Like GinaMarie and Caroline, the realization that the holiday season isn’t far away (I can’t believe Thanksgiving is next week!) has motivated me to think early about my Christmas cards.  So often, the season becomes stressful and unenjoyable, so anything I can do ahead of time is welcome. In past years, I have been really on the ball, starting early and making all my own cards.  Now that I’m married I have twice as many cards to send out, so I tried to find a way to take a shortcut to sending homemade cards.

My first idea, which I got one from one of the paper crafting magazines, was to make one homemade card and then send out color copies.  That was the big plan for last weekend, and I got started on crafting the card using the My Mind’s Eye paper (from the Out & About collection) that just came to the MM office.  I scanned the card in prep for color copying.  And then I realized that even though the scanned version was pretty good (see right), it just wasn’t the same as sending a real homemade card. I ended up scratching the crafty card idea in favor of designing my own photo card. But the homemade card is just too cute to throw away. I’m thinking of making a little wall hanging out of it (it’s about 4x6’’). But I welcome other creative ideas if you’ve got one. Post them here!  And check out these ideas for homemade holiday gifts.

Kristin

It’s day number three of our  601 extravaganza! Don’t miss this exciting chance to win a free copy of 601 Great Scrapbook Ideas! Simply click here to be linked to our forum for full details on how to enter.

For chapter three of 601 (More Than a Princess), I decided to create a Christmas layout with a photo of three of my favorite “princesses.” But a Christmas layout you ask? It’s only November! I admit princesses usually conjure up images of flirty and fun pages in pretty palettes of bubble gum pink and Cinderella blue. I adore those pages, too. But I’ve wanted to scrap this photo for quite some time, and I must shamelessly confess I love all things related to this season of the year. Everything from decorated sugar cookies to sparkling twinkle lights to the endless litany of Santa and Rudolph jingles played over and over (and over) again. (OK, maybe that last one can be a bit in excess, but all in all the holiday season rocks and I like to start celebrating early!)



But most importantly I wanted to create this memento for my dear friend Maria. As a fulltime nurse, wife, and mom to three adorable girls (and a rather large, but lovable, Doberman), I felt she deserved a little keepsake to house the photo she sent out in last year’s card. So my plan is to frame this 8.5" x 11" (22cm x 28cm) layout and give it to her when I go home to Wisconsin in December. And when she sends this year’s holiday photo, I’ll scrap that for next year and so on. And a new annual tradition will be born! In years to come, her family will be able to see the progression of the girls’ growth as well as note the change in clothing and hairstyles. As a child of the 80s, there’s nothing more fun than to look back at pictures of me with crimped hair, jelly sandals and stirrup pants. I’m sure Maria’s girls will enjoy the things that will distinguish their generation as well.

This layout came together pretty easily with some festive patterned papers I had in my collection. I love the fusion of color and the twinkling sparkle from the glitter on the hand-cut circles, a few of which I mounted on foam adhesive for added dimension. I tucked the hidden journaling behind the famous opening line, which serves as my title, and is fastened with a brad to pivot for easy access to the story.

The hidden journaling reads:
Twas the night before Christmas….and three little princesses were dressed in their finest to pose for Maria and Darrell’s annual holiday portrait. This was the first Christmas with all three girls--Brianna (age 3), Ava (age 2) and Isabella (a mere 6 months) completed their little family. Just like three pretty little maids all lined up in a row, these princesses put the Magic in Christmas. ~Christmas 2006

Check out 601 Great Scrapbook Ideas for more inspiration on scrapping photos of the little princess(es) in your life. And don’t forget to leave a post on our forum with one of your layouts for a chance to win a free copy of 601.

Amy

I love the bright, vibrant colors in this layout by Mou Saha and that she used a lot of 4 x 6 photos (the size that I usually print). And, seriously, how cool is the coloring that she did around the journaling?




This layout by Heather Dewaelsche is full of all the sights of the fair. Her use of the large ferris wheel photo really pulls me in and makes me want to check out all the smaller images.

Don't forget to post your own Hard to Forget layouts at the forum for your chance to win a copy of 601!

Until next time,
Christine

And the winner is… Maureen (username: Mozer). Check out all of Monday's entries...and check out the forum to enter today’s giveaway!

Kristin