December Daily 2017 | Foundation Pages Using Ali Edwards December Daily Products!!!

Hi everyone! I am already headlong fully involved in putting together my foundation pages for this year’s December album. Today I wanted to share with you a bit of my process for creating my foundation pages using my Ali Edwards products. Ali is the original creator of this project and I am deeply grateful for all the inspiration and products she has offered to our community. You can learn more about her and this project at her site here: Ali Edwards Blog. One of my commitments to myself as part of this hobby (read: every project I am involved in) is to use my supplies. That means use them as they come in the door. One of my commitments to the December Daily project is to complete the album, hopefully before January 1, and creating foundation pages are an important part of that for me. Follow along with me in this video!

I know that there are mixed thoughts on creating foundation pages, but for me this has been the biggest reason I have been able to complete my albums on or around January 1. And, I might conjecture, that I have been able to complete the album at all. Some worry that they won’t like that page once the day arrives, and maybe that happens sometimes so I just move that page and move on.

Larkindecember | Foundation Pages Using Ali Edwards December Daily Products!!!

The biggest thing to remember is that foundation pages are great for making decisions already, so that throughout the month all I have to do is add photo + story. That keeps me from feeling overwhelmed by this project. But even though I have created these fun pages, I am not in any way married to any of them so I am free to move things around, change out cards, and do whatever it takes on any particular day in December.

Larkindecember | Foundation Pages Using Ali Edwards December Daily Products!!!

What I absolutely love about creating these pages is that it makes me incredibly happy to work with these products, play with them, layer them, see how these products go together without having the pressure of photo + story. These pages are just opportunities to me to get familiar with the beautiful products I have purchased and figure out which of the products I am particularly drawn to.

Larkindecember | Foundation Pages Using Ali Edwards December Daily Products!!!

I have a thing, whenever I begin a project, that carries over from my days as an interior designer, and that is to establish a design concept for that project. In interior design that might be something like this:

“This project serves to accommodate space for (insert client here) hair salon. This space needs to be bright, sophisticated, trendy, and reflect the owner’s quirky personality. The space needs to accommodate 4 stylists, plus guest area, reception area, and private massage room. ”

So in December Daily, my design concept is more like this:

“My December Daily this year will be 6×8 in a Simple Stories binder, using a combination of divided and 6×8 pocket pages. This year I want to emphasize full page layouts and photos. The colors for this year’s albums begin with black & white and pops of color, particularly red, navy, and other pastels as I feel inspired.”

Larkindecember | Foundation Pages Using Ali Edwards December Daily Products!!!

Many times, my design concept is still coming together while creating these foundation pages, particularly as I work with the product. I don’t know about you, but once I receive product in, I am inspired to play with it and just see which products I am drawn to. This solidifies more for me, how I want to pull this album together!

Larkindecember | Foundation Pages Using Ali Edwards December Daily Products!!!

What my design concept does for me is lay out exactly my parameters and define some sort of consistency throughout the album. It doesn’t have to be complicated or detailed, but again at this stage I am all about making as many decisions as I can so that in December all I am adding is photos + stories.

Larkindecember | Foundation Pages Using Ali Edwards December Daily Products!!!

My design concept is a bit different than last year! Last year I did very detailed foundation pages, and some even commented that they felt like my pages didn’t even have room for photos or stories. Inside I laughed a tiny bit, because there is always room for photos and stories, and I would rather take cards out but still finish the album, rather than not make it through the month of December.

Larkindecember | Foundation Pages Using Ali Edwards December Daily Products!!!

This year I have left myself a lot more flexibility and a little more room for creative expression in the month of December. I think this is probably more reflective of my comfort level with sharing this project online so I am not as nervous about having as much completed as possible. It is entirely up to you how much you want to complete your own album, or if you want to do none at all. In the end what matters most is what works for you!

Larkindecember | Foundation Pages Using Ali Edwards December Daily Products!!!

I sincerely hope that this has been helpful to you and has given an insight into how I create this amazing project. I would love to hear from you and see your projects, so be sure to comment and tag me!

~Theresa