One Little Word 2014: Inspirational Layout

I am a little behind in my OLW prompts.  I have written out all my January prompts, but I haven't written them all pretty on the cardstock to go into my album.  I haven't even looked at February's prompts....My goal this month is to get caught up though!

I think I mentioned before that I wanted to make a 12"x12" layout of my OLW that I can display as a reminder all year long.  I got the inspiration from Wilna Furstenberg's first and last videos of the Two Peas in a Bucket "In the Mood to Scrap" 2013 video series.  Her first video and layout can be found here.  Her last video in that series, documenting her One Little Word for 2014 can be found here.

Before I started this layout, I knew I wanted to do some brush script of my OLW: DO on white cardstock in several places.  I also wanted to use a recent photo of myself.  And I wanted to use products and papers from Maggie Holmes' Flea Market collection because I have tons of it!

I have to say, I absolutely LOVE this layout!  It did not turn out exactly how I had envisioned in my head, but I still love it!  After I completed the brush script, I wanted to tone it down a bit, so I sewed on a piece of vellum onto the background to create a soft look (except for the top "do," which I wanted to stand out).  Before the vellum was sewn down, I added a scattering of sequins and a punched border.

And then came the layering....I know I've said this before and I'll say it again, but I LOVE LAYERING!!  It's such a great way to use up paper scraps.  Everything on this layout is from the Flea Market collection except for the resin flower and pearl brads, the tag hiding my journaling, the vellum, the sequins, the doilies and the white cardstock.

This layout was so much fun to put together.  Having coordinating pieces or a collection just makes it easier to put things onto paper.  

As you all are well aware by this point, I am loving the gold trend and Maggie Holmes' collection just looks so great with gold.  

I still need to purchase a shadow box to house and display this layout in my scrap room.  It's just too pretty to be tucked away in an album.  Plus, I need it to help me to take action with DOing things this year.

I'm also making a simple journal to write in throughout the year to help document my actions, as well as to note the difficulties.  This journal does not coordinate with this layout as I used pieces from Studio Calico's Printshop collection.  I just need to decorate the cover and I'll let you all take a peek at it!

So, how are you doing with your One Little Word?  Have you made any inspirational pieces to help keep your mind on it?  I'd love to hear what you all have to say!  Leave me some comments down below!

xoxo,
Heather

How I'm Going to Document 2014

As you all know from this post, I have decided not to do Project Life in 2014.  I do still want to document those everyday moments throughout the year.  So, I happened to see a post on the Two Peas General Scrappin' Message Board highlighting a month-in-review scrapbook album.  The original blog post can be found here.  I thought this was a genius idea!  This woman broke down her complete process in how she prepares her album.  And this was all free!  I've taken classes I've paid for that provided just as much detail, photos, advice, and lists as this blog post.  It definitely motivated me to document 2014 in this way; a way I've never scrapbooked before.

There were two goals I had when taking on this project:  1) I wanted to use my stash and not buy anything specifically for this album and 2) I wanted to make all my layouts and embellishments for the year to make this process as easy as possible.  Well, I did buy the actual 12"x12" album and page protectors, but that's it!  I'm very proud of myself.  I used Recollections The Sweetest Thing paper stack found at Michael's.  I think this paper stack is the Michael's brand of My Mind's Eye's Sweetest Thing collection lines. I bought this huge paper stack 6 or so months ago and have barely used any papers.  I was happy to finally use this paper stack.  

So, here's where I started.

  

Sketch from Creating Keepsakes

  I knew I wanted a 2-page layout.  (Which is unusual for me because I've never done a 2-page layout!)  And I wanted to use landscape and portrait 4"x6" photos, as well as some square photos.  I spent so much time looking for a sketch.  I needed something simple with lots of photos and a journaling block. 

My next step was to make a mock layout.  I needed to make sure what I had envisioned in my head looked good on paper; I needed to see where I could add extra embellishments; and I needed to see how big my journaling block could be.  

Mock Month-in-Review Layout

Left side of mock layout

Right side of mock layout

The white paper represents photos.  I made notes on this layout and figured out where my embellishment clusters were going.  The sketch only showed 2 embellishment clusters, but I wanted three, for design purposes.  I literally made this layout as it would be for all 12 months in my album.  And I fell in love with this!  I don't usually scrapbook like this, like, at all.  But I still wanted to display photos from each month with some written highlights.  I realized I would need some more room for journaling, so I left one side of the journaling mat un-adhered to stick a journaling tag underneath.  

