July 2016 Blog Posts

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07.05.16
Hi planner friends!  Vanessa here with you today to show you how I am using the new Posh planner collection and the new Robin’s Egg Carpe Diem planner with gold binder rings!  
 
 
The entire Posh collection is so beautiful, rich in color, and will go with any of the Carpe Diem planners.  Robin’s Egg is one of my favorite colors, so naturally I went with the same color binder, but now the lining matches the exterior and has beautiful gold binder rings.  I stocked all of the pockets with the new page flags, bits & pieces, planner stickers, and journaling cards.
 
 
 
The Posh collection also has a new set of pocket folders that come in really beautiful prints and are double sided.  I always use one to store extra sticker sheets, journaling cards, and they’re also great for keeping receipts.
 
 
 
For the monthly spread, I used a few of the Insta Quote stickers, washi tape to trim along the edges, and the birds and floral stickers from the designer sticker set.
 
 
 
Some of my favorite stickers that are new in the Posh collection are these really cute weekly stickers that fit perfectly in the Vertical Format Weekly inserts.  The mini flags in the middle are part of the Planner Basics pack and they’re just small enough to fit in the boxes, without taking up too much space.
 
 
 
Using vertical planner inserts is my preferred way to plan and I love these Vertical Format inserts for the Carpe Diem planners.  The boxes have plenty of space to write in and the new Posh weekly stickers and Insta Quote stickers are sized to fit perfectly.
 
 
 
A few of my favorite accessories that are new to the Carpe Diem planners are the set of bookmarks, page flags, and plastic zip pouch.  I love to carry a small amount of page flags in my planner, so I took a few of the page flags in each print and stuck them to one of the bookmarks.  It’s less bulk in the planner and a easier to way to take them with you.
 
 
 
I hope you’re excited about the new Posh collection and planners as much as I am and enjoy using any of the new stickers and accessories in which ever Carpe Diem planner you choose.  The new collection will be available in late July or early August and I look forward to using this versatile collection for months to come.
 
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07.04.16

Happy 4th of July!!  

Who says that the Hero Simple Set  has to be used just for our deserving military or 4th of July?  My husband is a retired Marine, I have ample photos that this collection could be used for.  However, I decided to document my son's accomplishments instead.  Just recently he bridged from Cub Scouts to Boy Scouts.  The colors of the uniform and ceremony itself worked perfectly with this collection.  I picked the sentiments that worked and focused on the blues, reds and grays!

 
 
 
I wanted a larger badge to use on the layout so instead of using the smaller sticker in the collection,  I fussy cut the badge from a 4x6 block, backed it with foam and layered the honor sticker over the top.
 
 
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For my second layout, I documented my son again.  When he was younger, he dressed up in something every single day.  It could be a superhero costume or a mini version of his dads USMC uniform. Regardless, he had tons of fun.  We were grateful for his dedication to protect our home and our pets.  Let's take a look at how the Hero collection works for this layout.
 
 
Was there any other choice than the camouflage paper?  NO!!!  The problem was, I loved the back too.  I folded over the corner to see the stripes and decided to use the empty space for my title!  (see below)
 
 
The addition of stars was natural because the collection had stars.  I almost went with hearts but I decided to keep the layout 'tough!'  I didn't want anyone mad at me:o)
 
 
Again, I chose the perfect sentiment to go along with the theme of my layout.  There are so many different directions this collection can go.  
 
 
Thanks for joining us this week as we celebrated all thing patriotic!

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07.02.16

Hello, everyone! Independence Day, Boom, Boom, Boom is what most of us will be hearing. Fireworks, blasting away,  it's a reminder of our freedom! It is a time to be grateful for those who have sacrificed their freedom so that we can have ours. This is what 4th of July means to me. This month I have used the Hero Simple Set along with pocket pages in my Carpe Diem planner.

The Elements with all the Red White and blue were perfect for this patriotic page. The elements cards are a perfect fit for my pocket pages. Below you will find the front and back decorated with Fundemental stickers and Expression stickers. They added just the right amount of color and decor.

Let me introduce you to my heroes, my Father-in-Law Tom and my Brother George. They  both have taken time out of their lives to ensure we have a life of our own. I am so very proud to call them my heroes.

Next you will find pockets full of patriotic goodness. I grabbed some of the stickers and ran them through a laminator, trimmed them and hot glued them to a paperclip and secured the back with a piece of felt. I measured and trimmed the paper to fit in the pockets and also used some of the cut apart elements. 

The Heroes collection kit is a blast. I am so blessed to be able to live in the United States of America. I want to take this time to say thank to everyone who has fought for and defended our freedom. You all are true heroes! 

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07.01.16

Hello Simple Stories friends. Marcia here today.

With the 4th of July right around the corner, our focus on the blog this week is on the Hero Simple Set.  My first layout features my husband. He is a former Marine and now volunteers his time with fellow police officers from the Minneapolis St Paul Airport Police Department on their Honor Guard. They attend funerals of police officers around the state, but they also volunteer to stand guard over our fallen soldiers coming back from overseas to their final resting place. I used the Bits and Pieces Star Background digital cut file from JustNick Studios.
 

Instead of backing each of those tiny squares with different pattern papers, I opted to selectively fill portions of the negative space with pattern papers from the Simple Stories Hero Collection Simple Set to mimic our American flag ... with the colors reversed. There are a few embellishments thrown in from other Simple Stories collections as well. Then I added some stars scattered across my layout with modeling paste.

 

I love the overall look. I didn't want to ruin the star focus, so my journaling was done around the edge of the die cuts.

 

For my second layout I wanted to show how the Hero Simple Set is not just for your military photos. You can use the pattern papers for vacation photos of patriotic places too. I scrapped a photo from our trip to Pearl Harbor this past winter. To add interest, I added lots of banners with a variety of pattern papers from the Hero Simple Set.
 

I used the alpha stickers from the collection to create my title which I placed at the bottom of my layout so it wouldn't get lost among the busy banners. More star stickers and enamel dots are scattered across the page very similar to my first layout.
 

 
I used my computer to journal directly onto the pattern paper.
 
 

Thanks for stopping by today! Look for the Hero Simple Set at your local scrapbook store or favorite online retailer. I know you will love it.

 

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