acrylic words! xo Lydia

 

Acrylic Words, IF Homespun Alphas, IF Clear Cuts, Plaids & Dotty, Bug Explorer, Mom Life, Pop Quiz, & Island Escape Papers, Bug Explorer Sticky Mix, Chipboard & Ephemera,  Cute Clips, IF Mini Hexies, Wish Big Boy Words Ephemera, IF Pen, Puffy Stars

Island Escape Mini Album

 

The Island Escape collection has become one of my absolute favorite Bella Blvd collections ever!  It is so vivid and beautiful, and I'm so excited to use it for every summer project I have.  I wanted to create a unique mini album to document our 2016 California vacation, and this collection was the perfect companion.  I hope you guys enjoy!

 
  


  

 

 

I'm so glad you stopped by today to see some of my family's vacation memories! I can't wait to see what all of you create with the Island Escape collection! xo Lydia

Island Escape Collection, Wonky Puffy Alphas, Illustrated Faith Enamel Hearts, Illustrated Faith Homespun Alpha Stickers, Illustrated Faith Precision Pen, Illustrated Faith Acrylic Paint, Bella Blvd Enamel Dots, Seeds of Faith 12x12 Fundamental Sheet, Illustrated Faith Tiny Alpha Sticker Booklet

December Documenting with Sarah

Good morning everyone!! Sarah here this morning with my first post for the Bella team and I am so excited!! I pulled out my Santa Stops here free standing album kit and decided to turn it into my December Documented album for this year. Every year when I make one of these, I go through and do my prep work and add more in as I go. I always like to keep it simple at first and add more embellishments on top of my pictures. Be warned, there will be a major picture over load in this post! lol

I go through and add my photos along with embellishments and I have to say for me, I love doing the whole album but the embellishing is my all time favorite. I add layers behind some of my photos before putting them down, then add my stickers and other pretties.I think my main problem is I always want to add to much and my album is heavier on one side. 

As Im going through and making my album I include all of our yearly traditions and then our day to day as well. Like on this page, I had my first Peppermint mocha from Starbucks, my mom and we went for one while we were out doing a little shopping, she is also the one who caught the picture of me, so I got it from here and added it in and kept the little cozy from around my cup, punched a few holes and added it in to the album.

And when I get to pages where I can add some more journaling in where I already know we have things planned I get a little of that done and in my album until I can print my pictures.

Going through my prep pages you'll see where I dont have some of my daily numbers stuck down. I do this so that If I need to move it because I have more that I want to add to a day then I can do that and not worry about having to pull anything up and mess something up, even though I always know theres cute thins I can cover a boo boo with.

I do plan on sharing my finished album during the first week of January on my Instagram with all the beautiful Bella Blvd products!!

 

Bella Blvd/Santa Stops here: Santa Stops here free standing album kit, Ciao Chips, Fundamentals, Ephemera, Pennants, Acrylic word, Illustrated Faith: Homespun Apple of my eye, Hey Sugar Sugar, Holly Jolly Christmas: Gift Tags, Festive Mini bows, Make your mark 6x8 clear cuts pad

Social Media Round Up!

Hi there friends. It's time for another social media round up and today we're sharing projects that the Creative Team's been crafting using our Sports mini collections along with Oh My Stars for inspiring Back to School themed inspiration!

First up is Leanne, with a super fun mini album that documents her kids' first day this year!

Oh My Stars!: Pickle Juice Starz, Blueberry Starz, Ice Starz, Punch Starz, McIntosh Starz, Guacamole Starz; Sports Mini Collection - Soccer: Paper Pieces, Fundamentals, Felt Pennants; Tiny Text: Rainy Day Tiny Text; Wonky Alphabet Stickers: Blueberry, Ice; Max: Washi Stickers; Puffy Heart Stickers: Blueberry Mix. Other - cardstock, ink, vellum, bulldog clips.

