Project Life Haul and Infomation!

Hey,

So today I am going to be talking to you about my new scrapbook and about the things I've picked up over the last few weeks. I have always loved scrapbooking and making a physical book of memories, and this year, I’ve decided to do something different- Project Life.

This is a new type of scrapbooking, which is modern and easy; the whole focus is to make scrapbooking interesting and fun for all ages. Project Life is just one brand that creates this type of scrapbooking but for me they are the leading brand, especially in the UK, so when I refer to it, it is the type of scrapbooking I am talking about! Project Life scrapbooks are different because they have pre-laid-out plastic pages so you can just slide in your photos. The appeal of no fuss, no glue is definitely inviting and there is so much choice to make your scrapbook unique!

The scrapbooks that are required for Project Life are 12 by 12 3-ring ringbinders. These are literally huge but I like it because it means my photos are a decent size and I can keep bits and bobs from the year (like birthday cards and cinema tickets). This one I bought is from the American brand We R Memory Keepers and has is a beautiful design. I like that the scrapbook isn’t leather (because a lot of the ones on offer are) and is made in quite neutral colours. My scrapbook is mostly a plain brown/ craft colour with some white and mint stripes. There is also a cute camera print on the front with the phrase ‘Our Life In Photos’. I bought the scrapbook on Amazon and think it was about £17 at the time WITH delivery. It came from America, so took literally over two weeks to arrive but with free delivery I was okay with waiting. Since then it has gone up and down, the price always fluctuating- so it’s worth waiting until the price drops and then buying it!

The pre-laid page protectors are also a product you have to buy as well as the initial scrapbook. The scrapbook I bought actually came with a few plain (no layout) pages which was a great surprise! I also purchased the design A Project Life pages in the 12 pack. There are loads of layouts to choose from, and you could also buy variety packs and packs with 60 page in them. For me, this seemed the best deal- although I’ll need to buy more in a few months! I bought mine from a Hobbycraft store for £9.99.

Project Life, and brands that offer a similar package, also have extras you can buy for your scrapbook. For example the scrapbooking cards. Made to fill the photo slot sizes in the plastic pages, these cards come in hundreds of varieties based on seasons, colours, ages, personalities, morale and textures. I must admit, I spent weeks choosing the perfect pack for me because they don’t come cheap! For me, the cards are overpriced for what they are, and you could easily make your own, but it is the whole idea that lured me in! The actual brand Project Life sells core packs, mini kits and value kits of cards. I personally choose the mini kit because I knew it would last all year and was just the right amount of cards I wanted. A core pack is a huge £30 card kit, that has enough cards to last a lifetime if you ask me, and a value pack is a cheaper kit but the amount of cards means the price per card is quite high. There is also less choice with the value kits.

When I eventually choose that I wanted a mini kit, I did A LOT of research and this is something I can really advise! I spent hours- probably a little too much of my time- searching amazon, eBay and little companies online for the best deal. You can also buy the packs in Hobbycraft in the UK, but the price is more if you want to buy them in a store. I then did further research on peoples previous scrapbooks on Pinterest and card ‘flick through’ on Youtube. A ‘flick through’ is basically when someone goes through and shows ALL the cards in each pack. This is so helpful because you can see what you’re getting and there is a video online for nearly all the packs!

I finally came to the decision that I wanted the Dazzle Editionmini kit from Project Life. It was a little bit of a treat because it was about £15 on amazon, but I found that was okay because it came with delivery. I totally understand anyone who thinks that it was a bit of a waste of money but the kit was an investment for the rest of the year and if you want a cheaper package, individual sellers on eBay sell packs of half and quarter packs.

I love the Dazzle Edition kit because it comes with 4 by 6 and 3 by 4 cards in a variety of colours and designs. It includes some gold foil cards, quote cards and cards that have space for writing. I think the variety of colours and patterns means that it can be transitioned through the seasons and is appropriate for all the pages I will do in my 2015 scrapbook.

I also like to find images and quotes online and print them in the correct sizes onto photo paper/ card. These look really cute and are an alternative if you don’t want to buy and card packs.

As I am already a keen scrapbooker, I had some more ideas that I wanted to intertwine with my new Scrapbook. I know one of the main features is that it is no glue, but sometimes I like to create my own special cards and add to them. I already have a box of a few scrapbooking bits like stickers of numbers/ letters but I also picked up a new few bits.

I bought these type-writer style stickers from Hobbycraft and they are so useful. They are really tiny but I love using them for labels and captions on photos.  It is also amazing that there is a whole little book of these because I go through letter stickers soooo quickly. I can’t find them online, so I am not sure if they’ve been discontinued, but I’m sure there are similar options in most craft stores.

Another thing I picked up was washi tape. I love using decorative tape in general and thought these were so cute. The spotty one is from Hobbycraft and the de masque teal tape was from Homesence.

The last thing I bought was after a recommendation from Lily Pebbles, who is one of the main reasons I came across Project Life. I’ll link her video here and I would totally recommend you to check it out! She said that one tip she used was using Paperchase postcards (the photo of them is with the page protectors one above). The post cards fit perfectly in the 4 by 6 gaps and there are so many to pick from, and they change throughout the year. I picked up two when I popped in recently, a mint green one that simply says ‘hello’ and a white one with ‘carpe diem’ is a colourful font! I think they’re 50p each but I can’t really remember, sorry!

So there is my haul. It definitely a lot of money all at once but I used my Christmas money and I know I will love everything all year. Scrapbooking is one of my favourite things to do and is one of my favourite hobbies. I love holding onto memories and being able to see a year of my life all in one place will be amazing. If you like scrapbooking or have any questions, I’d love to know in the comments. Also if you’re doing Project Life this year, or have done it before, and have any tips/ tricks! I hope you all have a lovely Sunday and happy February everyone,

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