Journalling A Very Shivery Christmas

So December is upon us and that means, amongst other things, one of my favourite Xmas projects: Journal Your Christmas. I took part for the first time last year and just loved doing it so was keen to do it again this year. The only trouble last year was it was so time consuming: I made my own album, made every page a different size, shape etc. So this year I decided to not stress and make it simpler, after all it's about writing about Xmas so the format shouldn't really matter. So, I bought myself a ready made album and made a promise to myself that I would stick to one page size all the way through!

Dec 1st's prompt was to write a manifesto about what your Xmas was going to be. Mine had one main word: SIMPLE! For too many years I've been tired or ill or run-down at Xmas because I've taken on way too much, so this year it's about simplicity both in general Xmas stuff and my crafting. You may get a handmade card this year but you may get a shop bought one, it doesn't really matter as long as I send you a card does it? And am I really going to get people walking out at Xmas dinner because the stuffing's Paxo rather than a home made one?! And do you know what, as much as I'm sure my friend's kids love knitted/sewn toys, are they really going to complain about one bought from Argos? Nope! So why make it hard on myself? There will be some home made cards and some home made gifts, but there will also a lot more things purchased in the old fashioned way (oh and the new fashioned way, god bless Amazon!).

 

Day 2 was all about the weather. Oh how I laughed when I looked back at last year's entry  and saw how I talked about how we rarely get snow, what a difference a year makes! Obviously yesterday's entry just had to be about snow. This year as well there's an extra prompt in the JYC class that focuses on photography. As my photography could do with vastly improving I thought I'd have a go. So the 1st prompt was about the rule of thirds so I took a pic using this with my picture focusing on the hanging basket covered in snow in the left upper third:

And just to emphasise the point of how chilly it is, last night was one of the coldest nights for a long time, down to -9C here. This was my car this morning:

Very pretty but that ice was on the INSIDE and took forever to clear!

Right, off to today's entry which is to do with the aforementioned cards. I have a plan, it's just dragging my bum into that freezing cold conservatory to do it!

JYC Complete!

Before I post, I just want to ask if anyone can spare anything to go to the Haiti Earthquake Appeal. As some of you know, I sponsor a boy in Haiti and we are so worried that he and his family are OK. If they are, they will have lost everything so if anyone can help them, then please donate. Venald and his family live in a tin hut and his dad earns £15 a month so I think even a small donation would be a fortune to them!

Thank you!

So, finally I have completed the JYC journal! Got a little behind but, a few snow days from school have helped me to catch up. And do you know what? I actually really like it! Not often I scrap and am pleased with what I've done (seems to be a crafter's thing, we're all so critical of our own work!).

It's 37 pages long so I ain't posting all those pics so below is a Slideshow. Here are the pics of the cover:

And I just love how full it looks:

And finally, the pages!

JYC Catchup

So far behind with everything! here's JYC for 12th-19th:

JYC Update

Quick JYC update. Sorry not much time to ramble; I'm hoping once this week's over I'll have more time to blog in a bit more length!

Tuesday's prompt was to get your camera and take images of the day. I decided to make a mini book within a page to display all my pics:

Book folded out:

Wednesday's prompt was about traditions. I scrapped about a new tradition we have this year of collecting Xmas baubles when we go away:

Thursday's prompt was a nice simple one. You had to stick some of your wrapping paper down and journal about wrapping:

Friday's was about the Xmas tree. I was at a crop yesterday so had a bit more time to go to town on this one, with fancy cut-out Xmas trees (Marie, I can feel you shuddering from here!):

Right, short but sweet! Have a good week everyone!

Attila, Desmond, JYC, Halos and the Giant Jam Sandwich!

I'm a nervous wreck at the moment. Why? Well, a couple of weeks ago I got a letter from the university saying that I would have my degree results before 18th December; that's within the next 10 days! Every time I walk in the house I feel sick incase the postie's been. Then I will have the whole trauma of actually opening the envelope! It all rests now between Attila the Hun and Desmond Tutu!

