so- scrapbookers far and wide know of Ali's Week In The Life project- yes? (for those who exist outside of the scrapbooking realm- it's basically fiercely documenting one ordinary week in your life- words, pictures, etc.) I've done this for the past two years and honestly- I didn't love it. I wanted to. I mean- Ali's albums are always amazing. For me? The project felt super demanding. Like- OMG- DON'T MISS ANYTHING THAT IS HAPPENING! for seven days in a row. Then I would go through a million photos and try to pick out what best represented each day, worked them a bit, figured out what sizes to get printed, order prints, pick up prints, quite likely also cut/cropped to fit in page protectors, felt bad about not spending more time on it and making it more artsy and using more products and never really found the time to write about the photos or our days and ended up just shoving photos in the albums. Now- looking back at those two years I did it- I'm glad I did. I also feel a little crappy knowing I never REALLY finished either year, but just seeing a week documented so thoroughly is pretty cool- no matter what you do with it...
I planned on doing it again this year in May (Keaton would be 3 and Ollie would be 6 mos...delicious.) but was still feeling frustrated about years past and thinking this year would be no different- me shoving my camera in everyone's face and trying to document everything ever and then not finishing the project.
Then I found this---> Lynnette's blog post about WITL
Holy cats it all made so much sense. Her approach totally clicked with me.
*The splitting the day into sections (morning, midday, afternoon, evening) and choosing a couple each day (SO very freeing. I could cover the morning- and then relax until afternoon or eveing- depending on what I'd picked to cover next) And I planned it out ahead of time- knowing what we had on the agenda that week- to cover some fun events/outings, some very ordinary events/outings and a good mix of just life- how an average morning or eveing/bedtime goes. I think I covered each time at least twice. Giving a good glimpse into what stays the same, what changes, etc. (and it so works because seriously- no one needs to see us getting ready in the morning or putting boys to bed all seven days...once or twice and you get the jist)
*The "beginning with the end in mind"- I bought her templates and had those in my brain the whole time I was shooting- knowing what spaces I'd need to fill (main photo and a few supporting) was super helpful.
*The TEMPLATES. Amazeballs. For reals. First- they look so graphically clean and lovely. Seriously like a magazine spread (which is what inspired her) Also- no printing, cropping photos, arranging, sliding into page protectors. No messing with other supplies or patterned paper or bits. Just pop in photos, write and DONE. so do-able.
The only major difference in my approach was that I knew I had to do it as I went along- or it would never get done. I would get distracted by a little boy who needs his knee pads put on and could I please come watch him skate board and a baby who needs to nurse and nap and be held and repeat and laundry and designing work and life and EVERYTHING. So, I did the layout for the morning or midday spread as the boys were napping, and the afternoon or eveing once they were in bed for the night (or at least one was in bed- the smaller often snoozing in the sling while I wore him and worked) With this- at end of the week? Nearly done. Just a few pick up shots for the "highlights" pages (the eats, books, uniform, etc.)
AMAZING-TOWN. (I know- lots of caps in this post, but I'm stoked...so deal.)
I just ordered the blurb book tonight (and initially left out the page about books we're reading and I am crossing my fingers that I fixed it in time. We shall see...) I am so excited that I did this project again this year and that I finished it- completely- and I love it. I am so geeked to get my mitts on the final book.
Huge thanks to Lynnette. :)
below are a couple fave pages. the whole album can be seen here.
