Ali Edwards's Blog, page 184

Give Sunday | 51

This year, in honor of my 2015
One Little Word® "give," I'm sharing a hand-drawn quote each Sunday here on my blog.

Today is the final installment for this series. Thank you so much for the kind words about these quotes over the past year. 

Click here to read my initial post and download the #givesunday word art title and checklist for helping you to give a little something today. You can also view all the past #givesunday quotes via the archives. 

Click here to download the #givesunday 51 quote. Please note: If you are reading this post via email you need to click through to the actual blog post to download the file. 

You're invited to join me. What will you
give today?

Have a wonderful Sunday. 

Designer Digitals Product Update

Over a number of years I created more than 700 digital/hybrid memory keeping products that have been available for purchase at Designer Digitals. My commitment to housing those products there is coming to an end and all products will be removed from Designer Digitals by December 28th. 

THE PLAN | Many of those products will be uploaded to my Digital Shop here in the coming months. As you can imagine, that will be an undertaking that we will probably tackle a bit at a time once Katie is back from maternity leave. If there is anything you want from that selection of products I suggest purchasing it before December 28th as there is not a guarantee it will be made available in my shop here. 

I want to again thank Designer Digitals for their support of my products and I wish them all the best. 

December Daily® 2015 | Day Twenty-Two

Welcome to December Daily® 2015 | Day 22. 

Seriously loved finally getting a chance to see the new Star Wars movie yesterday. Simon has been counting down the days and it was special on so many levels to be able to watch and experience it with him because the movies and characters have long been his favorite. I loved watching him get all the connections and references to the older movies as we both got excited at precisely the same moments - hard to beat that. And really, as a kid who grew up playing with Star Wars toys and watching and loving the original movies this was just awesome to experience. I loved it and I honestly can't wait to see it again. 

This is probably it for me for posting before Christmas. I'll share the remainder of my stories after the holiday weekend and include video that shows the last few days as well. I hope you have a wonderful holiday and thank you again for joining me on this journey in 2015. 

Here's a look at Day 22: 

For the full page 6x8 I printed out the receipt that was emailed to me after purchasing my tickets online. This in and of itself tells a story of the way I buy movie tickets these days - rarely do I have a paper ticket any longer as most of the time I buy them online and then have them sent to my phone to be able to pull up to enter the movie. 

When printing it from my email I just adjusted the size to about 75% and it ended up being just the right size for my 6x8 pocket. 

The page opposite is right around 5x7. The reason I went with that size is because I know my story for Day 23 is going to be about visiting Santa and I'll have a 5x7 photo from that experience. Stamps are those same Educational Insights Stamps I used on vellum earlier in the month on Day 4. I love the repetition of bringing something back I had used earlier in the album. 

SUPPLIES

December Daily® 2015 Main Kit
Educational Insights See & Stamp stamps


Inks: Grey Memento Luxe and Color Theory Well Red
AE Precision Pen
Epson R2000
Crop A Dile (for hole punching)

SHARE YOUR DAY 22

I'd love to have you share a link to your Day 22 album pages below. Please link directly to your post vs. a general blog link.

December Daily® 2015 | Day Twenty-One

Welcome to 
December Daily® 2015 | Day Twenty-One. 

The story of today is about how I love that Christmas Break creates time for the kids to just hang out. Yesterday they spent a bunch of the day just hanging out in Simon's room playing Legos - Anna playing Star Wars and Simon building a phone booth from Bill & Ted's Excellent Adventure after seeing a YouTube video where someone else had built one. 

Here's a look at my Day 21:

I love the photo of the two of them in Simon's room doing their thing in the middle of all the Legos.

I trimmed the "so loving this" journal card down from 4x6 to 3x4 to accommodate my story. The other 3x4 pocket includes a wood veneer snowflake with a phrase sticker and a small gold chipboard star on top of an older set of gold cardstock number stickers. 

The full page photo of Anna is one I've been meaning to take since the beginning of the month and I finally made it happen yesterday. A few weeks ago she took this piece of cardboard and drew her holiday greeting message on top. It's the best. I added one small gold chipboard star on top to link it to the story on the page before. 

