enJOY it

project life : week 37.

September 29, 2012

Week 37 and for sure I am still a fan of this project.

(click images above to enlarge and they'll be [somewhat] clearer.)

Still catching up on sharing spreads (but we'll get there). This is from the week we were in San Diego AND the weekend that we went to Beer Fest with some friends. Lots of photos means more than a few inserts this week. I am having so much fun adding "extras" to the middle of these spreads. For me, the inserts are what keep this project from getting boring.

Because really, this project is all about the photos for me.

And without a doubt I have printed more photos this year than the past five combined.

As mentioned, there are two inserts this week. The first is a Design G with photos from our trip to San Diego. I didn't do too much "extra" here – most pockets hold photos plus one
with patterned paper and a "hello" sticker from Amy Tangerine. Those
small letter stickers are Basic Gray for Studio Calico from the
Roller Rink kit.

I also added a vellum speech bubble from the same kit to decorate a photo.

Backside is all photos.

The second insert is a coin protector page that perfectly fit instagram photos from Beer Fest, patterned paper and more speech bubbles.

You can read more about my process with this insert here.

Of course, to keep things simple, I continue to use the same tricks over and over again. Like paper-clipping Instagram photos to a 4×6 patterned paper and adding journaling to diagonal stripes….

…and using "white space" on photos to add handwritten text.

Yep. Totally hooked. Love it.

supplies / Paper Source circle label, Martha Stewart & Avery labels, My Mind's Eye patterened paper (diagonal gray stripe) Amy Tangerine stickers & patterned paper, Studio Calico roller rink kit, Office Depot date stamp, Design A page protectors, Design G page protectors, coin protector pocket page, Clementine core kit,, Bebas quote font. I use a Fiskars corner rounder (it's not amazing, but it's lasted the longest of any corner rounder I've ever had). I am using a Zig Millennium 0.1 pen and Recollections glossy marker throughout this album.

Confused by Project Life? Start here. Have a question about how I am tackling this project each week (including questions about the quotes & photo printing)? Check here. See all my Project Life posts here.
around here.

September 28, 2012

Paul has been out of town this week for training. Six days is nothing compared to a seven month deployment, but it's been interesting having the house to myself again and crazy how all my old routines have returned. I am counting my blessings that I am comfortable and enjoy being alone. If I didn't, I am not quite sure how this relationship (me + the military) would work.

And you know what they say… when the cat's away, the mouse will turn every room into a craft room, do a bunch of projects and watch a lot of guilty-pleasure television. On one hand, it's frustrating that my one week of no work deadlines is the same week that Paul is gone but on the other, it was pretty spectacular to have an endless stretch of time to just make stuff (and blog and keep up with email and plan for what's next and ship orders…).

In fabric news : I sewed a dress this week (I'll share when it feels a bit more like fall around here) and got started on four different quilts. Three of them are going to be gifts and one of them (the solid colored triangle) is for me. I figured it would be easier to cut all the pieces first and then go through all the steps in stages, but we'll see how it goes. I am thrilled to be riding a creative wave this autumn and will hold on as long as possible until the surf board flies out from under me.

In paper news : I am a new Tips & Tricks contributor on the Studio Calico blog. This means once a quarter I will be using their kit (most likely in my Project Life album) to share a "tip" or "trick" (and sometimes both!). My first post went up last night and you can see it & download a PDF with a bit more info here. I'll be sharing two more weeks of my Project Life album, including that fun insert, here on my blog tomorrow and Sunday.

This weekend is an awesome one because Paul will be home and we have absolutely nothing planned (except introducing him to the new Mumford album and watching Tuesday's episode of Sons of Anarchy). I predict a lot of red wine and college football in our future. It shall be amazing.

Have a good one.
september, currently.

