Yes. It is that time of year. Christmas chocolates are out. Special shopping bags are in the stores. I’ve even heard a few Christmas carols here and there.
To me, that means it’s time to get ready for Journaling my Christmas. Something that started so many Christmases ago now as just a book I kept for myself as a way to reclaim my Christmas and put a happy ending to a year that had been anything but fabulous. And it worked. So from there, I shared it with a small group of people…most of whom I knew in real life…that next Christmas. And after that, well…it’s something that has grown and grown, to include scrappers, artists, photographers and writers from more than thirty countries. And it really is my favourite time of the year.
Now is the time when you can join in too. Journal your Christmas is an online class that helps you document the holiday season for you and your family. The class starts December 1st and goes through the 6th of January—the twelfth day of Christmas. Every day, you receive a prompt with a theme for that day’s page, writing to get you started and pictures of pages from a range of talented artists, all designed to let you decide if you want to take your time to make something original and from scratch or work quickly by borrowing ideas from others.
You work with your own stash of supplies—choose what you already own or buy a kit to make things even easier — and you’ll see a mix of Christmas themed accents alongside supplies that wouldn’t necessarily scream Christmas at all. You can work in any format or size. You decide how much or how little you do every day.
And to really make that work, once you join, you’re in forever. So you can join us this Christmas and make as many pages as you like without the pressure to try to finish everything in a limited time frame. Because next Christmas? You’re still in, and you can add to what you already made. Some of the original participants are working on one album compiled over five years while others have a stack of five completed albums, each documenting just one year. Whatever works for you is the key.
I know it can be pretty tough to find time to scrap every day in December, so there are tips to help with that too. Before the official start of the class, you’ll receive tips and sketches for preparing your supplies and book so you can minimise some of more time consuming work when you are at your busiest during Christmas. It can also help if you need to put your crafting supplies away during the holidays to make room for extra guests or presents that need a place to hide.
All participants have access to a private forum where you have permanent access to all the class materials in case you accidentally delete an email or feel like working on your album in July. You can chat and share your work with other participants too and view hundreds of pages that have been created through this class.
So, if you sign up for Journal your Christmas, you receive:
*37 daily prompts from December 1 to January 6
*November preparation prompts
*Bonus prompts that include audio messages, printable accents and other surprises
*Access to a private forum for members to chat and share their work
*Access to a permanent archive of the course materials
*Ongoing membership for every Christmas that you would like to participate.
Of course, every Christmas needs a little something new, so this year’s additions include:
*a guide to preparing your album this month so you can scrap through the busy schedule of December (available mid November)
*a printable Christmas planner to help keep things from getting crazy in the countdown to the big day
*new printable accents for paper scrappers
*a digital kit absolutely crammed full of papers, templates, overlays, lettering and embellishments designed just for the class
*a bonus workbook on getting the best photographs possible this Christmas, with advice and examples from dozens of professional photographers.
$32.00