Find Leanne's inspiration and projects throughout her Social Media here:
Instagram | Pinterest | Facebook

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And up next is Stephanie, with her colorful and energetic layout that commemorates the huge milestone of her son's first day of kindergarten! SO FUN!

Soccer: Dribble it; Basket Ball: Play by Play; Baseball: Borders & Details, America's Pastime; Oh My Stars: Paper Pieces; Punch Stars, 6x8 Paper Pad; Puffy Stars: McIntosh, Orange, Oreo Black; Enamel Dots: Milk White; Wonky Alpha Stickers: Blueberry, Ice, Pickle Juice, Bell Pepper, Orange, Red, Oreo Black.

Find Stephanie's inspiration and projects throughout her Social Media here:
Instagram | Facebook | Pinterest

 

Do you have back to school projects you'd like to share? Make sure to tag us on social media so we can see what you've been up to!

Thanks so much for stopping by today! Have a wonderful day!

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Make sure to follow all of our Social Media team to see the latest projects from these talented designers! And follow along with us on the Bella Blvd Instagram feed to find even more inspiration!

Social Media Round Up | Baseball + Football Mini Collections

Hey there everyone! It's time for another Social Media round up and this week we are excited because it's the first week that our Creative Team has had the chance to start working with our latest collections! This week they are playing with two of our new Sports Mini Collections, the Baseball and Football collections - just in time for the start of football season and the final stretch for those baseball series play-offs!

First up is Jamie and her super fun idea of documenting a whole sports career! Jamie tells us a little more about this super fun ideal for documenting sports below! This traveler's notebook was created to record this little guy's sports career as he starts this fall. The idea was to tell his story, (he really wants to play football but his Mama won't let him), to add photos and journaling to this traveler's this fall season as he plays soccer for the first time in a community league. Because I love a traveler's size book, I thought this would be a great way to readily add photo+words every week in an attempt to tell this story in particular. And a great way to use the the sports collections. - Jamie Pate

Football: Game Time Papper Borders & Details, Pennants, Fundamentals Stickers, Ephemera

Find Jamie's inspiration and projects throughout her Social Media here:
Instagram I Pinterest | Facebook | Twitter

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Next up is Stephane and this super fun baseball themed page. We just love how she used the triangles with the separate patterned papers - it almost looks 3D doesn't, it!? So cute, and such a great way of using triangles as directional design elements!

Baseball: Hit It, Play Ball, Paper Pieces, Fundamentals; Football: Fundamentals; Enamel Dots: Blueberry; Acrylic Words: Explore & Play.

Find Stephanie's inspiration and projects throughout her Social Media here:
Instagram | Facebook | Pinterest

Thanks so much for stopping by today! Have a wonderful day!

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Want to check out all the products in the Baseball Mini Collection, along with all the other Sports Mini Collections? Check out our video below and make sure to subscribe to our YouTube Channel!

Make sure to follow all of our Social Media team to see the latest projects from these talented designers! And follow along with us on the Bella Blvd Instagram feed to find even more inspiration!

Social Media | Weekly Round-Up!

Hi friends! It's Thursday and today we are bringing you projects that our Social Media Creative Team has been sharing throughout Instagram, Facebook, Twitter and Pinterest all week using our Illustrated Faith Delight in His Day collection!

We're starting off with Jamie Pate and her darling, faith-based greeting cards. We just love their simplicity and style that strikes right at the message of each lovely design and sentiment! Make sure you are following Jamie on her social media (listed below) to see all the details of these beautiful cards!

Delight In His Day: Just The Ticket, Sprinkled With Bliss, Topnotch, Happy Heart, Borders, 3x4’s; Paper Pieces, Enjoy Life Washi, Fundamentals Stickers

Find Jamie's inspiration and projects throughout her Social Media here:
Instagram I Pinterest | Facebook | Twitter

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Stephanie Buice created this super sweet page, taking a new spin on this carnival-themed collection and turned it into something so sweet and pretty by making custom paper flowers, which adds to the lovely sentiment of focusing on her son's super teacher. Make sure you are following Stephanie on her social media (listed below) to see all the details of this super sweet layout!

