Countdown to Christmas

Well, folks, I said the day would never come.
You know what they say about saying never ;)

I made a mini album.
That's 31 pages long.
{So isn't that less of a "mini" album and more of a "regular" album?  But I dgress.}
It's an album, and I made it.
And {ducking} I think I love it.
WEIRD.

Prepare yourself for one billion pictures of this bad boy...

Today the Papertrey Ink design team is coming together to bring you loads of projects made with October's all new sets... Countdown to Christmas and the companion set, Countdown Details.

These sets are pretty much perfect for those of you who are die hard December Daily album makers, and those of you who, like me, are all new to this whole December Daily idea.

I'm not gonna lie... there are many reasons why I'm solely a card maker and not a scrapbooker.  One of them is the fact that when it comes to design decisions, I'm pretty much the turtle of all decision makers. 

All.
Those.
Decisions.
Good grief.  The stress ;)

So this album is pretty much a response to that.  Me thinking, "What can I do to simplify this?  How can I make it enjoyable versus overwhelming?  What do I really want to record?  How can I make it accomplishable for ME?"

I put all of my answers into this album :)

First off, I'm keeping it small. 
One picture per day (all taken on my phone via either Instagram or edited using my iCamera app to square) is all I need. 

Next, I'm keeping it simple.
I used PTI's Library Card tag to die cut all the pages and topped each and every one off with a Fabulous Frames die cut (all in white). 

The design is the same on each page - I stamped the daily number from Countdown Details in black on each one.  I used a simple piece of washi tape (Target) to attach each frame.  That will make it simple to flip the frame up, add the photo, and adhere both down to the page. 

That also leaves me a place to jot a sentence or two about the pic... no need for me to write a story for each picture if it's not needed. If I decide I do need more room than that for whatever day, I'll just do my journaling on the back of the page.

Finally, I varied the pages instead of varrying the details.
In keeping it simple, I released myself of agonizing over details for each page... that is key for me.  You might be great at banging out lots and lots of pages with different details for each page, but man... just the thought of that about breaks me out in hives ;)

For a simple solution, I pulled out an old collection of patterned paper (Everybody Loves Christmas by Echo Park) and used most of the patterns as the base pages. I then filled out the rest of the pages with various papers from the Aqua Mist, Limeade Ice, and New Leaf patterned paper packs as well as a few other random papers.

I added a few vellum cardstock pages, a few from an old Hambly overlay (both above), 2 glitter pages (front and back), and even a few stamped clear cardstock pages (front cover and below). 

The variety of pages gives it a fun, interesting look, but kept it simple for me to put together.  The consistency of the white frame with black stamped number ties everything together so that it looks like it all "goes."

I added a few extra pages to make a front cover (with title from Countdown Details and using the previously released Outlines Alphabet and Library Ledger Year Additions for the numbers) with a protective overlay.

I also added a bit of the new Striped Sweater: Background Basics stamp (gotta use Stazon Opaque ink if you want white ink on clear cardstock - for a few tips, watch my video here) to the overlay for a fun touch. 

Well, there ya go.

A December Daily from me.

That's finished and ready to go a month and half before Christmas.

And I'm actually going to use it.

It's a holiday miracle.



To balance the miracle with reality, I went back to my card making roots ;) 

I put the Countdown sets to work again and came up with a quickie.
A few of the stamp images layered one on top of another makes for a simple collage.

The new Diagonal Stripes impression plate used along the side finishes things off.

For more Countdown to Christmas projects, check out the rest of the team...

Nichole Heady

Betsy Veldman

Maile Belles

Dawn McVey

Heather Nichols

Melissa Phillilps

Danielle Flanders

Cristina Kowalczyk
Erin Lincoln

All righty, folks... give it to me on today's holiday miracle ;)
Any one else out there in need of a simple December Daily plan?
Does this one fit the bill?


{December Daily} album

Supplies not available now but available 10/15: 

Stamps - Countdown to Christmas, Countdown Details, Background Basics: Striped Sweater
Supplies available now:
Stamps - Outlines Alphabet, Background Basics: Houndstooth, Library Ledger Year Additions
CS - White, Vellum
PP - Limeade Ice, New Leaf, Aqua Mist; Everybody Loves Christmas Collection (Echo Park), glitter paper (Best Creations),
Ink - True Black, Simply Chartreuse
Dies - Library Card Tag, Fabulous Frames
Other - ring (Making Memories), washi tape (Target)

{fa la la} card

Supplies not available now but available 10/15: 

Stamps - Countdown to Christmas, Countdown Details
Impression Plate - Diagonal Stripes
Supplies available now:
CS - White, Raspberry Fizz
Ink - True Black, Pure Poppy, Simply Chartreuse; Going Gray (SU)
Other - circle punch