Saturday, August 12, 2017

Cleaning our the scrap clutter and an album of me

Hello! Summer is coming to an end, and mine has been busy. The month of July was spent preparing for and going on a dream vacation to Hawaii. (Yay!) Since coming back, I've been reading, gardening, cooking, and of course, scrapbooking. I want to go back and share my scrapbooking origins for the summer.

First: I had a lot of planned but unfinished projects (actually just plain unstarted). They occupied our front closet, which had been fine for years, but my boys are teenagers now, and they eat like teens, so we've started a Costco membership and need somewhere to put the food. Since we don't have a pantry,  I had to get those projects done! So I got to work.

Here's how my living room looked at the beginning of summer:



SIDE NOTE: While I did this project, I also discovered a couple new ways to organize my materials to better use them. To the left of my chair, you'll see a wooden file folder that I got at Target: I started storing my purchased paper die cuts in there by color. When I needed a small, flat embellishment, I opened the hanging file folder and sorted through until I found something. I also started keeping a cupcake tray near me with small embellishments sorted by color for quick and easy embellishing:


I got this idea from Stacy Julian's Big Picture Classes class Twelve.

Because I had stored the unstarted projects in mostly Iris containers, I spread out the ones I wanted to tackle in order to clean out the closet. When I did so, I also discovered a bunch of photos and memorabilia my grandmother had left me after her death, things she had been sent or given by me or my family. This made me look for my own keepsake boxes and empty them too, and so I began planning an album about me. As I began, I decided to go even farther and pull pictures from the 6+ photo albums I had of my growing up years and put into this project.

Next, I sorted the photos and mementoes into categories for the album: Infancy, Family, Home, Elementary School, Middle School, High School, Travel, College, Career, Adulthood (or "Adulting"),  Scrapbooking, and Today. In my folly, I thought I could fit them into one album. I swiftly realized I needed at least two, so I pulled out the Handbooks and Handbook Inserts and dividers I had never used and got to work.

Here's the finished products:





The albums are stuffed with photos, memorabilia, and some journaling. I used a variety of Project Life Cards for this

So here's some of the pages in the first album, which goes from Infancy to High School:


I used the Handbook Dividers to separate each section.




The dividers came with some that were full-page pockets. I tended to cut them in half and sew the edges to store memorabilia. SIDE NOTE: The check was for the hospital at my birth. I cost $35.


This is the family section. I added photos of various members of my extended family, plus family mementoes. The first memento is on the next page, a copy of my grandfather's obituary written by his daughters. I shrunk it to fit the page and paired it with the last photo I had of him. He was a quiet, caring man of God, and I miss him

Facing his page were some treasures my grandmother gave me, little slips of paper filler with memories and love. Her photo is on the next page. I lost her last year, and I miss her so much. She helped shape me into who I am today.



I didn't have enough for a while section on my first permanent home (as a Navy brat, that was memorable), so I just put this section in between.


Next comes elementary school!


When my grown up teeth started coming in, I stopped smiling with an open mouth. Odd how I remember that. I also noticed in a lot of the pictures, I didn't wear glasses all the time either, interesting because I am profoundly nearsighted, and I don't remember being half-blind all the time. Vanity...


Next is junior high! I got braces and contacts here, and also, sadly a perm. #80s


High school: still permed.



 
I was pleased to see my catechism in the memorabilia. When my boys get confirmed, I'll tell them of the time I had to walk uphill in the snow both ways for my public examination...

Thank you for visiting! I will share my next book later this week, and the unexpected but fun third book later.

2 comments:

alisonm said...

While I really hate doing mini albums, you have inspired me to make one of foreach of my vacations. I have gathered so much bits and pieces such as receipts, small info books, coasters etc. that are just in piles, I need to do something with all of this stuff! So, where did you get the albums and what size are they? I love the pocket ideas!

Jennifer Larson said...

Thanks Allison! These mini albums were Studio Calico Handbooks at the 6x8 size. I think a lot of companies make that size still, though I'm not sure of Studio Calico. Check Scrapbook.com, Joann.com, or Amazon. Just make sure if you buy inserts that the holes match. SC changes them between their Handbooks. The Fancy Pants Brag Book was also a nice size with many inserts and pockets.