enJOY it by Elise Blaha Cripe

project life : week 46.

Week 46 and I still love this project.

(click photos above to enlarge for a [somewhat] clearer image.)

Caught up again... I know these next few weeks are going to FLY with the holidays and I don't want to spend a second of 2013 documenting 2012 (I'm too excited to move forward with the next album) so I am determined to stay on track for the final 40 days or so.

Becky sent me samples of the 12x12 papers of Seafoam. I've got to say, it was pretty awesome to see them in real life. Because that was such a big deal and I didn't have many photos from last week anyway, I decided to just cut down my favorite paper from the pack to fill all eight pockets. Obviously, this isn't the best use of 12x12 paper, but for me, it worked well this week. I've been getting questions about the kit launch date on Amazon and the only current info I have is mid-December. I promise when I know, I'll keep you updated here.

I added a little sticker to one of the pockets to give it some context.

Included an insert this week with the text from my rambling post. I resized the text to 5x11 in PSE and then trimmed down and sewed closed an 8.5x11 page protector to fit it.

I didn't have any relevant photos to go with it so the backside is a piece of patterned paper and diecut from Amy Tangerine.

Like I said, not a ton of photos this week, so the right is pretty random. I hit my business financial goal for 2012 this weekend so I tucked my big highlighted thermometer (that sort of stuff motivates me) that's been on my bulletin board for the last quarter into a pocket. It's blurred, because I don't usually go into numbers on the blog. ;) Love that "important details" journaling spot from Elle's Studio.

That kraft herringbone paper is also from the Seafoam paper pack. Love that big design & kraft color more than I thought I would. I messed up the date around the photo - that should be 11/17, but what can you do?

Bring on Thanksgiving week....

supplies / Paper Source circle labels, Elle's Studio "important details" diecut, Banana Fish Studio folded tab, Studio Calico girl paper clip, American Crafts (diagonal lines) and Amy Tangerine (black sketch) patterned paper, Amy Tangerine die cuts (LOVE and &), Martha Stewart & Avery labels, Office Depot date stamp & arrow paper clip, Design A page protectors, Clementine core kit, soon to be released Seafoam patterned paper, Bebas quote font. I use a Fiskars corner rounder (it's not amazing, but it's lasted the longest of any corner rounder I've ever had). I am using a Zig Millennium 0.1 pen and Recollections glossy marker throughout this album.

Confused by Project Life? Start here. Have a question about how I am tackling this project each week (including questions about the quotes & photo printing)? Check here. See all my Project Life posts here.

building the seafoam kit / the beginning.

I plan on sharing a few posts before the end of the year about how the Seafoam kit came to life. It's tricky to try and remember all this stuff and it's a bit nerve-wracking to share details of my good and bad decisions, but someday, surely, I'll find this interesting and the hope is that you enjoy hearing about the process now.

When Becky called back in February, she mentioned how important it was that I had a lot of time early on to think about the kit and play around with color and designs. I love that, especially now, when I look back, because some of my early ideas were crap and really needed those months to be flushed out.

But immediately after that phone call, before I had even sat down to brainstorm, I knew four things:

I wanted this kit to be simple. I'm a simple girl. My clothing style is simple. My home decor is simple. My documentation style is simple. Anything else, flourishes, creatures, distressing, cutesy, floral, themey or rainbows of color would be outside my "zone" and not wouldn't feel right.

I wanted to really use this kit. I already knew from two months of Project Life spreads that I wasn't a big "kit user." If I was going to do this, I was passionate about creating something that I would be able to incorporate into my own album each week. I think the kits are fantastic because they simplify this process. Especially now, 45 weeks into the year, I see great value in working from a kit; it keeps you going when the creative energy starts to run thin. At this point, the less paper I have to cut, corners I have to round and stuff I have to buy, the better. I can't wait to start fresh in 2013 and although I will definitely be working additional stuff in, I know I'll be more kit focused from the start this time.

