December Daily 2010 | An Introduction

One of the things I have looked forward to most about this fall is the anticipation of all the holidays that come at the end of the year, and what they bring with them. Excitement. Joy. Spending time with family. Trying new recipes, enjoying old ones, and gathering around the table to say thank you with our families.  Enjoying the magic on my children's faces on Christmas Eve and Christmas Day.  These are just a few of the special things about this time of year that I just love.This year I'm excited to participate in a project that is all about capturing the moments and memories of the holidays: December Daily.  This project, made popular by Ali Edwards, is something that has become pretty popular in the past few years, and this year I'll be joining the fun!    You can learn more about this project by checking out Ali's December Daily compilation page, as well as take a look at how others are approaching this project by checking out the December Daily 2010 Flickr gallery.


Since our daughter Maggie arrived this October I knew I would have to make the most of the time I was given with this project, so I went ahead and prepared the foundation for my album in advance.  Then hopefully as we step into December I'll be able to find some time each week to document the happenings.  One of the things I appreciate most about scrapbooking is the opportunity it gives me to preserve the memory.  I've learned that often times if I don't write the story when the memory is fresh in my mind I forget the little details that are most important.  So this album, for me, will be a way to document the season as it happens, so I will remember those special moments later.

FIRST STEPS

First steps: deciding on an album and gathering supplies.  I tried to use a lot of the seasonal supplies I had on hand this year, and was able to pick up a few new things that caught my eye as well.  I ordered some great vintage number tags that Ali recommended from Elle's Studio, and a few things from Two Peas In A Bucket too.  Can you tell which company makes some of my favorite supplies? ; )

For my album choice I decided to go with the American Crafts 8x8 Cloth Album in Cardinal.  It just seemed like the right fit for this album...not too large, and with plenty of room inside for everything I will be adding as I work on this project. 

DESIGN

As far as design goes, since this is my first year in doing December Daily I really just wanted to have fun with the structure and not get too 'set' in my foundation, leaving most of my pages very minimal so that I have more freedom for interpretation later, depending on how I feel/how much time I have/what I want to capture each day. 

One of the things that I've learned and that I love about scrapbooking, after years of playing and really finding my own approach, is that it doesn't have to be perfect.  Don't get me wrong, I love to have things in order, and I am definitely a planner.  I really do thrive off of those two things!  But, it can also be really fun to go with the flow of a project and see where you end up, too!  So, with all that being said, here's a look at my foundation pages for this years' December Daily album:

DAY ONE



As you'll be able to tell from this album, my favorite holiday colors are very traditional: red, green, white and gold.  Used here: this fun Ho Ho Ho patterned cardstock from Around the Block.  I used my Fiskars Threading Water border punch on the edge.

DAY TWO

Very simple.  Found this lovely Winter Vine Glazed Cardstock in Sugar Cookie from Bazzill Basics.  This photo doesn't really do it justice, so here's a closer peek:

DAY THREE

For this page I used one of the page protectors that came with the album, and just added some poinsettias put out by Making Memories a few years back to the border.

DAY FOUR

Christmas Cheer Gold Words foil paper by K & Co. that I picked up from Village Crafts here in town, edged with my Threading Water punch.  Love this.

DAY FIVE

Bazzill Basics cardstock inside one of the American Crafts page protectors.  On the outside I attached the Elle's Studio Christmas Mix & and Match Vintage Number Tags to the front using one of the old poinsettia embellishments from Making Memories.

DAY SIX

Love this idea I got from Ali to use an old baseball card page protector as a divided page.  Vintage tag from the Elle's Studio kit slipped inside one of the pockets, along with one of the Making Memories poinsettia blossoms attached with a brad, and the 'seasons greetings' rub-on I had left over from an Advent calendar kit that MM put out several years ago. 

DAY SEVEN

Isn't this paper great?  For this page I actually glued two pieces of patterned cardstock back to back and edged it with some scalloped scissors.  Front: Karen Foster Silent Night Collage, Back: Flair Designs Winterberry.

DAY EIGHT

Making Memories Music Note Brown from their current Noel collection. 

DAY NINE

Making Memories Chelsea's Place glittered striped paper & tag, MM number rub-on left over from the old Advent calendar kit.

DAY TEN

This is just an old file folder that I cut to size and plan on covering with words and a photo.  Saw this idea on Ali's page and loved it, especially the idea of a full page photo.

DAY ELEVEN

Another divided page protector with an Elle's Studio vintage tag slipped into one of the pockets, and some of the left over MM Advent calendar rub-ons applied to the front.

DAY TWELVE

This page is actually a piece of chipboard that I cut to size, covered with patterned cardstock, and edged with some decorative scissors I had on hand.  Front: Karen Foster Snowflake Tapestry, Back: Flair Design Holiday Scroll Green

DAY THIRTEEN

American Crafts page protector bordered with a strip of Flair Designs Winterberry paper.

DAY FOURTEEN

This is a little bit of an interactive page.  Some fantastic metallic  cardstock I found at my local scrapbook store, edged with some scalloped scissors.  Around the Block Ho Ho Ho cardstock.  Inside I used one of Ali Edwards' Holiday Title + Journal Photo Overlays that I purchased and downloaded from the Designer Digitals website, printed out onto Bazzill Basics cardstock.  Tied closed with some old Making Memories Details ribbon.

DAY FIFTEEN

Another file folder page to be covered with a large photo.

DAY SIXTEEN

Die Cuts With a View Bon Voyage Travel metallic cardstock, edged with my Fiskars Threading Water border punch.

DAY SEVENTEEN

I thought this foldout page would be great to slip the kids' letters to Santa into, or maybe something special I may write to the kiddos.  Bazzill Basics green cardstock edged with my Fiskars Threading Water border punch.  Bazzill Basics red cardstock.  Making Memories snowflake brad, Details metallic ribbon, and Simply Stated Providence white alpha rub-ons.  Elle's Studio Christmas Mix & Match Vintage Number Tags bingo card.  Jolee's Boutique Red Glittered Newspaper Flower.  The patterned paper on the foldout is something I've had on hand for years, I think it's from Me and My Big Ideas.

DAY EIGHTEEN

K & Co. Christmas Cheer Santa patterned paper edged with the Fiskars Threading Water border punch, Elle's Studio Christmas Mix & Match Vintage Number Tag.

DAY NINETEEN

Making Memories Chelsea's Place glittered patterned paper and tag.  The plan is to attach a transparency over this page to have a pocket for collecting holiday memorabilia that I'll want to keep.

DAY TWENTY

Die Cuts With a View Bon Voyage Travel green cardstock edged with my Fiskars Threading Water border punch.  Gold snowflake vellum overlay from my LSS, Elle's Studio Christmas Mix & Match Vintage Number Tag, Making Memories poinsettia blossom and brad.

DAY TWENTY-ONE

Bazzill Basics Random Stripe Glazed Cardstock in Pomegranate, edged with my Fiskars decorative edge scissors.

DAY TWENTY-TWO

One last file folder page ready for a large photo.  Can't wait to see how this turns out! : )

DAY TWENTY-THREE

This page is two pieces of cardstock glued back to back.  Front: Making Memories Chelsea's Place pink polka dot patterned cardstock, Making Memories black rub-on numbers from their previous Advent calendar kit. Back: Bazzill Basics red cardstock

DAY TWENTY-FOUR

Making Memories Noel collection Snowflake Argyle patterned cardstock.

DAY TWENTY-FIVE

Baseball Card page protector trimmed to size, Jolee's Boutique Red Glittered Newspaper Flower attached to the outside, holiday rub-ons left over from the previous Making Memories Advent calendar kit.