September 27, 2012

drinking lots of tea.

appreciating this article on making a marriage work.

watching old Parks & Recreation episodes.

laughing at The Mindy Project.

eating one giant batch of spaghetti all week long.

willing the last of the tomatoes to turn red.

waiting anxiously for The Casual Vacancy to arrive.

prepping to sell stamps at the Queen Bee Market at the end of October.

opening the windows at night.

sleeping in the middle of the bed while Paul is out of town.

remembering what it’s like to be alone.

brainstorming on something new.

wearing shorts while it’s still warm.

considering embarking on a “daily project” this holiday season.

making lists, always making lists.

feeling tired, but too restless to sleep well.

getting a lot of writing done and blog posts planned.

loving that there are four quilts in my head right now (more on this later).

having insane dreams about oceans & waves.

listening to the new Mumford & Sons album.

crying over this extended trailer for Les Miserables.

turning into one big goosebump in excitement for that film.

acknowledging the differences between this year and last.

flipping the calendar to October a few days early.

enjoying the quiet.

thankful for so many things.

joining Ali Edwards today & sharing a piece of my story right now.
my garden photo book.

September 26, 2012

Have I mentioned that I had a patio garden this summer?

Ah, yes, I have.

It's no secret I was totally obsessed. (Though I've currently lost interest and that patio needs a serious intervention this weekend.) It was a huge joy to plant, fuss over, trim, harvest, water, take photos of and eat our garden over the past six months.

I wanted to do something with some of my hundreds of photos (I wish I was joking – what I am going to do when I have actual children to take pictures of?!?) and thoughts on having a garden. I didn't keep any sort of "garden journal" this year (but plan on it next year!) so this is a great substitute.

I stuck with what I know works – a 7×7 Blurb photobook. You can see my first one here and my second one here. I imported all of my garden themed instagram photos right into Blurb Bookify and uploaded some additional ones from my computer.

I like Blurb because I don't have to do much work. They have templates. I have photos. I drop in the photos. They print the book. (Their customer service folks are great if you're having trouble with anything!)

Once again, I decided to add all of my text by hand once the book was printed. I wish I could say I do this because it's artistic, but really, it's because it's so much easier than worrying about creating "print ready" files in PSE with my photos and text.

My book is 78 pages and I used an acid free Zig Millennium pen to write directly on the pages. I gave the spreads about 30 seconds to dry before turning the page and wound up with no smearing.

I didn't add to every page, just where I felt like I had something to say/where I had white space on the page to say it.

Super simple and, perhaps most importantly, complete.

It looks adorable with its two book friends on the shelf too.

Want to make your own photo book? Blurb is offering a discount code to my readers! Use code "INSTAELISE" by 9/29 (that's this Saturday!) to save $19.95 USD, CAD, $21.95 AUD or 17.95 Euros off your book total
(GBP not allowed). Coupon is valid just once per customer and only on books made by you. This offer may not be combined with other promotional
codes, volume discounts or used retroactively on previous orders. Please note : this is NOT a sponsored post, but links throughout are affliate links which means if you buy a book through one, I will make a small commission on that sale. Thanks! And have fun bookmaking!!
adding gold toes.

September 25, 2012

Last Friday morning, I saw this post on A Cup of Jo and dropped everything to make my own version. It's strange, some projects are like that… I see something and then cannot think about anything else until I have completed my own version. (The taped desk and yarn vases are other examples.)

I had a pair of black Blowfish flats in my closet that I liked but could totally benefit from some extra "oomph." I also had some metallic gold Martha Stewart craft paint and the rest of the supplies on hand, so really, this was an easy project.

I followed the steps to the letter (the key is creating that seal with the mod podge!) and seriously, this could not have been easier. I wore the shoes out to dinner Friday night. So rad. And awesome because I get to cross "make something wearable" off my September goals list.

also pictured : j.crew toothpick jeans, an old polka dot gap blouse & a kate spade bangle.
material 15 of 27 / felt into an autumn wreath.

September 24, 2012
I have a feeling these materials are going to start crossing themselves off without too much help from me. Autumn and the holidays are made for projects and I am so excited for more craft time this season.

