Project Life, Weeks 17-19

I can't believe how fast we're approaching the halfway point! I'm also a teensy bit surprised that I've stuck with the project. My life, with three little boys at home, gets pretty crazy and it can be hard to find time to scrap. So I got thinking about some of the reasons I've made it to this point:

1. Fresh, fun supplies every month. Subscribing to Studio Calico's Project Life kit club was the best decision ever. I love getting a coordinated set of trendy products every month without the hassle and time of shopping around. Who doesn't love playing with new goodies?! 
2. Digital supplies to add variety and fill in the gaps. Another great investment was a pack of Epson Premium Matte Presentation paper - it prints digital journal cards and elements beautifully. 
3. Printing at home or Walgreens 1-hour. Sure, I would have better quality photos if I ordered through Persnickety Prints, but I know myself. Instant gratification = actually doing the project. 
4. Having a dedicated craft room. I can leave a spread in progress, leave supplies out, and not worry (well, not too much anyway!) about the boys destroying it. It's a place I can escape to, and recharge my mental/emotional batteries while watching TV on my laptop and scrapping. SO therapeutic!
5. Keeping the end goal and overall "reason" in mind - so my family has photos and stories to look at and remember. I chose to do Project Life in a paper format primarily so my family would have something tangible to look at. Toddlers and preschoolers are quite narcissistic, after all, and they love looking at pictures of themselves!

If you're a Project Lifer too, what are some of the reasons you've made it this far? 

Week 17

 I especially enjoyed creating this week's spread. I printed off some fun bits from Michelle Godin's Snarky Snippets: Books, and I masked, spritzed, and stamped a few cards. And, of course, there's that gloriously hilarious big photo! It totally deserved three full spots, right? The rest of the cards are either Studio Calico or Project Life: Jade kit, except for the blue striped one and the speech bubble one - those I received in a PL card swap. I have some pretty artistic fellow crafters.

Week 18

More fun with digital products this week. I printed out cards from Splendid Fiins' Love It and Washi Brights sets, and Traci Reed/Jenn Barrette's Get Artsy cards. Cathy Zielske generously gave away the iNSD card on her blog. (Speaking of Cathy Zielske, she has an amazing and poignant blog post about her personal view of the value of Project Life. Go read it.) Since it's one of my favorite holidays, I felt interNational Scrapbooking Day deserved not only its own card, but a whole insert! I took a bunch of Instagram photos for various photo challenges on iNSD.

Week 19

I'll be including lots of Traci Reed goodies on my spreads from now on, because (drum roll please) I'm on her newly created Project Life team as a hybrid artist!!! I am super excited and honored to join the illustrious Hawt Mamas, and incorporate her artsy, trendy, fun designs into my Project Life album. I may be doing a few digital inserts, too.
So this week I have cards from Traci's Get Artsy set and a previous Facebook freebie, Hashtag cards. The Epic Awesomeness word art is by Karla Dudley, from her Life cards, and the Silly Goofy Mine word art is from her Walter photo frames.
Paper cards from Studio Calico and Jade Project Life kit. Embellishments, as usual, from everywhere - Studio Calico, Freckled Fawn, Paper Issues, Two Peas in a Bucket.

Thanks for sharing in my life!

Project Life, Weeks 11-16

So I got tired of playing catchup and only posting 2 weeks at a time. I'm just going to dump the last 6 weeks here, and then I'll be all caught up! Sorry about the long, image-heavy post. I'll try to keep the commentary to a minimum :).

Week 11

Week 12

Week 13

Week 13 - Easter

Week 14

Week 15

Week 16

Supplies used - various cards and embellishments from Studio Calico Project Life kits, a few cards from Becky Higgins Seafoam and Jade core kits, many items from Paper Issues etsy shop. 

Project Life, Weeks 9 and 10

Another episode of Project Life 2013, still catching up! I got my April Studio Calico goodies last week and I'm excited to play with all the fun new journal cards, embellishments, stamps and papers. I love getting new supplies!
I also tentatively stepped into the physical-art-journaling world today, and started my first few pages. Not ready to share pictures yet, but I will soon. I have no idea what I'm doing, but it's fun to paint and get gesso on my fresh manicure!

Week Nine

Moving week! My picture quality went down the tube this week, we were so busy moving across the neighborhood (literally, a mile away). Oh, yeah, hubby and I celebrated our 5th anniversary on February 29, too. (What, you say? There's no 29th in February this year? Yeah, we only get a "real" anniversary every 4 years...) Sadly, we weren't able to do anything to celebrate with it falling in the middle of the move. Maybe once things settle down in a few months, and we find a sitter willing to take on three rowdy boys!

Week Ten

Slowly getting moved in and settling in to the new house this week. Super excited to set up my new craft room/office!
Supplies Used: Snarky Snippets Awesome by Michelle Godin, DIY: Collection by KCB and Shawna Clingerman, Neverland and Front Row Studio Calico Project Life kits, embellishments from Studio Calico kits and Paper Issues, various letter stickers.

