Life, Lately

Focusing on: Writing a lot.  I've been working to create a portfolio of work on clippings.me which is a cool little site.  I'm not sure I totally get the technology yet, but I've been playing around quite a bit with it, and tweaking things here and there.  So far, so good.  Now if I could make myself not get too bogged down with the details - like I have for the last hour or so...

Crafting: I'm still going strong on Project Life.  Up until this point, my motto has been "get it done." But now that I have a process, I'm starting to focus on quality of pages not so much quantity of photos.  I'm still really enjoying it.  I definitely like some pages more than others, but it's a pretty accurate representation of 2017 right now.  For the record, there's a pretty good amount of griping about Donald Trump - so I'm pretty sure that's what makes it accurate in regards to 2017...

Reading: Charlie and the Chocolate Factory in preparation for seeing it next month in New York.  So far, I'm a much bigger fan of this book than I was of Matilda.  But then again, I'm only 20 pages in.

Listening: I'm hooked on Dear Evan Hansen, Hedwig and the Angry Inch, Newsies and Come From Away right now.  I know what you're thinking.  A psychiatrist could probably gain a lot of insight from that particular collection of music. But the music is just so good!

Buying: BroadwayCon tickets - woohoo!  I'd say I can't wait, but BroadwayCon 2018 is in January, so I'm not really all about wishing my summer, fall and Christmas away.  Train ticket to NYC for a change in my mode of transportation.  I keep putting it off because the $100 price tag seems like a lot when compared to the cheap-o tickets from Megabus.

Eating: Chocolate Marshmallow and Chocolate Buttercream eggs from the Amish Market that are so darn delicious they should be illegal.  And leftover Lasagna from Easter made by Chef Dad which was pretty much the best food I've ever eaten!  So yummy!

Formulating: I have so many ideas and plans in my head for the future that it's often difficult to focus on the present.  Also, it's hard to pick the best ones to focus on.  But I'm trying. Because - and I'm not just saying this because they're mine - some of these ideas are really good.  I just need to figure out a way to execute them. And I need to be able to sucker some friends that get excited about these things too, to come along with me.

Scrappy Hack

As I'm still living without a computer, I've had to learn to do all sorts of things without it. For the most part, I'm doing ok. Though typing on my screen is becoming super annoying. Anyway, in my need to continue project life in my computer-lessness, I discovered a really cool trick, I thought I'd share.

I've been looking for apps to use in Project Life for a while now, but I couldn't quite find one I liked. The PL app is cool, but I don't really like their designs and there's no way to incorporate your own stuff into the app. And as I've said multiple times, I'm pretty obsessed with In A Creative Bubble so there's no living without her adorable designs in my album. Well, I've finally figured out and I'm really not sure why this took me so long to figure out...

First, email or drop box the jpgs of the journal cards to yourself. Then save them to your iPad or iPhone. Now that they're photos, you can use any app you have for adding text - like FontCandy+ - to journal on the go. Then save it down to your device and print. The best part is that the app always saves the original photo as is so you can reuse journal cards again and again.

It's fairly perfect for scrapping on the go, right? I can't wait to try it on my next trip!

Just a Tiny Bit More Project Life

As I said last night, I had some issues getting good pictures of my spreads for Project Life.  It turns out that tonight was no better.  I have pictures, but they are most definitely not as lovely as I had hoped, so don't judge...

So this is it, so far.  I'm noticing now that I tend to repeat items and embellishments quite a bit, but they're super cute so I'm ok with it.  Some of my favorites are:

In a Creative Bubble Journal cards - I love her style and each time she releases new stock, I must buy at least one set of her super-duper adorable journal cards.

My Emoji journal cards from Studio Calico - I mean, who doesn't love a good emoji?

Hearts - I use heart stickers an embarrasing number of times...

Washi Tape - This stuff is addictive and it doesn't help that Hobby Lobby has it on sale almost every week

Font Candy+: This great app adds text and cool graphics to pictures right from my phone.

Zig Writer: My favorite pen for all my scrapbooking needs.  

 I love this one mostly because this so far has been my favorite thing I've done in 2017 so far.  

 But this layout is my favorite.  Not sure why, probably because it has lots of pink.

