August 2015 is all about Late Nights and Creative time

This month's post comes a few days after the official start of August. As the summer progresses, I find my personal schedule changes quite a bit.I have always been a bit of a night owl, but it seems that during the summer months, the late nights become even later. Maybe that's because it's a bit cooler after the sun goes down. It's just so easy to sleep in some days and stay up late creating.

I am juggling quite a few things in my personal life right now, but am very happy to say that a regular editorial calendar is one step closer to fruition. I still struggle with the frequency of posting. Mostly because, once I write an article or blog post, I want to share it right away. It's so hard to write a post and store it for later, but slowly, I am acquiring a small cache of posts for you. As always, I have a tendency to write/talk quite a bit and I know you must be anxious for inspiration and scrapbook layouts. So let's get to it!

How Our Life Has Changed by Christy Strickler |Supplies Cardstock: Bazzill;Letters: American Crafts; Tape: Freckled Fawn; Transparency, Enamel Dots: Shimelle; Pocket Card, Stickers: Cocoa Daisy; Chipboard, Button: Crate Paper; Other: Tag;Inspired by a Sketch and Story Starter from Simple Scrapper Premium Membership

I found this photo of my husband and I on an old key chain. I extracted it and used the clear plastic frame from the key chain over the top of the photo. It adds some nice dimension. I placed a few enamel dots over the spots where I used liquid adhesive. The adhesive was a bit splotchy and I didn't care for how it looked. I had a general idea about when the photo was taken, but not an exact one. This made it the perfect candidate for a generalized story about how our lives have changed since my husband and I first met.

I have another layout from Simple Scrapper to share with you, but first, I need to edit the video that goes with it. Meanwhile, there are already a few new articles on the MSE main website. I also have a monthly recap of the top stories from July to keep you occupied until the next article is published. Happy Crafting Everyone!

This posts contains affiliate links when possible. Please shop your stash first, but should you find you need something, consider supporting MSE.

Most of these supplies are originally from a Cocoa Daisy Kit. I am not an affiliate but I am a subscriber!

View blog post for supplies

Simple Scrapper Premium Membership: Includes support and resources for supply and scrap room organization, suggestions for simplifying your memory keeping process, story starters and sketches. Get More Information.

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Project Life 2015 Goals: Spotlight on Superb Summer Stories

Are you caught up on Project Life? I'm not.  I could get caught up in berating myself, but I won't. Memory keepers spend far to much time worrying about being caught up. Instead, I decided to make a game plan. One which will allow me to catch up on Project Life for this year and which will also allow me to revisit the Stories of the Summer e-course from Simple Scrapper.

I completed my planning in three easy steps:

• My first step was to download the free planning form from Simple Scrapper. 
• Next, I took a look at which months I had completed for Project Life so far this year. January and February are done. March, April and May have pages started. The photos and kits are gathered in one spot. I just need to make the collage cards and get them into pockets.
• Finally, I took a look back at my completed summer stories pages from 2013. I made a note of what I liked and what I might change. 

Using the planning form, it was easy for me to see that I could break my work down into small, doable pieces. I won't have all of the photos right away for the summer stories. I can probably work on a few cards here or there while I accumulate additional pictures. Meanwhile, I can fill the time by working on past month, one page at a time. 

I do enjoy looking back at my completed 2013 project. However, I wish the products I used were a bit more consistent. I already know that I enjoy working with the Traci Reed Designs Pocket Life Collections each month. It stands to reason that these can be my go to kits for this summer. For all that the formality of planning implies, you really don't need a complex plan to be successful. Simple works pretty well. Who needs much complexity in this summer heat anyway?

How will you document your own superb summer stories? Are you just making layouts? Or will you include them in your pocket pages?

Affiliate Links when possible. Thank you for supporting MSE.

You can see my 2013 Summer Stories pages here.

The Stories of Summer E-Course is one of the many resources available in the Simple Scrapper Premium Membership. Click here for more information about Simple Scrapper.

How to Have a  More Creative Summer- an article from the Simple Scrapper Blog.

Follow My Scrapbook Evolution's board Seasons: Summer Stories on Pinterest.

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In the Know: What's Happening at Simple Scrapper- June

I just couldn't wait much longer to share my layouts with you! Normally, I start the month off by sharing  a few of my pages for Simple Scrapper. I decided to share a little early.( Close enough to the new month, right?) I will explain why further down in the post. First, I wanted to clarify how Simple Scrapper has helped me out.