Easter and Rainbow cards

I've been getting the cardmaking itch lately, so I made a few Easter cards and a happy, all-occasion rainbow card inspired by the current Paper Issues blog challenge, Up In The Clouds. It's so pretty I don't want to give it away! Am I the only one who struggles with crafty selfishness?!
Anyway, here's my Easter cards, made with the Studio Calico March Neverland card kit, an October Afternoon Sprinklers mist, an SC chevron mask, and a random tulip stamp I found in my stash.

Here's the rainbow card. It makes me smile :). I used washi from here, there, and everywhere along with wood stars and a sweet polaroid card I bought at Paper Issues. Glitter tape is American Crafts, definitely a new addiction for me. I have seven colors now, and I NEED THEM ALL. It's like washi, but with GLITTER! Can't get better than that.

Thanks for looking! 

Project Life, Weeks 7 and 8

Two more weeks! At this rate, maybe I'll be caught up with the blogging by end of next week, and I can start posting each week as I complete it.
I also had a moment of insanity and ordered the Jade Project Life kit from HSN last week. At first, I thought about doing a 2012 album, but then my brain returned from its coffee break and remembered I already have plenty of digital pages scrapped for the last couple of years. I do want to complete a baby book for each of the boys at some point, but I'm holding out for the Baby Editions, if I even do those in paper.
Then I remembered all the boxes and envelopes full of photos from my childhood and teenage years, before digital cameras took over. I think I'll begin sorting through those, and figure out a way to get them all in an album(s) with the Jade edition. Because obviously I need another huge project to fill my spare time.
Week Seven

 

This week I used another insert to document Valentine's Day. Since Josh worked all day, I focused on the three people I love second-best in life - my boys! We went to the park, decorated hearts, and spent quality time together. I love all the pretty cards I worked into this week's spread! Most are from Studio Calico's February Project Life kit.I also included a cute chevron camera die-cut and some wood veneer I picked up at Paper Issues (my new favorite online scrapbooking shop!).

Week Eight

Week eight documents my latest shopping loves - Paper Issues and TJ Maxx. I also dipped into digi again, with a printed speech bubble card from Michelle Godin's Snarky Snippets: Awesome and a hashtag card by Traci Reed. I also got a little washi-crazy this week. Well, crazier than normal. 

Project Life, Weeks 5 and 6

Chugging right along, after this post I'll be caught up to the halfway point with posting! I'm staying current with my album so far, and love experimenting every week with new products and techniques. So much fun to play with paper stuff again!

Week Five 

On the left side, I started with a Seafoam title card, Dear Lizzy Fancy glitter foam Thickers, a Twine and Ink star (from a Studio Calico PL kit), and my Smash date stamp. The first 4x6 photo is all digital, with lovey-dovey goodies from The Lilypad's February BYOC. The little boy journal card is from This&That by Lori Whitlock. Then more digi embellishing, a Seafoam journal card, Smash stickies, washi, a little Chic Tag, vellum arrow from a Studio Calico kit, and a Pebbles word label.

Love this layout! This week I really delved into my digital supplies, inspired by the beautiful stuff in The Lilypad's February BYOC (Build Your Own Collection, a whole bunch of coordinating, mix-and-match digital supplies released every month). The top right 4x6 and the second 3x4 cards include digital elements printed right onto my photos. The top left 4x6 includes some more bits from This&That line by Lori Whitlock. I'm super proud of the hidden journaling pocket I created with my favorite washi on the top right! See that little tab? Cute, right?! I stuck a vellum arrow, Dear Lizzy brad, and Tim&Beck alpha stickers on top of my pocket. 

Also seen on this side: Seafoam journal card, Studio Calico labels and calendar card, more washi, and lots of alpha stickers! I'm kinda obsessed with them, especially the tiny ones. So perfect for Project Life! Oh, and I prettied up the calendar card with a stamp from Studio Calico's 34th Street kit. 

Week Six

 

I dabbled with spray ink and masks this week. Not entirely successfully, but I think the title card is pretty :). The number is American Crafts Jewelry Box Thickers, and the Week letters are Martha Stewart (hurrah for Michael's clearance!). A mix of Studio Calico February PL kit, Seafoam, and one printed-out journal card. Those sweet little circles are also printed out, from the Dotted: Love Edition by Amy Martin. I even managed to size them currently to use the only circle punch I own. I'm ridiculously proud of that hybrid accomplishment. The kitchen photo is decorated with elements from Karla Dudley's Damselle collection.

I thought those Facebook status cards by Peppermint Creative added the perfect touch! Added two more Studio Calico cards, some tags and badges from Evalicious, and of course the washi! 

I managed to include some actual ephemera this week, a discharge summary from the doctor for Riah, a birthday party invite, and a couple tickets from a men's dinner my husband took our oldest son to. The invitation lifts up to reveal a collage of photos from the party.

Thanks for looking!