Some weeks are harder to complete than others. Some weeks I just don’t have enough photos to fill out two pages, but squeezing them into a one page spread is not enough. Week 12 was one of those weeks. I was sick and didn’t get out much, hence not much picture taking, but lots of “stuff” (like funny things Audrey said) that I wanted to include. The following week was a vacation week so Eric and I were out and about a lot but most of the photos were taken with our iphones. That threw me a little bit too because I usually stick iphone photos in the 3×4 slots. That works well for most weeks, but for an entire week of iphone photos, I needed a different approach.

This is what I ended up with, a regular 2 page spread with an insert.

The left side is all week 12, just photos and a simple note about being sick that week.

I used a baseball card page protector insert for week 13 photos. (got them at Staples, a similar one can be found HERE).The vertical slots were perfect for the iphone photos – mostly self portraits of Eric and I and photots of meals we ate throughout the week.

The back side.

The right side of the spread was used to document funny things that Audrey said throughout weeks 12 and 13.
I used a simple semi circle to connect the photo with the quote.

Supplies List: Becky Higgins Page Pockets Design A, Staples brand baseball card page pockets (similar one can be found HERE), paislee press press cards no. 1, and press cards no. 15

Photos edited using RadLab by Get Totally Rad!

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Project Life is a memory keeping system created by Becky Higgins. Read more about it HERE. All of my project life entries can be found HERE.

Included in this kit are a total of 24 individual 3×4 cards and a set of easy to print PDF files. These cards were designed specifically for project life, but can be used for a variety of projects, both digital and hybrid.

I love the way Leontien used the cards in this layout. The pops of bright colors against the neutral background pair beautifully with the black and white photo.

Christelle used the journaling cards to create 4 miniature layouts. When printed, these would make a great mini album. Or simply add them to your project life album.

Press cards no. 15 is a set of 26 journaling cards, both in 3×4 and 4×6 sizes, and also includes a set of easy to print PDF’s.

Dunia used press cards no. 15 to complete a project life spread (digital).

I printed the 4×6 cards on kraft cardstock and used them to record things that Audrey said that week.

And here’s a sample of what the 3×4 journaling card looks like printed.

For a limited time, press cards no. 15 and 15 are 20% OFF. Presslist Subscribers save an additional 10% (look for coupon code in presslist issue #051112).  Purchase the bundle and save even more. Offer valid thru May 15th, 2012. Not yet a subscriber? Sign-up HERE.

First, Jaclyn is amazing.  A M A Z I N G.  Second, their studio is AMAZING.  A M A Z I N G.  Watching her in action was A M A Z I N G. I can’t wait to see the results from yesterday’s session!

After the session we grabbed a quick bite to eat and then stopped at the Oceanside Pier before heading home.

This is only the 2nd time the girls have been to the beach. Needless to say, they were super excited. They wanted to wanted to build a sand castle and look for sea shells and jump in the ocean -  a bit hesitant at first to step in the water, but they got over that fear pretty quickly.

And then they both got soaking wet. And Audrey got sand in her mouth. Definitely not their favorite part of the day. Next time I’ll be sure to have them dressed properly and it’ll be so much more fun. I hope they will believe me.

Photos edited using RadLab by Get Totally Rad! 

In honor of Mother’s Day Weekend, Get Totally Rad is offering a $50 discount on purchases of $99 or more. Use coupon code MOMSDAY at checkout. (Offer valid thru May 16th, 2012)

A super super simple project life entry. This is the week of March 11th. Right now I’m slowly transitioning back to using my DSLR again. This week has a nice mix of both iphone and DSLR photos.

Left side is an overview of the week, a week in review card insert, a diptych and Jamaica’s gorgeous business card (ordered some goodies from her shop that week).

The right side. Audrey’s taken to doing these funny poses when I’m taking pictures of her. The 3×4 slots were perfect for this series of photos. Along the bottom of the page, I added kraft paper inserts. I was originally going to use those slots to detail what each of those poses signified but when I asked her to explain them, her answer for all six poses was “that’s Tinkerbell.” I ended up just writing a little note to her and dressed it up with embellishments (camera wood veneer from studio calico – misted for contrast and the other card simply has dots that I hole punched from a scrap of AC POW paper I had lying around. Love that paper so much but I’m on my last sheet so I’m going to try to utilize every little bit of what I have left).

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Project Life is a memory keeping system created by Becky Higgins. Read more about it HERE. All of my project life entries can be found HERE.

First up, a new album template kit. Gallery Album No. 2 is a set of layered templates featuring open space and crisp white backgrounds, hand drawn frames and whimsical doodles – the perfect backdrop to showcase your most cherished photographs + artwork. Included in this kit are twenty 12×12 layered templates that you can mix and match to fit your project needs.

Use the templates to showcase your children’s artwork.

Mix photos + artwork.

Do what Lex did – add patterned papers to the templates to make a page that truly reflects your personal style.

Or, like Brenda did, just use the templates to showcase your favorite photos.

