Practicing Simplicity

Today I just want to look back here at the post I did on February 12th which dealt with scrapbooking simply. It is sort of an update post and a "way to scrapbook without breaking the bank" post.

First off, I finished up the two calendar pages for January and February and sent them off to be printed as 8x10 prints. Because the album they are going into is an 8x8 album, I am able on Photoshop Elements to do the layout as a 12x12, resize it as an 8x8 and then mount it onto an 8x10 background. Ordering an 8x10 print is cheaper than ordering a custom 8x8 print. All I have to do is cut off the unused two inches. Here are the pages I am expecting in the mail soon.

Now here is the "not breaking the bank" part. I usually only order pictures when I can get them for free (plus shipping and handling which is usually about $2.50) or if there is an incredible sale. I am a member on Shutterfly, a free photo storage website. For creating your own site on Shutterfly, you automatically get 50 free 4x6 prints. Then, they are always putting up promotions on how to earn free prints (all 4x6). Last week, Shutterfly was celebrating it's 10th birthday. By joining the birthday sweepstakes and uploading a birthday picture to the contest site, I earned 30 free prints. In addition, they were also offering (as a completely different promotion) $10 in free merchandise. I stayed up until midnight a few nights ago finishing the above layouts, and ordered them and some other photos until I reached the $10 mark. I should be getting them in a couple of days.

Also, be on the look out for other free offers. Around Christmas time, Winn-Dixie was offering a free photobook for first time users of their photo site. I made an account under my name and Brian's name and was able to make two photobooks for the price of s&h.

Walgreens recently had a free 8x10 special, so I ordered one under my name and Brian's name. I made up the following two 8x10 pages on Photoshop Elements. The first one was just a lot of smaller photos that I was planning to use individually in Addie's 2010 album. I fit as many as I could on the page and then cut them up when I got them up when I got it. The other was used on a layout.

I received my 30 free prints in the mail a couple of days ago. I sat down with them and drew up some sketches of how I want them on my layouts. When I go back later to work on them, I will have eliminated all of the guess work and I can get right to work. Very simple.

I have also been thinking about Project Life by Becky Higgins a lot (I think I'll ask for it for Christmas). The concept is a very simple one. Take a picture every day, write a little something about the picture, the day, an event, or just save up bits and pieces to store in your album. We all take so many pictures, have so much memorabelia, but we can never make a scrapbook page of every picture, and saving every little thing is impossible for those of us who do not like clutter. This concept allows those tiny moments to be scrapbooked quickly and easily, and then traditionally scrapbooking the more meaningful pictures is less stressful.

Have a great Friday!