getting ready for december daily

I am so ready for December Daily this year! In the past I've done a modified version. In 2012 I used Studio Calico's kit to put together an album documenting our 2011 Christmas. You can see more of the album here and here.

Last year I made a minibook with Crate Paper's Bundled Up collection about our 2010 Christmas. You can see the entire book here.

Since Christmas 2013 hasn't been documented yet, and I have the Studio Calico kit just waiting to be used up, I've been working a little on that album this past week. This is my cover page - a tree made of little circles!

I still have a long way to go on my 2013 album. I'll try to work on it a little more, but I'll have to abandon it soon in favor of this year's album and pick it back up again after Christmas. I hope it won't be too hard to finish because my least favorite part is mostly done, which of course is printing the photos.

Now this year, I'm going all out and doing an actual daily album (rather than a recap of the month). I will probably skip a few ordinary days, and I'll add extra pages for days that have more photos (especially christmas eve and day). The great thing about this project is that you can make it whatever you want it to be! I'll be using Ali Edwards' December Daily kit, although I may add in a few things from my stash. I will be sharing this year's album on instagram (@debduty), and I may share some or all of it on my blog too. It just depends on how busy December gets! I'm happy that I will have the month off from Studio Calico for the first time in two years, and I'm hoping this extra time will mean I will be able to get it done and shared too!

I don't plan on creating my base pages in advance. While I realize that works great for some people, including Ali (you can see her base pages here), I want to make the album a little bit at a time as the month happens. I like to know what the photo looks like for each page before I decide which papers, cards and embellishments to use.

My first page of the album will be picking out our tree. It worked out perfectly last year. December 1 was the Sunday after Thanksgiving and the day we went to get our tree. But this year I think we'll go get it today (November 30). It may just be an extra day at the beginning or it may take the place of December 1, depending on what tomorrow brings. Here is last year's picking out the tree photo!

Just a few more tips for your December Daily:

1. Take lots of photos, and try to remember every day. Remember that things that seem ordinary now will be extra interesting to look back on in years to come. I'll be mostly using my iphone. The photos you take don't have to be Christmas related. This is a page about my son studying for the finals that always fall in December.

2. For days with nothing going on, use filler photos. I like to include my favorite ornaments and decorations, or anything Christmas related that is general to the whole season and not just one day. Or you can always skip a day. No one will notice or care when they look back at your album! I always include a page about our Snoopy snow globe because it's my most favorite decoration from when the boys were little and I'm always so excited to get it out each year!

3. Work on it a little at a time. I plan on trying to at least print my photos each day and I will work on my pages as I have time. I will hopefully catch up and finish between Christmas and January 1. My album will end on December 25, but I know some people like to document the entire month of December.

4. Find lots of inspiration on Pinterest (I have a board here) and Instagram with the hashtag #decemberdaily. Also check out the member gallery at Studio Calico. Search December Daily or click this link and you will find lots of beautiful pages. Here's a screenshot of the latest as of today.

5. Check out "25 Tips to Rock Your December Daily" by rukristin. It's from a couple years ago, but includes lots of great ideas for your album.

So that's all the advice I have for now. I hope you'll attempt to document your December in some way. These albums are my favorites to look back on. They're fun to create, although a lot of work too. But totally worth it!