Delight In His Day: Raise Me Up, 3x4s, 6x8 Paper Pad, Paper Pieces, Fundamentals; Enamel Dots: Milk White. 

Find Stephanie's inspiration and projects throughout her Social Media here:
Instagram | Facebook | Pinterest

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Laurie Schmidlin does it again with these festive and delightful hand-made cards! We just love how she used our Clear Cuts as her focal point in her "Happy Hearts" card! So beautiful! Make sure you are following Laurie on her social media (listed below) to see all the details of these beautiful cards!

Delight in His Day: Borders, 3 x 4s, Fundamentals, 6 x 8 Paper Pad, Epoxy Stickers, Clear Cuts Pad, Paper Pieces, Enjoy Life Washi Tape
Epoxy Stickers: Oh My Heavens Mix Hexes. Enamel Dots: Cotton Candy

Find Laurie's inspiration and projects throughout her Social Media here:
Instagram  | Facebook | Pinterest

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Last up this week is Leanne Allinson with her spectacular puzzle fold mini album. This is one project you won't want to miss all the details to! She even posted an Instagram video of this sweet little album. Make sure you are following Leanne on her social media (listed below) to see all the details of this awesome mini album!

Delight in His Day: Raise Me Up, Sprinkled with Bliss, Topnotch, Happy Heart, Believe It, Borders, 3x4s; Paper Pieces; Fundamental Stickers; Tip Ins; IF Enamel Hearts; BB Little Bits White Little Bits; Puffy Heart Stickers: Ice Mix; Snapshots | Pajama Day.

Find Leanne's inspiration and projects throughout her Social Media here:
Instagram | Pinterest | Facebook

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Make sure to follow all of our Social Media team to see the latest projects from these talented designers! And follow along with us on the Bella Blvd Instagram feed to find even more inspiration!

Happy New Year Goals Journal

Happy New Year and welcome to a fresh start. Not one for resolutions I do, however, love a fresh start. The beginning of the a new year is an obvious fresh start for me. Instead of resolutions I prefer to build upon current goals and life realities that are already happening right now. With that in mind I decided to work with a few of my favorite elements and put them to work for me in a positive way. 

Jamie, here and let's just talk about a few of my favorite things for a moment.

Fresh Starts. I love new beginnings. Like even when a new school year begins. Or the beginning of a new book. Fresh starts are full of possibility.

Journals. Especially the traveller's notebook size. I have always loved fresh pages and spaces to write my thoughts, quotes, scripture and even prayers.

Black and White! I love those hues. The bold yet subtle statement that black and white makes. The graphic appeal that compliments those two. Black has always been a favorite of mine. Just check my wardrobe. 

With those three of my favorite items in mind I went to create a much needed, fresh start, 2017, traveler's sized, black and white journal.

I needed to create a mini journal to compliment my larger spiritual daily journal. I wanted to be able to punch holes in a little book and keep it with my daily notes and journaling.To make said journal, a cover was created using the black and white stripe from Illustrated Faith's Bright and Brave. This was cut down to 8 1/2-inches wide, and 8 1/2-inches wide. 

Next, I took plain white cardstock and trimmed down to the same size as the cover. Folding the cover in half, and then folding the insert in half, I placed the inside page inside the cover. A bit of excess needed to be trimmed away so that the inserts would stay inside the cover.

Several of these inserts were created for this journal. Then the best part began. Embellishment. Lots of washi and stamps plus tabbies were put to work in the embellishment department. Shown above is my first page. I simply stamped the year and embellished with a swatch of washi tape sticker.

This stamped page really added to the bold black and white and graphic appeal of my mini journal.

While I added stamps and washi to many of the pages, there are a few that are just plain white and left open for possibility.  Most all the pages are tabbed with one of the Illustrated Faith Basics Tabbie, black and white of course.

I also included a page of pattern paper here and there. Just because I liked it. These pages make great divider pages if a mini album needed to be divided into sections.