I wanted this kit to be something that my girlfriends - who are totally awesome and take tons of photos, but have never considered scrapbooking before - would be interested in using. I hoped that the kit would be able to reach a different market of people who considered memory-keeping too cutesy or over-whelming. I wanted it to feel modern but not complicated. It had to be something that would work with anyone's photos and not pull focus from them.

I was (and still am) obsessed with the phrase "THIS IS WHAT LIFE LOOKS LIKE." I used a similar phrase years ago when I sold my first summer minibook kit. The covers said "This is what Summer Looks Like" and the idea was that you'd fill book rings with photos and stuff from your summer. I couldn't get the idea out of my head back then and I couldn't get it out this past year as I worked on Seafoam. Project Life, before anything else, is a visual representation of every day life, and I can't think of a better phrase that states that.

So that, for better or worse, was the start. I had a goal. A bigger, but less complex goal than "design a kit" and that goal was to make something versatile and inspiring that you and I would want to use and Becky would love. No pressure. :)

...in the next installment, picking (and re-picking and crying a bit over) a color scheme!

UPDATE : The Seafoam core kit is now available on Amazon!

project life : week 33.

Week 33 and... I'm just going to assume you know that I love this project.

(click to enlarge & the images above will be [somewhat] clearer)

I shared peeks of this week in my announcement post, but I wanted to include a full round-up. Obviously, I did a few things differently this week because I was sharing new designs. For the rest of 2012 - I am going to stick to my normal routine (circle stickers on the title cards & quote cards), but it was fun to get a little preview of what 2013 will look like. ps... as far as the quote cards... the plan right now is to release a set of quotes as a free download at the end of 2012. I'll keep you posted.

I LOVE that I was able to introduce you to my kit with the most normal of weeks around here. That little headshot of Paul is probably my favorite photo of him ever.

It was strange; I knew this would be a BIG week, but I also knew that I wanted to show how the kit works in everyday life. So aside from "practicing" my journaling before writing on my one of a kind samples, I just went for it.

I LOVE that the 3x4 cards in the new core kits are double sided. They all have a journaling space on one side and a design or graphic (or bonus journaling space) on the backside. So in the above photo, that circle "TRUE STORY" card is backed with...

...a "who, what, where, when, why" card. Yep! That's just one card, not two in the same pocket.

And that diagonal patterned card (which I love to use for journaling space but would be awesome as just a decorative card)...

...is really the backside of the above TRUE STORY grid card (that will be worked into week 34 of my album). Since I'm sharing secrets, I'll say that the black "RECORDED" journaling card is backed with a black and white diagonal stripe. The ampersand card is backed with a gray horizontal stripe. The orange "today" card has plenty of journaling space on the back and some text running up the left side.

Hopefully, you can see where I am going with this... instead of 20 design choices for 3x4 cards, you really have 40. Super versatile. Also...more bang for your buck.

I am such a fan of the new Design J pocket pages, that are meant for 6 square photos and 6 3x4 journaling cards.

Because I didn't have that much to say about my new basil plants, I included just two sides of 3x4 cards and then cropped some photos to 7x4 and cut them to fit the pockets. Love the look of a larger photo cut up like that.

And the last thing this week : two new stamps - his & hers. They will be sold separately AND as a set of two when my stamps launch in mid-September.

Wrapping this up before I start talking about OxiClean and really turn this post into an infomercial. I am just so excited to finally share.

supplies / Martha Stewart & Avery labels, Ormolu file tab & tag, Design A page protectors (which are available in this variety pack), Design J page protectors, soon to be released Seafoam kit, Elise Joy stamps (coming soon). I use a Fiskars corner rounder (it's not amazing, but it's lasted the longest of any corner rounder I've ever had). I am using a Zig Millennium 0.1 pen and Recollections glossy marker throughout this album.