Quick JYC update: here are days 5, 6 and 7. Prompt 5 was about the countdown to Christmas. I journalled about how I never understand these people that start telling you in September how many days it is til Xmas. To me, the countdown can start once the tree's up (which it is now Chez Gillard!); I've too much else to think about in September!

Prompt 6 was about Xmas memories. It was supposed to be about a good memory and bad memory but who wants to have a lasting reminder of the crap Christmases? So I decided to go with the memories of the kids' first Christmases. I also did my first acetate page:

Which meant a mirrored layout for Prompt 7. This was about organisation. I'm actually fairly well organised for the event itself, it's all my crafty stuff that's taken over. So, I've used this page to try and organise my Christmas projects so they're all done before the big day:

Prompt 8 is on hold as I've had a mad 'sh*t, every Argos is out of stock' moment on a couple of the kids' presents, so had a dash up to Toys R Us. 50% success rate with a good alternative on the other 50%!

I might have been able to do it earlier but I was sat making 16 halos:

It's my school's nativity and I'm in charge of sheep and angels! The sheep were done at the weekend (with expert cottonwool ball sticking by Em!) but tonight it was the turn of a stapler and 12m of tinsel! Carpet's a bit shiny now but at least they're all done!

Finally, I got a lovely piece of post today (no, not the Attila (would rather not have the Desmond!)). Last week they were clearing out our school library and I happened to spy this:

It was my favourite ever book as a kid and I haven't seen it for a good 25 years. So, onto t'Ebay I go and I only found an original version (printed in the year I was born!). Love it! Going to read it to the kids one bedtime and see if they too marvel at the giant loaf of bread!

Right, better pop off and try and make a dent in this To Do list!

JYC Day 3 & 4

I'm absolutely loving journalling my Christmas. the only problem is I'm spending hours doing it which doesn't bode well for the the weeks to come when it is decidely chaotic! Note to self: must scrap faster!

The 3rd Dec prompt was about Christmas cards. Although I do make some Xmas cards every year, I've done them differently this year and used some new crafty techniques, so I decided to journal about that:

And include a card in the journal too:

4th December prompt was to journal your perfect Christmas. Now, maybe log cabins on the side of a Swiss mountain should have sprung to mind, but to me, the whole chaotic Christmas is what it's all about and so to me, that's perfect! Our favourite Xmas film is National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation. Apart from being hilarious, I just love how everything goes wrong in a way that you just know it could happen to you. But the whole dysfunctional family thing works to make a perfect Christmas, even with a bucketload of disasters!

Just sat now waiting for today's prompt then it's off for a lovely day and evening at Lisa and Andrew's cabin at the coast (with Lisa & Andrew and all our broods!), then home for treet trimming tomorrow! Yay!

Journaling My Christmas

Yes, that's right people, I am now officially using the C word! I actually relented on 1st December and finally started saying "Christmas" in full!

So, very excited about being able to do this at Christmas: Shimelle's Journal Your Christmas class. I've seen people do this before but never joined in. But finally I decided this was the year to give it a go. Of course I have the lurverly Mariek along with me, who's now a JYC veteran and has made me drool with her previous journals.

Anyhoo, every day there's a prompt from Shimelle with a theme for the day, so here are the first 2 (Dec 3rd's is half done but was just rudely interrupted by the Brownie run!). Dec 1st was to write a manifesto with your commitment to JYC. Mine's basically about recording the big things and little things about Christmas and having something to look back on in years to come:

Dec 2nd was about Christmas weather. As much as I'd have loved to scrap lovely snowy scenes, this is Englad and that doesn't really happen. So I scrapped the day's weather (er, cloud!) and how we always want the winter wonderland but never really get it in reality. Oooh and look at super new crafty stuff: Craft Robo'd and liquid appliqued fluffy clouds:

Watch this space for more Christmas musings!