Thoughts on Project Life - Two Months Down

For the last 3 years or so, I've been willing myself to complete Project Life.  Every January 1st I have the best of intentions, and then every February 15th or so I let it fall by the wayside where it stays until the following January. It's a whole hellish cycle, that I'd really like to end.  Thankfully, it seems like 2017 is the year to end it.  I don't want to alarm anyone but it's officially March 1 and I'm still up to date on all things Project Life. That's not to say that a new cycle won't begin on March 15.  However, I still enjoy doing it, and I can't seem to stop looking at it, so I'm much more confident this year than most. 

So what's different this year?

First, I went simple.  This is where I screw up usually.  I devise all sorts of templates and plans.  I assume each week must have its own theme, or all pieces of memorabilia and all stories must match each other.  I've now learned that that's not the case.  Simple is your friend.  Whatever I like goes into the album.  Most of the cards I use are white with blank ink from In a Creative Bubble.  I try to jazz them up a bit with some colored ink, or washi tape, but sometimes they're just black and white.  And that's ok.  They still tell the story I want to tell and that's all that matters.  

Next, along the lines of simplicity is your friend is organizing monthly instead of weekly. Weekly is too intimidating.  I feel like you need pics and stories for every single day of every single week.  And honestly, there are days when nothing memorable happens and therefore I have nothing to add to the album.  By organizing monthly, I don't feel that pressure.  There's never a month that goes by when nothing happens.  Some months may be more chock full than others, but the important part is that they all have something in them.  Also, 12 title cards is so much easier to handle than 52 title cards.

Lastly, I don't have to rely too heavily on pictures all the time.  If I take pictures of something memorable, that's fun.  But if I read a book that has a great quote in it, then that gets added too because it's something I want to remember in the future.  Along with pics, in the last 2 months I've added trading cards, quotes, pictures from Seth Meyers Twitter, movie tickets, reviews of shows I've seen and a cancer ribbon.  It's all fun and it looks great! 

So that's where I am right now.  I'm still having fun and I still look forward to editing and printing so I can scrap.  I'm super excited by what I've created and I literally cannot stop looking at it.  Honestly, the reason I'm writing this all tonight - instead of tomorrow when I'll have pictures of the pages - is that I was just looking at it all again, and thinking about how much I love it.  Not perfect by any means but I've finally realized it doesn't have to be.

Friday Five

1. Sometimes you find weird things on the internet. And sometimes those weird things just make you smile and really, anything that makes me smile on the internet these days is a win! This is one of those things - random theater celebrities singing verses of Careless Whisper on via Twitter.  Ridiculously amusing!

2. I'm loving Seth Myers!  I've pretty much bragged on him to everyone I know.  So now it's your turn.  Each evening he takes on the ridiculousness of the day's politics in his Closer Look segments.  They are beyond fabulous - funny and topical and scarily true.  I was a Corden girl for a long time, but I think I've changed my allegiances...

3. I'm using this outlet to brag a bit on myself just for a moment.  The fact that I've finished a full month of Project Life - and we're not talking sort of completed with holes still to fill, I'm talking completely full pages! - makes me so happy.  I know it's jumping the gun a bit, but I've got a good momentum going, and I love how it looks so far.  1 month down, 11 to go!

4. I've been reading Michael Ausiello's columns for years now.  I'm a sucker for great entertainment reporting, and he's one of the best.  He's very funny and he always has the best news.  So a few years ago, when he shared that his husband passed away from Cancer, I literally could not get him out of my head for days.  I've never met the man, but what a terrible thing to have to go through so young.  Today he released the news that a book about his time with Kit and what he's gone through since will be coming out in September. I'm sure it will be terribly sad, but I'm also sure the book will really showcase his wit and his grace.  I can't wait to read it!

5. So in a weekend full of marvelous quotes about Broadway and theater, my absolute favorite was by a playwright I had never heard of until last Sunday. Paula Vogel said: Theater must be the dog that bites the hand that feeds it.  Seriously?!  I suppose that's why she gets all the awards.  How beautiful is that?!  

Scrappy Blues

About 11 months ago I went to England and Belgium for almost 2 weeks.  This past weekend I finally completed my scrapbook of those photos.  I certainly hope that happens to other people.  Because I was feeling like quite a slacker.  In all honesty, I had some trouble with it because I was overwhelmed.  I took over 900 photos over 12 days.  That's a lot of editing, printing and situating (my term for what I do when I attempt to scrapbook.)  And since that time I had taken 8 trips to NYC, 1 trip to Texas, celebrated Christmas, and took a trip to the ocean that I also wanted to document.  #Overwhelming

In this ridiculous process of "finishing" the album, aka starting with a plan, scrapping that plan after a month, starting with another plan, then also tossing that plan and finally deciding on the simple option, I learned a few things.

