Another Project Life installment! Yeah! I’m still loving the smaller format and my minimalistic approach to jamming photos and memorabilia in those little pockets.

Over the holidays while I was at Michaels for the umpteenth time in a week (’twas the season!), I spotted Martha Stewart’s customizable stamp set on clearance. Of course, my knee-jerk reaction was to throw it in my basket as fast as possible, but then guilt set in and I proceeded to have a mini debate with myself along the lines of “another stamp set?! really?? don’t you make stamps for a living?” (my inner voice is a total B). Nonetheless, I somehow convinced myself that YES, I NEED ANOTHER STAMP SET and so it came home with me and I haven’t looked back since. I am obsessed with the classic Martha font (Archer) and how surprisingly easy it is to create phrases to stamp. You can see it in action in that little “01″ that I stamped at the top with hot pink ink. (Super long story for such a tiny product demo, I know.)

I also used some of my other favorite supplies on this page including the “Go” flair and girl veneer (misted with Mister Huey in Taxi) from Studio Calico, the roller date stamp and orange Thickers from Amy Tangerine, and the turquoise Thickers from American Crafts. As for the Top Gear obsession? I have no words.

This page was super simple to whip out because it was all about my recent trip to San Diego. I wanted to keep the focus primarily on the photos and memorabilia, but I also used a geotag flair from SC, striped aqua washi tape from Freckled Fawn, and my J & A stamp. And of course, to drive home the point that SD is my favorite city in all of the land, I cut out the “You Make My Heart Sing” phrase from a sheet of Dear Lizzy paper. It was a perfect match.

xoxo

Yet another Project Life installment! I’m having so much fun getting back into it and experimenting with the smaller size and looser format.

Hard to tell from this photo, but I included a mini layout between both pages, just to break up the symmetry of the spread a little bit. I mean, why not? I like to keep things interesting.

I wanted to include this super cute 2013 print from Urbanic, so I decided to just glue it on top of my page protectors and place the gorgeous Studio Calico aqua ombre paper underneath. I backed the print with white cardstock that I ran through my Cuttlebug with this polka-dot embossing folder, added a little embellishing, and called it good. I always forget how much I love that little embossing machine! Definitely need to bust it out more often this year.

You know it’s not one of my spreads unless there’s a heavy dose of hot pink, so I used a journaling card from Jamaica and topped it with a Studio Calico banner die-cut, an Amy Tangerine Daily Thicker, and a stamp that I designed for SC this past year.

For the mini layout, I tried to keep it as simple as possible (my general rule of thumb for PL, really). Minimal embellishments, a little bit of ephemera, and quick and easy journaling thanks to my typewriter. I didn’t even adhere the photobooth strips to the paper; they’re just held together by my trusty gold paperclips. Living life on the edge, as usual.

I’m in love with this graphic Crate Paper pattern and the way it brings all the rainbow colors in my spread together. Happy happy! And of course, how insanely awesome is Amy Tangerine’s calendar stamp?! Genius. Other products used here include the Yeah Yeah Yeah die-cut, mini alphas, and aqua washi tape.

The red phrase paper in the upper left corner is from a Fab.com mailer that I am convinced was designed with Project Life in mind. The purple Rose Bowl ticket in the center is just hanging out for now. I love the white space it gives my page and figure I will worry about what I will place on the other side of it when that time comes. Just roll with it.

Aqua + cream paper by Crate Paper | Totally Obsessed With Stamp | StazOn Black Ink | Hot pink pen from Typo.

So much fun, you guys. How are your books coming together?

xoxo

Last year I fell in love with the concept of Project Life.

I loved the way it allowed me to use all my favorite elements (paper, photos + memorabilia) in one place without having to make traditional scrapbook pages. At first I was super dedicated (I’m going to do this every week! of every year! for the rest of my life!), but like all long-term creative endeavors, I eventually fell off the bandwagon. I started to feel that I had gotten too far behind (even though I don’t believe in that!) and “catching up” just seemed too daunting a task. I still loved the concept, but I knew I needed to find a system that work better for me.

So after much thought + inspiration from others, I decided to try something new. This year I’m going with an 8.5×11″ format using a mix of baseball card sleeves and traditional Project Life page protectors cut down to size. I also plan on forgoing a rigid week-by-week schedule and instead, simply filling up my pages when and how I see fit. Nothing too fancy. Nothing too crazy. But totally doable.

xoxo

Hot summer weather always has a way of making me long for cooler Fall / Winter temps. And with Fall + Winter comes one of my all-time favorite holiday traditions: December Daily. And what is December Daily? Scrapbooking, of course. Sigh. Just when I think I have reached the end of my scrapbooking days, I get sucked right back in. So even though I have to wait a few more months before I can get started on any holiday fun, I can always work on Project Life. Novel concept, right? Ha!

Here’s how I jumped back into it:

June 2012 

I had grand plans for the month of June, but somehow it just turned out to be a single page. And I realized I am totally fine with that. There’s no need to do a two page spread every single time.

July 2012

I decided a two-page spread was in order for this month. I’ve been collecting bits and pieces of ephemera in the hopes of getting back into Project Life mode and I’m so glad I kept them. I think they’re my favorite aspect of the whole PL concept! I’ve also continued with typing my journaling directly onto my photos in Photoshop. Being able to print pictures out and immediately stick them in their respective pockets has been a great way to streamline my process.

Here’s hoping August makes for an excellent PL month!

xoxo