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Project Life 2016

Project Life 2016 | Weeks 36 & 38 Feat. Pink Paislee Moonstruck!!!

November 8, 2016

Hi there! Today I have two separate layouts to share with you and I thought I would just combine them into the same process so we can get things done! I am sharing Weeks 36 and 38 in my 2016 Project Life album. Have a look at my process here:

Let’s begin with Week 36, which I created in the Project Life App using the Project 52 cards available in the app. I then embellished on top of the printed layout, using Pink Paislee Moonstruck.

I used the date card for this week and then embellished using one of the floral ephemera from the Moonstruck pack.

I had a combination of colors in my photos for this week, and a set color scheme from the Project Life cards. The Moonstruck collection pulled all of these colors together beautifully!

This bloom is one of the flowers we have planted out by our mailbox. Some days we aren’t sure if it is making it or not, but then it surprises us and gives us a pretty bloom.

One of my favorite things about my husband is that he is a great baker. He loves to make biscuits sometimes, and this was a great opportunity to include that in our album. Also, he is using a ramekin to cut the dough circles, and my mom used to use those ramekins when she made her biscuits. Definitely a full circle.

I have to say that the cork elements in the Moonstruck collection add the loveliest texture and just a sparkle of gold. I don’t use a lot of cork, and last time Pink Paislee released cork elements I did not get them. I regretted that, so this time I did buy them!

I made a traditional layout about this photo already, and then I also included it here. It is one of my favorites.

Ok, on to the right hand side, which is Week 38. Did you notice in the process video that I kept thinking it was Week 40? It is a miracle that I stamped the date correctly! Ha!

This layout was created using the Timeless Memory Pocket Monthly digital collection available at The Lilypad. I always save my digital elements in Dropbox and bring them into the Project Life App just like a photo.

I think my favorite thing about this week’s layout is how the border color coordinates to well with the Moonstruck elements and the journal cards. Lots of beautiful color here, and I love it all!

The photos I included on this layout were some quick snaps we took on one of our walks around the neighborhood. Our neighborhood is still being completed, so we have construction around us and the landscape changes sometimes. Where we are standing for these photos was the ending of a side street on that day. The next day all that was removed and a through street is being created!

For this filler card I felt like the pattern was bold and so the embellishments should be very minimal. A gold title and simple butterfly is all that is needed.

A little journaling here, and a cat photo of Nico. I love having a place for these random photos that might otherwise just get left on my hard drive.

One more photo of the two of us and this layout is complete.

I am so happy to be able to share these layouts with you, and I am so thankful that you are following along with me on the journey of 2016. See you soon!

~Theresa

Project Life 2016

Project Life 2016 Week 34 | Using Your Kits!!!!

November 1, 2016

Hi and happy November to you! Today I am working on Week 34 in my 2016 Project Life album, and sharing how to use your kit supplies! Have a look at my process video here:

This is the layout I created today. First it was created in the Project Life App using journal and filler cards that were part of the Memory Pocket Monthly available at The Lilypad.

The layout itself was printed on my wide format Epson printer here at home in 12×12, on matte photo paper from Staples. I used matte photo paper this time because I knew I wanted to use some paint with the rose image on the right hand side.

As soon as I saw this lovely rose I knew I had to use it on this layout. I absolutely did use mixed media and Tim Holtz distress paints on matte photo paper and love the results!

The embellishments on this layout are from Freckled Fawn’s October embellishment kit. The stamps are from my Gossamer Blue October Life Pages kit, designed by Bananafishstudio.

This side of the layout is about our son Addison’s 13th birthday. Close-ups of the cake are a necessity!

And also necessary: photo of him blowing out his candles. The arrow and word circle layer beautifully here.

This card only needed a simple arrow, almost pointing to the candle photo. I absolutely love the colors in this kit and love how it is subtly moving my album into a fall direction!

This is one of the most hilarious gifts ever: Addison received two of these adorable horse heads! He loves them, and we loved seeing him try them on. We were dying laughing, all together. What a great memory!

I absolutely love these photos of us around the dining room table, having our private family celebrations. These become iconic, in a way, and you guys have heard me talk about how our rooms are the backdrops for our memories. I am ever so thankful that they will have these documented memories.