For one, I'm apparently neurotic and slightly obsessive compulsive. Who starts a scrapbook 3 different times?  This girl right here. I originally started with a 12x12 but quickly decided that even though I had 900 pictures, only like 100 were actually good, so there was going to be a lot of filler in the 12x12.  So then I moved on to a 6x8 which was a lot more manageable. But then I also wanted to edit my photos, which is mind-numbingly annoying when using PicMonkey. So I actually relied a lot on my cell phone pics to make up a majority of the album - PicTapGo + My trusty Canon Selphy really made that process so much easier.  So - Lesson 1 I guess is - Don't mess with simple.  If it's overwhelming, then it's not fun any more.  

Secondly, even though I had the best of intentions taking journaling cards with me to write about the trip in the moment, I was much too busy enjoying the trip to take the time to write.  Also, when I did have the time, i.e. on trains, planes and automobiles, the journey was much too bumpy or cramped to spread out and write. While it's best to scrapbook on the go, it's not always practical.  I suggest just taking some notes on things that need to be remembered on your phone, and then writing them down when you get back home. What there was time and space to do though was to edit photos on my phone.  Getting them done a little at a time, instead of one enormous batch was so much easier to handle.  Then printing was a breeze. Lesson 2: Technology is your friend.

Invest in some journaling cards designed by In a Creative Bubble.  She's amazing and makes super simple and super cute journaling cards for travel as well as every day life.  All you need to do print them out and fill them in.  And they look fabulous in an album.  My 3rd lesson: Apparently I like simple designs.

Lastly, as much as I love to scrapbook, and as much as I enjoy looking at everyone else's albums, my friends do not.  I just spent months of my life making it perfect, and only close family actually wants to see it.  Unfortunately, my friends are not crafters making them simultaneously a pain in my neck and no fun when it comes to showing off.  Lesson 4: Get crafty friends!

And one last lesson I learned just as I was writing this post - I need better lighting in the room in which I took these photos of my album.  I promise they looked better on the phone screen...

52 Lists: Week 18

As you may be able to see from this photo, I'm by no means a "powerful" person.  If you know anything about the Ravens, this was my "Ray Lewis, I will Protect this House!" stance.  Somehow, it's just a bit more intimidating when he does it.  And after today, a day where nothing terribly bad happened, but a day where I felt powerless nonetheless, I started to think of what does make me powerful.  Or in the very least, what makes me feel powerful.  Not in an intense, violent sort of way.  But in a "I'm in charge of my surroundings and I've got everything I need to make it through" sort of way.  

~ Being nice to people in a world where not many people are nice.  - It may sometimes seem to be a weakness, but I've always thought that being nice was a strength.  Real power is being able to influence someone's day by a kind a word or smile.

~ Knowledge - It's a bit cliche to say that knowledge is power, but learning something new that others may not know or figuring out something complex on your own, is a sure fire way to feel in control and powerful.  Needless to say, I've never felt powerful in a math classroom, but in others I certainly have.

~ Trying very hard and succeeding in being me, not someone that others are telling me to be.  I spend a lot of time listening to what others say and trying to decide if I should be more unwielding, or more direct like they are.  At the end of the day, I don't want to be them. Things may be a bit easier for them, but that's not how I was raised, so I try very hard to stray away from qualities that aren't inherently me.

~ Creativity - There's nothing better than the feeling of creating something entirely new that no one else has made before. It's a rush.  

~ Being quiet - It's a hard conversation starter, and it definitely doesn't help with meeting Prince Charming, but I find power in the quiet.  Sometimes in listening you learn more than in talking and chatting incessantly.  Also, sometimes I just need a re-charge to feel my best. Quiet is the best way to do this.

~ And because of my need for quiet, I find a lot of power in writing.  - The quiet makes me not share a lot of what's going on in my head (Newsflash, there's actually a whole little city happening up there), but I am able to get it down on paper.  Just the act of writing it down, helps me to work through things and see things more clearly.  

