30 Days of Lists - My Handmade Notebook

Tomorrow marks the start of September (wait...what?!), but that also means it's 30 Days of Lists time...woo!

This year I've decided to go quite simple with the style of my lists and focus on the listing more than the crafting. I decided to have a go at making my very own notebook to store all of my lists in (and so it's easily transportable!). This little project actually took much longer than I'd expected (mostly due to the time needed to cut all of the pieces of paper to the correct size, get the holes in the right place on each sheet etc) as I lacked some of the tools that would have made it easier.

When I say tools - I'm talking about something as simple as a ruler, which the stationary gremlins in my house had apparently stolen.

I'm still really happy with the results though. I just got lots of sheets of (mostly) plain paper in a range of colours and cut them to the same size. I then hole punched each sheet 7 times, scored about 1/2 inch from the edge and then bound them together with embroidery thread.

I used this video to help me with the binding, but it was really simple. I finished mine slightly different as I wanted a loose bow of thread to one side of the notebook:




This is a fun little project if you have some paper lying around which you aren't sure what to do with and is somehow more special than going out and buying a notebook (I say that as someone who loves pretty notebooks, especially those from Paperchase).

I just added some pretty paper to the front with double sided tape and labelled it for 30 Days of Lists! Now it's all ready for the listing fun to begin tomorrow....

Getting Focused

It's a bit of an understatement to say that I've needed to improve my focus in recent months. In general I'm trying to do too much at any given time, without managing to do anything very well.

I'm happy to say that this is starting to improve. I'm tackling projects around the home one at a time, balancing my home and working life and prioritising what's important.

I still need a bit of help getting my creative side a bit more focused though. I have about 1000 ideas floating around my head - but I'm achieving nothing (does this ever happen to anyone else?). To help with this I've signed up to 2 projects starting in September which I'm really looking forward to. 

The first is 30 Days of Lists.

I love this project so much (for I am, indeed, a list-o-holic). The organisers give you a daily prompt of a list to write, and the lists are based around all different kinds of themes. I love taking part in this because as well as meaning I get my list-fix, it also gets me writing - however short that writing may be. From past experience, the community surrounding this is very lovely and it's a lot of fun reading other people's lists (which you can post in their Flickr group or on a private forum). If you'd like a few more lists in your life you can find out more about signing up here: http://30daysoflists.com/ (there is a fee of $10 to sign up and access the resources).

The other project is the Wild Olive Autumn Stitch Club, organised by Mollie Johanson. 

This is an incredibly cute project and involves weekly miniature embroidery designs in Mollie's adorable style, which you stitch on fabric which you then turn into little hexagons. You then make some hexagons of some favourite materials and stitch it together to make a mini quilt of prettiness. I love autumn, I really want to get back to doing some embroidery and I need to get over my fear of the sewing machine - so this project is just about perfect for me! 

I can't wait to get started -  I've already received some helpful instructions (I've never attempted quilting before so this is a mini challenge for me!) and I'm planning to make some hexagons this weekend. The club runs from September to the end of November. If you sign up before September 2nd the fee is just $5, and you can find out more here: http://wildolive.blogspot.co.uk/p/autumn-stitching-club-by-wildolive-on.html

I'll share my progress with these projects on here to keep me on track. If you sign up for these, or know of anything similar I'd love to hear about it!

 

30 Days of lists Day 30 - To my future self - the last list!

Phew, I made it (just!). here's my very last list:

For this list I wrote some instructions to my future self (bets that I never listen to them?). I couldn't resist the 'Don't Blink' reference - Wibbly, Wobbly Timey Wimey and all that!

I've really enjoyed writing these lists. I haven't decided how I'm going to collate them yet - a scrapbook I think, so I can look back over them now and then. One thing I will say is that March has flown by - I mean, crazy fast. I'm not sure that's the fault of the lists though!

I've also discovered a couple of really lovely blogs through the whole process -

Ooh Erin! - the girl with the totally amazing hair!
Unbecoming - written by another Kat - but one with a waaaay more beautiful wardrobe than mine!

