Another big day at the blog! I wanted to take a blog break (I have so much to do to get ready for my trip home), but there is just too much going on to stay away.
It is the first Project Life Tuesday of 2011. With my committment to keeping up with PL this year, I couldn't miss the first one. So, I am posting my photos from the first week and some layout updates from 2011. I'll post my first layout of 2012 next week with this week's photos. That is my plan for 2012.
I also just realized it is TEN on TEN over at Shimelle.com. I missed December, so I can't miss January, too! My original plan was to list my top ten favorite online scrapbook classes, but I totally forgot about it until a few minutes ago, so instead, I thought I would feature my TOP TEN pages in the photo album of my six months in ENGLAND in 1990-91.
While I am visiting from China, I am staying with my mom. She is kind enough to store all of my beloved photos so my only opportunity to revisit these wonderful treasures is during these trips home. This album was the last album I made before I 'discovered' archivally safe scrapbooking. I was excited about my new hobby, but wasn't about to take apart the album that took me so long to finally complete (five years). I'm still not ready. Yes, the photos are probably disintegrating, but I don't want to disemble it until I know how I will preserve it in its next home.
The FIRST photo above is from the top of the World Trade Center in 1990.
2 This was our visit to New York City in 1990 on our way to London. It was the second visit of my life. This day we were meeting up with my friend who was visiting her friend who worked at the World Trade Center. Little did we know what would happen at this location 11 years later. I did not stay in touch with him, so I have always prayed that he was not working there (or escaped) by the time 9/11 happened.
PHOTO TEMPORARILY REMOVED - will return shortly
3 I love all of this memorabilia that I collected from my trip there. LOVE IT! I was able to work in Britain for six months as part of an agreement our governments had (and may still have). Any student can automatically get a six month work visa.
4 Did you notice what is missing from this album? Yep! Journaling. Not one ounce of it. I need to fix that, don't I? This is my friend from college who grew up in England. He happened to be visiting for the first time in ten years and was nice enough to meet us first-time international travelers at the airport to help us navigate this new big city. I was beyond nervous. My friend had HUGE suitcases. I had suitcasees too but not as many and not as big. Anyway, I was so nervous we wouldn't get them on the Tube in time for the doors to close.
Here is lots more memorabilia. I love including maps! LOVE IT! You can also see the business card and receipt for our hotel in the Merlyn Court area. It was known for being slightly dodgy and for having a lot of Aussies. They are a dodgy sort, you know! (Of course I am only teasing!)
5 More amazing memories come flooding back. It was my birthday and we were doing whatever we did in London (looking for a job or maybe exploring the city) and I just happened to run into two friends from college! This is the only time this has ever happened to me while traveling or living abroad. My husband, who went to a significantly smaller school, is always running into people from his university. He may not know them, but he meets them. I NEVER do. But that is another story. It was a great surprise running into these friends on my birthday so far from home! WHat are the chances? Do you see the note tucked under the photo? That is the note they left for me arranging a meet up later that day. I love that I still have it.
This page isn't beautiful but if that is not scrapbooking, what is??
6 My rental agreement, my rent book, my checkbook (from a foreign country, no less - such excitement for a 21 year old who had only ever been to Mexico, which to a So Californian feels like an extension of California), my bank card, etc, etc. I only had the cash that I earned and a few hundred dollars I brought with me. It was quite a lesson about living within my means!
7 My best friend from college came to visit me (She is the only friend or family member that has come to see me every place in the world I have lived. And she just called me today to tell me she has purchased her ticket to visit me in China!! HURRAY! Her record will be 4 for 4! I feel a mini book coming on...) Another map!
8 Don't you love my text on this page? I used to do this all the time - collect letters and phrases from magazines, save them in envelopes and add them to my photo albums.
9 Our work Christmas party. Don't you love my Eddie Bauer sweater? I worked there part-time in college. This was my first introduction to the English Christmas cracker. I love then and think they are so fun. Now we can buy them in the States and my kids got to pop some on New Year's Eve (only because I forgot to bring them to our Xmas celebration).
10 And here I am with the other employees in the home department at Debenham's in Cambridge. I went back in 2008 but didn't find any recognizeable faces. It was fun to have my photo take in the home dept with a pan and in front of The Grafton Center, the mall where this store is located. So many memories there...
I love adding memorabilia to my beloved photos. It tells a richer story even without journaling. That is why I am loving Project Life! Not sure I would have continued the project for the third year if I didn't start adding all the goodies. It is so easy to do. Much like the magnetic albums I used before my discovery of the scrapbooking we know today.
PROJECT LIFE
I only managed to complete three total pages. I was so poud of myself and thought I was so creative, but when I woke up the next morning to see what I had gotten done, it all looked so plain! (I'm saving my Amber kit to use on my 2012 album so I only brought the grid journaling cards to the States with me. I'll be reunited with the rest of my supplies on Friday.) But nevermind, plain means done and lots of stories told, right!?
I am using the date cards as a filler because I have premade date cards waiting for me at home.
Here's a glimpse into what I have started for my 2012 album. I've stuck it into a broken three ring binder temporarily until I am home so that I can keep it organized while I work on it. As you can see, I am slipping memorabilia into the pocket that corresponds with the day. At this rate, I won't have any room for journaling cards! I may take some of these things out, but right now, they stay. See the brown tag? I put the plastic string around the middle ring. I kept that because it goes to a fun water bottle and it is significant since I haven ot been drinking enough water lately and the fun bottle is meant to encourage me to improve on that.
The Sound Bites card was also put on the middle ring. My son bought that toy with his own money and he has been annoying us all wiht it ever since. It makes fake sound effects and each sound effect is listed on the back of the card. ON the front of the card, I plan to glue a photo of my son where he is holding the toy.
I cut up the Trader Joe's CC Joe-Joe's box because my son kept sing a little ditty about the cookies and for about a day we assumed he had made up the words until we noticed them on the side of the box! So typical of him. Such a jokester! And his favorite gum is Big League Chew.
See? I saved a Christmas cracker crown from our New Year's Even crackers this year. See a connection with my photo from the album I shared above? I feel a scrapbook page...
Of course I saved that adorable picture my six-year-old drew. I need to ask him who and where it is. I am including the page I ripped from Family Fun magazine because I might want to make the project next Xmas. I am more apt to see it and remember it for next year, if I stick it in my PL binder! And it shows the craft trends of the times.
To see everything PROJECT LIFE On my blog, click here.
I'm linking up at The Mom Creative for Project Life Tuesday.
Oh, and here are my photos for the week:
No dates today. I need to get to bed!
Thanks for stopping by and helping keep me accountable with my PL album. I still ahve to post the last three photos from 2011 and my seventh photo from the first week of 2012 and my title page for my 2012 album. That will all come next week! Along with more PL inspiration around the web.
I have a great giveaway today (Tues). I was going to include it in this post but this one ended up so long, I decided to put it in a separate post. For details on my TAKE TWELVE Inspiration Kit giveaway, go here.
Creative Companion at my side and I studied all the different self-made backgrounds she had so neatly indexed. They looked so finished, impressive and even easy but for some reason, I couldn't pull them off.
designs are now available at 
. In case you are like me and sometimes live with your head in the sand, I thought I would share the news here.
and seriously thinking about
for variety. Hmmm...
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