52 Lists: Week 17

It may have something to do with the fact that I've been in spring cleaning mode all day.  And spent a great deal of time reorganizing the craft room.  Or maybe it's just because I spend a great deal of time thinking about craft ideas.  But for whatever reason, I've been thinking a lot about craft supplies and what I use lately.  While I have a ton, there are definitely a few I gravitate to for all my projects.  These are those supplies:

~ Journal cards by In a Creative Bubble: I'm hooked on her style.  They're so simple and clean, and she makes tons for travel which is what I tend to scrapbook.  She also tends to focus on specific places as well - so much so that I really want to go to Portland, Seattle, LA and Hawaii just so I can use those journal cards she's designed : )
~ Watercolor paper: It just looks so much nicer than regular paper.
~ Embellishments: These are my favorite.  I usually tend to go with the wooden looking shapes or the paper clips in different shapes.
~ Stick-on Letters: I use these for everything even when they're not called for. I think I may have the alphabet 100 times over.  The letter sticker aisle is my favorite aisle in the craft store.
~ Stamps: This is more a need to buy than use.  I have TONS and they're all so cute.  But I'm no good at the fancy-schmancy stamping, so I tend to just hoard them instead of using them.
~ 6"x8" Album inserts by SN@P: So much better quality than Project Life.
~ Sizzix paper trimmer: For someone who cannot cut a straight line if her life depended on it, the paper trimmer was a revelation for me.
~ And lastly, in the technology category, the Cuttlebug, the Cricut, the Purple Cow laminator and the Canon Selphy printer - I cannot live without them! 

52 Lists: Week 4

The only drinks I ever drink are:

~ Hot Tea - White, No sugar
~ Iced Tea - One Splenda and lots of ice (Oh and if there's no Splenda, I have my own I carry with me always, so no need to worry!)
~ Milk - Lots of Ice
~ Water - Also lots of ice.  I only ever drink it though if there's nothing else I like (i.e. Iced Tea) or if it's super hot.
~ Margarita - On the rocks, No salt (The only alcoholic beverage I will drink due to the lack of any carbonated substances in it)
~ Hot Chocolate - Huge heaping spoonfuls of Marshmallow fluff
~ Super Chocolatey Chocolate Milkshakes - And if you really want to win my heart, throw a banana in it too.
~ Strawberry Smoothies - With no other fruits other than the strawberries - why ruin a good thing?

January - Story of a Day

 Wake up time, already?

 Doesn't everyone use "God, I Hate Shakespeare" as their alarm?

Notice the slight difference between when the alarm went off and when I actually managed to drag myself out from under the nice warm covers...

If I'd had the nerve to post the just getting out of bed selfie, you'd appreciate this completely put together selfie so much more...

 Offensively Cold!

 Just what you want to do when it's cold out - get gas

 But breakfast with the mama makes it all better.

 When you're office is an ice box, you make do.  In this case, I brought slippers in and wore them around.  They might look ridiculous, but at least I'm warm.

Special delivery for a friend who ordered some soccer cards.  The packaging just has to be as cute as what's inside! 

 Facebook break!

 Planning I'm good at - following said plans, not so much.

 Quitting time - woohoo!

 Snow's forecasted for this weekend (1-2 feet possible) so I had to join the rest of MD and go to the grocery store

 Love my crock pot!  When I got home these beef carnitas smelled so yummy!

 I think he's planning to "hang ten" in the snow...

Finally, a cup of tea, while it snows, and while waiting for Supernatural to start.  All in all, a pretty nice day! (P.S. - Cutest cup ever!)

An Ordinary Wednesday

Today started out kinda rough.  Nothing horrible, but it was cold, windy, and did I mention it was cold?  Also, some craziness started at work right off the bat - never an indication of a truly great day.  You totally need that hour or so buffer before you start dealing with crazy, right?  Or is that just me?  Anyway, after that it just tapered off.  However, 2 things made me very, very happy.  And because it's the middle of January in Maryland, there's not much to tell you about other than these 2 things.

1. A few weeks ago I decided I was finally going to order myself a Canon Selphy.  After months and months of reading about how wonderful they were for scrapbooking, I found a great after-Christmas sale on Amazon, had a gift card and bit the bullet.  It arrived a few days ago, but I haven't had any time to use it.  Until tonight.  After about 3 minutes of figuring the thing out, I was printing pictures that were perfect.  I had heard it was kind of slow, but I don't think so at all. 

I was not only able to print from my SD card from my camera, but I was also able to download an app and print photos directly from my phone, in the blink of an eye.  This little machine is my new best friend.  As soon as I started printing I realized 2 things - Project Life is going to be so much easier now and I really should start hoarding ink and paper. I have a feeling I'm going to be needing a lot of it if tonight's printing project is any indication.