30 Days of Lists Day 29 - Songs that make me want to dance

I had fun with this list - although I was cringing as I wrote it! My iPod has a little playlist called 'Kat's Cheese' - containing some seriously awful awesome tunes! Wham! are one of my favourites of all time ever.

I've also taken to blasting out LMFAO's latest album while I'm driving to work - it makes me feel way more happy about the day ahead.

Ok, I'm off to listen to some music with a bit more credibility *cough*

30 Days of Lists Day 28 - My last meal would include

I'm not sure if I'm that in love with any kind of food that I would like it to be at my last meal. The people I'm with and where I am are far more important I think.

That said I do, of course, have some favourites ;) They're not healthy ones really - but hey, at that point, who cares?

30 Days of Lists - Day 27 - If I could do it over again...

If I did this list over again I'd totally pick another colour ink...this is so hard to read (but I'm still obsessing with the coral/ blue colour combo). I try not to think too much about regrets or what I'd do differently. I do know that I'd worry about the unimportant things a lot less - it's a lesson I'm taking forward though. In general I'd do most things again - they've led me to where I am now, which is ok with me.

I would so dye my hair way more colours when I was younger though. I stuck with the basics - blonde, red, black - but have always had a huge love for brightly coloured hair - I think blue is my favourite. I feel a bit too old to carry it off now though :/

On a side note I love these butterfly stickers which I bought at 'The Range' - they only stick in the middle, leaving their wings free to 'flap'...so pretty.

30 Days of Lists - Day 26 - My morning routine

I'm feeling a little bit more human this evening and have actually had quite a fun day - most of which was spent blog-exploring. It's a dangerous past-time, I can get lost for hours!

Here's my list for today. Only one word can explain my morning routine...'urgh'. On week days I always have three snoozes on my alarm before dragging my sorry arse out of bed and into the shower. I then leave myself with about 15 minutes to actually get dressed, and do my hair and make-up, before I have to leave. I need to sort it out, and at least make time for breakfast.

See those little green dudes? I totally look like that in the morning...not a pretty sight.

Rather than spam my blog (can you spam your own blog?!) with pics of all the lists I haven't been able to post while I've been ill, I've posted them onto my flickr here.

30 Days of Lists - Day 19

Day 19  - Dear Nick, you can make me happy in the following ways...

- By just being you
- and occasionally buying me chocolate
- that's it

30 Days of Lists Catch-Up

Phew! Sorry for the blog silence. The headaches didn't go away this week and going on my laptop made them loads worse (I think they were telling me I needed to crash out and relax some...which I've done this weekend and feel loads better, so I'm back...hurrah!).

I've still been listing like a list-crazy person, so here's a catch up...

30 Days of Lists Update

Phew, sorry for the lack of posts. Last week was a bit of a killer...by the end of it I couldn't bear to look at a PC again so decided to take a step away from the internet for a couple of days. I'm feeling loads better now though.

I've still been listing away...here are the 3 lists I've missed posting...

Day 9 - Happy Places

I went for a rainbows colour theme for this list, because y'know...rainbows are happy.

Day 10 - Today was awesome because...

Yesterday was all kinds of awesome...because it was a Saturday. I'm easily pleased, and just having a day to chill out and do 'me stuff' was amazing.

Day 11 - Right now I am...

I may have taken this list too literally. All I could think was 'well right now I am trying to write this list' and then that was it...all creativity left me!

Anyway on non-list related business, I had a truly lovely day with family today, and am now the proud owner of a parrot lamp (eep!!). How was your weekend? Full of happy times I hope!

30 Days of Lists Day 8 I need to say no to...

Hmmm....where to begin.

No isn't a word that comes easily for me. Here's my list for Day 8

Sorry the picture isn't great, my eyes have reached a special level of tired today and seem to be impeding my photography skills! Here's a list close up:

It's a simple layout for today because my body is telling me it's time to say no to being awake ;) The little tortoise is just because I love tortoises really...and seem to me like they would also have trouble saying no.