The original intent of this journal was to be a home to prayer requests. This year I want to be more intentional about not only praying, but keeping track of those prayers. A sort of bullet journal list if you will. Because I am such a forgetful person. I may pray for someone or something, and then just forget. I don't want to forget. But that requires it to be written down. 

The Black and White Washi Stickers had a perfect sticker for this page.

For embellishment on the prayer page I took the liberty of slicing up one of the Washi Stickers and using like word strips. I need to remember this promise. Perfect for a fresh start mindset.

Lots of stamped pages give these pages just a touch of embellishment. Of course I can add more to this when I get to this page. But for now I kept these pages pretty open for my own journaling and quotes and what not. 

One of the hardest goals for me to work on are my spiritual goals. The Homespun Alphabet Stamps were put to work here to make a bit statement. My approach to this page will be this: First, no fear. Secondly, to focus on where I am right now in my faith. To draw out those places that need more intention and focus. Then to write them down. Sometimes I think we make goals bigger than they should be and then we simply avoid attempting to write them down because we just don't know how. My hope is that this approach will make for some real and attainable goals. 

How do you start the New Year? What intention and renewal are you hoping for? Writing these thoughts down can be powerful. I encourage you to get creative, create your own 2017 mini journal, and write down the things that matter. And may you have a most amazing New Year and a hopeful fresh start.

supplies: Illustrated Faith Bright and Brave: Bible Journlaing, Epistles. Basics: Black & White Washi Stickers, Black and White Tabbies, Black and WHite Designer Clips. Clear Stamps: Icons, Elements, Homespun Alphabet, Homespun Numbers and Extras, You Are Loved Clear Stamps.

December Documenting | Every Friday in December with Leanne!

Hello Friends! Today I am back to share with you my completed December Daily mini album! I am so happy with the stories and photos that have been captured and I love the look of all the tabbies, gift tags, Bella bows and other paper pieces that peek out between the pages.

 

Today's pages continue on from last week and I will share pages 17 through to 25.

 

December 17

Each year we attend a charity Christmas party, to help raise funds for our local children's hospital. It is always a fun night and Santa comes to visit! To document Day 17, I created a pull out tag from the Holly Jolly Christmas collection and slipped it into the pocket page.

 

December 18

Do you like to catch a few plays, shows or even just go to the movies during the holidays? My daughter was lucky enough to be invited to watch Matilda the Musical and help celebrate her best friend's birthday. I decided I wanted to keep her ticket stub for the show and so I created a simple pocket for it to slide into. I've kept it secure with a Bella Bow and a nutcracker paper piece from Holly Jolly Christmas.

 

December 19

Elf on the Shelf is a feature in our home. Two of my children are still young enough to enjoy the antics our Elf gets up to and even though I didn't take copious amounts of elf photos this year, I still wanted to include him in our album.

 

 

I do thank my lucky stars that my boys have fun with this Christmas tradition.

 

December 20

On Day 20, I've included my youngest boy's wish list. The journaling was typed up on the back of a Christmas tip-in that was trimmed to size. 

 

December 21

To be honest, some days I am too busy to take photos. But I wanted to record our weather situation this month, so I've included a weather radar screenshot alongside photos of a storm rolling in. I've also added in the journaling how frustrating these storms are for keeping three active boys inside!

 

December 22

Christmas light tours are always a fun yearly tradition we venture out on with friends. We had so much fun and even stumbled across Santa at one of the light displays!  

 

December 23

On Day 23, I decided I needed to document the "naughty" along with the "nice" aspects at this busy time of year. The cute CHRISTmas cut apart patterned paper was too good to pass! And for future reference, I wanted to let my boy know he is still loved even though his behaviour is not! *grin*

 I captured this photo by chance and I am so glad I did!!!

 

December 24 | Christmas Eve traditions...

The alphas are all I need for journaling Day 24. Keeping it clean and simple with white on white.

