Around Here

Around here, life is busy, but so good.

We are loving the cooler weather, the crispness in the air and everything fall.  We are jumping into the season with both feet and are trying to pack in as much as we can over these next few crazy months. Hope your October is off to a great start!

xoxo

September in Photos

These are the rest of my images from the September photo a day challenge.  It was a fun challenge and I'm so glad I carried my camera around with me throughout the month.  And while I take at least one photo a day (usually), I found this project kind of stressed me out a little.  I've seen where some people completed this project by ONLY taking one photo each day.  That's a lot of pressure.  I'm more of a snap and delete kind of gal, so I took a whole bunch, kept my favorite and deleted the rest. Of all the photo projects I've completed, I think Day in the Life or Week in the Life is a more accurate representation of our life.  But playing around with my camera, trying out new things and learning as I go is always a good time, so no complaints here!

Goodbye September!!!  

Going back to the basics

I went out on a limb this month with my Project Life spread over at Studio Calico and decided to give the 12x12 size a go again!  I was surprised at how easily the spread came together and really do love this size (I just wish the darn albums weren't so large and bulky).

I found myself following my normal "process" which consisted of printing out all of my photos first, adding in a few filler cards in the extra spaces and then including my journaling.  So fast and so easy!

I think one of the things I always struggled with with this size was having the two pages have a good flow and coordinate well with one another.  Using a kit, like the Wink Wink Project Life kit from Studio Calico this month, really helps make that process easier!

The cards and accents were designed to compliment each other, so it's easy to pull in elements and have a good flow/feel on the page. 

I used my typewriter to add most of journaling onto either my photos or journaling cards.  Typing on photos still is my absolute favorite! I love leaving a little bit of "negative space" when printing out my photos so I can add in my thoughts!

For this photo of my two kids, I was worried the sun and trees in the background would make my typing difficult to see, so I typed onto a piece of white printer paper and then stitched the strips into place!  I love how the words pop from the photo!

The 12x12 size really is such a fun size to work with!  And pairing the design A page protectors with a coordinated kit makes the process even easier!  That's a win-win in my book!

We Just Click

I love using various shapes on my projects and circles are by far my favorite!!  When I saw the chipboard circles in the Wink Wink Scrapbook kit, I knew I wanted to play around with them to create a page of round circles, punched paper circles and the chipboard elements!

I began the page by layering the paper circles on my background and then my photos.  I moved them around a little to get a good balance of patterns and text.  Then I added in the chipboard pieces, some journaling typed onto vellum and an acetate "2".

Pages like this really are so simple to create, but since they are little different than the typical "square photos" and square corners, they seem a little more complex and involved!

So what about you??  Do you love using circles on your pages?  If you've never stepped out of the "square" box, you just have to try them out! Grab your favorite circle punch and get crafty!