2. I know illegal downloading is wrong.  I'm also highly against people recording things (or even just using their phones) in theatres.  It's distracting to the audience and more importantly, it's distracting to the performers.  However, I must admit the entire performance of Next to Normal that's been popping up on my YouTube suggestions for the last week has been quite intriguing.  When I decided I needed something to watch while Project Life'ing using the photos I just printed, I determined Next to Normal would be it. 

And oh my goodness, that show is just brutally beautiful.  I cried 3 separate times (#soggyphotos).  But on the other hand, it's just so real and so believable.  It had such heart that I couldn't stop watching - what I usually do when things get a little too sad.  I can't even imagine seeing that emotion live in a theatre.  I would have been sobbing rather than just tearing up every few minutes.  Absolutely gorgeous!  What I learned while watching it was that apparently there are tons of people illegally downloading shows to YouTube, so if you're wanting to see it too, you shouldn't have too much of a problem...

Oh, and I forgot, there were actually 3 things that made me very happy today.  The third was that I bought the winning PowerBall ticket so don't worry about spending your money.  The numbers haven't been pulled yet, but I'm most positive I'll be a billionaire tomorrow morning : )

2016 One Little Word

Though it's not actually one little word, this is going to be my one little word for 2016. It's my new mantra headed into the new year.  I'm always playing it safe.  I hold my tongue a lot because I worry I might sound weird or grumpy.  I buy things that the media or the stores tell me I should buy because I'm not 100% sure what I like so I go along with what everyone else likes. 

I stay away from Match.com because I have no idea how to be me online and be the charming and flirty girl that all guys supposedly want.  Honestly, that's the struggle.  (If Prince Charmings fell from the sky, I'd be all set!)  I don't talk a lot about myself, because it's so much easier to listen to other people talk.  The social awkwardness that most people swear I don't have is totally real and a major bummer. 

In 2016 I want that to change.  I want others to see me for who I am. I want to have ideas and opinions.  I want to like what I like and see what I want to see.   Even if I do say so myself, that person I already am is pretty great.  So why not show her off?

Project Life: Here I Go Again

In 2014, I talked a lot about not getting Project Life.  While layouts and spreads were beautiful, and the idea behind it was lovely, the process seemed a bit over-done.  It seemed to me that scrappers were spending more time scrapping their lives rather than living them. At the time, I decided it was most definitely not for me. 

Then 2015 rolled around...

After milling around Pinterest and tons of gorgeous blogs, I began to get it.  It wasn't so much the process and what the product looked like in the end that counted, it was the fact that you actually had something to share.  The final product was a review of all things wonderful and not so wonderful in that particular year.  These albums are like snapshots of a moment in time and can be used to show children and grandchildren what life was like "back then."  It took me long enough to come around but I finally got there. 

So the obvious next step was to start an album of my own...

That sounded like such a great idea at the time. I bought a 6"x8"" album, organized my supplies, and started taking photos.  Now, I'm single and have no pets.  I read a whole lot and like to bake, cook and watch Netflix.  Often the most exciting nights I spend are at the weekly trivia game with friends.  Now if that sounds boring just reading it, imagine how truly nail-biting the album was.  I made it about 3 months and I was done.  At the time, I decided you needed a giant family full of kids and pets and daily schedules to make project life work.  There's no way you can have a "fun" album as a single girl in a not so exciting city.

Then along came blogs and twitter and Instagram - brimming with ideas for the single girl to scrap.

After a few months of kicking myself for not succeeding the first time around, I decided it was a fabulous idea to start back up in 2016.  Why, I have no idea.  I'm thinking I just might be a glutton for punishment...

So here we go again.  Let's just hope I can make it past March this time or my future children and grandchildren are going to think years were only 3 months long "back then..."

Life Lately...

Reading...There's been absolutely no reading in the last month.  I have a stack of Christmas books calling my name and yet I can't seem to focus on anything long enough to start them. Thank goodness for Christmas vacation - I foresee loads of reading in my future.

Obsessing Over...Strangely enough, scrapbook organization products.  I literally went out at lunch earlier today just because I had found a great way to store stickers and embellishments on Pinterest and I wanted to see if Michael's had the containers I was coveting.  Score! They not only had them, but all the storage pieces were 40% off.  Now that's what I call a good deal.

Perusing...Loads of Project Life centered blogs and sites.  The internet is such a rabbit hole. One amazing blogger links to another amazing blogger and then so on and so forth.  Before you know it, I'm following 50 different scrappers on Instagram and have 452 thousand new ideas for projects. 