 

December 25

Christmas Day! These pages convey the excitement and fun the kids had opening and sharing their gifts! A photo collage helps to capture some of the craziness of the day!

As per normal, I had a tonne of extra photos from Christmas day so I created a second photo collage and used my favourite photos as the feature 4x4s. These photos were added to the last few pages of my album.

Thank you for joining me on this December Documenting journey. I hope I have provided ideas and inspiration to help you complete your album.

 

Supplies:

 CHRISTmas: Away in a Manger, God's Love, Daily Details, Tip-Ins, 6x8 mini paper pad, paper pieces, tabbies, Fundamentals Sticker Sheet; Holly Jolly Christmas: Daily Details, Mr Claus, Merry Merry!, paper pieces, tabbies, Fundamentals Sticker Sheet; Bright and Brave: 6x8 mini paper pad, tabbies; Oh My Stars: Blueberry Stars; Clear Cuts: Black Stars, Ice Stars; Enamel Hearts: Pickle Juice, Hey Sugar Sugar, Oreo Black; Bella Bows: Baby Girl; Tiny Text Alphabets: Black Tiny Text, White Tiny Text; IF Cartdstock Stickers: His Promise; IF Homespun: Bananas For You, Bless Her Heart, Black Eyed Pea; Homespun #: Oh My Heavens, Apple of my Eye. 

Documenting December | Every Friday in December with Leanne!

Hey Everyone! Are you ready for December Daily this week? It will certainly be a busy one with Christmas just around the corner! I am excited to watch my album grow each day with the little details and stories I want to have recorded for 2016.

 

 

 

Today I am sharing my pages 10 through to 16. It was the first week of the school holidays here in Queensland and already we've had plenty on our to-do list!

 

December 10

 

Day 10, the first official day of the school holidays, saw us going to our local twilight Christmas markets. These events are held randomly throughout the year but the markets on the 10th, specialised in handmade Christmas items! Perfect for gifts! Lucky for us, there was also a fireworks display. These moments were all captured on my iPhone. The day/date title was created by using cardstock sticker from the CHRISTmas fundamentals sheet. 

 

December 11

When documenting special events, sometimes the story spreads out over several days. This was the case over the next two days for us. On days 11 & 12, my boys participated in a rare opportunity to learn from and train with an Olympian. Their field hockey season ended in September but when a Kookaburra comes to town, you pick up your stick and get back out onto the turf!!

 

 

As my three boys were quite start struck, the black stars clear cut insert was ideal to slip in between these two pages. Using CHRISTmas paper pieces and The Zoo Crew Treasures&Text number stickers, I've created my day/date title. The green and black accents pick up colours from the photos and the "Blessings" CHRISTmas fundamentals sticker has been added to the outside of the pocket sleeve as a reminder of how blessed the boys were to have this opportunity.

 

 

Between the clear cut insert and the second photo for Day 11, I've trimmed down a tip-in from the CHRISTmas collection to add some journaling on. The CHRISTmas Tabbies help to turn the smaller pages and hopefully prevent any future damage. 

 

 

 On the reverse side I've used the IF Homespun cardstock sticker alphas to have a play on words. "Jinking" (a term/technique used in hockey) has replaced "jingle" in the common Christmas phrase. Next to the tip-in, I have trimmed a 3x4 cut apart from the CHRISTmas Daily Details. The 3x4 card has been adhered to white cardstock leaving the top open to create an extra journaling pocket between the two pieces.  

Using Holly Jolly Christmas Fundamentals sticker alphas and Tiny Text Alphabets, I've created a title/filler card to help highlight the event in my album.

 

 

December 12

As mentioned above, Day 12 was much the same as Day 11. The exception being our hockey club had exclusive access to the training sessions. The boys and their teammates also made it onto the local news.

 

The number "12" for the day/date title was cut using my electronic die cutting machine and slipped into my album directly via the jump ring.

 

 

 The news clipping is screen shot and I've circled, directly on the photo image, where my boys are sitting. A QR code on the back of the photo will ensure that we can come back to watch the article at any time in the future. 

