Welcome to Project Life 2012 | Week Twenty.

Some weeks my end result feels just okay. I don’t dwell on that at all because I know, from experience, that it’s the whole I’m most interested in vs. any one of the weeks.

That said, I really like this week. I went for photos in just about every single pocket – most with words added in Photoshop before printing. In the middle I added another 6×12 insert that holds words from a post and new words from my weekend adventure.

Here’s a look at Week Twenty:

For journaling directly on my photos I’m using a font called Sentinel.

Here’s a closer look at some of those images:

The “love this” arrow is from this set: Arrow Sentiments Outline and Stamps (you’ll see how I also used it with the Silhouette below).

Heidi Swapp Disco Arrow on top of a “printing mistake” (black & white vs. color) that I then used to test out some pens.

Summer Quote Strips recolored yellow and placed on top of my photo before printing. If you are interested in learning how to work with PNG files and other digital elements like this on your photos check out my Getting Started With Digital Scrapbooking series (free).

“Wednesday I heart” is from the Today I Love Brushes & Stamps set. I had fun identifying things in the photo with text.

The 6×12 insert is text from my “I Am” post last week with a long, slim photo along the edge.

Along the seam where the journaling meets the photo I added a letter sticker from American Crafts (Hardcover Silver), a long machine stitched line, and a Avery index tab.

For the backside of the insert I decided to print out a full-page, 6×12 photo and write my journaling directly on top.

Loved the result.

Here’s what it looked like printed with the corners rounded before writing (this is the looking up at the Space Needle from the bottom in case you were wondering):

And here’s what it looked like after I journaled about my weekend:

I used a Sakura Pen-Touch White Calligrapher Pen (fine tip – 1.8mm). My first time using that pen and it was great.

A look at page two:

All photos from my Seattle overnight.

In the far left pocket I added two “love this” arrows from the Arrow Sentiments Outline and Stamps Set cut with the Silhouette Cameo.

Here’s what it looks like from the back (what you’ll see next week):

SUPPLIES | 2012 | WEEK 20

Click on the images to link to the products.

Daily prompts are being delivered, voices are being found, challenges are being embarked upon, and stories are getting told in my 31 Things workshop.

Do it for you. You are the only one who can tell these stories in your own unique voice with your own perspective on your life.

Today and tomorrow are the last days to register for 31 Things (registration closes at 10PM PST on May 23rd). All the details are available here.

It’s not too late to start.

Designer Digitals Quarterly Sale is coming to an end tomorrow (Tuesday at midnight California time).

30% off everything in the store (next store-wide sale will be in September). It’s a great time to stock up – especially on seasonal items like summer and travel products.

Here’s specific links to some of my products (click on the name to see all my products in that category):

• Layered Templates | includes single pages and album sets
• Digital Papers
• Alphabets
• Elements | Tags, twill strips, journal cards
• Overlays | lots of 4×6 designs to place on top of photos
• Brushes & Stamps | this is where you’ll find the majority of my word art

Here’s a few recent/summer/travel related products:

Travel Quote Strips (easily re-colored) | For The Love Of Life Journal Cards

Summer Rocks

Bring On The Sun (this one is also available as a stamp set here)

Staycation | Summer Quote Strips (easily re-colored)

We Word Art

This & That Element Collection

Story Strips

Random Fact Journal Card

You Mini Die Cut Kraft Tags

Hope you have a great week!

11 AM | Arrive in Seattle. Find Paolo. Find Cathy. Head to Toulouse Petit Kitchen & Lounge for lunch. We let Paolo order because that’s one of his talents.

1 PM | Head to B&O Espresso for dessert and coffee.

3 PM | Back to the airport to meet up with Stacy, Kayce, Tracey and Mark. Head downtown to Pike Place Market and the Pier.

I will never, ever tire of large bouquets of all one sort of flower.

Ever.

7:30 PM | Dinner at the Space Needle.

Insane views. Wonderful company. Delicious food. Very special friends.

A city full of so many memories for me throughout of my life.

9 AM | A short walk before work. Brainstorming, collaborating, sharing, imagining, dreaming.

So thankful for short creative field trips. So thankful for the change of scenery and the opportunity to connect with friends and colleagues in person. So thankful for plane rides, even short ones that offer a quick nap or a great time for creative reading (sometimes it’s books about creativity and sometimes it’s a guilty pleasure like US Weekly) or time to brainstorm ideas that have been floating around for weeks or years. So thankful to work with people who are also very dear friends. So thankful for conversations and collaborations and the sharing of a message that words and photos mean something.

Welcome to Project Life 2012 | Week Nineteen.

This week made me super happy when I was putting it together. I felt like I had a little more time to play – nothing monumental, just a more relaxed pace. Loved adding in a bit of stitching.

I put together a short video overview that you can check out at the bottom of this post.

DESIGNER DIGITALS QUARTERLY SALE | Also, don’t miss the Designer Digitals Quarterly Sale happening this weekend. 30% off all products in the shop. If you are interested in learning more about working with digital products, including how to use them in projects like Project Life, check out my free series on Getting Started With Digital Scrapbooking.

