Tissue Paper...Really?

Did it ever cross your mind that things that were out of the normal would make cute planner decorations.  One day I was wrapping a gift and when I was done I had some really cute tissue paper left over.  I didn't want to throw it away...so...I thought of this idea.  What if I tear a piece of this paper and use it as a background for a day in my planner.  I tried it and thought it was super cute.  Now whenever I am near a dollar section or see cute wrapping tissue cheap I pick up a pack...yep just for my planner decorating.  See below some example pictures from this May's layouts where I used this fun idea.  Let's Plan Pretty Things!

                                      

What do you take when you travel?

Since I have my planner with me almost 24/7 I have two types of travel bags.  One bag set up for my purse every day to day things and my bag I take on my trips/vacations.  Check it out...in my video below.  Lets Plan Pretty Things!

Week 4...decorated & done

This week I really jammed packed it with goodies.  This week my mother left for her trip back to her birth place; Italy,  I made my first tassel paperclips ever, I created this new blog, Disney had their 60th Diamond Celebration, my daughter's steel drum class performed at the garden market downtown, and I got a new shirt that I absolutely love because it matches my planner.  Once again lots of simple things to document in my planner.  I hope these week overviews give you all out there ideas for things to document in your daily life memory planners.  If you have any questions about products I used in this weeks spread...leave them for me in the comments and I will respond to you.

Let's Plan Pretty Things!

Week 3...decorated & done

This week was a fun but typical week.  I am a new co-leader to my daughter's Daisy Girl Scout troop and we had a leadership meeting this week.  So I just added some embellishments from that including my winning raffle ticket that I received.  Also, one of my favorite shows to watch; Lip Sync Battle; was on with 2 of my favorite dancers on it; Derek and Julianne Hough and I just loved it.  Then I just added a photo of the girls at out Mother's Day Tea with hosted. And last just a picture of my nails that I just painted and matched up with my planner. 

Some people ask how do I have pictures for my everyday when I don't really do anything exciting.  This week shows you just how simple the pictures can be.  I painted my nails...I went to a meeting...etc.  They don't have to be any big deal events for your planner to have cute photos and fun decorations.  Just think outside of the box and it will turn out lovely.  Lets Plan Pretty Things.

Where do I find Heidi Swapp stuff?

Starting a planner for the first time can seem overwhelming.  I am here to answer your questions and help inspire you with ease.  Some of you have asked me where I get all of my Heidi Swapp stuff for decorating my planner.  Here are all the places I've been to collect items for my stash.  

Joann Fabrics
These are 3 photos of a center kiosk at Joann's and they showcase Heidi Swapp Wanderlust Collection of super cute things that you can you use in your planner.

Hobby Lobby
Here are some items that I've found from Heidi Swapp that are super cute for your planner too.
(pic on top) this is a bunch of cute stickers from the Heidi's Favorite Things collection.
(pic on bottom left) this is Heidi's September Skies project life cards core kit that would work cute in your planner.  It comes with over 500 cards, double sided and are super adorable to add into your planner for journaling or just decoration.
(pic on bottom right)  this is Heidi's value kit...this is the one I love best for my planner...it comes with project life cards and die cut embellishments that you've seen in my past decorated weeks.  This is a must get item...I think.

Michaels
(on the left) this is the Hello Today Collection that some stores might still have, but in the clearance section.
(on the right) this is the current collection from Heidi Swapp; her memory planner collection.

Recycle-Unused Planner Pages

Since I just got my Heidi Swapp planner in May I had all of January-April just stored away in my stash.  Then I decided to recycle part of it and make it useful in other ways.  In the photos below you see that I took the unused existing monthly divider tab pages and cut them in half.  I tossed to the side the tabbed side and kept the sides with the holes.  I glued the 2 pieces back to back and added a top tab to each of them.  I used my Stampin' Up tab punch to cut the tabs for this project.  I then laminated them and cut slits in each whole.  Then I had perfectly good today tabs for my planner.  So now you have one idea of what to do with those extra month dividers if you have them just sitting around.  Let's Plan Pretty Things.

Planning: On-the-Go

One of my daughters still love to go to the mall and play in the kids area with the climbing walls and slides.  So while she plays I sit and enjoy my little things.  This is just to show you that sometimes I like to do my planning on-the-go.  Also, I love to do a little shopping at the local Daiso store (which is a dollar Japanese store) where you can find some cute office/planner supplies.  I just love checking it out every time I go to the mall.  Let's Plan Pretty Things!

NEW by Heidi Swapp

I know I posted before about the new Heidi Swapp "September Skies" project life core kit...but if that kit is overwhelming with all the 500+ cards in it...this mini kit is just right for you.  This kit is smaller and has the perfect amount of cards to enjoy with your planner decorating.  This mini kit is also amazing because it also comes with a bunch of die cut embellishments that would be awesome in your planner decorating too.  So here is a closer view of what the mini kit looks like.  I bought this one using my Hobby Lobby 40% coupon.  Great deal!  Let's Plan Pretty Things.