 

December 13

After a busy few days, Day 13 was spent at home completing tasks and finalising gifts. Each year for the last six years, I've created a "year in review" photo book for myself and the grandparents. As the details were all computer based, I didn't have a photo readily available to share in my album. Instead I've reflected on how grateful I've managed to fit this in for the last six years and shared a photo of the already existing albums from my shelf.

 

 

 The day/date title numbers have been fussy cut from the 6x8 Bright and Brave mini paper pad.

 

December 14

 

On December 14th each year we celebrate a December birthday. I traditionally take a photo of Grandma with the kids to commemorate the occasion. The opposite page has been create using a photo collage and sized to 4x4.

 

 

December 15

On some days throughout December, I find it hard to take photos. Or I have photos, but I'm not happy with how they have turned out. Day 15 was one of these days. However, it was also a day when we sat down as a family to watch a Christmas movie. I simply went to Pinterest and found an image of the movie poster that I could use, and sized it to fit into my album.  Problem solved! Using complementary colours on the opposite page helps to highlight the story.

 

 

December 16

Day 16 was again spent at home finalising Christmas gifts and creating labels for the wrapping. I happened to use the IF Homespun clear stamps for my labels in the photo, so I repeated the idea using the Homespun # clear stamps for my day/date title. The 2x2 Daily Details cut apart from Holly Jolly Christmas collection was trimmed to 4x4 and slipped into the pocket page opposite my photo. I like how it reinforces my "label" references.

 

 

 Next week will be the last Friday in December and I look forward to sharing the last few pages of my album with you. Thanks for visiting today, and if you have any questions, please feel free to leave them in the comments section below. Have a wonderful and safe Holiday..x

 

Supplies:

IF CHRISTmas:  Away In A Manger, God's Love, Daily Details, 6x8 mini paper pad, paper pieces, tabbies, Fundamentals Sticker Sheet, Tip-Ins; IF Bright and Brave: 6x8 mini paper pad; Holly Jolly Christmas: Daily Details, Mr Claus, Merry! Merry!, Paper pieces, Tabbies, Fundamentals; Oh My Stars!: Bell Pepper Stars; The Zoo Crew: Treasures&Text; IF Homespun cardstock stickers: Black Eyed Pea; IF clear stamps: #s & extras; Tiny Text: White Tiny Text; Clear Cuts: Black Stars, White Hearts; Christmas Cheer: icons; Bella Bows: Baby Girl; Enamel Hearts: Hey Sugar, Sugar.
 

December Documenting | Every Friday in December with Leanne!

Happy Friday Friends! This week I am back with my December Daily, sharing pages 5 through to 9. The inside of my album is starting to fill out with cute little details and I am loving the interactive elements found between my pages! Again, each day I am documenting a story of a single event or conveying the main theme of the day. This week in particular has been very busy, as my children finish up school for the year and prepare for our Summer holidays! Yay! Sleep ins, sleepovers and fun time adventures are in our immediate future! *grin*

Today I will also share some of my inspiration points for the types of photos I include in my album.

 

 

December 5

 

By Day 5 our weather in Queensland, Australia has been soaring to high temperatures! The thunderstorms have been rolling in from the west each afternoon and the air-conditioning has been on full blast! However... the weather didn't stop us from sampling a few hot chocolates in these sweltering conditions! LOL!

It was also a day where I got to spend time with my eldest while her brothers were still at school. Being a teen, she didn't want her photo taken in public and continually held her phone in front of her face. We were both laughing too much over her stubbornness, or maybe it was mine, that I don't even mind that her face isn't in the shot. I documented the story of why I added this photo as part of my DD, including the part about the stranger sitting near us, offering to help me get a sneaky shot. Sometimes the story doesn't need to be accompanied with photos of people looking directly at the camera. I don't want to have to stress about getting the perfect shot for the day. This was a reminder for me to be in the moment. And I am glad this "ah ha" moment occurred early in the process for me with creating this album and not on Day 24!