Socializing...I'm still a Twitter girl (reading hardly ever tweeting) but I'm finding myself on Instagram more and more.  So many fun things to find!

Buying...Even though it's Christmas time and even though I've asked for crafty things for Christmas, I can't resist the pull of Black Friday Sales.  StudioCalico.com has been my downfall this week.  I can hardly contain my excitement for my package to arrive. You have no idea the steals they're offering!

Feeling...Super ready for the Holiday Fun to begin.  Christmas is always stressful but it really is the most wonderful time of the year!

Pondering...A new fun feature/blog thing that could be awesome if I could get my bestie to take the bait.  Also, is it possible to survive solely by crafting all day.  I don't really need a job.  I can quit my boring 9-5 for greener pastures of crafting, travel and reading and just assume I'll win the lottery to support myself, right?

Caution: Scrap in Progress

Over the last few weeks, I've been in a seriously scrappy mood (see what I did there? : ) I've been Pinning, and searching and dreaming and list-ing.  So I've also been stealing some seriously cool ideas - well, stealing is a harsh word, more like scrap-lifting - to make my scrappy ideas just as cool as theirs.  I've also been focusing on what my personal style is.  

I've realized, the major problem with making myself scrap is that the things I've been finding are too intricate so I get burned out quite quickly.  My personal style is more simple.  Pretty much every design I've loved on Pinterest, are ones that are simply a few stickers and some cute cards. So with this in mind, I purchased an actual Project Life core kit, and an awesome 9"x12" album by A Beautiful Mess and will be attempting Project Life yet again in 2016.  The goal is to make it way past March this time - all the way to December 31 if I'm lucky!

With Project Life, the main idea is to scrap at least weekly - more like daily.  That's hard to get in the habit of doing.  So, with that in mind, I've planned 2 projects for the next 2 months in an effort to be:

1. More positive
2. More crafty
3. More prepared for Project Life
& 
4. More organized.

For the month of November, I'll be using this gorgeous kit - not as personally crafty, but I love the design and honestly, I don't think I could make something better - to create a 30 days of Thankful album.  I whine a lot about what's not right, but in all honestly there are TONS of things that are in my life.  How can I not celebrate them?

Then after 30 days of Thankfulness, it's time to start 31 days of Christmas - otherwise known as December Daily.  I have to say, I'm a little out of my depth with this one.  I'm not even entirely sure what most people document during this process - but I do know what I plan to. I started the fun part of getting that album together tonight.  Thanks to scrapbook.com, I got a great little kit a few months ago for $2 - gotta love a good sale.  So far, I'm LOVING it. Let's just hope the photos will be as lovely as the daily pages are so far : )

Friday Five

1. Getting things done!  Woohoo!  I just spent the last 4 hours trying to get a craft project done and while I still need a few things to finish it, it's about 95% there.  Thank goodness! Now that it's almost done, I'm loving it!  I've been hating it for a while mostly because I couldn't make it work, but now that I have, it's really coming together.  So happy and can't wait to see the recipient get it next week ; )

2. I feel this same way when someone won't share their food with me : )

3. I went on the lookout this week for some bookish twitter accounts - yep, I'm that girl.  Anyway, my very favorite account could be quite interesting for all I know, but the real reason I followed it was for her Twitter handle - @ScrewyDecimal.  Ha!  Love it!

4. And while on the subject of books, I want to open a book store just so I can use these adorable signs.  I love the puns and the sentiment.  Yay books!

5. My new obsession is freebies for Digital Project Life on Pinterest.  Do you have any idea how many free things are on Pinterest?  It's amazing.  Why on earth would any one buy kits, when you can just use the super cute freebies online.  I can't wait to start using them.

Project Life: Update

So for the last week or so, I've been spending most of my free time browsing the Project Life boards on Pinterest.  Apparently, it's Christmas in July time, so there's tons of new products coming out now and all sorts of amazing projects to show off those new stickers, stamps, papers, and embellishments.  There are way too many new items on my to-pre-order list. Eventually this list is going to need a trim (with fancy scissors, no less : )

Anyway, all this browsing made me realize I haven't written about my Project Life in a while, and you may be wondering why.  Well, it's fairly simple.  I failed epic-ly and miserably - just like I assumed I would.  I was so proud of myself there for a while.  I had a system that was working for me and I had crafty-creative ideas each day.  However, somewhere around the dead of winter, it just got too darn cold to do anything but stay inside.  And honestly, who wants to see multiple photos of the sofa and a cup of tea?  So disappointing!

