HELLO AUGUST JOURNAL CARD FREEBIE

Aaaaah, I do love a blue mason jar, don't you?

To decorate the tables at Isabella's Sweet 16 party, I gathered a bunch of fancy jelly jars, you know the ones with the gingham lids, and stuffed them full of the Black Eyed Susans that are taking over our flower beds. Very cute.

Loving This | This Week in My Gratitude Journal

What are you loving this week? We've had a full week, prepping for our precious Isabella's Sweet Sixteen party. I adored seeing her so happy, laughing with friends and family and smiling from ear to ear.

THIS WEEK IN MY GRATITUDE JOURNALS

In My Travelers Notebook
You've seen me using my Field Notes size travelers notebook before and I continue to love using it. It's my choice whether to journal and journal alone or decide to embellish a page. 

Here, I used a prompt fro the #junkjournaljuly on IG: Layers on Layers. I built up my layers with stenciled watercolors, then a side border of a book page left over from the Mister Huey page mist that I punched a tag out of. I layered another tag from a vellum sheet on top of that and added an eyelet and some baker’s twine. The page tab at top was a result from the page before. “The List” 1” round and Travelers Notebook are from the shop, where there's a 50% off Christmas in July sale. 

In My Flagship Gratitude Journal

I pulled out the embellishment kit that comes with the flagship Gratitude Journal - it’s the spiral bound mixed papers journal with monthly tabs - and used this striped tag as a page decoration just because I felt like playing with pretty paper. The “loving this” word phrase is part of a journaling card set in the shop and it’s kind of making me want to do a whole page of just word phrases! 

I got lucky with the number 5 playing card, we happen to have 5 family members so I added a page tab with our name. 

Journaling cards are so useful and I love finding new ways to use them.

And then when you flip up the journaling card, it reveals my journaling: I hand trimmed the number 3 from this set and added a small scrap of vellum I had on my craft desk which I cut into a pennant shape.

My journal is getting chunky, isn't it?

One Line A Day Journal

I had this bright idea...why not use the Happy Days to Remember Perpetual Calendar as a One Line A Day Gratitude Journal? I've been using the calendar this month in conjunction with my other journals and it's been a sweet way to jot down a few words. 

Of course I took the opportunity to embellish with a little washi tape, but that's just me. I thought some of you might like a few extra embellies to play with, too, and set up a special listing that includes a kit. You can find it here. 

WHAT IS #ILOVETHURSDAYTHANKS

What is #ilovethursdaythanks? It's a way for me, and you, to connect with other like minded souls. Those of us that find joy in documenting our thankful thoughts and grateful moments. Those moments that sometimes could be so quickly forgotten, those thoughts that haunt us and won't let us go, those words that touched our heart when we needed them most, those people who made a difference just by being there.

Join us over on Instagram and share your #ilovethursdaythanks.

Christmas in July Sale | 50% Off at iloveitall.etsy.com

Some quantities are limited - just one item remains - and other items have plenty in stock, but they're all waiting to be tucked into a #happymail package just for you.

Shop Now and Save 50%

Things I Love About You

From their crazy road trip serenades to their unending love of all things with wheels, especially if they’re old, rusty and in need of a reno, treat your sweetie to a journal full of all all the wacky, fun AND romantic things you love about them. 

That's right, celebrate your special someone with the 10 reasons why you love them so very much! 

This Journal + Kit combo has you set up with 11 kraft hearts to embellish your pages plus plenty of embellished gift tags to use in your journal or your adorn a card or gift bag. 

I embellished my dedication page with the red crochet jumbo gold paper clip - it comes with your journal. You can find more crochet heart paper clips in fun colors here. 

And here's a close up of the embellishment kit for you.

WHICH COLOR WILL YOU CHOOSE?

Want more options? We can do that! 

And, the Pink and Blue journals each have color coordinated embellishment kits as well. 

Choose Pink

Choose Blue

The Sign of Noble Souls

For the last several years, I have curated the Sunday Photos series, featuring one my photographs  along with a quote or some inspiring words that touched my heart. I'll still be sharing words that speak to me in this space each week, just in a new format.

See you next week with another The Sunday Quote!

Watercolors in My Travelers Notebook Journal

Playing with watercolors to create a background page in my travelers notebook sized journal or finish up in the laundry room? I guess you know which one I chose.

I totally had a different intention for my paint splatters background in this journal. But then, when I opened my paint pen to get the water flowing, it left a big blob. So, I let it drip and then added enough to fill the page.

HELLO DARLING

I have to say that I adore how the paint splatters worked out as a background. After I added the journal card, from the embellishment kit that comes with the journal, you can't even see the boo boo paint splatter blob.

Yep, this is part of the yummy embellishment kit!

I used the "Hello Darling" from the journaling card as a prompt. I got real with myself and took part in some self-care journaling, giving myself the okay to like what I see in the mirror. Life is not all about what we look like, so it's not all about that, it's about being good with who we are, what we are and why we are who we are. 