Here’s a look at Week Nineteen:

The single 8.5×11 insert includes a soccer certificate on one side and Mother’s Day cards on the other side.

Cursive letter stickers are Studio Calico Abroad Addy Aqua. The square tags/flaps on Simon’s photo are from Bananafish Studio.

I used one of those 4×6 flip pockets to get two more photos included this week.

How can I not love that butterfly?

I did lots of just adding words onto my pictures in Photoshop this week. It’s such an easy way to get it done. Tim Holtz Chitchat Word Stickers on top of the photo of George.

And here’s a look via video:

PL2012 | WK19 from Ali Edwards on Vimeo.

SUPPLIES | 2012 | WEEK 19

Click on the images to link to the products.

I put together a couple videos over the last few days to share with you related to Week In The Life.

First up is a 20-minute overview of my completed Week In The Life album. Second is a how-to for creating the pages that combine a divided page protector and a transparency. Third is a video that shows you how to change up the Week In The Life Vol 4 layered template to add another photo vs. the journal block.

WITL2012 | Video Overview from Ali Edwards on Vimeo.

For a full list of supplies and written details on my album check out this post: Bringing It All Together.

Next up is a video that shows you how I made the pages that combine a divided page protector and a transparent overlay.

WITL2012 | Transparency from Ali Edwards on Vimeo.

SUPPLIES USED OR MENTIONED ABOVE

Click on a link to take you to the product.

And lastly today, a video tutorial that shows you how to create a new shape to mask into in Photoshop. This is specific to the Week In The Life Vol 4 layered template set. If you need additional help working with layered templates, check out my video for working with this set here.

Week In The Life 2012 | Layered Template Adjustment Tutorial from Ali Edwards on Vimeo.

Hope these are helpful and interesting!

I am so happy that the weather has warmed up around here. I’m not holding my breath but the last week has just been awesome. Our local outdoor pool opened last weekend and we’ve already been twice. I love that they are open later into the evening. I took the kids over there last night after dinner and it’s just such a great way for them to get some exercise before bed. My favorite thing was watching Simon swim on his back all the way down and back (50 yards) and watching the overall joy he gets from being in the water. It’s so good for him and it makes me so happy.

I am putting energy into my yard. I’m learning about stuff like the sprinkler system and planting more peonies and a few tomatoes and just generally doing stuff out there – joyfully. I attended a fundraising breakfast for Habitat For Humanity yesterday and it was another reminder to me of how thankful I am for my home. Also really loved this post from Tara the other day about home and wants and perspective and attitude.

I am making time for books again. I’m just about done with The Buddha In The Attic. It’s a quick read and the thing that really struck me right away is her writing style. It’s the first book I’ve read that employs the technique of repeating the same first few words for each sentence in a paragraph (a favorite journaling technique of mine). She covers a wide range of experiences and emotions with that technique. One of the reviewers listed on Amazon called it an “incantatory style.” I’m not sure it’s as effective for an entire book – after awhile the repetition feels well, repetitive. I almost stopped reading it before finishing, but I’m determined to get to the end now. The Newlyweds and The Reinvention of Edison Thomas (recommended by Simon’s developmental pediatrician) are up next.

I am thinking about a summer manifesto and looking at the calendar and figuring out the who, what, where, when and how of the next few months.

I am thinking a lot about my experience of writing my 31 stories for 31 Things. Rather than feeling burned out on writing I’m wanting to write more (there’s lots of projects where I get to the end and feel like I’m so done…this one has been a different experience). I definitely feel done with the actual project but I want to take that level of writing into other projects. I’m excited for the class to begin and hope it’s as meaningful for you as it’s been for me. If you’ve registered the message boards are now open and you should receive your first prompt via email tomorrow. There’s still time to sign up – registration closes on May 23.

I am thinking about unfinished projects and projects on my list and trying to figure out what travel album to tackle next.

I am really working on being present for Anna. I had one of those moments on Monday where she was looking at me and I was looking at her and we were engaged in a conversation about Bubble Guppies or Jake And The Neverland Pirates and in my mind I was thinking, “Anna, you are so awesome.” And then by later in the evening when she was having a 5pm meltdown (I should have given her a bigger snack) and needed to take a break in her room I was calm enough to be thinking, “Anna, you are still so awesome. How can I be calm for you so you can learn to be calm too.” Calm heart, calm mind, calm voice and a big deep breath.

I am in-progress with Project Life for last week and a video-overview of my Week In The Life album (a couple questions came up in the comments that I want to answer via video too).

One from Anna (with a little help from her teacher at school) and one from Simon (with a little help from Chris on how to spell “appreciate”). Both totally loved.

Had a really nice Mother’s Day. A little time to read the paper, a little time to chat with my Mom (she was here with me on Friday night and we got to go to dinner), a little time to work on my computer, a little time to run an errand to Target, a little time to play at the pool with the kids in the late afternoon (the weather was awesome – in the 80′s), a little time in the yard, a little time for popcorn (always time for popcorn).