After my mock layout was constructed, I picked 5 patterned papers from The Sweetest Thing paper stack for each month.  I set aside all the ledger/graph/lined paper in this stack as well to be used for my journaling blocks, embellishment clusters, and scalloped borders.

A finished layout for one of the 12 months

Here is one of the completed layouts.  Everything has already been glued down, except for the circle embellishments (as they will be layered over photos) and the journaling block (I may type on the papers for maximum use).

Large embellishment cluster

This is the large cluster for the left side of the layout.  It looks like it's adhered, but it's just hanging out in the page protector.  

Small embellishment cluster

Here is the small circle embellishment cluster.  This will be layered over a photo and the journaling block on the right side of the layout.  

Banner embellishment cluster

This embellishment cluster is already adhered to the top right of each layout.  Each layout cluster uses a button threaded with twine, a wood veneer heart, and patterned paper the coordinated with each layout.

It took me what seemed like forever to finish all 12 layouts, but I did it!  I spend 2 days getting these layouts done.  Luckily, when I decided to work on this project, it was the Sunday of the crazy polar vortex, so I ended up having Monday off from work.  Which I took advantage of the time to complete the layouts.

All the layouts in their album!

The only thing I have to do at the end of each month is to print photos, journal each month's highlights/stories, and cut the title (month name) with my Cameo.

I am so excited to have a system to document 2014 already prepared in advance.  This will be really helpful in staying on top of the other projects and goals I have for the year.

I will show each month on my blog, so make sure to come back!  

How are you documenting your year for 2014?  Are you participating in Project Life?  Or did you come up with some other system?  Let me know in the comments section!

xoxo,

Heather

Hello 2014!

HAPPY NEW YEAR!  My goodness, I cannot believe how quickly 2013 came and went.  It was definitely a year of challenges, realizations, growing, learning, and happy, happy memories.  I feel like I've become more mindful of myself and how I portray myself to others.  I've become more grateful for my life as it is, but still not forgetting about my dream for the future.  I've been better at being present in the moment.  I've been so much better about communicating with my husband. (Boy, that was something very different for me after I got married.  My husband and I had been together for 3 years when we got married, but 2 of those years I was living in another state getting my Master's degree.  It was difficult for me to open up and talk to him about stuff I used to take care of myself since I'm pretty independent.)  And that will always be an ongoing thing in my life and it's extremely rewarding to have someone like him by my side.  

Some things I want to work on/achieve in 2014:
-making my Etsy shop into a small business/part-time work
-running a 5K
-getting back into yoga regularly
-joining a gym (not to lose weight, but to get in shape and be healthy)
-planning and making more meals
-saving more money
-using my mint.com account (I signed up a few years ago and used it for 6 months or something until I went to graduate school, then I completely stopped.)
-being more thoughtful about my purchases, especially when it comes to papercrafting
-sending out more cards
-visiting my friends
-journaling more
-cleaning out our basement, painting the floor and resealing/painting the walls (it's unfinished)
-painting the living room
-learning calligraphy (I have been loving this trend of modern calligraphy.  Definitely want to jump on the bandwagon.)

I lot of these goals are more of a lifestyle change and will take me awhile to get accustomed to and make a part of my daily life.  Some stuff can just be crossed off a list after it's completed.  I just need to remember that change takes time and work.  I'm not going to succeed overnight.  It may take weeks, even months.  But I need to actively work towards making these goals a part of me and who I am.  There's no better time than the present.  Plus, we don't have kids yet, so I want to make a habit of things so they don't go on the wayside when little ones do come in the picture.  

And here are just some words of wisdom to get you pumped up for 2014:

Here's to a happy, healthy, prosperous new year to you and yours.  Let's make 2014 a kick ass year!

xoxo,
Heather

Goodbye 2013...Hello 2014!

Whoa!  So, let me begin by apologizing for my lack of blog posts this month.  I will be honest with you all, I was not prepared for the holiday season with everything going on.  This was my first year with a blog AND my Etsy shop.  Add daily life during the holiday season and something is bound to go on the wayside.  Unfortunately, that was my blog.  

BUT, I have learned a lot this holiday season about how to juggle my lovely blog, my Etsy shop, my personal life, etc.  It has really helped put some things in perspective for me, as well as open my eyes to the fact that I need to be super organized, prioritize a little better, and PLAN AHEAD!  