The left hand side is a collection of photos from the week that I simply love. This project is, every week, the place to bring all the random photos and bits of life into context. I began with the date card here.

The journal card with the hearts is created in the Letterglow app using the glitter heart digital elements included in the MPM kit. I simply brought the hearts into a blank canvas and repeated it for the pattern.

Both of these photos of Natalie and me were taken at her Open House at school. She is a few years younger than the others and is the last one in elementary school. I am so excited for her to be on her own, in a way, and to have a few years to be her own person at school.

This card was so much fun to create! I used the puffy house from the Freckled Fawn kit and then I stamped the ink splatters from the Gossamer Blue stamp set. Awesome!

I am also in love with this wood grain card. What a lovely creamy brown that ties in beautifully with the browns in the photos and the embellishments.

And here, another iconic photo that I try to capture each year before school starts. Every year they get taller compared to the door and the siding on the house. Document your children’s growth in this way, any opportunity you can. It may feel like the photos look the same each year, but the progression will reveal itself in time and they become a treasure.

Thank you for following along today! See you back here soon!

~Theresa

Ali Edwards Story Kit, Project Life 2016

Project Life 2016 Week 35 Back to School Part 2

October 28, 2016

Hi there! Today I am sharing Part 2 of my Week 35 layouts in my Project Life album, these are the pages I created for our girls. Have a look at my process!

Up first is Emberlynn, who is 11 and going into sixth grade. This is her first year in middle school and I know she is going to rock it! (And she is!)

I love these simple stars scattered across the negative space on the photo. Now, granted, you have to be careful doing this so it doesn’t look like “sticker sneeze,” but I think it’s ok with stars. A few word strips at the bottom help ground the embellishments.

Underneath is one of the title cards, with more word strips and stars.

This is a photo I took of all four of them sometime that same week. Since they leave at different times of the morning now, it’s impossible to get a photo of all four on the first day of school. And who says you have to take one on precisely that day?

For Emberlynn’s initial and number I overlapped some of the card boundaries. I love crossing those lines and allowing embellishments to go across the page sometimes! (Most of the elements used in Emberlynn’s layout are from the Ali Edwards Cheer Story kit.)

Up next is Natalie, who is now 9 and in fourth grade. She is still in elementary this year!

For Natalie’s page I used elements and cards from the Ali Edwards Read kit. I adore the colors in this kit and they coordinate perfectly with her shirt in the photos.

Underneath I added this filler card, which is a patterned card that I brought into Letterglow and then added the digital word art on top. Then I added a little bit of journaling and the date.

We totally had a dance party in the car while we were in the car line at drop-off. I adore her enthusiasm and joy!

These two filler cards only needed journaling and star stamps! Love that simplicity!

And then her title card, with initial and age. I also added a few more word strips to carry the words down the side of the letter n.

That is all for today! Have a great weekend!

~Theresa

Ali Edwards Story Kit, Project Life 2016

Project Life 2016 Week 35 Part 1 | Back to School

October 27, 2016

Hi there! I have some back to school layouts to share with you today! Have a peek at my process video:

So if you follow me regularly then you have probably seen in the past that I like to create layouts that highlight each of our four children, and I tend to repeat the same style of layout and then embellish each individually. Creating the layouts times 4 is a time-saver, while also allowing me to create a love note of sorts for each one of them. Today I am sharing the boys’ layouts and tomorrow I will share the girls’ layouts. Here is Addison’s:

I created the layout itself in the Project Life App using the digital journal cards from Ali Edwards’ Story kits. Earlier this week I shared how I create my own cards as well, so if you missed that scroll down a bit to find that tutorial!

I began with this great enlarged photo of Addison standing outside his school at Open House. You know what is awesome about this photo? In years to come he will go back and know exactly how tall he stood next to the bricks!

The cards on this layout are all from the Drive Story kit, along with the stamps I used. So easy to bring those digital elements right into the Project Life App!

Addison’s birthday is in late August, always right around back to school, so I included this photo from his birthday celebration. A simple label adds a little something to bring your eye to this photo.

