Yes, it's true. I am generous to a fault. Selfless, really. A candidate for sainthood. Beautiful, humble, and kind. Beloved by animals and small children.
What? You need evidence? You can't just take my word for it? Geesh. What a bunch of skeptics you are. That kind of cynicism is what's wrong with the world today. But no matter -- I actually DO have proof that I am an authentic altruist. Read on.
A few years ago -- four, to be exact -- I gave my friend, Audrey, a decorated version of my favorite planner: Amy Knapp's Family Organizer (I'll explain why I like this one so much in a bit). I had just begun stamping, and, well, it shows.
Awww... Stampin' Fun for Everyone! Do you remember that Stampin' Up set? It was one of my favorites, for obvious reasons. The text beside the image reads "Sure, Mick [that's her husband's name, btw], right after I finish working out, getting ready, fixing lunches, making breakfast, taking the kids to school, volunteering, cleaning the house, paying the bills, doing the laundry, grocery shopping, picking the kids up from school, chauffeuring to practices, helping with homework, preparing a healthy and nutritious dinner, making sure the boys are bathed and in bed..."
I had to go the first page of my Splitcoast gallery to find the photo -- I've got 588 items in my SCS gallery, and this is #11. I was just a stamping pup! Anyway... A couple of months ago, Audrey mentioned how much she missed this planner and that she wished I would make her another one. Her birthday was earlier this month, and here's what I put together for her. I think it's a big improvement over the first one. Here's the front cover:
and here's the back:
I used the cute Cuppie images from Taylored Expressions' A Year of Sweets 1, 2, and 3. First I had to determine how big each image panel could be in order to fit 6 images on each cover (I don't have the exact measurements at the moment -- must have thrown them away). Then, I cut out the image panels and stamped the images, using my Stamp-a-Majig to get them placed just right. Most of the images have a little bit of the backgrounds cut off, but the scenes are mostly intact. The main parts of the images were colored with Copic Markers and their backgrounds were filled in via Prismacolor pencils and odorless mineral spirits. Cuppie's cherry -- stop it; don't be so immature. What are you? Thirteen? LIKE I WAS SAYING... -- Cuppie's cherry is covered in stickles, as are a few other things like the buckle to his hat and the fireworks.
So why do I think this version is superior to the first calendar? Well --
- No ribbon on the spirals. While the ribbon is cute, it gets in the way when you're trying to turn the pages. It also tends to get dirty and tattered after a few months of use and traveling in the bottom of a purse or bag.
- The back cover is also decorated. The first version just had some patterned paper on the back.
- On the first version, I merely altered the original cover of the calendar. You can still see the original cover at the spiral edge. This looks tacky and always bugged me. For the new version, I created entirely new covers and rethreaded the spiral.
- Here's the biggie: the new version's covers are LAMINATED. This makes all the difference as far as durability and keeping the artwork from getting dirty. I have a laminating machine I bought at Sam's a few years ago, so I was able to do some experimenting. A lot of times when you take something to a UPS Store or Kinko's to get laminated, the worker will tell you that whatever you've brought in is too thick to laminate properly. These covers have four layers (black base layer, patterned paper layer, black frame, image layer) -- I set my laminator for the greatest thickness (7 mm) and ran them through several times, from both portrait and landscape directions, to get it as firmly bonded as possible. They look great, and I'm happy with the result. If you want to do something similar but don't have your own laminator just ask {as nicely as possible} the person running the machine at the store to run it through multiple times and from different angles. It makes a big difference!
Here are the steps involved in creating something similar, in case you're interested. With the holidays and the New Year coming up, they make a very thoughtful gift that's really useful but won't break your budget. Here's the before picture:
Who wants to carry around something like that when it could be so much cuter? Especially something that you have to look at every day of the year.
You need two pieces of heavy-weight cardstock at 6 1/8" x 8 3/8" for the base layer (I used 100 lb. Black Licorice cardstock from My Favorite Things). The patterned paper (this is some from Carolee's Creations by Adornit and is no longer available. I chose it because I liked the way it blended with the colored images) measures out at 5 5/16" x 8 3/16".
