December Daily: Dec 1st, 2nd, 3rd

For the past several years I have attempted a December Daily album.  A couple of them have gotten no further than the album construction or cover design.  Except for last year's attempt which progressed the furthest of any other -- at nearly halfway done.  (*For the record, I still plan to eventually go back to that 2012 album and complete it!  If you're curious, I shared some of the foundation pages in this post.). 

So, why in the world am I attempting this project again, when I've been so unsuccessful in the past?!  Well, looking back at just the handful of pages I created for 2012 reminded me what a cherished keepsake this is.  There is so much happening during the month of December that I want a way to capture and remember the little bits and pieces, that often get lost over the years.

Today I'm sharing the first of my completed pages - the cover through December 3rd.  I'm using a Studio Calico Handbook album, which to this point I've left raw.  I'm still undecided if I will paint the chipboard cover and thus have waited to add any additional design to it.  While I'll be using lots of items in my crafty stash, the majority of the elements are from Jillibean Soup's Christmas Cheer Chowder collection.

For the cover page I tried to incorporate many of the elements that I would repeat throughout the album - sequins, diecuts, woodgrain, stamping.



Supplies used: album - Studio Calico, patterned papers, diecuts, stickers - Jillibean Soup; woodgrain paper - Pebbles; snowflake punches - Martha Stewart; sequins - Lawn Fawn; gold epoxy dots - SEI; stamps - Ali Edwards for Technique Tuesday; ink - Stampin' Up

As you can see the title page features lots of layered snowflakes and sprinkles of glitter and shine.  It all translates as very Christmas-y, don't you think?

 

Since I had the backside of the title page to work with for the first of December, I used the 6X8" canvas in it's entirety to focus on my title for the spread.  On this day, my boys and I tagged along with my sister and her family to cut down their Christmas tree.  I had lots of pictures to included, but didn't want to divide up the spread with a full page, in between.  So, I cut one of the 3X4 pocket pages in half vertically to allow for additional photos but cohesiveness throughout the spread.

 

Here is a look at the page again, when the 3X8" photo section is flipped to the left.

 

For December 2nd, I was again working with a 6X8 page protector, so I chose to create a mini scrapbook layout.

I love the little diecuts that coordinate with the Christmas Cheer Chowder collection.  I knew I just had to use this sweet little elf on a page accompanying pictures of our Elf on the Shelf.

 

Originally I had stamped and punched a series of numbers for each of the 25 days in December.  Unfortunately, I couldn't get them to work with my overall design.  So, I reevaluated and decided to cut and use the Jillibean paper that includes squares of all the numbers I will need plus more.  I pretty much love how they look throughout the album so far!

 

 

I'm off to put the finishing touches on Dec 4th, and print out my pictures for today.  Feels good to be almost caught up with this project.  I'm having so much fun doing it and really enjoying the season more by focusing on these little memories and blessings.  See you back here soon with more!