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Also, in celebration of National Scrapbook Day select items throughout my shop are 20% off thru May 6th, 2012. Presslist Subscribers get an additional 10% off (collaborations items excluded). Be on the lookout for the discount code in the latest presslist newsletter. Not yet a subscriber? Sign up HERE.

Also, I’ve gotten a lot of questions recently about whether the Mini Masterpieces photobook style I created for Shutterfly will be available for purchase in my shop. The answer is yes…and no. I will be putting up an layered templates kit in my shop, but it won’t the exact same album as the one currently offered at Shutterfly. Some of the layout designs will be different, some of the elements will be different and you’ll have a lot more customizable options with the layered template album (ie., the ability to change the colors of the frames, doodles, etc.) and I’m happy to announce that it will be available in my shop tomorrow.

Taken with instagram (some photos edited using an app called snapseed). Patting myself on the back for not missing a day in April. Now if only I could just take better photos. My favorite photographers to follow on instagram are Alice Gao and Cindy Loughridge (especially love her #bluronpurpose series).

April, you were awesome. I worked less, played more. Stressed less, lounged more. Laughed more, indulged more, read more, socialized more.

Hoping to keep up the stress less trend next month. I’d also like to finally paint the walls in my office. And work on another photobook. And take one good photo. Just one.

I’ve gotten a few questions about my design process in the past week or so, so today I’m going to walk through the steps I take to get from Point A (a set of photos) to Point B (2 layouts that complement/coordinate with one another).

Picking photos. I don’t feel the need to scrapbook every photo I take. If  I held myself to that, I’d either go insane or never get any pages done. I take way too many photos and not all of them deserve a spot in the album. So, when starting a layout/project, I start by selecting the photos I want to work with. I don’t have a set formula for how I go about choosing photos. I just scroll through them all, keeping in mind the story I want to tell. In this case I wanted to write about the special bond they have as sisters. I use a simple system for labeling/rating photos – 2 stars for photos I like and 5 stars for favorites. (The 5 star rating is one I use sparingly – these are the photos that I go through when I’m designing our holiday card at the end of the year).

note: I’m using lightroom to view, organize and manage my photos.

Editing photos. I process my photos in photoshop, using RadLab. I used to spend way more time than I care to admit on photo processing. Not anymore with RadLab, totally a game changer and a must-have tool in my book. (read more about it HERE.)

Now that the photos are edited, I’m ready to move on to layout design. Like I mentioned in my previous blog post, I have a go to formula: pair a large photo layout with a multi photo layout.

Choosing the right photo to go big. Is there such a thing as the “right” photo?  I had to think about this for a bit. I’m sure there are formal design guidelines out there but I didn’t go to design school so I don’t know what they are. I’ve learned, over the years, by trial and error (and lots of browsing through magazine spreads like Real Simple and Martha Stewart Living). Usually, I just go with my favorite photo (the one on the left). It’s a close up shot, maybe a little too close up (meaning not enough white space and the background is still too busy for my taste) – totally a personal preference. The photo in the middle is shot at a better distance and there’s some white space along the top portion of the photo – a great place to play around with text to add interest to the page.

Building your large photo layout. I start by dragging the photo onto a 12×12 canvas (holding down the shift key while you do this ensures that the photo will be perfectly centered). Notice how Audrey’s face is slightly cut off on the right (and even more detail will be lost once it printed and bound in a photobook). To correct this, I shrank down the photo a bit and positioned it so both of them were more or less centered on the page. Then I added text.

Building the 2nd layout is easy with templates. Not familiar with using templates? See my layered templates tutorial (includes a free layered template download).

And this is what the layouts look like together:

In case you’re interested, this set of coordinating templates is now available in my shop.

A new set of templates in now available in my shop! One of my favorite things to do is to pair a large photo spread with a multi photo layout – it’s my go-to formula when I’m putting together a photobook. I’ll get more into the details of my process tomorrow. For now, here’s a closer look at Hello There (the templates).

The kit includes two layered templates, designed to complement each other so you can easily put together great looking 2 page spreads.

Layered template no. 1.  The patterned swatches are included in the template as individual layers (also included as individual png files). You can use these in the template as is, or customize with patterned papers of your choice or use the clipping masks to add more photos.

Layered Template no. 2 features a large photo space (perfect for showcasing your favorite photo) and the “hello there” wordart (also included as an individual png file so you can easily access it for use on other projects).

Here’s what the layouts look like together.

Here are some examples of how you can customize the templates to fit your project needs.

by Desiree. She used the template as is, letting her photos take center stage.

by Emilie. She added a kraft background and detailed title work.

by Kelly. She changed the background to grey, switched out the order of the photo and added striped papers (from quintessentials no. 1) and embellishments.  Great example of how a few customizations can really change the look and feel of the template!

by Leontien. She changed the colors of the squares to match the photos. (Use the color picker feature in photoshop to get an exact color match!)

Here’s what Leontien’s 2 page layout looks like.

by Tina. Love how she reworked the template to make it suitable for a boy page!

What her two page layout looks like:

!!!!!

Thanks so much Holly for the incredibly kind mention! Now if you’ll excuse me, I’m going to go back to pinching myself.