Hope your Thursday has been a happy one (it's almost the weekend...woo!)

30 Days of Lists Day 5 - Words to live by

I've never really been a 'quote' or 'motto' kinda gal. I might occasionally stumble by a clever saying on Pinterest which raises a smile or inspires me, but nothing that I live my life by as such. I sat staring at a blank page for a while before I decided to take this list literally and started writing down some random words I believe strongly in.

They're words I feel inspired by, and try to make sure they are a part of my life.

As I started to write them down I was reminded of the word-searches I used to make up as a kid to go in the magazine I used to write for my cat's fan club (yes, my cat had a fan club - it had precisely 4 members - me, my mum and dad, and my best friend). And with that memory (a very happy one, I adored that cat), this layout  for my list was born.

30 Days of lists - Day 4 - Things I'll put off until tomorrow

This list was easy...I'm the queen of procrastination...the hardest part was not putting off writing the list!

They're pretty minor (although my hair is now out of control!) apart from writing my book. I suffer from a massive lack of confidence with my writing (which is why it's a challenge on my first list) and rather than face it I'm good at putting off writing 'until tomorrow'. Definitely something for me to work on.

I went for black and white for this list  because of the picture - I found it in a random decoupage book I picked up in a sale once and love it. The design is called 'The Waiting Room', which is what I feel I'm stuck in if I put off doing too much stuff - like I'm not going anywhere. Luckily I'm getting much better at it (even if my hair tells you otherwise).

30 Days of lists - Day 3 - Recipe for a perfect weekend

Here's my recipe for a perfect weekend...

I found the 'who', 'what', 'when', 'where' card in the middle of a pack of bargain scrap-booking supplies I got at TK Maxx a while back, and thought it fitted quite well here. My most perfect weekends recently have been spent with my boyfriend exploring local shops and finding little vintage treasures here and there (which I need to post about more!). I also treasure quiet time with my kitties. I've become such a low key weekend person these days. Long gone are the all night parties and all day hangovers ;)

Other perfect weekends include spending time with family doing chilled out things and time with friends laughing over random things that probably wouldn't be funny to anyone else.

I also wanted to share a close up of this cute little crochet flower - it was included in the Jar of Whimsies I received in a swap over at Craftster a while back and I thought it was so cute. I reeeeally need to learn how to crochet!

30 Days of Lists Day 2 - This month's goals

I love setting goals...so here is my list for March...

My love of bird themed items isn't dying down any. I find them really peaceful (tell Alfred Hitchcock that, right?), so they seemed like the logical addition to my goals list. Especially number 4 - although I'm hoping number 5 helps with that.

Number 3 is a really important goal for me. My dad recently passed to me a big box of photos of my mum and her family - most of them passed away before I was born, so the photos are a really important link. I've got a beautiful album for them and I'm looking forward to a peaceful day of mounting them. Anything to do with my mum, who passed away seven years ago now, is still emotional for me, and there's something about her childhood photos that makes me both very happy and very sad, all at the same time. So it'll be a bittersweet goal, but one that I know I'll be really happy to have achieved.

30 Days of Lists - Day 1 - Challenges to accept

I'm so excited to be starting the 30 Days of Lists today. I've already found it totally therapeutic to list my answers for the first day and work out how to present them. The whole presentation thing really helps me to think about the words I've written too.

Let's see if I can keep it up!

So here's my list for day 1, with the theme 'Challenges to accept'

I feel really positive about the challenges I'm facing at the moment so wanted this first list to be quite colourful. The buttons were bought in an amazing antique shop about a year ago - I got a big bag of each size and weirdly this is the first time I've used them.

Here's a close-up of my list. At first I was embarrassed about my handwriting and wasn't going to post the pictures of the actual lists but then I reminded myself about challenge number 2 and got over it!

All of these are important challenges for me at the moment, but none of them seem unachievable so I feel really good about them.

Apart from crochet maybe.

But I shall persevere!