All New @ Hobby Lobby

                   
This post is just to show you some of the brand new products that arrived at Hobby Lobby.


                    

-These are mini kits by Simple Stories. They include 4x6, 3x4, instagram size and die cut embellishments.  (right) This collection is perfect for any Disney themed planning or scrapbooking and on the (left) These are the perfect neutral cards to match any decorations and have a beautiful gold accents.  Love these.

                     

-This is some new project life card kits and accessories that can also be used to decorate your planner and make it pretty.  (in the photo on the left) is the new core kit by Heidi Swapp called "September Skies"

   -This is the new Create 365 planner by Me & My Big Ideas.  My opinion is that it is similar to the Erin Condrin planners.

NEW Teresa Collins Collection

I was at my local Joann's and came across a brand new collection in the store.  All of the products great for your planner decorating (or project life scrapbooking) The colors in this collection are light pink, black, gold foil/glitter and kraft.  Products include 3 different sets of 3x4 cards and 1 set of 3x4 clear overlay cards...3 different sets of 4x6 cards and 1 set of 4x6 clear overlay cards...3 different sets of 4x4 cards...2 different sets of 4x4 packs of stickers (great for your planner)...a set of sticky notes and flags...a matching 6x12 paper pad...chipboard and clear word die cut pieces...and much more.  This collection all coordinates with her new version of the Cannon Selphy photo printer that is in a new gold color.  The Cannon Selphy is what I use to print all of my photos that you see in my planner and scrapbooking.  So if your looking for a good deal on printer paper/ink packs, they are normally like $40 for the 108 pack at all office stores, but now at Joann's they are just $35.99 and you can use your weekly 40% off coupon.  What a deal!  So check out your local Joann Fabrics stores in the scrapbooking department.  Let's Plan Pretty Things!

                              

 

Quiet Mornings!

Since I am a stay at home mom and all of my kids are in school or working...I love to take advantage of my quiet mornings before I start doing any chores or errands for the day.  (actual day photo was taken May 14th) I had my breakfast chocolate chip muffin and sat down all cozy and had time to journal and make plans in my planner.  This post is just to tell you to always take a little time for yourself and find a little quiet place and enjoy your planner.  Let's Plan Pretty Things.

Week 2...added insert

I was digging around in my craft space and found these canvas fabric frames by Maggie Holmes.  So I got out my Heidi Swapp 3x4 pocket pages that I found on clearance at Hobby Lobby for my photo and just adhered the fabric frame to the outside of the photo pocket page.  This is a cute way to add a unique look to your planner and add some texture too.  (as seen in photo below)

                         


I thought these would look super cute for framing pictures in my planner.  As you see here (photo below) I chose to add a photo of me and my kids since Mother's Day landed on this weeks spread.

Week 2...decorated & done

Just finished another fun week of decorating.  Another week of memorable moments in my life.  Life as a mother of 4 keeps me busy, but sometimes I like to document things that just make me happy...not all family related.  That's why I do project life pocket scrapbooking.  That is where I do my day to day everyday family life moments.  See below the photos a list of products I used for this weeks spread.

(shown above) what I used this week:

-HS puffy word bubble stickers (from Michaels)

-purple polka dot washi tape (from Michaels by Recollections)

-mint green graph washi tape (I forget where I got this)

-silver polka dot gift wrap tissue paper (from dollar tree)

-HS clear floral sticker (from Michaels)

-black floral lace sticker/tape (from dollar tree)

-HS floral die cut piece (from Joann's)

-gold foil word stickers (from Joann's)

*any other item you want to know about just leave it in the comments below*

and...

(shown above) Stamps I used this week:

- (left) these planner stamps from my April 2015 Gossamer Blue Project Life Pages kit...I used these days of the week stamps to stamp my days on my weekly planner.  The ink I used is the StayzOn in dove gray.  I love the look of the gray and I love how it does not bleed thru the paper to the other side.

-(right) this is a new tiny stamp set I just got because my daughter just got a hamster for her birthday and thought I would get a lot of use out of it.  It is by Lawn Fawn and I found it at scrapbook.com.  On this weeks spread I just used the little hamster image and stamped it on some cute pink polka dot patterned paper and cut it out.  I loved how it turned out.

*as always if you have any questions about any of the products in this post...just leave it below in the comments and always Let's Plan Pretty Things.

My First Week...decorated & done

My first week in my planner and it's all decorated. I LOVE it.  This was such a fun week to decorate. It started with my daughter's birthday and having a birthday movie night with her family and friends.  I used a Heidi Swapp "happy" word die cut to cut out this cute pink and white striped word piece.  (this metal die can be found right now at Joann's with other Heidi products from her Wanderlust collection) Other events this week included my Daisy Girl Scout troop meeting at my house, going to an Indian Powwow with the Girl Scout troop on Sunday, Laundry day(s), making YouTube videos and my oldest daughter going to the hair salon.  These are all everyday moments in our lives and it's just so fun to spruce things up with a little color and decorations.  Also, this week you see an inserted photo sleeve that comes in your Heidi Swapp planner that I used to show my daughters hamster she got for her birthday and the birth of William and Kate's new Princess; Charlotte.

