Smashbook: 2012 Thanks & Gratitudes

Happy Wednesday! Most of this year, Project Life has taken over much of my creative time. I haven't really had the chance to work in any of my other books. Since I didn't have a blog back in 2012, I decided to start sharing the layouts I created last year in my SMASH* book here on my blog.  And today, with Thanksgiving coming up, I'll be showing you my 2012 Thanks & Gratitude spread.

At this point, I had only been SMASH*ing for a few months. Although I was new to SMASH* books, this type of "documenting life" wasn't new to me. I've been creating pages like this since I was a teenager working in my altered composition books. I've always journaled and doodled, and have had a passion for penmanship since the beginning. And being able to incorporate all of those things [and other new techniques] into something like a SMASH* book as an adult, has allowed my style to grow and evolve.

My life is so different now compared to that rebellious teenage phase 16 years ago. And doing a spread like this really made me realize how much I've changed and how special and blessed my life is....

SMASH*: 2012 Thanks & Gratitudes

I thought long and hard about what's most important to me, and all of the lessons and life experiences I've learned from and lived through. I searched the internet for inspiration to figure out a creative way to put all of that down on paper, but stay true to myself and style. I feel that I really accomplished that with this spread. It's not your standard color scheme for Autumn, but it's very me!

Flipping through my pink book to find the perfect pages, led me to these pretty patterned papers. The colors and designs weren't too busy for the elements I wanted to use. My love for penmanship shows with the handwritten fonts and journaling. I even included doodles, photos, and a variety of embellishments from my stash of supplies. I went with lots of pink and glitter!

SMASH*: 2012 Gratitudes | Left Page

I started this page by writing everything in pencil first. It may take longer to do it this way, but for me, it's much better than ruining pages because I wrote something incorrectly or the placement is wrong. I then went over everything with a black zig pen or Sakura Gelly Roll metallic gel pen, and erased all of my pencil marks.

SMASH*: 2012 Gratitudes | Left Page - Close Up

SMASH*: 2012 Gratitudes | Left Page - Another Close Up

I used some pink glitter number stickers to mark the date and large alphas for the title. I printed out a couple of photos which I cut down to size, and added more pink in some fun stickers and rub-ons. I also used a variety of pens and markers, like metallic gel pens for journaling and doodles, my go-to black pen, and a silver paint marker for some extra glimmer.

SMASH*: 2012 Thankful For... | Right Page

Again, I used pencil first to get the placement right and so I could play around with different fonts. I kept this page pretty simple, but mixed up different elements and supplies. I had tons of fun digging through my stash to find things to use!

SMASH*: 2012 Thankful For... | Right Page - Close Up

SMASH*: 2012 Thankful For... | Right Page - Another Close Up

For the different fonts and title I used my handy black zig pen, another Sakura Gelly Roll metallic pen, and some fun K&Company alphabet stickers. To decorate this page I included lots of pretty embellishments that were gifted to me by my sweet friends. I finished the page with epoxy stickers, washi tape, label stickers, a handmade cutout, camera stamp, and colorful glitter alphabet stickers.

I really love how these pages came together, and I'm hoping to create a brand new spread for 2013's Gratitudes! We'll see how that goes...

I hope you enjoyed my post, and leave here feeling inspired to create something special and beautiful in your book. If you would like to see more pages from my pretty pink SMASH* book, you can find it here. Looking for more SMASH* inspiration? Feel free to browse my "SMASH* & PL" pinboard on Pinterest. Be sure to follow that board because I find new stuff daily!

You can stay updated on my recent posts, projects, and photos by following me on instagram, or by "liking" my fan page on Facebook. So why not head over there now and show some love...

Do you SMASH*? What inspires you? Have you done a "Gratitudes" spread yet? Any thoughts, questions, or comments about this post? I'd love to hear it! Your feedback is always welcome and much appreciated!

Mahalo for stopping by!