Hands in the air if you’ve ever started an everyday moment type of
scrapbook album like Photo-a-Day or Project Life (started by Becky
Higgins) and then fizzled out mid year. I’ll admit that my hand is up
too! It’s not like I haven’t completed annual albums for several years
but somewhere along the way a few years back I just lost my mojo. So I’d
like to take this opportunity to present some ideas to think about so
that you can be better prepared to tackle this project for 2020 and be
successful.
How are you going to print it?
Individual
pages, hybrid/physical pages or photobooks? Because each option will
require some planning up front. Individual pages can be printed at home
depending on the size and the printer(s) you have available or sent off
to print at a company like Persnickety Prints. Hybrid pocket pages will
require the purchase of specific pocket pages to get ready for assembly.
Photobook printing companies each have their own guidelines for bleed
so that items don’t get cut off the sides of the pages when printed, so
be sure to look up that information before you finish layouts and then
have to go back and fix them.
Size?
There
are tons of options out in the market now in the way of sizing. You can
create digital pages at 12x12 and then print them at 8x8 or 10x10. The
9x12 size is very popular these days, smaller and a little less daunting
than 12x12 but still with enough “real estate” to get a lot of photos
on the pages. Of course, 6x8 is also a very popular size. If you don’t
feel like you always have photos each day this could be a cozy size for
telling in-depth stories or personal journaling instead. Of course, then
you get to use cute pocket cards too! ;)
Same layout or switch it up?
Some
people like to use the same digital template each week or month because
it’s easy, no decisions to make or getting overwhelmed, just pop photos
in and get started. Others find an album set or two they like and mix
and match so that the look is cohesive. Several digital designers have
monthly template set series that coordinate and could work very well for
a monthly album. Other scrappers don’t want to be tied down to any
certain template set and mix and match to their heart’s content with
different styles. There is no right answer, only
YOUR
answer. I know my eclectic style well enough to know that I get bored
pretty easily and when I look back at older albums where there were
all kinds of different template sets mixed together I love how they look!
Fonts?
Having the same font is one way you can
keep a mix and match album looking more cohesive.You could also stick
with one main font for journaling and pick a fun font for titles or
accents. All you have to do is go to Pinterest and search for “font
pairings”, you’ll get tons of ideas. Here’s a tip: once you decide on
the font size(s) and vertical spacing you want to use, jot it down so
you won’t have to open up past pages to check.
They say that serif fonts used for blocks of text are actually more readable than sans serif because the font is more
legible.
I’m also a big proponent of getting your own handwriting into your
albums. If you don’t have your own custom font, it is certainly a nice
addition to your arsenal.
What kind of titles?
Generally,
these types of projects include titles in the form of weekly or monthly
identifiers. There are plenty of Week Number card sets out in the
digital marketplace and that would certainly add a level of consistency
to your project. If uniformity doesn’t speak to you or if you just like
to wing it each time, why not consider alpha sets mixed with elements.
Pink Reptile Designs has SO MANY different alpha sets, including ones
with multiple color variations. You might end up using a multitude of
different kits to complete your weekly or monthly spreads and use the
matching alphas to create your own title cards. If the kit doesn’t come
with an alpha, have a selection of neutral alphas picked out that can be
used with multiple color palettes.
Here’s an example of creating my own week cards using the December BYOC kit and alpha sets.
Stick to a color palette?
Back in the day, many
paper scrappers picked one physical PL kit and carried it through for
the entire year.I’ll admit to doing it… once. Man, I got sick of those
cards and colors! If you’re like me, maybe you could pick out some key
colors that you love and then choose digital kits each week/month based
on your favorite selections.
If the thought of varying colors
sets off your twitchy OCD, you could use a plain white or kraft
background to rest the eye a bit.
What’s your style?
If
your style runs to clean and graphic, your project pages might include
journal cards to tell the details of the week/month, filler cards to add
a little visual interest, photos and stickers/labels for a very
paper-looking alternative.
If your style is clustery, find a way
to build clusters on perhaps a filler card or two on each page. Elements
don’t have to fit in the pockets. Consider this permission to put stuff
on top of the digital pocket dividers. That’s why we’re DIGITAL
scrappers, am I right?
If your style is artsy, don’t think you
can’t join in these projects. What do you need pockets for anyway? You
can achieve the same level of documentation with legible journaling,
blended photos to tell the story and enough artsy embellishments to make
your heart happy.
Bottom line, your project doesn’t have to look
like anyone else’s. It just needs to make you happy. And I can
guarantee that looking back on it a few years later you’ll be
so glad you took the time to make it.
How many pages?
Don’t
think you have enough photos and stories to do a two page spread each
week like you see others doing? Not a soul is ever going to look through
your book and compare the pages to the perceived perfection you imagine
in digital galleries. Maybe you have too many photos because of a
holiday, birthday or graduation. Create an insert page, even one in a
smaller size. You’ll appreciate the increased level of detail captured
for those events when you reflect back.
Themed kits, yay or nay?
I
say YES. There are usually always enough generic items in a kit to
create a page without having to use overly themed items. If the colors
and vibe of the kit make you smile, use it.
Speaking of themes,
what thematic items come to mind with you think of PL? Before we get
started, we should look through our stash for those items and identify
them/tag them or the kits they come from. Then you can keep the thematic
elements in mind when looking at store/designer newsletters each week.
For
example, the thematic elements I use over and over again are cameras,
anything that says “today” “now” “currently” “captured” etc, arrows to
point to stories, labels and really any relevant word art. I went
through just fifteen of Pink Reptile Designs’ kits and came up with all
of these items that could work perfectly in my album.
I hope this gave you a few things to consider before jumping into
your 2020 projects. Taking a few minutes to plan up front might just be
the difference in keeping that mojo flowing all year.
_________________
Stacia
