Saturday 14 January 2012

Trying to grow

Maybe I am not trying enough, maybe I am trying to make too many things but lately I hadn't made things that I LOVED. I made things that were OK, that were reasonably happy with but nothing that make my heart sing.

Then I read this in Kelly Purkey's blog:

"In May of this year something went off in my head. Or I should say, was lit under my booty.  I sat down at my desk and decided I was sick of making layouts just to get them done.  I wanted to push myself create work that would be something that I was really proud of.  Not intentionally make layouts that people would love, but make something that I was personally proud of for putting time and energy into.  Projects that I felt I was giving my best creative engery to. Do you know what I mean?"

That's it, making things that makes me proud. That's what I want to do this year. I am not claiming I have figured it out how  - or that I'll be proud of everything I'll do. But that's what I am aiming for.

I really want to do this using what I have at home instead buying more and more. I looked through copies of inspirational photos, crafts and colour schemes that I had saved (lately I've been using Pinterest for that) and I pulled two that I liked.

Based on them I went through my stash and made two kits.

Kit #1 is based on this photo of an old Crewcut catalog:


Brights against a background of neutrals (black & white). Which is something that always gets my attention. I added a bit of green to the mix, so that I could use it for my Christmas layouts - and I had kit #1.

And that kick started my resolution - I made this layout which made me proud for the first time in a while. It is very simple, no patterned paper, only a few bits from the kit itself. But it is a layout that I like now and I know I'll always like because it is simple and it has something that matters to me (the white paper is a copy of my daughter's letter to Santa - i added the buttons so it can be pulled from the "envelope").



* Cardstock: Bazzill
* Letter Stickers: American Crafts
* Twine: Studio Calico
* Font: Underwood Champion
* Other: Buttons

 And you, what you do want to do in creative terms in 2012?

2 comments:

Maria Jordan-Lloyd said...

Hi Elisa, for me this year is all about finishing projects, although I will put every effort into making them look nice and not just finishing for finishing's sake.

Delanie said...

Really enjoyed reading about your scrapping analysis. And that layout is amazing - simple, but perfectly embellished! I think the simpler something is, the more important each particular element is.