Hello Simple Stories friends! It’s Jen today sharing my first project as a member of the 2020 Simple Stories Design Team. To say I’m excited is definitely an understatement, and I’m honestly still pinching myself to be certain it’s real.

Scrapbooking has always been a creative outlet for me and something I do to record my family’s stories so they will be remembered for years to come. However, I am really feeling a need to tell my stories . . . the ones that are hidden in my heart so that my children will really know who I was and what I went through in my youth and young adulthood. With that in mind, this year I will be on a journey to get my story written and I hope you all will accompany me and perhaps be inspired to do the same for yourself. It won’t always be pretty or fun or happy, but it needs to happen and what better way to get started than with the 2020 I Am collection?

For this specific project I am using a SN@P! Robin’s Egg Striped 6x8 Designer Album since it is one of my favorite colors. Before we look at my first spread, here is the outside cover using the I Am 6 x 6 Affirmations stencil, Flower 304904 Simple Stories cut file from the Silhouette Design Store, and title fussy cut from a 4 x 6 SNAP! Card.

Moving to the inside, I created a divider using the same Flower cut file with several I Am patterned papers. Adding dimension to my projects is an absolute must for me; so you will see cut files, paper tearing, stitching, and mixed media elements on most of my projects throughout the year.

The first spread uses a 2x2/4x4 Insta-Pocket Page with a 4x4 Photo Flip. I began by using the I Am Clear Stamp and 4x6 Sticker Book to embellish the top photo. Along the bottom I layered strips of washi tape on the photo and then stitched through them on my machine.

To give each element more texture and dimension, I machine stitched around the borders. I love, love, love stitching on projects to add that little bit of texture.

Inside the Photo Flip is a 4x6 SN@P! Card cut down to size where I added my journaling and a sticker. My second photo uses a bit of torn patterned paper and a sentiment from the I Am Journal Bits & Pieces. To the right of the photo is the other end of the SN@P! I used for journaling with the other half of the previous sticker.

On the opposite side of the spread I used two childhood photos of myself. I did not add any journaling to this side but will as I continue through the album. I decided to keep this side simple with few embellishments and a muted color scheme.

The I Am collection is a perfect beginning for this project and I can’t wait to see where it goes. I hope you are inspired to create today and get your stories recorded!