1.13.2012

No Fear in being you...

Hi everyone! Happy Friday! I am so thrilled to be able to spend time with you today. As this being my FIRST blog post here at SFTIO what a better way to get this "relationship" started than with a bit of a flashback and also a great way to talk about NO FEAR in scrapbooking! 

I wanted to share a layout I created with the AMAZING kit from this month. 


I took some time and really thought about what Individuality (try typing that a few times!) meant to me and realized it truly was about WHO I was... so many layouts are swimming around in my head... one of all of the things that make up me.. (think of all the things people know YOU for)... What are the things that I am the MOST proud of.. what are the things that I wish I could change.. but none the less are a part of ME. It made me start to think about all of the pictures of me over the years... and all of the memories that go along with them. As I started to pull them out, I realized what a GREAT smile I had in all of them. Alas, I am not picture shy. Which, I am grateful for. But, I also started to realize, I remember almost exactly what I was wearing in each picture. Who was with me, where I was, what the occasion was. Those are the memories that I can not wait to share with my 2 girls. That is what ME is all about. 


Now here is the NO FEAR part... don't be afraid... I don't measure... and honestly.. I did not even really plan this out... If you look close you will see my mattes around the pictures are not all 100% the same sizes... (GASP!).... my journaling did not fit all on one side of the pretty card with the roses... so I just flipped the card and kept going! The strips at the bottom.. I just free cut them.. until the looked pretty. And when all is said and done.. you don't even really get to see them that much! And... here is the being ME part.. I wanted to keep adding MORE... I just felt like it was not quite done.. or not quite enough.. or not quite special enough... but when I woke up this morning I realized.. it captures EXACTLY what I wanted.. my smile! Could I have added more bling.. and more.. and more... and a new technique.. sure.. but then.. I just wanted to be me... so with no fear.. here is me.. and all my smiles.. with my crooked mattes.. and I love it!

The little picture with the floral shirt is my college portrait. This is a shirt that I had made for one of the fashion shows. (I have a degree in fashion design!) The pigtail picture is one of a group where my sister has on the same outfit as me (OH MOM!) The top picture was taken at my first Inspiration Unlimited in Las Vegas. This was a Teresa Collins class. I attended with my sister in Sept of '10. (yes, the same one that had the said matching outfit!)  And.. you can barely see it.. but that picture of me (and you can see the bottom part of it in the last picture) is me about 10. My Gram had bought for me a ballet outfit. My dream as a little girl was to be a ballerina. This was my birthday party. 

The picture in the corner is probably one of my favorites. I think I am just about 5. I was sitting on a stool in the kitchen. One time had someone proclaim "how is it I never saw that picture of Allie before" (that is my daughter) and I had to say that is because it is me!! In the "model" shot I was just about 13. The Graduation picture is from High School. Big Hair can not be appreciated in this picture. The picture above it was taken in 2000 on the way to a black tie wedding. 

See.. even my "the" is not on par with "many"! LOVE these foam alphas though! so much fun. How cute was I in that picture with the pumpkin color bow?? Come on! 

Here is the journaling... 
"so many smiles - so many memories - all me. I have never been camera shy and thank goodness - I cherish each picture and what stories go along with them. I can not wait to share these with my girls when they get older

Hope you have a great weekend and see you tomorrow for Sketch It Saturday!!!




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