Unthread the coil from the calendar.
Take the original cover and line it up with the new cover. Using the original cover as a template, take a pencil (I used a white one so I could see it against the black paper) and outline where the spiral holes need to be on backside of your new covers.
I went ahead and punched holes at this point with my Crop-a-dile so that I could accurately center my images the way I wanted them and so that I could erase any pencil markings that were left over after punching. Because the holes in the original cover are slightly larger than the Crop-a-Dile holes, this was a necessary step so the inside covers wouldn't look messy.
Laminate your covers and punch the holes again. Then, adhere a poly envelope or pouch to the interior of the back cover with redline tape, or some other very strong adhesive. The envelope is so that the user can have a place to store receipts, coupons, postage stamps, etc.
I couldn't find my preferred poly envelope style (they measure about 5.5" x 7.5") that I've used in the past, so I settled on the ones below from Office Depot. They're okay, but if you aren't in a rush and can find the other kind, use those.
Rethread the coil through the covers and calendar pages. This is a little time consuming, so do it as you're watching TV so it doesn't seem like that much of a pain in the rear.
Attach index tabs to the month-at-a-glance pages. I used clear, self-adhesive ones, and printed out the months onto white paper and then glued them to slips of cardstock that matched the patterned paper. (You'll see 'em on the pages below.)
Like most papercrafters, I've had a lifelong obsession with office supplies. Believe me when I say I've checked every paper organizer out, and have tried every system known to mankind. I've never been able to transition over to an e-calendar, despite being a gadget girl. Palm pilots, iPhones, iPads -- nope. I gotta have my paper, and it's got to fit in my purse (which cancels out any system with a binder, like the Franklin Covey stuff). Here's why I prefer this one above all others:
1. The monthly calendar pages are by their corresponding weekly pages.
I know that sounds minor, but it's a big deal! Too many systems bunch their month-at-a-glance pages together at the front. I put a binder clip on the top of the left hand side of my calendar that allows me to flip immediately to the current week. For future planning purposes, I don't want to have to undo that -- I'd rather just flip forward.
2. Removable grocery lists and menu planning spaces.
A lot of calendars have these now, but I'm pretty sure this one was the first. I really do use those little list and tear them out when I go to the store. Whenever we're low on something, I just jot it down in my calendar instead of on random slips of paper that inevitably get lost. You'll note also that each week has a quote at the top of the To-Do List page. The quotes are good ones, too. Not dumb ones like a lot of calendars have. I'm picky about things like that. There is plenty of space for each day of the week to write down appointments and birthdays, and plenty of room on the other side for reminders of things I need to do. Not too much, but not too little. It's everything I need.
3. Good for organizing Kid Info
(Note the space for Post-It notes; always handy to have some of these on you.)
4. Handy for all those web passwords
There are now a lot of calendars that on the surface look like this one does, particularly all those "Mom" planners at Borders and Barnes & Noble. Most of them have much cuter covers and hipper fonts, I'll give them that. But I can cute this one up myself, and none have a better layout.
I've added a little Amazon associates widget up near my photo if you're interested in purchasing one. Amazon has the best price on these that I'm aware of, and if you have Amazon Prime -- which I heartily recommend -- you get free shipping and will receive it in just a couple of days. You can also find this planner at all the big chain bookstores. WalMart used to carry these, but discontinued doing so a couple of years ago; don't you know that was a bummer for Amy K., not to mention making them harder to find for the rest of us.
So there you have it: proof that I am quite possibly the greatest living humanitarian (now that Mother Teresa is dead, and all). I told my friend in her card (yes, she even got a beautiful, hand-crafted card! More proof!) acceptance of this gift requires her to think kind thoughts about me each and every day. What good is giving a gift without a bunch of strings attached?!
Now, go forth, my children, and follow my example by doing similar good deeds and spreading the love. Peace be with you.