Now the yellow heart in the circle is a digital element and also a physical element in the kit, and I love them all. This one is simply layered onto a white canvas in Letterglow, and then I stamped This Story on top.

Creating layouts in the Project Life App doesn’t mean you can’t also get messy and use your paints, as you can see here. I added his initial and his age using chipboard alphas I have had in my stash. The 13 is Ali Edwards and the a is from Hobby Lobby.

Here is Nick’s layout:

I also used a photo of him by the same brick column here, along with simple banners and a rubber shape from the kits.

I love the colors in this journal card, and even though it is designed for a list based journaling, I just journaled like normal on it. Who says you have to follow the actual prompts?!

My silly boy put the papers over his face and it made me laugh, so I took the shot and included it here. Such big personalities in this house and I love that my camera captures them all!

I didn’t have to add much to these two cards, only a chipboard frame (from the Project Life Storytelling kit) and a stamped sentiment. Done!

And here is Nick’s title card, also with his initial and age. The n is from Hobby Lobby and the 12 is unknown from years ago. All have been painted with Tim Holtz distress paints and layered with Glossy Accents.

See you back here tomorrow for the girls’ layouts!

~Theresa

Project Life 2016

Project Life 2016 Week 33 | Dear Lizzy Saturday!!!!

October 11, 2016

Hi there! Today is Project Life day around here and I am on Week 33 in my 2016 album. Have a look at my process:

I began my layout with these printed pages created in the Project Life app. I chose the Project 52 and Love Story kits available in the app for my journaling cards, and then I chose Dear Lizzy Saturday embellishments to add dimensional accents.

The photos I used for this week’s layout are from Alan’s birthday! You will recall one of the gifts I gave him this year was a mini album and he is holding that album in the lower left hand corner. Here is the left side of the layout:

In the interest of simplicity, I only added a few paper strips, a stamped image, and a rubber ampersand to the top photo.

I am in love with these black and white alphas that go with the Dear Lizzy Saturday collection! I am also loving placing the dates on one side of these date cards like this. Fun and simple!

Here is the right hand side of this layout:

I began with this title card and I was really happy to use this chipboard phrase! I have to admit that I have not done a good job of including Alan’s birthdays in our family albums, so it was fun to just focus on this event for this week. I absolutely think some weeks should be like this in our Project Life albums, don’t you?!

My journaling was short and simple on this layout. That is ok some weeks too! Also I am loving the close-up of the cake. That cake was divine, let me tell you.

I absolutely love including these moments of us around the dining room table. We aren’t around this table every night – some of us leave to go to another home – but I do hope there is a warmth of memories they associate with this place. Also, it feels really good to have a space we love that photographs well. I am a big fan of creating spaces in our home that form a beautiful backdrop for our photos. If you love your home’s environment you are more likely to take those photos!

I went ahead and used up a few of the tickets that were in the Saturday ephemera pack. I am still trying to figure out the best way to use the tiny attacher so that the staples will form properly in the back – but for now the imperfect staple adds a little detail anyway.

I love how these 3×4 cards give the best opportunities for layering on these layouts. Just simple washi tape, a fun banner, and a little bird make these cards pop.

These two have a pretty special relationship, I must say. Earlier that day they were both in my studio while I was trying to work (!!) and this moment happened. I hope all our children remember these moments with Alan and how he has surrounded them with love and support.

One more look at the layout here:

Thanks for joining me today! This was fun! See you soon!

~Theresa

Project Life 2016

Project Life 2016 Week 32 | Crate Paper Cute Girl!!!!

October 4, 2016

Hi guys! I am working on my Week 32 today in my Project Life album. I created the layout in the Project Life App using the Currently edition kit, and then embellished on top using my Crate Paper Cute Girl. Have a look!

Here is the layout as a completed whole:

In our family August is a month of birthdays, so you will be seeing a few birthday layouts in the upcoming weeks! How fun! This week was Natalie’s birthday, and Cute Girl fit perfectly for that theme.

More of the usual suspects: my Becky Higgins Project Life roller stamp to create journaling lines, and my Ali Edwards Story stamp set to add some graphics.

Natalie wanted to have dinner at McDonald’s so we met up with friends and family to celebrate. I love that she is low-key, thrilled just that we are all together.