Felt was something that I was waiting for fall to work with because the plan was always to make a wreath. Originally, when I bought my supplies, I assumed it would be a flat wreath with felt "leaves" layered on top of each other. When I started playing with the felt and the foam base I had bought, I realized this wreath would look way better if the "leaves" were three dimensional and more structured.

If you want to make your own, follow the super simple tutorial below.

Supplies needed : felt in a few different saturated autumn colors, a foam wreath base, scissors & straight pins. (I picked up all of this at a Jo-Anns, a big box fabric store.)

Freehand cut your felt into leaf shapes.

note : this wreath is going to look better if you buy "good" felt. Look for rich, saturated colors, not just the basic primary colors. My fabric store sells a few different kinds of felt. They have cheap, pre-cut craft felt in the craft section and then big bolts of decent & small bolts awesome felt in the fabric section. Buying buy the yard (or half yard) will probably be less expensive and you'll have richer color choices. I bought a 2.5 yards total of four different colors and have some left over.

Use a straight pin to pin your first leaf to the foam base.

Fold up the first leaf and pin a second one so both are secure but sort of "push-up" the one next to it.

Keep going.

And going! This is definitely a project where the more you do, the better it looks. Continue pinning felt all around the foam ring.

Be sure to pin it to the outside and inside of the ring as well so the wreath looks full and the foam is no longer visible from any angle.

Hang it up! I used fishing line so the wreath appears to be floating on the mirror above our mantle. Seriously, such a fun & easy project. This would be awesome with different shades of green felt and a big red bow for Christmas too.

This is project 15 of 27. I am attempting to complete 27 craft projects using 27 different materials before I turn 28 on 02.22.13. You can follow my progress here on the blog or on pinterest. Birthday challenges are my favorite. You can see the 26 Projects I completed while 26 here and the 27 materials I have used so far here.

Other posts you might enjoy:
project life : week 36.

September 23, 2012

Week 36 and I still love this project.

(click photo above to enlarge for a [somewhat] clearer image.)

Still playing catch-up and will be for the next little while. This week, I've got our trip to DC to share – aka, the first week of September. The wedding we attended was where we took the majority of the photos, so this week is lacking a smidge in documention. But that's okay. It's in the books so onward we head.

In retrospect, my travel photos were super random, but sometimes that works in something like this. I just printed my "favorites" slipped them in pockets and called it done.

I trimmed that large circle from Elle's Studio down to create a journaling spot that didn't take up too much space. Still LOVE journaling text hanging off the edge of a photo.

When we travel, we always, always, always do the crosswords. I think it's because we have time to kill and are often getting our coffee outside the house.

I gave a nod to that with green Amy Tangerine thickers. LOVE the color & texture on those. I also had a small handful of business cards and a movie ticket. I tucked them all together in a pocket and held them in place with a spiral clip from Office Depot.

Yep, yep, I adore this project. I feel re-inspired to finish out the year strong and already so excited to begin living and documenting 2013.

supplies / Paper Source circle label, Martha Stewart & Avery labels, Elle's Studio journaling spot, Amy Tangerine thickers, Amy Tangerine patterned paper (green), Studio Calico patterned paper (gray), Office Depot date stamp, Design A page protectors (which are available in this variety pack), Clementine core kit,, Bebas quote font. I use a Fiskars corner rounder (it's not amazing, but it's lasted the longest of any corner rounder I've ever had). I am using a Zig Millennium 0.1 pen and Recollections glossy marker throughout this album.

Confused by Project Life? Start here. Have a question about how I am tackling this project each week (including questions about the quotes & photo printing)? Check here. See all my Project Life posts here.

And a friendly reminder : International customers (in some countries) can PRE-ORDER the Seafoam kit, binder, paper & monthly dividers right here. Pre-order is not currently an option for those
inside the US but everything will be available on Amazon later this
fall. I will absolutely keep you updated as I know more. Thanks so much
for your excitement over this kit!
around here.

September 21, 2012

It has been just great to have a week at home. I was running (actually typing) like a crazy person, wrapping up projects, getting stamps out the door and trying my best to stay organized. Thank you again for all your orders and thank you double for your patience as we wait for backordered stamps to come in. I will be shipping them all out as soon as I have them.