And I'm good with that and with me. Because as I mentioned in my journaling, feeling good about ourselves and believing in who we are opens doors. 

I added a side border made with a handful of 1" circle die cuts and used the bask side of the page to trim the excess from the edge.

MIXED PAPER JUNK JOURNAL

With 30 pages and an embellishment kit, this tall and narrow journal reminiscent of Midori travelers notebooks works equally well as listing journal as it does to capture and document your life adventures. 

Here's another blog post sharing how I embellished another page in the journal.

The More Grateful I Am

After working in the yard yesterday, we had a rain shower, and I was grateful even though I really don't like the rain.

For the last several years, I have curated the Sunday Photos series, featuring one my photographs  along with a quote or some inspiring words that touched my heart. I'll still be sharing words that speak to me in this space each week, just in a new format.

See you next week with another The Sunday Quote!

Creative Journaling Is My Jam

What do I love about creative journaling? It's my jam, it's my way of capturing little snippets of our story, of my story. It's also my guilty pleasure, my little escape from what I should be doing and instead doing a little something just for me. Creative journaling makes me smile.

LET'S PLAY

Yesterday afternoon the girls played 9 holes of golf and when we got home they decided to chill and hang out upstairs in their rooms to cool off and relax. I went out to my room, I mean out to my craft studio, and also relaxed by playing with this cute mini book:

a glassine bag, a pink shipping tag, and a label from the set below. I chose the "today was" in pink. 

The embellishment kit that comes with the journal {check out all those yummy goodies below} includes everything except for the label set, but you can download it here because you know you love  'em!

A CLOSER LOOK

After I trimmed the pink label from my cardstock, instead of adding it as a journaling spot to the top of the page, instead I glued it to the back of the page and am using it not only as a journaling tab but also as a page tab.

I'm guessing that I'll probably add more tabs and maybe even some ribbon to the sides of my my journal pages. I just love how seeing things sticking out the sides of my journals invites me to open it up all over again.

The glassine bag, paper doily and pink shipping tag I used come with this mini book embellishment kit. That means that as soon as you rip into your happy mail package, you're ready to create.

And the great thing about journals that have book rings is that you can rearrange the order of the pages, add in more pages, include ephemera and even add photos. 

Love This | This Week in My Gratitude Journal

It's July, it's hot, it's humid and we only have 23 days until school begins. We're squeezing in everything we can before it's back to schedules and homework and bye bye sleeping in.

I didn't want to go rummaging around in my craft drawer for a stamping block, because then that would mean that I have to peel off the stamp I left on there, clean it, clean the block and then stick on my new stamp.

So I improvised and used the handle of my date stamp. #lifehack for the win! I used a tiny little stamp, you can see it if you look hard...it's stamped in light pink ink and says "love this."

I WANT ONE

I've reduced the pricing of the partial year Gratitude Journals. And yes, lots of you are buying these partial year journals because you don't want to wait until 2020 to begin documenting your thankful thoughts and grateful moments.

WHAT IS #ILOVETHURSDAYTHANKS ?

What is #ilovethursdaythanks? It's a way for me, and you, to connect with other like minded souls. Those of us that find joy in documenting our thankful thoughts and grateful moments. Those moments that sometimes could be so quickly forgotten, those thoughts that haunt us and won't let us go, those words that touched our heart when we needed them most, those people who made a difference just by being there.

From personal experience, not all of my entries are earth shattering moments. I am often thankful for the skills of my stylist who covers my gray hair so convincingly {at least to me}, thankful for the quietness of the house after the kids have left for school, grateful for the noise of house as we all gather for dinner again after a day of us all being somewhere else.

It's the small moments that make my heart sing.

join in

Want to document your own #ilovethursdaythanks? Write down what you're thankful for, it doesn't have to be in a journal or notebook, just list it and then head on over to Instagram to post! Be sure to use the hashtag #ilovethursdaythanks so I can take a peek!

Pink + Yellow Mixed Paper Junk Journal

If you could just see my craft studio now, you would run screaming and possibly even get a paper cut with all the scraps lying around. Yeah, it's a doozy in there right now. But, it's all because I was inspired to create three, yes three, different mixed paper junk journals that will work perfectly for any listing challenge, or for memory keeping of course.

PINK + YELLOW MIXED PAPER JOURNAL

You'll swoon for the bright, colorful, cheerful pages in this journal. And take a closer peek at the Embellishment Kit that's included. 

WHAT WILL I DO WITH THIS?

Wonder what to do with 31 blank pages just waiting to be filled up with journaling or memories or photos? Don't let "blank page phobia" deny you the fun and fulfillment of creating. Here are a few links that might help get your creative juices flowing:

I'm very fond of listing challenges, 

and here's a link to more than you'll ever have time to browse.

Here are my 30Lists journals and prompts.

Here are more mini books + journals to help you document your story.

Have you tried gratitude journaling? 

Read more about it here and find Gratitude Journals here.