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It seems like with the start of the new year my mind starts to reel with all of the possibilities of things I want to accomplish, make, share and more. The number one thing on my list is to "beef up" my bullet journal/planner. I have been using it consistently as a planner for many months and enjoy the multitude of lists and calendar features I'm currently utilizing, and now I want to take it a step further. Pinterest is always a great source of inspiration and here are some things that caught my eye to implement. Savings Tracker We all could use a little more in savings - whether it be an emergency fund or savings for a particular item. Spending Tracker I love the idea of tracking what I spend my money on because often I use cash for my every day spending so I don't have the credit/debit transactions as record, plus I like being able to make notes about the purchase.  Date Trackers The whole point of maintaining a Bullet Journal or Planner is so you don't forget certain dates. However, having a couple of key pages dedicated to tracking specific dates can be really helpful. Goals And lastly, it wouldn't be a new year without setting at least a few goals.  If you want to work on your planner, bullet journal or traveler's notebook and get it ready for 2018, join us in the Palette & Paper studio on Saturday, January 13 between 11 am - 2 pm. It is an open "planner crop" time, but we do ask that you register here.
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Can you believe it, this Friday marks December 1! It also starts the first day of the Advent Calendar! As a kid I always had the chocolate candy filled Advent Calendars. Peeling back that perforated door for a piece of candy was a highlight of my holiday season.  Did you know that the first Advent Calendars were used by German Lutherans in the 19th and 20th Centuries, but are now ubiquitous among groups of all faiths and beliefs. This year as part of my family’s holiday season celebration I decided to create an “Activity Advent Calendar” instead of a "treat" calendar (although, I do like treats too!). I brainstormed 25 activities that could be done in the evening/weekend for 25 days of December. They range from the super simple activities like “Eat dinner by the light of the Christmas Tree” or “Drink Hot Cocoa for dessert” to things like “Take a walk/drive around the neighborhood to look at Christmas Lights” or “Take 2 books to the free library at the park”. I gathered inspiration for our activities by perusing Pinterest. Here are some of my favorite lists (click on the image to see it larger).
Since this is the first year of doing an Advent Calendar I went with simple little numbered sacks that I bought post-Christmas last year. I hung them with some washi tape and ribbon on a large mirror we have in our entry way.
However, I am soaking up some major inspiration for our Advent Calendar 2.0! I mean, just look at these gorgeous examples!
How do you celebrate the holiday season? Have you made an Avent Calendar? Will you be keeping a December Daily/Memory Album? Reminder: there is still time to sign up for the Daily Memory Album for December with Brandi workshop tomorrow evening. Details and registration link are here! This is not a drill . . . Thanksgiving is only one week away! (Seriously, where has 2017 gone?) I'm sure you have given the turkey, mashed potatoes, pies and all of the other Thanksgiving goodies thought, but what about your decor and tablescape? Today we are sharing some quick and easy projects to add some Turkey Day Festiveness to your Thanksgiving. If you have a more formal Thanksgiving, let your guests know where to sit by making place cards. If things are more casual, these same designs can be used as food tent cards to identify the various food dishes. Add some pumpkins to your decor! I love the idea of adding names or sentiments to the pumpkins using metallic markers or paint. Another great idea is to add Deco Foil (available in a multitude of colors for $6) to the pumpkins - super easy to do, but you get a very dramatic look. I bet you could create some truly awesome looks with Viva Decor's Inka-Gold and Glitter Paste also! Go on a little nature walk and pick up some greenery and leaves to adhere to a pumpkin using Gel Medium. P&P offers a variety of Gel Mediums from various manufacturers.  Make cute garlands to decorate with for Thanksgiving. This pumpkin pie garland looks good enough to eat! P&P has a lot of great solid cardstock in 8 1/2 x 11" and 12 x 12" sizes to use, along with fun patterns for autumn. Lastly, give your silverware (or plasticware, after all, Thanksgiving is meant to be spent being thankful with loved ones and not washing dishes!) a little oomph with one of these ideas.