Much of the time, when I bring up Simple Scrapper in conversation, a few of my friends mention that they don't think membership is for them since they don't have a simple scrapbooking style. I always find this interesting since I would say my style of memory keeping is anything but simple. I have been a Premium Member for (well, it feels like I have always been a member) over a year and a half. I love Simple Scrapper so much that I joined their creative team and became an affiliate.

So what exactly do I get from my membership?
- Inspiration to find deeper stories from my photos
- Spark magazine( for members only)
-An archive of sketches and story starters
-Access to an active and friendly community of memory keepers
- Most importantly, support and constructive ideas to help me organize my supplies.
-Tips for simplifying my scrapbooking process.(That's really where the idea of Simple Scrapper comes into play)

 Each month, there is a new set of sketches along with an entire set of story prompts based around a theme. The layouts that I share are just a little peek into the story and sketch inspiration available at Simple Scrapper. Ready to see how I was inspired this month?

Going to Disney: Rain or Shine by Christy Strickler |Supplies Cardstock: Bazzill; Patterned Paper: Sandylion; Letters: Basic Grey, American Crafts; Tape: Jenni Bowlin;Enamel Dots: My Mind's Eye; Stickers: Hallmark, EK Success; Freckled Fawn, October Afternoon; Inspired by a Sketch and Story Starter from Simple Scrapper Premium Membership









Using the story prompts and sketches from the premium membership as a guide allows me to free myself to experiment a bit.Take this page,for example. I love the look of big photos on layouts but I don't always think to use them without a gentle reminder( this time courtesy of Simple Scrapper). The large photo sets the stage but the real highlights of this layout for me are the pictures of the kids.

The Animal Garden by Christy Strickler |Supplies: Cardstock: Bazzill;Patterned Paper: Crate Paper; Transparency: Studio Calico; Letters: American Crafts; Die Cuts, Stickers: My Mind's Eye; Other: Ribbon;  Inspired by a Sketch and Story Starter from Simple Scrapper Premium Membership












Have I mentioned before that I can get lazy about the details of the story? I have a tendency to just write down the basic information but not go much into detail. Once again, prompts from the Simple Scrapper premium membership reminded me to dig a bit further into the details. Really, it's a reminder that telling more of a story isn't all that much more work that  just jotting down the basic facts.

Now it's time to tell you why I am posting a bit early. Simple Scrapper currently has a promotion going on which will save you toward the cost of membership. This discount ends on May 31st. So please act fast if you are interested.I do need to disclose that I am an affiliate, but, as you might have noticed, I use and love the Simple Scrapper Premium Membership. I wouldnt' recommend it if I didn't think it wasn't a good thing to be a part of.  Click here for more details.










This posts contains affiliate links when possible. Please shop your stash first, but should you find you need something, consider supporting MSE.

Many of the Disney Supplies I used for my layout have been in my stash for awhile. There are some lovely new updated options available.

View blog post for supplies

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Keeping the Creative Momentum Going After iNSD

Saturday was pretty awesome. As I chatted away with friends( new and old) at the Get It Scrapped online crop, I managed to create four layouts. I didn't take the time to work on iNSD challenges this year. Instead, I opted to work ahead on some of my creative team projects. My goal is to get ahead so that I can submit them early and get the blog posts written and scheduled. After which, I will have tons of time to work on a few other challenges around the web.

 Normally, I might share my iNSD pages the week after, but since these were CT projects, you will have to wait until the release date. Instead, I am going to share with you a few of my layouts from Simple Scrapper. I didn't want them to get lost in the bustle of pre-iNSD last week. Also, they are a great reminder for me that I can still keep the excitement of iNSD going.

Is This a Mess or a Hint of Independence by Christy Strickler |Supplies Cardstock: Bazzill ; Fancy Pants, Little Yellow Bicycle; Project Life Cards: 5th and Frolic; Letters; Ruby Rock-it, Twine and Ink, Basic Grey; Ink: VersaMark; Mist: Heidi Swapp; Flowers; Prima, Sassafrass; Pen: Sharpie;Inspired by a Sketch and Story Starter from Simple Scrapper Premium Membership







I avoided the allure of shopping this year on iNSD. Sure, I was tempted. There were a lot of great sales. However, I am currently in a place in which my budget doesn't like spending.( Everything moves in cycles.) I am also in the process of culling some of my supplies. Two areas that challenge me are using my large stash of Project Life cards and using up scraps. While I don't feel as though I am challenged when it comes to layering, I am not great about using messy stacks of scraps. Some of this month's sketches in the Simple Scrapper Premium membership afforded me the ability to practice using those messy stacks. I managed to slip in lots of paper bits and a few Project Life cards.To add to the messy feel of the page, I use a distressed alphabet and some messy stitching. 