Here's a look at the two pages outside the album: 

DAY 21 VIDEO OVERVIEW


SUPPLIES

December Daily® 2015 Main Kit
Maggie Holmes Craft Market Stickers
AE Precision Pen
Seven Paper Gold Chipboard Stars

SHARE YOUR DAY 21

I'd love to have you share a link to your Day 21 album pages below. Please link directly to your post vs. a general blog link.

December 2015 Shop Updates

I wanted to take some time today to introduce you some fun new things that are part of my December Shop Release.

I've included a video overview for you below as well. 

And as always, thank you so much for your continued support of my brand!

I can't tell you how fun it is for me to finally see my product collection grow. 

Four new washi tapes include the two minis (gather together + the black and white script) that are sold together and two larger ones that are sold separately: Stories and Thank You For Being You.

Two new dies include "currently" and a super fun set of "days of the week" that create what you see above - the word will sit at the top of along the side. I totally love how that one turned out and can't wait to make a set to use in Project Life®.

I'm using a Evolution machine with these dies (I think in the video below I called it a "revolution" - ha). 

Six new stamp sets include: Love, Seasons, Brave, Baby, Beach and Friends. All wonderfully practical and useful for your memory keeping projects. 

Three new large chipboard alphabets in my colors: Deschutes, Cascade and Canon Beach.

And of course, three new journal card sets. They include Celebrate, This & That, and Gratitude. 

Also, just in case you missed it earlier I now have paints too! 

Here's a video overview of all the new products: 

Thank you again for all your support and your interest in memory keeping and storytelling! 

Let's keep telling stories together. 

December Daily® 2015 | Day Nineteen & Twenty

Welcome to 
December Daily® 2015 | Days 19 & 20. 

Happy Monday! I decided to share days 19 and 20 together because I kind of merged them together in my album because it made the most sense to me in terms of my story. 

A couple thoughts today:

First, I loved this perspective from Lisa in the 
December Daily® Facebook Group: 

"The reasons I do December Daily have a lot less to do with album and a lot more to do with what goes inside. The truth is we are so busy (life is so full with seven children from toddlers to teens), our budget is tiny, and this is yet another December with sickness. Without this project I may struggle with finding joy in the midst of it all. I might feel weighed down and overwhelmed. I might not see all of this. This is just a small peek of the December blessings around here. The blessings sneak in, especially if you are looking for them. The stories are unfolding, whether you write them down or not. The memories are made, and the intentional capturing of each of them, wrapping them up in the gift of a December Daily, is a gift that gives long after the season is done. I cannot wait to begin sharing my album tomorrow, but for today, printing these pictures is priceless."

Second, just a big hug to any of you out there who are struggling with the Christmas season. Last night I felt that familiar longing for a "traditional" family structure - it creeps up at certain times. I've felt really good about this holiday, embracing it all, up until last night when I started feeling sad for what I don't have (
or for what I was thinking would make me happy at that moment). This morning I woke up, looked around my house and at my sleeping kids and just shook my head. I don't want to be in that head space. I want to celebrate what is here right now and make some magic in these last few days before Christmas. There's lots of things I can't control, but I can control my attitude towards how I live these next few days. 

All that said, and as you'll see below, I wrote myself a reminder about that so I wouldn't forget. 

Here's a look at my Day 19 + Day 20: 

When I finished up Day 18 I had the full-page transparency from the Main Kit with the branches and snow on it. Unfortunately I don't think we are going to get snow in the next couple of days so I went ahead and kept it in that spot. On top of it I added, first with a Martha Stewart Glue Pen and then with red embroidery floss, one of the wood veneer stars. I used a paper piercer to punch the holes next to the stars first before using a needle and the red floss (usually I've found it hard to push a needle through so it was easier to use the paper piercer to create the holes first as my guide). I just tied off the red floss on the back of the star. 

The next thing I added was a 4x8 tag. This one was included in a previous Studio Calico kit (I think I mentioned possibly using it for my pocket tag back on Day 5) but a 4x8 manilla tag would work just as well. 

In the video below you'll hear me talk about how at first I used spray ink on top of the chipboard letters using some red Heidi Swapp Color Shine spray ink (I did end up doing this on the back tag using Gold Color Shine). For the front of this tag I embossed using white embossing powder on top of the red chipboard letters. 

I used the Crop A Dile to punch right through the tag + chipboard letter combo. 

The gold spray ink worked great on a second manilla tag that I adhered to the back of the white/gold tag. I let it dry overnight before journaling on top with this pen.