For the last few years she has asked for a cookie cake, and this year was no different. Here she is drooling happily over it after we had just brought it home. This was her 9th birthday, so the die cut 9 from Cute Girl was perfect.

Natalie is quite a gamer, and her favorite game is Splatoon. She is at expert level in the game itself, and is known for talking smack to the “newbies” she runs into! She wanted Squid Kid on her cake, because that is what she considers herself.

Dad of the year award goes to Alan for finding this Splatoon shirt for her for her birthday! She may be a little young for Hot Topic, but it sure did make her day to open that shirt in one of her presents, and she had to put it on immediately!

One more look at this side:

For the right hand side I just had to use this camera! The Cute Girl collection is actually pretty trendy, girly, and even though it is designed for girl layouts I had a ton of fun using it for an every week kind of layout. I could use about 150 of those puffy stars!

This was my printer and Silhouette station in my studio, and that is Zoe obsessed with the Silhouette. She is hilarious, she loves the sounds that machines make and will come running when you are getting ice or printing of cutting things!

This photo cracks me up. We were just hanging out at the pool being silly.

This card is an embellisher’s dream. Three adorable little frames that needed to be filled up. I used a rubber heart, a puffy butterfly, and a chipboard house. Be sure to mix up your fun embellishments like that!

Look, it’s a picture of me! Do I look awful, with me sunscreen skin and waterlogged hair? Yes. Does it matter? No. Props to my husband for taking it and allowing me to see what he sees. This is his view, and who he loves, and that smile appears whenever he is in front of me. That is a treasure, friends.

One last photo, again of Zoe. Alan was sick a couple of days, and she came running when there was a blanket. She is the perfect sleeping companion.

One last view of the right side:

Thanks for joining me today! See you soon!

~Theresa

Project Life 2016

Sahlin Studio Creative Team Layout | Project Life 2016 Week 31

September 27, 2016

Hi guys!!!! I am working on Week 31 today and am so excited to show you some of Krista Sahlin’s beautiful fun products, so take a look at my process video here!

Hopefully you have heard the wonderful news that I am now serving on Sahlin Studio’s Creative Team, and I am delighted to be able to contribute to this amazing group of inspiring designers! This is the completed layout:

I began by bringing all my photos for the week into a Photoshop layout. I then chose my journaling cards from the Simplify Memory Pockets Monthly subscription kit. You can also just purchase the journaling cards as an Add-on, if you wish!

You guys probably know by now that turquoise is my absolute all-time favorite color, and the turquoise in these cards spoke loudly to me. I made the background of the entire layout the same as the diagonal stripe in the date card just by using my color picker tool. Easy peasy. This turquoise also shows up in Paige Taylor Evans’ Fancy Free collection, so those are the Thickers I chose to create my Week title. And Absolutely, that is an *I* I used in place of a *1*.

Our HOA does yard of the month, and we were chosen for that in the month of August. I have included two photos of our house, one just with the sign we displayed (nothing conspicuous there, ha!) and then another photo I snapped as we were out walking one night. I have lots of photos of our home, but I don’t think I have ever taken one from this angle.

These photo journalers are fantastic. They are a digital file and I brought a couple of them (ok, a LOT of them) into Photoshop and simply printed them out onto a turquoise vellum. You could absolutely type your journaling on them before printing, or you could place them on your photo before you print your photo!

We rearranged my studio in this particular week. I find my studio is constantly in process, constantly being changed and products being purged. I probably change it around about every 2 months! This quirky little cabinet is the one that houses my December Dailies, and while we were moving it around, Nico the cat moved into it. Hehe.

I found some of the ephemera from Fancy Free coordinated beautifully with the Simplify cards. This puffy star and transparent piece are both from Fancy Free, and the yellow star is from Ali Edwards’ Project Life Storyteller kit.

I used the Lined Up Word Art here in this photo, just for fun. I made a promise to myself earlier this year, that I would begin leaving some photos and/or cards unembellished, in an effort to Simplify my layouts (and my life). I love that Word Art allows you to embellish the photo so simply, but beautifully.

For the right hand side of the layout, I began with this totally rad polka dot card. I needed this pattern in my life!

