Before we get into this big day of new things, I just wanted to say we are gearing up for National Scrapbook Day with a sale where you can save 40% on downloads $10+ (excluding calendars) with code NSDFUN and save on stamps, no code needed. The fun ends midnight Saturday.

Also, the shipping department is out in NYC right now, so shipping will resume Wednesday, May 10.

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I’ve been keeping memories for a very long time. I was going to say I started in 1998, but it actually started as a child with journals and scrapbooks made with envelopes acting as cardstock and metallic letter stickers. But let’s just say for ‘official’ sake, it was 1998 and Creative Memories. That soon evolved into standard 12×12 scrapbooking. I’ve pretty much been in the business since then with winning the first Creating Keepsakes magazine Hall of Fame contest in 1999.

I used to get really creative. Often times making a ‘scene’ on the page. I remember once punching a bajillion tiny flowers to recreate the front  gardens of Disneyland—that’s made from all flowers with Mickey’s face in the middle. Oy. That took forever!

Jumping forward into my Silhouette phase, there was a time I could not scrap without it. With this phase I transferred into the 8 1/2 x 11 size. 

A few years ago I transitioned into the travelers notebook size and haven’t looked back. It is seriously such a great size for me.

The older I’ve gotten, oddly, the even less time I have for documenting. You think you’re busy when the kids are at home, but I feel like things are crazier for me now. Or they have been, at least. Hoping for some quieter times. haha

Which brings us to how I’ve been feeling lately. Once upon a time I was really good at documenting in my Day One app, which I still think is a fabulous idea. But since that hasn’t been working for me the past three or so years, all I keep thinking about is what can I do that will help me. What is going to excite me and motivate me. Give me a little creative outlet without too much thought. 

I see people do their planners and that completely stresses me out and gives me anxiety thinking about doing that. And I literally mean that. It’s kind of weird. I think it’s awesome for those that enjoy it, truly. I’ve never been a list maker though—unless it’s for something like groceries or planning a trip. It’s just not within my soul to check things off. And to keep track of every part of your life? Or more important, the time it takes to keep track of everything?  It’s just not in my wheelhouse. 

I just want to journal in such a simple and small format so that I can quickly get it done and put those memories down so I won’t forget. I love seeing what people like Heidi Swapp are doing with memory planners, but I even get overwhelmed with the thought of that for some dumb reason and need to take it even a step further and make it more basic.

My solution?

A new simple system called Daily/Wander. I want to be able to journal daily and when I take a wander somewhere, I’ve got a book for that too—or perhaps I just include it in my daily journal. The ‘Wanders’ can be a few hours of a get away, a weekend trip, or a vacation…or whatever you want it to be.

I want a handful of stamps and embellishments that just sit with me at all times and I don’t need to think about pulling anything out. Keep the choices to a minimum and roll with it…but I won’t limit myself either. ;)

And what better time to bring this all together than when we celebrate (inter) National Scrapbook Day!

So what do we have to help us make this happen?

The A6 Notebook.

While I’m the hugest fan of the travelers notebook size, I’m fancying something even smaller to simply document these daily moments. The A6 Notebooks are made with a plain white cover and 16 pages (front+back, makes 32) to give you the space you need to document a month. You can decorate the white cover as you wish or use your favorite patterned paper. I actually made them 4.25 x 5.8” instead of 4.1” so that you’d have just a fraction more space. It may not seem like much, but it makes a difference to me. :) It also happens to work across the board with the TN 4.25″ wide size.

 

 

I personally like to pull the staples from books to work in my albums so you can stamp or write more easily. I’ll use the Midori rubberbands to keep them together. I haven’t done it on my April book though. Thought I’d try it as-is. I also adhered some Bella Blvd floral paper I had in my stash onto my cover.

The paper weight also works really well with stamp ink like Distress Oxide. It may have a slight  ‘shadowy’ appearance on the flip side, but it doesn’t bleed through. That’s a huge thing for me!

The Calendar.

There are two perpetual calendar size options: A6 and Travelers Notebook. Each one has 43 calendars in it. Yup. You heard me right. In the spirit of keeping things simple, there are a set of calendars with 31, 30 and 28 days included as well as options for a right or left margin of open space, depending on which you’d prefer to use. 

 

 

If you’re doing the math, you’re saying ‘hey, that’s only 42’,  Well, I included a blank one and you can turn it one way or the other to get your left or right column of open space. And with this you can add your own numbers. 

But for me, I want to keep it as simple as possible, which is why I included numbered calendar options in one kit  for every combination possibility. I can just pick the one that matches the month I’m in, add my days along the top and make a decorative month ensemble in whatever colors I fancy and boom, I’m done. I don’t want to take the time to number a whole calendar, but I do need a little flair, after all.

 

 

For now I’ve been enjoying have the calendar loose–folded and tucked into the album. I find it easier to write on it without the center fold within the album. After I’m done writing on the calendar for the month, I’ll adhere it in the back.

The Stamps.

Of course, you know I’d make stamps to support all this, right? ;) There is one specifically for the Daily documenting one one specifically for the Wander documenting. I love the idea of having a clean set of  consistent fonts to work throughout my album as a base.

 

 

Additionally, there are supporting stamps to add little snippets to the documenting. They include two of my favorites sets called Life-Ing Vol 1 and Vol 2. They have 39/38 words for life that end in ing. This is what happens when you start thinking of some words that you want to encompass life and they end in ing. Before you know it, you’ve come up with almost 80 words! These are great journaling prompts or a simple note on the page.

 

 

There’s also By The Day and By The Month. The abbreviated days of the week on By The Day are great to use on your calendar.  

 

 

Last but not least is It’s Like This. You can combine the big words with the phrases for some graphically said fun. I like the idea of some cohesiveness happening in my albums.

 

 

The Stencil.

Having a Journaling Stencil template to draw lines to write on is a must for me. There are two widths to use too. And because I know it’s not all about me (haha), there are some checkboxes/circles that you can use if you like making check lists or trackers.

 

 

But the super cool thing about this template is it’s designed to work with the Daily stamp set. The squares+ circles as well as numbers 1-5 work with the two line widths and you can use the 1-10 number line with the ten circles to use as a tracker. Ohhhh ya. 

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It’s just the most simplest and basic of journaling using an A6 size. That’s not to say I won’t continue with TNs…my babies. Those will be for the fuller documented stories. I just want to remember all the little goings-ons of a day like I used to do with the Day One app. Writing my snippets so I’ll remember. 

I’ve moved back into working at an actual desk in my studio space. For the past ten years I’ve been sitting in my comfy chair in the front room where I can be a part of everything and look out the window. But now I need to be in a designated space…also in part because my body can’t handle the chair anymore. ;)