However, there is a bright side to the story.  But because I haven't been scrapping my whole life, I've managed to complete one travel themed book with plans for 2 more.  I absolutely loved the small format (4x6 binders by Simple Stories) of the Texas book I scrapped.  It was so easy to compile the photos and use one single pack of coordinating cards to bind the whole book together.  I can't stop looking at it!  And currently, there are 2 4x4 We R Memory Keeper books in the works as well (DCCon and NYC - if ever oh ever, Costco opens their Photo Shop again after the breach!)  The tiny albums are the perfect size - not too overwhelming and easy to tie in all together.

That's my problem with Project Life.  You basically need a 12 x 12 if you're going to fit every day in it, and for some reason, that's just too much for me.  It's a whole lot of space to fill. And LOADS of photos to take to fill it.  So I'm embarking on a 12x12 experiment for the England trip though.  I've got the album. I've got the card set to tie in.  I've bought a small fortune in Kelly Purkey stamps and wooden embellishments.  I've made the section headers already and have the first page all mapped out.  Now I just need the photos.  If I can focus on this one, it should give me ideas for Project Life - if ever oh ever, I get brave (or crazy) enough to give it another shot. 

Currently...

In keeping with the Project Life theme,  here are today's currentlys, mostly because I've done nothing than live like a hibernating slug today.

Currently:

Reading: Twitter (This is embarrassing but I haven't read a single book all month)

Listening to: A lot of Taylor Swift (Blank Space and Shake it Off)

Watching: Scandal (Holy cow! It's been intense!)

Eating: A Thanksgiving dinner complete with dressing and cranberry sauce (Perfect elixir for a cold, snowy Sunday.)

Drinking: Hot Tea...Lots and Lots and LOTS of hot tea.

Loving: The fact that there are 19 days until Spring is here. It can't come quickly enough!

Hating: Snow, Ice, Freezing Rain, and any number of cold things that have fallen from the sky in the last 4 months.

Dreading: Nothing really, unless you count the fact that it's Sunday evening and I have to be at work in 11 hours...

Waiting for: Upcoming work trip.  I'm totally using this one for all its worth.  

Dreaming about: What else?  Travel.

Ikea Fail

I had one mission when I drove all the way out to Ikea this morning: Get me a Raskog cart.  The super cute turquoise one has been all over Pinterest for the last 9 months. Smart crafters have been using it to keep their Project Life supplies organized and cute all at the same time, just like this.  

I even found the lovely inserts that this very smart blogger said were a perfect fit for journal cards.  So I headed to Ikea and I followed the Yellow Arrowed Road all the way to the promised land where my prize was supposed to await me, and what do I have to show for it?  Jack with a side of squat.  Of all the shelves and all the pieces of furniture, my super cute new organizer was sold out.  Seriously!?

Lucky for me, Ikea in its infinite wisdom delivers.  And my new project will arrive on Thursday.  At least there's that...

Project Life Update

Almost 2 months in, and I'm still loving it.  I never thought I'd be saying that, but I am.  I will admit to being slightly skeptical about some layouts I've seen on Pinterest.  They're incredibly complex and look like they took hours and hours. They're also gorgeous!  But others are beautifully simple and perfect! Those are the ones I'm jealous of.

Mine?  Mine's not so perfect.  There's no real theme and it's pretty much a mish-mash of random photos that have been taken the last 7 weeks.  But it means something to me. And that's what really matters.  The worst part is that I find myself wishing someone would look at it.  When it's all finished of course.  I haven't shared it yet.  But I like the idea of someone besides me looking back at the year.  Not someone who has a great deal of scrap-titude, because it's not entirely up to snuff.  But, someone who appreciates the idea behind it.  Of course, most of my friends, really aren't into scrapping so it's sort of lost on them.  

I also like the idea of melding the pocket scrapping onto other trips and events.  I've already started a smaller album for Where I've Stood this year, as well as the grand European adventure, a DC event and my Austin trip. Of course, the more ideas I get the more albums I want to start.  It's obviously a never ending cycle - dangerous and fantastic at the same time!

Oh and 2 months in, and I've yet to tire of finding the perfect organizational strategy for Project Life.  I'm really feeling a trip to Ikea sooner rather than later...