With that being said, I will not be doing a Project Life album for 2014.  I know, I know.  But as you all know from previous posts, as 2013 went on, I dreaded having to do PL spreads.  Even when I switched to a monthly set-up, it was still terrible for me.  I will finish my October spreads and get my June spreads in my album, but that is it.  I'm not even doing the month of November and December is documented in my Christmas album.  So, I have decided not to do Project Life in 2014.  I have plans to still do some kind of monthly documentation, but I still have more planning and experimenting with these ideas before I let you guys know about it.  I want to make sure I can actually do something and deliver before getting your hopes up.

Now, for some fun stuff...my plans for 2014! I have been brainstorming and thinking and getting super excited about this coming year.

One Little Word:  I decided to pull the trigger and sign up for Ali Edwards' One Little Word year long class. I picked a word this year and started out 2013 scrapping about it on my own.  That stopped about mid-February.  I want to be more intentional with my 2014 word.  I thought actually taking the class would help me get perspective of my personal life and just help make me, well, a better me.  I have a good idea of what my 2014 word will be, but I want to take a few more days to reflect.  I will post my 2014 OLW on Monday, January 6, 2014.

Just Two Midwest Girls Scrap Challenges:  Yes, Kelly and I will be continuing our adventure together, using up those scraps and getting creative.  I cannot tell you all how extremely thankful I am to have met Kelly this past year.  We started out as penpals from a facebook group and have grown to be friends.  I'm pretty sure we were sisters in another life.  We are very excited to be continuing our scrap challenges and will be Skyping pretty soon to discuss some plans for 2014!  Get excited!

Speaking of the Just Two Midwest Girls scrap challenges, we will be posting another challenge this Friday, January 3, 2014.  You guys have until 8pm CST January 2, 2014 to link up your holiday cards you made this holiday season.  You can get more details about this challenge here.  You can link in my comments section or in Kelly's comments section.  We love it when you all play along, so show us what you've made!  You may win a $5 gift card to Two Peas in a Bucket!  

Knitting Projects:  I was knitting like crazy this holiday season and LOVED it!  I don't want to stop doing this kind of creating, so I'll start posting about my knitting projects.  I don't have a set day or blog series I will devote to my knitting projects; they will be more spontaneous throughout the year.  I already have my first knitting project post in the works!

Pinterest Crafts Blog Series:  This is something completely new for my blog, as well as for myself creatively.  If you guys haven't caught on yet, I love to make things, but I've only ever dabbled with papercrafts until my knitting adventures recently.  I have a whole Pinterest board devoted to crafts.  I obviously have intentions of doing these crafts, or I would not have pinned them.  2014 will be the year I challenge myself creatively.  I don't have a name for this blog series yet.  This series will be a monthly posting on the 15th of each month showcasing one completed craft I found on Pinterest.  I will provide the original link, supplies, instructions, photos, and my thoughts on each craft.  This is going to be a fun project!

Me on the 27th:  **This will not be my banner for this blog series!  I just really love this photo and I don't have a good selfie of me currently.**  This blog series is a spin off of Corrie Jones' 2013 Monthly "Me" Layouts.  She documented herself with a picture and 8 things about herself on the 8th of every month.  This year marks the year of my golden birthday-I'll be 27 on February 27th.  I wanted to do something special for my golden birthday, so I decided to really focus on me, in the moment.  On the 27th of each month, I will take a selfie and note how I feel, what I'm doing, dreams, aspirations, achievements, etc.  I will then make a layout!  I won't be journaling 27 things about myself each month, because, let's face it, that's a lot.  I want to focus more on what makes me at each moment.  I will be sharing the layouts at the beginning of the following month, i.e. January's "Me on the 27th" layout will be shared in the beginning of February.  I haven't set a date for that layout share, but I will.  It helps me get stuff done if I have a "deadline."  

Layout Shares:  I will continue to post my layouts I do throughout 2014.  Because I won't be doing a Project Life album, I hope to tackle more layouts.  I'm planning on STARTING my wedding, honeymoon, and childhood albums.  These projects will be ongoing and I'm not going to put any kind of deadline or schedule on these. I am starting to get excited to tackle these long-term projects, so I figured I better harness that excitement and just scrap it!

Okay, there are my plans for 2014.  I am very excited about them!  What do you guys think about my plans for the new year?  Are there any particular series or projects you're looking forward to?  What are your plans for 2014?

Happy New Year,

Heather