In case you can’t read the photo, here’s what each note says:

FROM ANNA | Dear Mommy, I like to eat popcorn with you and go to Target and go on the swings. Thank you for watching unicorns with me and hugging me. I love you! Happy Mother’s Day!

FROM SIMON | Thank you for helping me around the neighborhood and the town. I really appreciate you. Love Simon. PS. I like to snuggle with you.

Man I love those two.

Welcome to the Bringing It All Together post for Week In The Life 2012.

I can’t believe another round of Week In The Life has come and gone.

Lots of things were the same this time around (like how my journaling and photo taking trails off by the end of the week) and lots of things were different (especially inside the walls of this house). One big thing that remained the same is that this is a project that reflects my life back to me – and I love it for that very simple thing. Seeing how we are living, how I’m living, is a big reason to put in the effort it takes to embark on and complete this project.

It always reminds me how many awesome things I have to be thankful for and just how very precious and important are the basic everyday routines and rituals of life.

Thank you for joining me on this project – please use the link-widget below to share a link to your project!

I’ll probably tackle it again in fall 2013.

Here’s a look at how my album came together (hoping to have a video walk-through to share later this week):

Each day includes a full page photo, a page that combines a transparent overlay + a cut up divided page protector, the Daily Sheets folded in half and placed inside a page protector that has been cut and sealed with washi tape, and a final page that includes a collage of photos.

THE OVERLAYS | This year I used a combination of Hambly (see specifics below) and some that I printed myself onto vellum using this set of digital text overlays. I printed those here at home onto Ink Jet Transparencies.

Each overlay was stitched to a group of pockets cut from these divided page protectors. I varied them so that some were on top, some along the bottom and one has two rows of pockets instead of just one.

Here’s a look at all seven on them laid out before I added the photos:

Overlays from Hambly include the teal herringbone, the white herringbone, and the antique white uncharted. The days of the week, life is good, and love overlays I printed at home are all part of this set of digital overlays.

Along the edges I placed Avery Self-Adhesive Index tabs and used a date stamp and red ink to add the date on those pages.

For each day I also created a little day of the week circle + love circle accent.

The “love circle” is available in this set and was cut using the Silhouette.

The days of the week circles are a part of this set and the other circles I used for the back sides are from Photo Love and The Story Of This Day. I arranged them on a new canvas in Photoshop and printed onto white cardstock and cut them out with a 2 inch circle punch.

I laid them all out on my table before adhering the circles back to back and then slipping them into the page protectors.

THE WORDS | I decided to just go with the writing I did on the Daily Sheets vs. retyping content again. It was what made the most sense for me this year. I love that in-the-moment writing that happens over the course of the day.

To add those sheets to the album I took folded the two daily pages in 1/2 and slipped them inside 8.5×11 page protectors. Rather than stitching them this time I used Julie Fei-Fan Balzer’s technique of using washi tape to create the pocket. I repeated that for all seven days.

THE SPINE | I saved a PNG file for anyone wanting to use this same design for the spine of the album (as shown in the first photo of this post). Download the spine PNG file here.

THE PHOTOS | As you’ll see below I decided to keep it simple and use the same right-hand page throughout the album. I removed the long journaling spot and turned that into a spot for a long photo. Watch a video on the basics of working with the Week In The Life Vol4 layered template set here.

THE COMPLETED SPREADS

THE TITLE PAGE

For the title page I removed the background banner from the template and placed just the text on top of the chalkboard. I added our last name using a Wacom tablet.

MONDAY

Wood veneer people from Studio Calico.

On the photo collage page for each day I stapled an un-adorned chipboard heart from Jenni Bowlin and added a stamped sentiment from my Simple Joy set (with Staz On ink on top of the photo paper).

TUESDAY

Fabric brads from Amy Tan and an older set from Crate Paper.

WEDNESDAY

A canvas sticky-backed circle from Close To My Heart with an old Basic Grey rub-on on the top.

THURSDAY

For variety and to work with the photo I wanted to use I moved the whole title section down the to the bottom of the page and went with a different color. The “hello” circle accent (popped up with a foam dot) is from October Afternoon: Fly A Kite Word Stickers.

FRIDAY

Buttons from My Mind’s Eye Be Amazing Follow Your Heart set.

SATURDAY

I don’t have a source for this particular clock. Tim’s got some metal clocks here.

SUNDAY

The “enjoy the journey” brad is from My Mind’s Eye Be Amazing Follow Your Heart set of brads. The “3″ is from The Girl’s Paperie (no longer available).

SUPPLIES | WEEK IN THE LIFE 2012

Click on the images to link to the products.

SHARE YOUR COMPLETED PAGES OR PAGES IN PROCESS HERE

I’d love to have you include a link to your completed or in-progress albums. Please link directly to your post vs. your general blog link. Thank you!

One person will receive a Silhouette Cameo.

#721 • Joyce said…Love the mirror idea. And a Cameo? Yes, please!

Congratulations Joyce! I just sent you an email requesting your contact information.

The Silhouette Cameo + Vinyl promotion is happening for a few more days. To purchase this promotional package go here and use promo code: Edwards. This promotion ends May 16th at midnight.