Sunday, August 17, 2014

Happy Heart - for the daughter, mommy and scrapbooker in us!

So tonight I am switching gears for a moment and although still sharing a project featuring our fabulous Picture My Life Scrapbooking Program cards, tonight I am stepping away from Seaside for a moment and instead sharing a layout created with Chalk It Up.  

To preface, this weekend I hosted my August Monthly Crop and our theme, most appropriately, was Back To School --  and no, this Mommy did not have champagne to celebrate the kids returning to school as tempting as it might have been!  lol.  We did have the most amazing frosted apple shaped cookies, apple and caramel desserts just for the occasion, played the music from Grease and had a school themed challenge. What fun right?  

If you haven't been to one of my crops (and why is that exactly?), typically each month I give my clients a create and take project of some sort, a scrapbooking happy and most of the time and a challenge to keep them motivated as well.  Some times these elements are combined, and other times not so much.  This month, everything was intertwined so that they could create this embellishment-packed layout.

So, now that I have prefaced the logistics behind this layout, I will share the personal story.  This is one of my/our (our meaning my daughter Abigail) favorite layouts that I have done in quite a long time because of the sentimental meaning behind it--but truly isn't that why we indeed scrapbook?  To preserve those special moments in time?  That we never want to forget? Anyway, my daughter has been ever blessed to have the most fabulous teachers!  Each year at the beginning of the year, I worry...she was so blessed last year, miracles can't happen twice right? or three times?  And yet, they have.  Her teacher this year, Mrs. Judd was fantastic!  My husband had her daughter as a music student several years ago, and my son Gabriel had her last year so we had already built a relationship with her and Abby...well, Abby just thought she moved mountains.  And indeed Abby was correct.  

Late in the year, Abby came running off the school bus one day crying and crying.  It took quite a long time for me to finally get out of her what was wrong.  Between sobs, she was slowly able to tell me her news--that her beloved teacher was retiring after that year.  In reading this, I would imagine that most would think...she would be moving up to the second grade next year anyway...so why so many tears.  And to some children, that might be the case.  But our children go to a very small school and the teachers become family.  Abby still visits, and hugs, her Kindergarten teacher almost every day; as she did with her preschool teacher until she was transferred to another school (but we now talk to her over Facebook) so I could understand her emotions.  To make it through the rest of the year, together, we made a plan to put together a special gift for her teacher, and take it to her after school one afternoon where Abby could spend a little one-on-one time with her un-rushed.  So that is just what we did.  We went back into school on a day that there was an early release and Abby gave Mrs. Judd her gift that we had put together and we just hung out for a little while.  I, of course, had my camera to take some pictures for Abby, of an afternoon I knew she would cherish for a very long time.  I am so glad I did.  My daughter was genuinely so happy and there were no tears...just smiles.  The tears were reserved for the next day and saying good-bye.

Now, fast forward 2 months, I told Abby that this cherished afternoon was the next layout that I wanted to work on, and she insisted on "advising"...and truthfully, I wouldn't have it any other way.  She was very articulate on what colors she wanted used from the papers that I shared with her and helped choose her favorite embellishments and photographs to be used.  She must have asked me a hundred times if "her layout" was done yet.  I felt it was important for Abby to write the journaling for this layout herself and she of course was excited to have a larger role in her layout.  She wrote a rough draft and then a final copy, and truthfully I have to say--knowing Abby, and the great teacher that she was speaking of, the tears were rolling down my face.  She certainly has a talent for journaling doesn't she??  I am sure my scrapbookers would say "like mother, like daughter"!

So, here's one for the books!  And as soon as I finally said, "yes, I am finished", Abby's response was, we need to share it with Mrs. Judd!  I love that she is so passionate about what I do, and I look forward to many more "advising" sessions in the future!

To see a larger view of the photos, click on the photo and it will open up larger in another window.

Full spread with flip flap closed.

 Full spread with flip flap open.

Left Page

 Right Page

Inside of flip flap 

Outside of flip flap (and my very favorite photograph in the layout)

Embellishment cluster including a PML card, Dimensional Elements, Enamel Stars and 3-d foam tape.

PML Card...split in two to highlight a photograph

Title cluster -  happy is raised on 3-d foam; heart is adhered flat.

 bullet journaling

Creative journaling - for this element, I scanned Mrs. Judd's inscription on the back of a picture she gave Abby.  I did this so I could use her picture in another layout but highlight her precious words on this layout. We printed the journaling on White Daisy cardstock and then trimmed it to fit the accent tag.  

Here are what the layouts look like actually in the page protectors.  They are hard to take without getting a glare on the protectors which is why I have the clearer (non-protector) pictures at the top.


Want to join in on the challenge from my crop and create your own tweaked version of this layout for yourself?  Go for it!  This is what they were given:
(2) sheets of Black Cardstock (1386) for the bases
(1) sheet of bulk Chalk It Up patterned paper (X7184B)
(1/2) sheet of an additional coordinating piece of Chalk It Up Patterned Paper
(1) sheet of coordinating Cardstock of their choice (Sorbet (X5751), Lagoon (X5762), White Daisy (1385), or Flaxen (X5771)
(1) Zip Strip from the Chalk It Up Paper Pack
(3) Flip Flaps; I used the Large Assortment - 6" x 12" one (Z1325)
(3) 3" x 4" and (1) Chalk It Up Picture My Life Cards (Z2018)
(3) Black Enamel Stars (from Scardy Cat Assortment)  (Z3011) 
Choice of either 1 sheet of Chalk It Up Dimensional Elements Compliments (X7184C) or a set of  the Base and Bling Signature Style Sheet (Z2055)

For my personal layout, I also included (now-retired) Chalkboard shapes under Mrs. Judd's Journaling and Studio J for all of my photograph printing.

Have fun creating!

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Celebrate our Picture My Life kits in August with our Picture Perfection Promotion! 
During the month of August, when you purchase any of the 13 available Picture My Life™ scrapbooking programs featured in the 2014–2015 Annual Inspirations idea book at their full retail price of $24.95 USD / $27.50 CAD, you are eligible to add your choice of 1 of 8 qualifying Memory Protectors™ 10-packs for just $3 (USD & CAD)! Each Picture My Life scrapbooking program already includes a coordinating 10-pack of Memory Protectors, so when you add your additional 10-pack for only $3 you will be well on your way to your own picture-perfect pocket scrapbooking adventure!  

In addition, as a bonus, with each PML kit ordered during the month of August, I will be sending a PML goody bag your way.  The goody bags are filled with over $10 in embellishments, flip flaps and sassy goodness!  Use this link to order your PML kits!


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