My Vow for 2015

Life can be extraordinary - fantastic vacations, special holidays and celebrations such as birthdays and recitals and retirements. Although those events are rare, they are often the focus of our scrapbooking projects, while the day to day routines that make up so much more of our time often get neglected in photo albums. This year, I vow to digitally document the every day stuff that will mean so much to all of us as we get older and look back. There will come a time when we will long for the mundane magic that was 2015, and how blessed we were with each of these tiny slivers of heaven that we called "a day in the life." Favorite ways to wind down after work and school, Mom and Dad dropping in to bring something over, funny things said in the car, the morning rush, even a favorite power tool or a closet reorganization project - all stories deserve to be told.

Here's the beginning of my digital album - can't wait to touch it a little bit every week throughout the year. And no I did NOT design any of those pages - those are predesigned pages from the Panstoria Shop (click on the "Preview Digital Artwork" banner for a link to view and purchase digital content such as this) and the Blueprints were from Pixels2Pages - let me know if you want to learn more about these "speed tool" shortcuts I love!

Do you swear to tell the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth?

Life isn't always perfect and I am in the camp that believes that even in photo albums, you tell it like it is. Child refuses to sing at the holiday program? Tell the story. Birthday surprise goes awry? Tell it like it is. Terrible service threatens to ruin an otherwise perfect vacation? Tell that story! While it wasn't funny at the time, you will laugh about it later, believe me!  Here is my latest (and if I might say so myself, greatest!) digital book, printed at the Panstoria Print Shop. I toned down my true feelings about the lady at the food court at Coronado Springs (at the request of my husband) but the story is still there, the way it happened, no sugar coating at all. Apart from that one incident at the beginning, it was a wonderful trip with wonderful memories, and again, Artisan provided me with a wonderful way to get a trip in a book QUICKLY without cutting, adhering or photo developing! I love digital and I am so thankful for Panstoria's Artisan and Historian software, as well as the Panstoria Print Shop. Click the link below to flip through the entire book for ideas for your own memories:

Disney Fall 2014 Digital Storybook

Start your own journey today to scrap your memories digitally and still have something to hold in your hand for years to come! Check out Artisan (formerly Storybook Creator) to make a book like this of your own. So many wonderful features, not the least of which is the fact that you DO NOT HAVE TO BE ONLINE TO WORK! If you purchase through the banner on this blog please send me an email at flafla@bellsouth.net so I can send you a gift!

Just call me Triple Threat! Enter the Cricut ...

Ahhh, the power of a Cricut! It was a special gift from my Mother-in-Law and at first I had no idea how to do much more than make fonts and single color die cuts! With some help from some awesome ladies at one of my scrapbooking retreats, I got inspired this summer and now I am excited to announce that I am a Cricut affiliate  - just call me Triple Threat :)  Creative Memories for traditional and Fast2Fabulous scrapbooking supplies, Forever for digital organization and scrapbooking and now Cricut for all my folks who want to add just a little something more to their scrapbook pages or homemade cards and art projects. As always, if you are so inclined to purchase through any of my banners here on this blog let me know at flafla@bellsouth.net so I can thank you for your support. Click on the Cricut banner to see what all is new (and what's old - check out the "re-released cartridges under the "Deals" section!) Happy scrapping!

 My first attempt at the Cricut - a sign for the boys' new art room

 Having it accessible and in a well-lit area with an organized workspace makes a big difference - I used to have mine on a rickety table in the supply closet but now it's out and accessible!

 Another early page - fonts only!

 Someone made this for me with their Cricut expression (it is capable of doing 12X12 layouts and is my next planned purchase - either that or the Cricut Explore)

 Nothing wrong with plain pages plus some journaling

Nothing wrong with pictures on nice 12X12 paper

 But man, every once in a while THIS happens!

 My Cricut cuts before I knew what I was doing, haha!

My Cricut figures once I figured out how to layer! Cute, right? This is from the "B is For Boy" cartridge