Wonder and Create by Christy Strickler |Supplies Patterned Paper: American Crafts, Heidi Swapp; Letters: American Crafts; Stickers: Heidi Swapp, PinkFresh Studio; Chipboard: Echo Park; Transparency: Die Cuts: Heidi Swapp; Inspired by a Sketch and Story Starter from Simple Scrapper Premium Membership









What's the point of owning something if you don't use it? I found a 12x12 text background and then used a mini kit which consisted of a 6x6 paper pad with matching embellishments to create this layout which compares my childhood hobbies to my son's.

While I was happy with my iNSD results, I still felt that at time, I was struggling.I have a tendency to walk into a crop and just start to play around with supplies. There isn't necessarily anything bad about that, except , I find I am more productive with a kit or a starting point. The first layout had a story to guide my product choices clearly. I wanted kitchen themed supplies which consisted of matching scraps. The second layout began with a photo and a coordinating kit.It seems that my process always needs a clear starting point rather than just randomly choosing supplies.

There is a simple solution for me to keep creating effectively throughout the rest of this month. Something that is especially important if I am going to be successful with my personal Layout a Day challenge. I need to have mini kits ready to go. Some might even have a photo or two inside them with some notes for stories. I can either search my photos or search the Simple Scrapper Membership story prompts for starting points and then build the kit around the story I want to tell. I still plan to use my monthly kits from Cocoa Daisy and Pinkfresh Studio, but I also want to use older supplies. Making kits from older products will save me some time and.I am far more likely to grab a kit than I am to grab single stored products. 

Knowing your process is defintiely important when it comes to keeping creative momentum going. Finding simple solutions to support that process always leads to more productivity. The bonus to being more productive in creative work is that creativity breeds more creativity. A good recipe for success when it comes down to carrying on our excitement from a recent project.

May is going to be a busy month. Not only do I plan to scrapbook a layout a day, I also have plans for more supply and photos organization. I will be participating in Photo Crush with Simple Scrapper. We have more shows to record for the DigiScrap Geek Podcast. I have lots of blogging to do. All of this can only be done with a bit of creative mojo and good organizational skills.

How did you do for iNSD? Did you scrapbook the amount of layouts you had hoped to? Or are you looking to find a better way to streamline you productivity?

Additional Resources
This posts contains affiliate links when possible.I am both a member of the Simple Scrapper Creative team and an affiliate.Thank you for supporting MSE by clicking on affiliate links around this website.

I have been a part of the Simple Scrapper membership even before I was part of their creative team.Simple Scrapper provides tools to help you create an efficient memory keeping process.The best way to experience the community for yourself is at the upcoming Photo Crush event. During this 7-day challenge, Jennifer Wilson will help you streamline your photo library so that memory keeping is even easier. Best of all, this event is free. Would you like to join me? Click here to sign up.

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Welcome April!

Once again another month has passed. It seems like I just wrote the welcome message for March, yet here we are in April. Easter is just a short time away. I managed to get all the decorations up with my son. I am looking forward to a quiet holiday weekend with my family and hopefully a little time to scrapbook. I have been working through my Cocoa Daisy kits but still have lots of the March kit left to play with. Can I just say that it has me inspired to dig out older Easter Photos!

My goals this month are to continue purging and organizing. I confess, my desk is a mess. I fell back into some old habits. Namely, not putting items away when finished and hanging onto scraps for that what if scenario. I need to tidy up a bit and find a way to tame those scrap pieces.

 I also hope to get back into making more process videos. I have updated my web cam to record in 1080P and have learned a bit more about producing/editing the videos. It would seem I wasn't using my editing software to it's fullest potential. It's definitely a learning process. Once I get myself a little more comfortable, I plan to share my findings with you in case you are interested in learning how to make process videos on a budget. In fact, I am currently contemplating a series of articles which will share a behind the scenes look at being a design team member as well as how I plan for my blog/website and the tools I use to do so.

Meanwhile though, I find myself with the urge to create. It's often a struggle for me to balance making layouts with writing articles. I have so much I want to share! So why don't we jump right in and start the project sharing for the month!I have two wonderful layouts for Simple Scrapper. This month's prompts really pushed me in my creative endeavors.

Dear Humans, While You Were Away by Christy Strickler |Supplies Patterned Paper, Letters: Fancy Pants; Journal Card: Project Life by Becky Higgns; Clip: Studio Calico; Wood Button: Pink Fresh Studio; Jewels: Freckled Fawn; Inspired by a Sketch and Story Starter from Simple Scrapper Premium Membership









Story wise, this particular layout is now one of my favorites. I wrote the journaling from the perspective of our cat regarding her thoughts about what will happen when we travel without her. I must admit that in large part, the title was inspired by those Dear Kitten videos made by Friskies. Giving my cat a personified voice was a lot of fun and a great way to create an out of the ordinary pet page. I think I might just be giving my cats a voice in the journaling more often.

