Hello, Story - Week Eight

The Hello, Story class I took at Big Picture Classes last year was so full of content and inspiration, I'm still working on the layouts I planned from it. It is rare that I percolate page ideas as long as I did the basis for the following page, inspired by the subject of week eight of the class, maps.

I've moved around quite a bit in my life, and I wanted to do a page that listed and told the story of the states I've lived in. From the first time I saw it, I loved that USA map stamp by Hero Arts, and it became the anchoring element for this layout.

I used Stampin' Up! markers and coordinating card stock for the four states, selecting those particular colors to help me illustrate the tone or feeling each state has in my memory. Bright yellow mimics Florida's persistent and plentiful sunshine. Rust harkens back to the red clay mud so prevalent in Texas. For Minnesota, I chose green, reminiscent of the lush natural beauty of that landscape during the summer months, lightened by the constant memory and reality of winter white. And for Michigan, the blue of water, which surrounds us here on three sides, that lighter shade one of my favorite colors.

Originally, I meant to do the journaling on tags that would slip into pockets decorated by icons of each state. But then I thought of drawing arrows to and from the states to indicate the years I moved back and forth, and tags coming out the top would've obscured that design element, so I changed my mind.

I struggled with finding appropriate letter stickers for the title, until my husband was trying to help me find black letters at JoAnn, and I noticed the map print Thickers I knew I had at home. How perfect! I used asterisks and periods from that set as embellishments on the three groupings, and I used black letter stickers from Jilliebean Soup to finish the title and name the states.

The heart die is an older one from QuicKutz, and the pinked circles were cut from a newer set from Stampin' Up! The arrows are Thickers, and the stamps are from Ali Edwards (how fitting!) for Technique Tuesday and Studio Calico. I also used a grid stamp from American Crafts to add just a bit of texture to the blue die cuts and an arrow stamp from a Studio Calico kit to add a subtle border.

This page is one of my favorites ever. I love how it came together, piece by piece, that I took my time with it and created something that I will enjoy for years to come, especially because it tells an important part of my life story.

Hello, Story is being offered through Big Picture Classes again in April, and I cannot recommend it highly enough.