I rounded out the two days with the "19" card from the Ashley G Mini Kit + a journal card (hard to see but it has a gold embossed title like I have done on previous days) + a photo of my living room + the gold chipboard "20" from the Emily Ley Mini Kit on top. 

Here's a look at all the pieces outside the album: 

Hope all is well with you and yours and that you too can be thankful for what you have in front of you right now. 

DAY 19 + 20 OVERVIEW



SUPPLIES

December Daily® Main Kit
December Daily® Emily Ley Mini Kit
December Daily® Ashley G Mini Kit
4x8 Tags
Gold Color Shine
Sweet Cherry Color Shine
Seven Paper Gold Chipboard Stars
Crop A Dile
AED Precision Pen .03
Martha Stewart Glue Pen
Paper Piercer


SHARE YOUR DAY 19 + DAY 20

I'd love to have you share a link to your Day 19 + Day 20 album pages below. Please link directly to your post vs. a general blog link.

Give Sunday | 50

This year, in honor of my 2015
One Little Word® "give," I'm sharing a hand-drawn quote each Sunday here on my blog.

Click here to read my initial post and download the #givesunday word art title and checklist for helping you to give a little something today. You can also view all the past #givesunday quotes via the archives. 

Click here to download the #givesunday 50 quote. Please note: If you are reading this post via email you need to click through to the actual blog post to download the file. 

You're invited to join me. What will you
give today?

Have a wonderful Sunday. 

December Daily® 2015 | Day Eighteen

Welcome to 
December Daily® 2015 | Day 18. 

I might have been a little overzealous in proclaiming how much better I was feeling yesterday. I was better than the day before, but still not great which equaled more taking it very easy here at home in my bed. 

With that said, I'm keeping it simple. I had printed this special passage (more information below) on vellum last month when someone mentioned it on the Facebook group. Today felt like the right day to include it as part of my story. 

Here's a look at Day 18 from my foundation pages post: 

And here's how it ended up in my album: 

I moved the Day 18 number (chipboard word from the 
December Daily® One Little Bird Mini Kit) + silver star onto the gold foil "december" 6x8 page which I trimmed down to 4x6.

Below that I added a photo I took with my self-timer of Sam at the foot of my bed and me on my phone and Anna with an iPad. On top of the photo I added two more silver stars and three word/phrase stickers. I had a hard time getting the color on the photo to be correct, even this black and white is leaning towards blue - embracing it for what it is today. 

The other page I included today is some writing about Christmas by 
Sister Joan D. Chittister, I formatted the quote in Photoshop knowing I wanted to use it as a full page and printed it on ink jet vellum. 

Here's the passage written by 
Sister Joan D. Chittister:

"Christmas is a strange season. When you're a child, it is a season of presents. When you're young, it's a season of parties. When you get your own home, it's a season of preparations. But when you get older, Christmas changes color drastically. Suddenly, out from behind the advertisements and big dinners, through the haze of old carols and soft candles, past the dazzling altars and sumptuous crib scenes, we begin to see what Christmas is really all about. Christmas is about finding life where we did not expect it to be. Every year of life waxes and wanes. Every stage of life comes and goes. Every facet of life is born and then dies. Every good moment is doomed to become only a memory. Every perfect period of living slips through our fingers and disappears. Every hope dims and every possibility turns eventually to dry clay. Until Christmas comes again. Then we are called at the deepest, most subconscious, least cognizant level to begin to live again. Christmas brings us all back to the crib of life to start over: aware of what has gone before, conscious that nothing can last, but full of hope that this time, finally, we can learn what it takes to live well, grow to full stature of soul and spirit, get it right. There is a child in each of us waiting to be born again. It is to those looking for life that the figure of the Christ, a child, beckons. Christmas is not for children. It is for those who refuse to give up and grow old, for those to whom life comes newly and with purpose each and every day, for those who can let yesterday go so that life can be full of new possibility always, for those who are agitated with newness whatever their age. Life is for the living, for those in whom Christmas is a feast without finish, a celebration of the constancy of change, a call to being once more the journey to human joy and holy meaning." 

For those of you who might be interested in including this particular passage in your own album I saved my 6x8 JPG/PSD/PNG of the file that you can print or adjust (font is 
Remington Noiseless).

