journaling confessions

This layout I am to share with you today was created for the Pink Paislee blog and is posted here. That particular assignment was called Design Lab. Design Lab is a study in what goes into memory keeping. The elements that bring it all together for a particular scrapbook style. You can read all the details for that focus on the Pink blog.

What I want to point out here today are photos. In that article I talk about how photos are my starting place. I alluded to the fact that THAT point might seem redundant. But I don’t think everyone does indeed start with the photo. But for me, I gather the images of the moment in my mind and a story starts to form. The story of our life.

One thing that came to the surface as a reminder to me while creating that post, was journaling. I did not list that as a design element. And that’s because, by way of confession, I have let that part of the telling fall off. 

Cathy Z recently reminded me of the richness that comes from truly journaling our stories. She takes such beautiful detail in her telling. She struck a nerve in me. I am not doing my story telling justice. I am not really telling the stories well. I am skipping over that for the supposed sake of creativity and am forgetting the very core of why I take the time in the first place.

So here I am today to place a new line in the sand. I am going to be more purposeful and intentional about my telling. And it starts with the layout right here. I will pull this precious memory out again and tell how we just simply were together the morning of Mother’s Day. How the simplicity of being together in these casual ways speaks to my heart. It’s a peaceable way to celebrate a day, and it meant so much to me. The goofiness of my girls and littlest and how they really act together. The making of breakfast by my oldest daughter in our kitchen. The coming together at table like we do every Sunday morning and the richness that that time is. And how my littles kids (not being so little any longer), love to hang and play a game on the iPad and just talk and banter back and forth. All while still in our jammies.

Simple simple little moments found in our home right now.

pink paislee atlas + page maps

The Pink Paislee Design Team was lucky enough to be asked to participate with June Page Maps.

Here is my sketch I was given. Our assignment was to take Atlas and make it look real pretty with the Page Maps Sketch. Well...ok...maybe we weren't told to make it real pretty...but you get the idea.

Here is my take on the sketch as will be seen on the PageMaps blog. Loved that this sketch utilized multiple photos. Sort of my go-to way to scrap pages right now. So I fell right in love with this sketch and it's multi-photo opportunity.

Can't help but want to switch up a sketch whenever I have one in front of me. For this page I decided instead of the paper and title, I needed to add an artsy touch. So modeling paste and a polka dot stencil were called into action. I liked how that turned out.

This left me to find a new home for the title. Wonder UR, created with the Atlas Puffy Stickers and some of the silver Thickers, were placed right under the middle photo. 

 So then just to the right of the polka dots, instead of the paper/journal strips, I decided instead to simply add a cluster of embellishments. The cardstock and clear pieces are from Atlas Ephemera. Using either a runner tape or a mini attacher I just went to placing elements here and there.

The icons like the camera, star and heart are from the Chipboard Stickers and also became part of the word strip side of the sketch. I love all the energy that is found here.

Go check out the post over at PageMaps and find out how you can win an entire collection of Atlas from Page Mags.

imagine ~ pink paislee atlas

There are so many reasons to document and make creative all at the same time.

We talk so often of telling our story.
Telling their story.
But I struggle with the stories that have not the opportunity of 'The End.

For you see...
this girl and I are on a journey.
Not unlike many journeys that many a mom and child have been on.
This girl and I have been on a journey of discovery to a place called learning disability.

And it's a journey that only shows us a few steps at a time.

Part of my personal creative journey is to talk to my kids through these picture books I create for them. While I am in the midst of pulling color and photo and words and icons together, I am thinking deeply of the subject at hand. Praying. Meditating. And sometimes even crying. Because I take the time to create said stories and store them away in many an album, it gives way to opportunity later down the road and look back at a place in time. To remember. To reflect. To actually see how God was leading us all along. Even when we did not know where the destination was to end.

When my children doubt my decision on a matter (not that THAT ever happens),  I am often heard to tell them, 'trust me, I always have a reason for what I say'. Same is true for when I create. There is almost always a reason behind the creating a page of photo and image. There is authenticity that can be found behind it.

She and I will need to imagine our way through the unclear path before us. And this will require a new kind of faith on both of our parts.

PinkPaislee's Atlas is found all over this page. A travel themed collection. Because...we will travel this together.

supplies used on this project:
Pink Paislee | Atlas
pattern paper: Souvenir. Take Flight. Here&There.
Ephemera.
Puffy Stickers

Heidi Swapp: pattern paper Hello Today
Marquee Love Tape
Color Shine Teal

label: Studio Calico
watercolor paper: Canson

i'm so lucky ~ pink paislee

Sharing this project today at the PinkPaisleeBlog.

Loved the challenge of taking the Atlas insta frames (from the InstaKit) and the Citrus Bliss Ephemera gold elements and creating a fun St Pats day decor for one of my table tops.

Not only that...this instagram photo that fits in this 4x4 frame can now just slip into one of my pocket pages and be apart of our family album. How lucky was that?

Don't be shy. Say hi. Love to hear what ya think.

explore ~ atlas by pink paislee

Sharing another layout created for the Pink Paislee CHA 2015 Booth and the several mood boards that were up in the booth. Have I relayed that I love this collection Atlas? It will be one of those go-to sets of creative choices for me.

I took several of our photos from our holiday in Buena Vista this past summer. The photos are a favorite size for me: 3 1/2x 2 1/2-inches. It only includes a few photos but serves to bring us each right back here on this day we hiked into Maroon Bells.

As I was creating this layout while at CHA, in the hotel room with my peeps, I was stuck. And so my new sweet friend Gail, (you should really go and stalk her), suggested the letter thickers to fill in some of my spaces. Um..duh! of course! perfect addition. And thus began my love affair with the silver thicker letters that are part of Atlas. They are a flat silver color and actually look like metal. I am feelin' a hoarding issue coming on.

Atlas is one of those kits that is made up of some really great Ephemera pieces that can be perfect for a travel theme, or stand on their own to tell any story you have hidden in your camera roll.

So be on the look out for when this collection ships later this winter. Explore each opportunity of the stories you have to share and document your moments in life. I know I will.

adventure ~ new atlas by pink paislee

Introducing Atlas from Pink Paislee...

This is a beautiful selection of papers, stickers, words, ephemera and gorgeous paper that will really bring a lot of mileage to lots of themes for telling your stories.

This collection is beautiful. It is so versatile to tell very specific stories as well as travel themed documenting. I am trying to make up trips for us to take just so I can use all the fun fun travel motif.

It comes with plenty of little embellishments to fancy up any page. I am a fan of layering, as you may or may not know. Anything to point to my story in my own personal style.

Do you not adore that camera chipboard piece? I made this layout up at CHA for the moodboard found in the Pink Paislee booth. I loved how it turned out.

Be sure to watch for this set to be in your local scrapbook store as well as online. I know you will fall in love with the paper selection and find that you will need this as much as I do.

Thanks for stopping in!