As I mentioned in my last post, April 7th 2011, was officially five years to the day from when I created my first digital scrapbooking layout. Boy how time flies.

This week, in celebration of my 5th Scrap-i-versary, we’ll be continuing our trip down digiscrappy memory lane by revisiting some of my favorite digital scrapbooking hits and misses over the past five years, beginning with one of my absolute favorite scrapbooking projects ever: the Faves layouts. Or as I like to lovingly refer to it: the little scrapbooking project that would forever shape my future scrapbooking layouts. (Oh yeah, it’s that awesome.)

It’s All About the Faves

All you gallery stalkers out there have most likely seen my Faves layouts floating around in the digi galleries before, but for any of you newbies out there, here’s a quick refresher of what my Faves layouts are all about.

Back in January 2009, I decided that every month for that year, I would create a digital scrapbooking layout documenting my top ten favorite things from that month. My faves could be anything I wanted: people, places, things, experiences – anything and everything I was loving at that moment was fair game.

But I did set myself a few loose guidelines:

1. My list had to include exactly ten items – no more, no less.
2. Journaling had to be in list form but numbers were optional.
3. The title for the layout had to include the month followed by the word FAVES.
4. Each layout had to include a NEW self-portrait taken during that specific month. (I know some of you camera-shy peeps out there are cringing at the very thought of this, haha.)

Everything else was entirely up to me – color, design, kit, etc. (Well technically it was ALL up to me, but, uh, you get the idea, haha.)

The one thing I didn’t do was set myself a specific timeline for completing the layouts. No layout must be finish by the 8th minute of the 15th hour on the 1st day of the new month requirements here. If I scrapped my April faves on April 28th but didn’t scrap my May faves until July, I was totally ok with that. As much as I believe in the power of a deadline, I knew setting deadline for myself might quickly make this project a chore which I definitely wanted to avoid.

The Faves: the 2009 Edition

By the end of the 2009 Faves project I had scrapped these 12 layouts which I absolutely love:

Uh…December?…December?…Come in, December…

Or uh, these 12 11 layouts.

Confession time…

Yes, I discovered as I was writing this post thatapparently I never actually scrapped a December 2009 Faves page. Oops. Looks like I have a little bit more scrapbooking to do, haha. (Guess it’s a good thing I didn’t set a deadline to complete these, huh? LOL)

Anyway, *clears throat* moving on…

By the time December 2009 rolled around, I was ready to be done with the Faves layouts. Don’t get me wrong. I loved loved loved creating these layouts. They were most definitely one of my favorite scrapbooking projects I had ever done. Just looking at them makes me smile a big goofy grin.

But by the end of 2009, Adam had been deployed for a total of six months and the stress of him being gone had slowly taken it’s toll on my scrapbooking mojo. (Which is to say my digi mojo pool was at the bare minimum.) So I decided to take a break from the structure of the Faves for awhile and see where I ended up.

The Faves: the 2011 Edition

As 2010 progressed, I found myself more and more really missing scrapping my Faves layouts.

• I missed the simplicity of the list journaling. Seriously, easiest journaling ever.
• I missed having new monthly photos on hand for All About Me layouts. I know, I’m weird. Haha.
• I missed the challenge of coming up with fun, creative ways to scrap each month’s list in a new way.
• And I really missed having that monthly snapshot of my life to look back on. Having a moment captured in time like that is so cool to me.

So when January 2011 rolled around, I decided to begin my monthly Faves layouts again.

Same rules. New faves. Two years later.

This is the lovely layout I scrapped back in February to document my January 2011 Faves:

And for reference purposes, here’s a larger version of the layout I scrapped documenting my January 2009 Faves:

Seeing these two layouts – ten faves, two years apart – reminds why I LOVE these Faves layouts oh-so-very-much. (And not just because my drop shadowing has clearly improved, haha.)

In the two years between when I scrapped these two layouts, I’ve:

• been through a year-long deployment
• sold a car
• sold our first house
• moved to a new city and state
• bought another car
• made three trips to Disneyworld, trips to Chicago and Hawaii and numerous trips to California

To say my life is different today from how it was in January 2009 would be an understatement.

And yet when I look at these two layouts, I’m reminded again that while my world around me may have changed (such is life as a military wife), so much about me has remained the same.

Like my love for driving my Nissan Murano. Oh how I love that car.

And my obsession for home decor blogs. Young House Love is my newest fave.

This Is Why I Love the Faves

If I were to ask you today what your top-ten favorite things were back in January 2009, would you be able to tell me? Lord knows I wouldn’t be able to remember. But the beauty of these Faves layouts is I don’t have to.

Because my Faves? They are right there. On.these.layouts. Documented for all time.

And that right there is why I love scrapbooking.

Because it allows me to document all those little bits and pieces of life that would otherwise be forgotten. Those little bits that truly make up who we are. And that is oh-so-very-cool.

Why Every Scrapbooker Should Scrap a Faves Layout

Pardom me for a moment while I step up onto my little digi soapbox to say this:

I truly believe that every scrapbooker should take the time to scrap their very own Faves layout.

Why?

• Because a top ten list is one of the easiest forms of journaling you can possibly do. For real.
• Because a list of your personal faves will say more about you than a travel/event/birthday layout ever will
• Because it’s an awesome way to make sure YOU are featured in your scrapbooks too

And if that wasn’t reason enough for you, I’m about to make creating your own very Faves layouts mind-blowingly easy.

Introducing FAVE-O-RITES Vol. 1 – The January Faves Edition

One advantage of my being one of the slowest digiscrappers ever? Despite it being now uh, April, haha (seriously, HOW did that happen??), I have only scrapbooked one 2011 Faves layouts – my January 2011 Faves. Which means, good news for you, there is still plenty of time for you to join me in scrapbooking your 2011 Monthly Faves! Woohoo! Go Team Slow Scrapper!

Today I am releasing the first in a series of digital scrapbooking templates based on my Faves layouts: FAVE-O-RITES Vol. 1 – The January Faves Edition.

Today’s release includes two templates: The January Faves No. 1 and The January Faves No. 2.

Each template can be purchased individually or you can purchase the template two-pack to save a little cash. These templates are not only perfect for documenting your own Faves layouts but they’re a great way to scrapbook any kind of top ten list for yourself, your spouse or your kids.

Here they are in all their digiscrappy goodness…

FAVE-O-RITES Vol. 1 – The January Faves Edition

FAVE-O-RITES Vol. 1 – The January Faves No. 1

FAVE-O-RITES Vol. 1 – The January Faves No. 2

Now It’s Your Turn

And with that my 5th Scrap-i-versary tribute to my most favorite project in the past five years comes to an end. But now I want to hear from you.

Have you scrapped your own Faves layout? Did you love the end result? Have you thought about it but just never taken the plunge? If so what are you waiting for?

Hit reply and let me know in the comments and if you’ve scrapped your Faves, be sure to link me up to your page so I can check it out! And if you use one of my brand-spanking new templates, be sure to link me up here in the comments too so I leave ya some love. I can’t wait to see what you create!