Today is a big deadline day for me. I am turning in things, clearing a HUGE item off my to do list and perhaps most importantly, freeing up lot of space in my brain. Next week represents a slight break in all the deadlines and I am going to celebrate it by reading books (JK Rowling's new book releases next week!) and completing craft projects. I am ready to embrace fall and at the top of my very long list of fun holiday tasks is making a giant autumn wreath, sewing a flannel dress & finishing up a summer garden photo book (and mayyyybe starting another quilt…). The blog is going to be hopping with project show & tell soon, for sure. I am so looking forward stepping away from the word processor and up to the sewing machine/ground/scissors/pile of felt/pens.

This week, for the first time in months, we lit candles and I placed a rather large order for some new flavors of David's Tea. In just a short while it's going to look, feel, smell and taste like fall around here.

How awesome. I'm totally inspired. Thank you, late September, for bringing with you a burst of creativity.
summer 2012 / i want to remember…

September 20, 2012

This weekend, we officially launch ourselves into fall.

I'm totally excited for it. Summer is absolutely my favorite season, but part of what's awesome about it is that around mid-September, I am always ready to embrace what comes next.

I am looking forward to the return of flannel shirts and big wrap scarves. To waking up to a chilly house and drinking coffee & tea because it's warm, not just because it tastes good. I am looking forward to pumpkins, a shift in farmer's market produce, decorating our house for the holidays and hosting Thanksgiving again for our families.

As I wait for all that, I want to take a look back at summer twenty twelve. This is the best summer I have ever had. And nope, I don't say that every year. (Or if I do, I am lying.) Much of what has made this summer great is the simple but monumental difference that Paul is home. It's fascinating to compare these past few months with the exact same months last year. I took a quick look through the archives and yep, last year, right around this time, was when the bottom dropped out and I realized just how long that deployment was going to be.

But this summer, and what almost feels like an excess of time together, has made up for it.

And so, from summer 2012…

I want to remember that we perfected how to barbecue chicken.

I want to remember the smell of BBQ flooding the upstairs through an open window.

I want to remember that coral nail polish was all I wanted to wear.

I want to remember going in the ocean for the first time in years and getting tossed by waves.

I want to remember how I cut each backyard tomato in half so we could both taste each one.

I want to remember those crazy basil harvests.

I want to remember how great the light was in this townhouse each evening.

I want to remember making pizzas every five days.

I want to remember the sense of accomplishment that came from having a garden.

I want to remember that we squeezed in four weddings.

I want to remember some of the best corn on the cob I've ever had.

I want to remember (the few!) lazy weekends.

I want to remember being thrilled every time Fun.'s Some Nights came on the radio…even if we had just heard it on another station.

I want to remember the lens popping out of my sunglasses almost daily.

I want to remember spending less money on things and more money on experiences.

I want to remember how we managed to avoid Olympics' spoilers.

I want to remember just how much we loved watching the Olympics together.

I want to remember how creative and productive I felt.

I want to remember the peace that came with deciding to not try for a baby this summer.

I want to remember breaking in new rainbows.

I want to remember racing through Battlestar Gallactica and so many books.

I want to remember sitting in the parking lot with the car windows down waiting for Paul to finish up work.

I want to remember celebrating cocktail hour.

I want to remember my total addiction to instagram.

I want to remember the sunsets we walked out to the beach to watch.

I want to remember this summer as truly one of the best.

*this post was inspired by a great one from Ali a few weeks ago.
i love september.

September 19, 2012

mondial lus for top hat colored paper clips, amy tangerine ready, set, go date stamp, linda & harriett letterpress postcard set, kate spade notepad (the inside papers are white and teal striped!), made by hank zippered pouch, lands' end canvas chambray shirt dress.

I've clearly got paper on the brain this month. I am blaming (celebrating?) back to school & all the projects I currently have on my plate this week. Good stuff.