My dotted line stamp, which is my go-to roller stamp from Becky Higgins, created the perfect journaling lines, and the floral chipboard piece softens the black and white of the card a bit. My Stuff stamp set from Ali Edwards Story kit fits great in the bracket!

I absolutely love this plus/minus sign card but it felt a bit heavy on this layout. So I added this wooden heart with awesome turquoise glitter to break it up. I love using my embellishments to add different textures – wood, puffy stickers, stamps, and chipboard!

We did a little shopping, and I used another Photo Journaler here. So simple.

This is my cat Zoe, and she is literally rolling around in my paper bin. We all want to do that sometimes, don’t we?! Silly girl.

The thing I love most about using digital cards and then embellishing on top is the relationship those two elements develop in the creation of the layout. The More of This card illustrates this beautifully – the Love and Stuff words are from Ali Edwards Story kits and my sentiment could not be expressed more perfect!

Zoe again, giving her personal stamp of approval upon the location of the December Daily cabinet. Her little tail wrapped around the leg of the cabinet just melts hearts, doesn’t it?

This was so much fun! Please be sure to stop by Krista’s lovely blog and see what the designers have come up with, you will find so much inspiration: Sahlin Studio blog.

~Theresa

Project Life 2016

Project Life 2016 Week 29 | Simple Stories Sunshine & Happiness!

September 20, 2016

Hi guys!!!! I am working my way through the summer in my 2016 Project Life album, and today is Week 29. Have a look at my process:

Here is the layout as I created it in the Project Life App, using the Girl Themed cards.

Here is the layout completed:

For the left hand side I began with the date card and added my dates using these super awesome puffy alphas from Dear Lizzy.

I decided to use some of my Simple Stories Sunshine & Happiness products, as you can see here. I adore this iconic girl!

This was the week that Pokémon Go! was released, so I made sure to include some of our screen shots the we grabbed.

When my Ali Edwards kit arrived this week, Natalie spied it and went through all the contents with me, then she decided she just had to have the envelope it came in. I can’t blame her one bit, they are really cool. I think she keeps her iPod in it sometimes now!

I just really like this floral journaling card from Simple Stories. The chipboard embellishments layer perfectly on top.

There is no embellishment on this photo, but it is too cute to leave out. There were several nights in a row that Zoe did this – she climbed up in Alan’s lap and took over his tablet. Silly kitty.

The right hand side of the layout is about my BFF’s visit while on their way to vacation! We met up for dinner since they were only here overnight.

Pictured from left to right are: Diedre (Dalia’s daughter), Shelby (Diedre’s best friend), Jonas (Dalia’s son), Natalie and Nick (my two), Alan and me, and Dalia and Kevin!

I love how Project Life gives me a place to document these moments in our lives that otherwise might go in a “scrap someday” pile. I also am particularly fond of our yearly visit and am so happy the tradition is holding!!!

One more look at the layout as a whole:

That is it for today, come back tomorrow for Disney! This week is sort of strange and I don’t know how things are going to go down just yet because I have jury duty on Wednesday! I do hope to have a project up on Friday (the one I promised last Friday!) and then next week will hopefully be back to normal (unless I get chosen for a really long trial or something like that). I will keep you guys posted.

~Theresa

Project Life 2016

Project Life 2016 Week 30 | Using Your Kit Subscriptions!!!!

September 13, 2016

Hi guys, today I am working in my 2016 Project Life album, Week 30. I have created my layout in the Project Life App using the Blush Edition and Blush Overlays. The layout was then printed 12×24 through Persnickety Prints, and embellished on top. Have a look at my process!

One of the things I love most about subscribing to monthly kits is having fun new products landing on my doorstep every month. Products I didn’t have to think about or shop for or stalk websites for. I love having my kit products near me as I work throughout the month because I find lots of ways to use them here and there.

This is the layout as I created it in the App, and below is the completed layout, with journaling and embellishments.

I decided last month to pull all of my Ali Edwards kit products together, and this month I pulled all of my Freckled Fawn products together as well. You saw in the video how I grabbed a wooden tray and filled it with my growing stash. Then I set about to embellishing this page.

