let's talk project life

Hello friends! I'm taking a little break from packing to talk about the wonderful-ness that is Project Life.

Ok, so Project Life is totally taking the scrapbooking world by storm! Last year was my first year of actually doing it. And let me tell you I love it!  It is a great way to document all those little moments without having to create a full 12X12 layout each or forgetting them. Now don't get me wrong I still had a heard time staying 'caught up' but I'm ok with that. At this point I have done everyday of 2012 through the middle of September. For the rest I need to finish I have printed the pictures, added them to the apporpriate slot and added post-its on each day with notes of what I wanted to document for that day.

Here are a few of my favorite weeks/days:



Last year I did each week as a two page spread working sun-sat. This year I will be changing it up because, let's face it, my life's not that exciting and I can only add so many cute pictures on Poncho before it turns into his Project Life book :)

For 2013 I plan to do a each week on one page, Monday - Sunday, that way the weekends are kept together. Then if I have extra pictures or special days I'll document those in add on pages. Here's a sneak of my card incerts for my 2013 cover page.

Staying on track 
Some people work on their week as it's happening, some have a designated day they work on it and some (like me) work on it when time allows. One thing I do that really helps me remember what I want to document is keep a planner on my night stand. Every night when I get in bed I jot down notes and anything that happened that day I want to document. As I print the pictures I put them right in the pockets (in my album).That way I always know where my photos are and I'm not sitting there scratching my head wondering what day that picture was taken. Especially since sometimes it has been 2 months and I'm finally sitting down to write about it.
One thing I'm going to do is stick a few 3X4 cards in my purse so if I have some down time while I'm out and about I can write things down directly on them. Then when I get home they can go straight into my album.

Organization 
Keeping your supplies organized is a huge part on staying on top of a project like this! I created this storage box for my desk that holds all my supplies. It's SO handy having everything in one space!

Cards
When I first decided to do this project in 2011 I bought the kit Becky Higgins had on Amazon. It was great, everything came together (cards, album, page protectors, roller date stamp and arrow stickers). It was a great deal but after working with it for a while I grew tired of looking at the same cards over and over. So I started cutting down my own paper and keeping an eye out for other things to use.
One of my favorite things to use when I need to fill an empty spot are things I have pinned. I just print them out to fit the space I need. There are all these amazing quotes and funny things on Pinterest why not utilize them (On the back of each one I write the website it was from in case I ever need to look it up for some reason).

This year I'll be in full-on Project Life mode. Between the two kits on Amazon, the amazing ones being released at CHA, the Studio Calico monthly kit and all the other random PL geared products out there will be SO many options. I can't wait!
I'm looking forward to getting settled in our new home so I can jump right in! And I promise this year I'll be better about blogging my progress :)

Happy Project Life-ing!!!