I am a Project Life convert through and through. I first heard about Project Life a couple of years ago by reading Ali Edwards’s blog. I was so intrigued by the whole concept. It seemed so simple to focus on taking photos and recording memories—something that I had been struggling with in my personal albums.I have loved memory keeping for a long time but I just dabbled in it because it overwhelmed me. I am such a perfectionist, and I would spend hours and hours on my scrapbook pages. I had so many photos and so many memories I wanted to record. There was never enough time to document everything, and I was always so behind.

After having my first daughter in 2009 I got really jazzed about recording our new journey. I started a baby album and tried so hard to stay on top of it, but I was spending too much time on it and getting nowhere. After a little while I pretty much gave up because I was so behind and overwhelmed by the whole thing.
When I came across Project Life I knew I had my answer. I love everything about Project Life. I love all the pockets that can so easily be filled with memories and photos. I love all of the predesigned pocket cards. I love that I can get so many of my photos off my computer and out for my family to look at. I love that I have a place to document the simple everyday moments along with the big ones. I love that I have a place to save all of the little ticket stubs and mementos that I gather. I love adding fun little embellishments to my cards and photos when I have the time and I need a creative outlet. I love that if I just want to get my pages done quickly, I don’t have to fuss around with embellishing things . . . but my pages still look great. Everything about Project Life makes me happy.

If you are new to Project Life, I have put together a few tips I have learned along the way to help get you started recording your life.

Take photos with intention. What are the things that you want to remember? If you made something awesome for dinner . . . take a picture of it. Did you have a fun girls’ night out? Take a picture! Did you go for a walk with a beautiful sunset? Take a picture. We all know to take photos of the big, important events in our lives, but I think the simple moments in our lives are just as meaningful and important to document.

Decide which approach works best for you. Do you want to record your life on a weekly basis, on a monthly basis, or just whenever? There is no right or wrong way to do this. I like working on a monthly basis and adding inserts when I need to, but that might not work for you. Play around and have fun finding out what makes this process of recording your life the easiest and most enjoyable for you.

Jot down the things you want to remember. Carry a notebook in your purse, write ideas in your phone, or write in a journal at the end of the day. When you come across a quote that moves you . . . write it down. When your kid says or does something that you don’t want to forget . . . write it down. If you had a great day . . . write it down. This makes it so much easier when you want to add journaling to your pages.

Save things from your life to include in your album. A tag from your shopping spree, a bag from your favorite boutique that you can cut down to fit into a pocket, happy mail, a birthday card, a ticket stub from a good movie—there are so many fun ways to include bits and pieces from your life.

Set aside time to work on your pages. Make it a priority in your busy life to sit down and get your memories written down and your photos printed off. Doing tasks in chunks is easier than trying to do everything in a big marathon session. Take an hour to go through photos and print them off. Later, sit down for another hour to write down memories onto cards and slip things into page protectors. Take another hour or 30 minutes to play around with embellishing and getting creative if that’s what makes you happy. Again, there is no right or wrong way to do this. Just have fun, and in the end you will have something that you and your family will cherish forever!

Arika B.
Concept Artist