Project 12 - 2013

Yay!  It went live so I can share how I will be doing Project 12 this year.

Gossamer Blue, a wonderful scrapbook kit club you should definitely check out, is going to co-host the Project 12 challenge with me this year.  I couldn't be more excited!  Lori is one of the most supportive, gracious, and genuine people in the industry and I can't think of anyone I'd rather host this challenge with.  

Here's the epic post with details about Project 12:

Scrapbooking has always been about preserving your memories.  Art has become an additional way of expressing yourself on your pages, but traditionally, scrapbooking involved photos and memorabilia to document your life.  Becky Higgins brought the traditional form of scrapbooking to the forefront again with the concept of Project Life.  You can read more about Becky Higgins and her memory keeping system here.

I loved the idea of Project Life but knew it wasn’t going to be something I could commit to in the way it was intended. 

I am a busy Mom. 

I work outside the home. 

I have other hobbies.

I want to run a half-marathon this year.

I want to sew a quilt for my bed.

I want to knit a scarf.

I want to DIY some home décor projects.

I want to make things with my kids.

I want to read a book.

I need to be able to clean my house, make dinner, and do nothing if I want to. 

I am also a slow scrapbooker.  I knew that committing to something weekly wasn’t going to work for me and I’d quickly lose interest and motivation as I fell behind.

In 2009 I started hosting a challenge on my blog that took on Project Life in a different way.  I called it Project 12.

One two-page spread per month.  12 layouts per year. 

I have enough content to fill a two page layout per month, with photos to spare for regular scrapbook projects. 

I have time to commit to one 2-page layout per month. 

I have space for two 12x12 albums per year to house these layouts.

Traditionally, I created a two page layout.  In 2010 and 2011, I hosted the challenge on the SCT blog and Becky Fleck designed sketches for me.  

In 2013 I have decided to try something different.  I wanted to try something that allowed for more photos per layout on my 2-page spread.  I decided to utilize the divided page protectors and go back to scrapbooking’s roots.

The Project 12 challenge is simple:

Whether you take 1 photo or 100 photos per month, you have a life to document.  Each month, your challenge is to document your life on a layout.  I am going to be using divided page protectors and documenting our life on a 2-page spread.  I will have 12 2-page layouts per year that will be housed together in 12x12 albums and displayed so my family can look at them anytime they like.

This is what I came up with:

There are 14 photos on this layout!

I cut my title with my Cameo.  I created a vellum pocket and added confetti.  I layered the dots on top of the page protector.  I used 14 photos!  I'm thrilled that I used 14 photos.  

TIPS:

I use my phone a lot and will be using a lot more phone photos in 2013 for my Project 12 spreads. 

I use Instagram a lot.  I love the Earlybird wash (my username is Davinie).

I also love the Momento  app.  I can type in notes when we do something fun or my girls say something funny.  It also keeps track of my Instagram feed and Facebook updates too so that when I begin to put my layout together, I have all of our memories in one place.

I love this challenge because it allows you to share more of your story in a way that your family can easily enjoy.  You get a chronological look at your life.  The time commitment leaves an opportunity to do other things.  I don’t want to be tied to something.  This method of recordkeeping allows the flexibility to take a break and do other things while still filling your scrapbooks.

I hope you’ll join me!  Gossamer Blue will be a wonderful host.  There’s even a prize involved.  Check out the Gossamer Blue blog here for details on how you can play along and maybe even get a prize.  

Davinie

P.S.  I am also the Guest Designer for January a Gossamer Blue!
P.P.S.  I have read my letter for my Note to Self challenge! I am so glad I did this!  Check out more about that here.  I'll post my next spread tomorrow.