Family Means Everything to Me by Christy Strickler |Supplies Patterned Paper:Echo Park, Fancy Pants: Enamel: Freckled Fawn: Wood Veneer: Two Peas in a Bucket: Wood Button: Pinkfresh Studio; Ink: Tsukineko; Label: Martha Stewart: Ink:Tsukineo;Pen: Sharpie;Inspired by a Sketch and Story Starter from Simple Scrapper Premium Membership









This layout features a rare family photo. A photo which I haven't scrapbooked, in large part, because it was taken at a funeral. We are happy and smiling as a family but when I see it, the picture makes me think about that day. It's not an event that I yet feel comfortable documenting in my album. Using a journaling prompt which incorporates my love of my family made it easier to work with this photo. Sometimes, I find I need a little encouragement to document parts of harder days.

As I mentioned, I have a lot to share with you. You can expect a lot of posts from me again this month. However,the DigiScrap Geek Podcast is taking a bit of a recording break for the Spring and Easter holidays. There's no reason to be too sad though. We're inviting you to join us with our journey down the rabbit hole. By that, I mean that we would love for you to join us in our new facebook group. It's a place where we can all get to know one another better as well as extend the discussion of the podcast and talk about all things scrapbookers. Yes, I know the show is somewhat geared toward digital scrapbookers. I can attest, as both a paper and hybrid memory keeper, that everyone is welcome. You may notice that many of the show episodes include tips that are universal to all scrapbookers, not just the digital folk.

Just click here to join in on our discussions.








Supply Options
This posts contains affiliate links when possible. Please shop your stash first, but should you find you need something, consider supporting MSE.

View blog post for supplies

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Welcome, March!

It's the beginning of March which means it's time to play Calvinball! My goals this month include continuing to work through my supplies. I have been doing some reorganizing and purging. Many old supplies have come to light and become new for me again. It's always a delight to do so. I love making the most of my supplies. I don't necessarily tend to hoard items for the perfect layout. It's just that I am often working on so many ideas that I forget to use supplies I have earmarked for something.

I am starting off the month by sharing my layouts for Simple Scrapper. This first page is the perfect example in which I had the supplies set aside but forgot I had some of them. ( I am working on redoing some of my storage so this happens less often.)

Despite the Miles by Christy Strickler |Supplies Patterned Paper:Jillibean Soup, Letters: Sassafrass, Evalicious; Flair: Studio Calico, Panda Eight Designs;Punch: Martha Stewart;Inspired by a Sketch and Story Starter from Simple Scrapper Premium Membership













The patterned papers came into my possession sometime in 2014. They can be a bit busy, even for me. When used together, some of the papers from this kit can become lost within one another. I used black cardstock scraps to create some delineation. When looking for the perfect green letters, I came across some older Sassafrass. I was so sad to see them go a few years back. It was nice to see they fit in perfectly here. At one point, I had been acquiring quite a bit of flair. I have held off on getting more, but still, I really needed to use some up. Sorting through my flair drawer brought some perfect designs to the forefront and my page was completed in no time.

Another Awesome Birthday by Christy Strickler |Supplies Patterned Paper: Crate Paper; Letters: American Crafts, Evalicious; Tape,Enamel Dots,Chipboard: My Mind's Eye; Wood Veneer: Studio Calico; Jewels: Jenni Bowlin; Punch; Martha Stewart;Other: Glossy Accents;Inspired by a Sketch and Story Starter from Simple Scrapper Premium Membership






I have always loved my JBS Mercantile kits. When they stopped their scrapbook kit club, I discovered I had a hard time breaking any more of the kits down. It's been a few months and I decided it's time to sort through each kit and put things away. During this process, I came across a birthday themed kit from some time back. I enjoyed putting it to use one last time before breaking it apart.

It's easy to just keep scrapping away with all of the new exciting product. However, old supplies can become new and exciting again. It's just a matter of sorting through them and sometimes,as with kits, breaking them apart and rekitting them to see the potential. I also find that old items often fit some of the latest trends. I invite you to take a look through your stuff with the goal of finding supplies that will work with your newest stash.

Supply Options

Flair from Panda Eight Designs ( not an affilitate)

View blog post for supplies

Additional Resources

The Premium Membership from Simple Scrapper

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