So you see the possibilities are endless with your planners and all I can say is Let's Plan Pretty Things.

Products I used to decorate this week were:

-mint green washi w/white polka dots (from Michaels by Recollections)

-floral washi tape (from Daiso)

-HS "happy" word die cut (from Joann's)

-light mint green enamel dots (from Michaels dollar spot)

-silver metallic adhesive gems (from Joann's by Jolee)

-HS washi tape from the washi booklet (from Michaels)

-mini 2x2 Polaroid stickers (from Joann's)

-HS overlay piece "LOVE" (from Michaels)

-HS "Laugh Love Repeat" sticker (from Michaels)

**if you see anything else and wonder where to find it just shoot me a comment and I'll find out for you.  

My planner set-up video

This is just going to be a short blog post...I just wanted to share my video on my YouTube channel; bluejeanscrafts; of my first set-up in my Heidi Swapp memory planner.  Enjoy.  Also, look forward to my monthly flip through video series showing my progress and in my planner.

My Monthly Set-up for May...Yeah!

You may notice that my first month in my planner is May.  Since I didn't have this planner for the first few months of the year I just took them out completely and I'll show you later some ideas I used the extra pages for.  (Scrapbooking 101 Rule:  Never throw away anything because you might be able to use it again later for something else)  

As for my initial set up for this month it just has the basics.  Some black and white (x2 designs) washi tapes...the hearts one is from the dollar spot at Target from their Valentine's Day Collection and the Cameras one I believe is from Hobby Lobby.  I used a quote strip of washi tape that says "I love you more" and that is from the new Heidi Swapp washi booklet that's part of this current memory planner collection. (you can find it at Michaels right now for about $5.99 but it's cheaper if you use one of their 40% off coupons)  As you can see I also have a gold glitter arrow that I cut in half to spread across from one page to the other putting attention to May 1st; my daughters birthday and a gold glitter star on the bottom right corner.  Then for added embellishment I used a few die cut pieces from Heidi's "Hello Today" collection, some coordinating enamel dots and a Prima mini paper flower with a pearl enamel dot.  So you see here you can use any flat or semi flat embellishments to decorate anything in your planner.

Also, here you see I already have a few things jotted down that I need to remember for the month ahead.  Look at my Monday the 4th.  I messed up on that days square and had to cover it up some how.  All I did was cut a piece of patterned paper from Heidi's matching paper pad and stuck it down to cover my mistake and I think it looks adorable.  Just for fun if you want...do that with random days all over your monthly planner and I think it will be unique and adorable to look at while planning out your month.  The creativity is endless.  Enjoy it!

Love that oldie but goodie

Today (back towards the beginning of May) on my weekly stops at Michaels I found some of Heidi Swapp's older collection from her Hello Today Memory Planner; that came out in 2014; all on clearance.  I just fell in love with her little number rub-ons set.  There are 12 rows of numbers 1-31 which is great for using on your monthly planner since you have to number the days yourself.  Since these were on clearance for just a $1.79 I picked up a couple sets of these so I can use them in next year's planner too.

These may be hard to find now at your Michaels but they are still available on various websites online.  I just love how easy they were to use and how it makes the numbers all look consistent and most of all adorable.

My Stash-O-Rama!

Hey girls and guys...if you know me at all I am an avid scrapbooker and have been for over 15 years. (that's before scrapbooking became what it is today) So over the years I have collected tons and tons of paper, embellishment, tools, etc.  Over these last few years I have also de-stashed a lot of my items as the stuff grew larger than my space to store it all allowed.  For the past year or so I have came across this amazing lady crafter; Heidi Swapp; and just fell in love with her style and products.  So I have in my stash older items from her scrapbooking collections and other past planner related products.  Here is a look at what I have found in my stash that is going to work great with my new Heidi Swapp Memory Planner that I love so so much.

It's Here!!!

OMG! Today I leaped out of my Filofax and found myself my planner heaven.  I have always loved loved loved Heidi Swapp's products and now she has this amazing memory planner.  I have waited for this planner to finally arrive at my local Michaels and when I went in today (April 27th-ish) there was a galore of Heidi Swapp goodness.  I picked through every planner they had to find the perfect one...and I picked up about half of the matching accessories to get me started. (even though I had a stash of Heidi Swapp's other goodies already from doing my project life albums)  I am always excited to get right into and start decorating my weeks in my planners but this time was different.  This planner combines my extreme love for scrapbooking and incorporates it with my other love; planning and list making.  So look forward to many more creative planner posts here on my new blog just for planners and creative organizing.