Download Christmas Season passage here.

DAY 18 VIDEO OVERVIEW



SUPPLIES

December Daily® 2015 Main Kit
December Daily® One Little Bird Mini Kit
Ink Jet Vellum
Pink Paislee Yuletide Gold Foil Stickers
Maggie Holmes Craft Market Stickers
Epson R2000 Printer
Epson PictureMate PM400 Printer (4x6 photo)


SHARE YOUR DAY 18

I'd love to have you share a link to your Day 18 album pages below. Please link directly to your post vs. a general blog link.

December Daily® 2015 | Day Seventeen

Welcome to 
December Daily® 2015 | Day 17. 

A bit of a delayed posting today because I ended up with a terrible ear infection yesterday that knocked me out for the whole day. Seriously crazy how painful it was - I definitely have a renewed sensitivity for those little kids that have a bunch of ear infections.
Ouch. Feeling a bit better today now that the meds have kicked in (the pain portion is under control, now it's just plugged up) and will be taking it easy as we move into the week of Christmas. 

Day 17 originally included on of the white tags - I decided to take it out and just use a date stamp on top of a
label sticker for the date. 

Here's a look at my Day 17:  

Black letter stickers were included in the 
Mini Kit from Kelly Purkey. Red journal card is from the Jasmine Jones Mini Kit. The label sticker is from the Main Kit and the black and white washi tape along the bottom is part of a December Shop release of new products that will be available next week (new stamps, journal cards, more large chipboard alphas, and washi tape). 

Today is a great example of keeping it simple: words + a photo + a few embellishments. I handwrote my journaling first and underlined second. 

DAY 17 OVERVIEW


SUPPLIES

December Daily® 2015 Main Kit
December Daily® Jasmine Jones Mini Kit
December Daily® Kelly Purkey Mini Kit
AE Precision Pen
New AED Mini Washi Tape (available next week)
Rolling Date Stamp
Staz On Ink
Seven Paper Gold Chipboard Stars

SHARE YOUR DAY 17

I'd love to have you share a link to your Day 17 album pages below. Please link directly to your post vs. a general blog link.

December Daily® 2015 | Day Sixteen

Welcome to 
December Daily® 2015 | Day 16. 

Today I'm sharing my Christmas card and including a couple of photos of me working on them along with an idea for embellishing one of the white chipboard trees. 

Here's a look at Day 16 from my 
foundation pages post: 

And here's a look at how Day 16 with my story included: 

As you'll hear me explain in the video, I took out the 2x2 pocket page because I had just used the other one and want to save that one for a day with a story that will fit it better than the one I wanted to tell today. As always,
making it work for me just like you should make it work for you. 

I took this photo of myself by setting my camera on my kitchen counter and setting the self-timer. The top photo shows how I wrote the family's last name large. The "16" was already cut to fit the 2x2 pocket page so I decided to just put that out and use it on my main 4x6 photo. When adding my journaling in Photoshop I saved space for the "16" to fit in the corner. 

In the top right pocket I used three different sticker sheets (that I've been using throughout my album) right on top of one of the white wood veneer trees from the 
Main Kit (tree pattern paper is also from the Main Kit). I used scissors and an xacto knife to trim the edges. I love how that turned out. So fun. 

My card this year is from 
Minted. I've used them for the last few years and have always been really happy with the quality. 

To add it to my album I simply used my Crop A Dile to punch holes. I left the back blank. I might add something to it for Day 17 or I might just leave it as it is. 

The quote I added to the top in red is from Denis Waitley and says, "
Happiness cannot be traveled to, owned, earned, worn or consumed. Happiness is the spiritual experience of living every minute with love, grace, and gratitude." It's a quote I hand-wrote earlier this year as part of my #givesunday series which you can download here. 

Here's a look at the spread outside the album: 

DAY 16 OVERVIEW


SUPPLIES

December Daily® 2015 Main Kit
December Daily® Emily Ley Mini Kit (#16)
Crop A Dile
Minted Christmas Card
Super Sticky Red Line Tape
Pink Paislee Yuletide Gold Foil Stickers
Seven Paper Gold Stars
Maggie Holmes Craft Market Stickers


SHARE YOUR DAY 16

I'd love to have you share a link to your Day 16 album pages below. Please link directly to your post vs. a general blog link.