 

 

 

December 6

 

Day 6 was an organised school reward day for students who show good behaviour. I was "volunteered" to go along with teachers and the younger students to help supervise Grade 1s, 2s and 3s. My youngest has just completed Grade 1 and was invited to attend the "gold pass" day at the local aquatic centre. To compliment my DD, I took some Santa hats with us to use as photo props. Knowing in advance what type of event will take place and the general layout of the area I was going to visit, helped me plan for the photos that would suit. I have also allowed for white space on my photos to add titles without losing the atmosphere in the shot.

 

 

Between the pages of Day 6, I've added another Clear Cut insert to provided interest. The white hearts represent splashes and the great time we had during our time at the pool.

 

 

And as I mentioned last week, some days require more photos than others. I create a photo collage on my iPhone using a jumbo collage from the Diptic App, but any photo collage app will create the same type of image.  This photo was printed at 4x6 but then trimmed down to 4x4.

 

 

December 7

 

 

 Day 7 was about the story and the photo is there as a support element. It is blurry and there are elements in the photo that I wanted hidden but a Paper Piece quote banner from Oh My Stars! helped solve my issues.

I also wanted to provide a date/day number title using the Illustrated Faith CHRISTmas Tip-Ins. I've chosen to create something similar to a bookmark as the story is 100% school related.

 

 

 

I've trimmed the Tip-In to size and using the same technique as the clear cut inserts, punched holes and inverted circles on the corners so it can turn easily in the album. On the reverse side I have added washi stickers and alphas from the Homespun Black Eyed Pea sticker sheet.

 

 

December 8

 

For Day 8, I have shared a photo of my youngest son's drawing. He has never been one to explore his skills on paper, being very much an outdoor, sporty type of kid. Including his reindeer drawing in my album firstly reminds me of his fascination with artwork at the moment and secondly as it is his own form of documentation about his school Christmas concert. He will be singing "Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer" and has been practising constantly at home and in the car!

Part of this story has been documented on the back of a Holly Jolly Christmas Gift Tag.

 

Tags | Stamping + Typing

step 1. Using the Illustrated Faith Homespun clear stamps, stamp the day/number on the back of the tag. 

step 2. Run the tag through a typewriter or add your own hand writing.

 

 

step 3. Complete the look of the tag by adding a pen line to the outside edge using a fine tip marker.

 

 

December 9

 

 On Day 9, I played around in Photoshop and created my own wall art print using fonts already in my database. I had this image printed out onto photo paper and then trimmed to 4x4. A touch of colour was added with the Paper Piece from IF CHRISTmas collection.

 

 

Another Clear Cut insert was added between the pages with theme appropriate paper pieces and round gift tags providing a focal point for my date/day title. The same sticker strip from the Holly Jolly Christmas Fundamentals sticker sheet, has been used on both the front and back of the clear cut to hide raw edges and sticker backs.

 

 

Finally for Day 9, embellishments have been added directly to the photo collage to help connect each image together.

 

 

 I hope these few tips and ideas have helped boost your creativity if you're feeling a little overwhelmed or rushed during the holiday season. I will be back next Friday sharing more of my album as I progress forward. Thanks for visiting..x

 

Supplies:

Holly Jolly Christmas: Fundamentals, Gift Tags, Tabbies, Paper Pieces, Mr Claus, Daily Details; CHRISTmas: Paper Pieces, 6x8 Mini Paper Pad, Fundamentals, Tip-Ins; IF Enamel Hearts: Hey Sugar Sugar; Oh My Stars!: Pickle Juice Stars, washi stickers, Paper Pieces; IF Homespun clear stamps: #s; IF Homespun cardstock stickers #: Apple of my Eye; Homespun cardstock stickers: Black Eyed Pea; IF Mini Paper Pad: 6x8 #1407; Tiny Text: White Tiny Text; Clear Cuts: Stars Ice, Hearts White; Christmas Cheer: icons.