Confused by Project Life? Start here. Have a question about how I am tackling this project each week? Check here. See all my Project Life posts here.

thank you.

Soooooo...

I don't really know how to follow up yesterday's post. I told Paul it would be rad if I could be like,

"GUESS WHAT, INTERNET??! I'M ALSO PREGNANT!"

And he was like,

"You, wife, are so odd." (<-- I may have paraphrased there.)

So, that's not happening.

It's also not true; the only baby I'm having this year is made of paper.

But really, seriously.... thank you.

Thank you from the bottom of my heart for your support and congrats and kind words. I read each comment & tweet (but, really, I always do that) and must admit I teared up a few times. During the crazy design period, I often forgot that at the end of all this, I would get to share my news.

I am so happy it was well received.

I am also quite excited at how well I kept that secret. I am no good at secrets. I am totally that person who hands someone a wrapped gift and goes, "IT'S A BOOK! YOU'LL LOVE IT!" before they even pull at the ribbon.

But hooray! The secret is out!

A huge task is crossed off my list.

Thank you, thank you, thank you.

Your support means the world to me.

And not to worry, the blog will be back to "normal" tomorrow.

the secret's out!

I am honored and thrilled to share with you today that I designed the 2013 Seafoam kit for Project Life!

This is my big secret project that I have been keeping since early February. I have so much to say about this kit, including how we got from step #1: a phone call from Becky Higgins to step #751: writing this blog post.

And there will be time for that before the kit, album and paper (!!) release in November.

But today, I would love to share just three things :

One / I am so passionate about this kit and the whole concept of Project Life. Truly, I was hooked from that first day when I built my title page and felt the thrill of playing around with pockets. It has been overwhelmingly fun and very humbling to design something that I (and hopefully many, many others!) will be excited to play with every week of next year. 2013 is going to be a great time to start or continue Project Life, I can already tell.

Two / I have to thank Meredith Tilton, my friend and right-hand woman throughout this adventure. When we started, I had no Illustrator design experience. Meredith, on the other hand, went to four years of school for design and could pull the pieces together. She was an absolute gem to work with and able to turn my pencil sketches (which I can't wait to share!) and Photoshop Elements mock-ups into something beautiful and awesome. Can't say enough good stuff about her as a person and graphic designer.

Three / When Becky called and asked me if I was interested in this opportunity, Paul was still deployed. It was a Thursday morning and I remember walking in circles in our undecorated bedroom pinching myself to be sure it was real. When we hung up the phone, I called my parents (separately, as they were both at work) and relayed the story. My end of both conversations went something like this,

"Hey! So, you know Project Life?"

"Yes, that thing I have been sharing on the blog on Sundays?"

"Yes, the one with the pockets."

"Yes, there are photos."

"Well I just got off the phone with Becky Higgins... she's the lady who created Project Life."

"Yes, it's a thing that many people do."

"Yes, it's sold on amazon."

"You buy a journalling card kit and album and those pocket pages."

"I know cool, right? Anyway, SHE WANTS ME TO DESIGN THE KIT!!"

"No, I don't think you understand...this is huge."

"Yes."

"THANK YOU!! I KNOW! I am so excited!!"

Seriously, I had that conversation twice. Then again with Paul when he woke up to start his day in Afghanistan. And then about 40 more times over the past six months.

But the best part, of the whole adventure, really, was about a hour after my dad and I hung up the phone that first day and I got a text from him,

"Leesee. I googled this "Becky Higgins" and it seems like she's legit."

True story.

What an absolute pleasure. And seriously, the fun is just beginning. Next, we all get to use the kit. The photos throughout this post show samples of the Seafoam kit (I hope you like the name!) in action. We will be sharing the full kit in the next few months (you can see more samples on Becky's blog now) and I'll have more photos of last week's spread up soon, but wow - it was surreal (and awesome!) to finally put them to use.

(!!!!!!!!!)

UPDATE : The Seafoam core kit is now available on Amazon!