The date card here is from the Project 52 Edition in the App, and then I added just a few embellishments plus the date stamp. Underneath is a bit of journaling about our week, and a fun filler card that I layered my embellishments on top of.

Our two kiddos who had beenin Florida returned home this week, and we were all really happy they were back. This was how our Sunday began, hugs in the kitchen.

In exciting gardening news: my hydrangea put out one tiny little hidden bloom! I had all but given up on this plant blooming this year, but it surprised me!

Above that I had another quick snap of my impatiens that are also doing so well. I love that Project Life gives me a place to include these photos as part of my whole life story! Everyone has their own goals for what they want to document their Project Life and my goal has been simply to document the events, people, places, and things that make me happy!

When Nick and Natalie left to go to their Dad’s house this week, Natalie cleaned up her room and left her bed just like this. I love it.

One more look at this side of the layout:

The right hand side of the layout is event-based: on Saturday the kids took off to Putt Putt for all you can play. I stayed behind to do a little work, and then met up with them in time for lunch!

Deciding how many photos and which photos to include can be tricky, but have a sort of formula. I’m not married to the formula, but it helps me. I think it is particularly important to include all our kiddos and to include the photos that show them doing and playing and interacting. I don’t always do posed shots, I avoid them mostly, because I want to capture their personalities.

This journaling card makesme especially happy. The words are an overlay in the App, and then of course I added a few embellishments, and then I stamped my journaling lines in between. So much fun.

Another non-posed photo, for the most part!

I am staying true to my commitment to leaving some photos and cards un-embellished. Look how different the girls hold themselves while playing the same game. I absolutely love that.

And here’s my girl. I know I could very well hear it in the future, how there are a lot of photos of Natalie in this album this year, and I will not let those comments (or the potential for those comments!) steal my joy. Natalie is really the only one who still likes having her picture taken these days. And I love that right now, she seeks me out in her every day. It won’t be like that forever, so I cherishing it.

One more look at the right hand side of the layout:

Alright, see you back here tomorrow for Disney!

~Theresa

Project Life 2016

Project Life 2016 Week 28 | Crate Paper Cute Girl!!

September 6, 2016

Hi guys! Today I am working in my 2016 Project Life album for week 28. I created the layout in the Project Life App using the Currently Edition kit and printed it through Persnickety Prints. I then embellished on top using Crate Paper Cute Girl. Have a look at my process!

Here is a look at the layout as it was created in the Project Life App:

And here is the full layout complete with journaling and embellishments:

I decided purposely on this layout to not include a date card from the App, but I chose this card from the Currently kit because it had a great space for stamping the date and week. Alphabet stamp set is from Kerri Bradford, the Ashland set, and the date stamp is from Heidi Swapp.

Above this card I added a photo of my daughter at her dentist’s office that week. I also have photos of our lily that bloomed this week!

This card is a simple filler card, so I added a few embellishments for fun.

I am absolutely in love with the geometric confetti puffy stickers in the Cute Girl collection. I just want sheets and sheets of them, please?!

Our lilies finally bloomed this week and we were sooo excited! This is the second year I have had them and last year when I planted them, they were already blooming. I had no idea it took so long for them to pop! And they were prolific this year, too! So much prettiness by our mail box.

Another look at the left side of the layout:

For the right hand side I began with this adorable filler card. I was decidedly more generous with embellishments on this side, and I love that.

Underneath are two more journaling cards, but I only used one for journaling. The transparent Hey Girl element is perfect layered over the citron stripes, and puffy stickers embellish the grey polka dots beautifully.

This photo is of Natalie’s Splatoon Amiibo characters that she saved up her own money to buy. She is a die-hard Splatoon expert and plays almost every day, lining up her characters just like this!

Another filler card here, with layered die cuts and the adorable pink cat puffy sticker from Cute Girl. Simple, but oh so cute!

Sometimes you need to include cute cat photos in your Project Life, and Zoe provides lots of those cute moments for us! This particular night she came and sat on Alan’s tablet, she sat on his hand, she laid on his shoulder, and then she settled right here. I absolutely love that Crate Paper includes cat motifs in some of their collections (the last one was Wonder!)

One more look at the right hand side:

That is all for today! See you tomorrow!

~Theresa