Just a reminder we are open the following days/times now through Thanksgiving, so be sure to stop in and say hi. Thursday, Nov. 16: 11 am - 5 pm Friday, Nov. 17: 11 am - 5 pm Saturday, Nov. 18: 11 am - 5 pm Sunday, Nov. 19: closed Monday, Nov. 20: 11 am - 5 pm Tuesday., Nov. 21 11 am - 4 pm Wednesday, Nov. 22: Closed Thursday, Nov. 23: Closed We are extremely thankful for all of our customers, and wish you all a wonderful Thanksgiving. We hope to see you on Black Friday and Small Business Saturday (make 'n takes, sales and discounts and free tote bags for qualifying purchases).  Happy November! Today kicks off the first day of November - a good month to reflect on all the good in your life, give thanks and let gratitude sink in. It's also a great time to keep a gratitude journal. "A gratitude journal is a diary of things for which one is grateful. Gratitude journals are used by individuals who wish to focus their attention on the positive things in their lives. Gratitude, the feeling of appreciation or thanks, has gained a lot of attention in the field of positive psychology," according to Wikipedia.  A gratitude journal can take many forms - a simple composition notebook, a Traveler's Notebook insert you make or buy, a collection of small journal cards that you write on and stick in a SN@P! Album or similar, writing in a mini album you have created and so much more. Keep in mind if you already use a planner or bullet journal, you can easily incorporate this idea into that. Just look at the examples below!
Now that you have your Gratitude Journal, what should you fill it up with? It's an easy answer: whatever makes you feel gratitude. However, it can be a little intimidating to start. Below is a round-up of some prompts that can help inspire you to create and reflect on your gratitude. Do you keep a gratitude journal? Have you been inspired to start one? With it being only a couple of days until Halloween, we thought we would give you the Halloween Hook-up in today's blog post - a collection of Halloween inspired paper craft projects, a costume idea or two and links to some of the Halloween projects we shared last year. So grab that bag of candy meant for the neighborhood kids, help yourself to a treat or two and keep reading! Tags Do you make Halloween Treats for your family, friends, neighbors, coworkers or others? Making a quick tag is a great way to "dress up" a little treat for gift giving.  I love how they turned this tag into a ghost with the addition of some punches from black paper. If you don't have googly eyes you could make some eyes out of paper. Add a touch of Wink of Stella in clear to give the ghost a little sparkle in his eye! Source These tags turned out adorable with pieces of Halloween paper and ephemera layered on them. We have Tim Holtz ephemera, gorgeous Halloween collections from Authentique and more in stock to create similar tags with.   If you need a quick and easy tag/treat idea, I love this pocket tag that was created to hold a small candy bar. So cute! Love how the ghosts "pop" with their inked edges (use Distress Inks and a small sponge dauber to create a similar effect). Source Costumes Since chances are you are a crafter if you are ready this, what about dressing up like that?! You know how it can be when you leave a Creative Weekend in the Studio or after an afternoon of crafting at home. You end up with washi tape stuck to your arm, ink and paint smudges all over, glitter in your hair, a random sequin stuck who-knows-where and more. Live your truth and recreate that look for a Halloween costume!  Source If paper is your thing, but glitter and paper scraps stuck everywhere isn't your thing, try one of these paper doll costumes! A look back . . . Looking back to our blog from last October, we shared a lot of fun, creative Halloween ideas. If you missed them last year, be sure to check them out below.  Need a little gift to give? Check out this stamped muslin bag with hand sanitizer idea. More details here.  Want to make a cool Halloween bracelet? Grab a water bottle, some Halloween paper or washi tape and gel medium - yep, you can make a bracelet out these items! Click here for more details!  There is still time to decorate your home for Halloween. Check out this cute trio of frames created to spell out BOO! More details here. So go scare up some creativity this Halloween, and we wish everyone a fun and safe holiday!
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Palette & Paper's blog is written by creative team member, Kimberly.
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