papercraft

Hello! Annette Green here with my first Planner Essentials blog post!

2020 will be a year of big changes for my husband and I, since we’ll be moving to Downtown Greenville, South Carolina by the Summer. In our efforts to stay organized with all the tasks we’ll be faced with and to document the progress, I thought I’d create a separate planner just for this purpose. This will be a great place for photos, but also for lists, goals, accomplishments and all the details therein.

My dashboard features a hidden list of our favorite things about Greenville, tucked behind a large tag with our photo.

It’s interesting to see our photo through the vellum window. This protects the photo nicely on the front page, while also encouraging viewers to pull the tab to see more.

The intro pages start the story and show a few photos from our recent visit to Greenville.

Here are a few tips for using the Planner Essentials dies, stamps and other ECD products to make the job easier. When die-cutting letters and more intricate pieces, I use Clear Double-Sided Adhesive sheets on the back of my cardstock and paper.

Washi tape is great for holding small dies in place, especially when using a magnetic platform. I’ve used the Planner Essentials 23 Alphabet Trio set.

After cutting a tan cardstock page using the Planner Essentials 4 die, cut parchment paper 3 3/4″ x 6 1/2″ (9.525 cm x 16.51 cm) which is slightly larger than the window opening to come. Adhere title letters and make a list.

Die-cut a pattern paper pocket from Planner Essentials 22 Planner Pocket 4 – Top Loading then die-cut the opening with the stitched window die. (You’ll need to do a bit of planning for position so you can view your list through the window.) For the hole-reinforcers, die-cut two from coordinating cardstock and adhere.

Adhere either clear acrylic or vellum (like mine) onto the back of the pocket page.

Adhere the pocket page to the tan base page.

Die-cut more words and numbers. I’ve cut mine from green and black cardstock and layered them to create a drop shadow effect. Adhere small reinforcers on the page holes. I’ve used Planner Essentials 27 Retro Numbers Trio and the Reinforcement Variety Pack.

To create a tag for the pocket, die-cut black cardstock using the topper die as shown. My tag measures 3 7/8″ x 8 5/8″ (9.8425 cm x 21.9075 cm) after die-cutting.

Die-cut the fold-over piece from green cardstock and stamp “Pull•Pull•Pull” around the hole using Pieces of Life 1 – Numbers & More stamp set.

Cover the tag with pattern paper, then adhere the fold-over tab piece to the top.

Slide the tag into the pocket to check the fit and make any necessary adjustments.

Adhere a photo with a green cardstock mat to the tag, again planing the positioning so it shows through the vellum window. I’ve stamped This is Us from the Circle Labels stamp set.

Insert the tag into the pocket page.

Onto the back of the dashboard page, adhere pattern paper and add hole reinforcements. Die-cut a notepad twice (tan and black) using Planner Essentials 21 Note Pieces. I’ve added Greenville again with two colors, and stamped a circle for the upper right corner.

I’ve adhered a chipboard tag from Graphic 45’s Life’s A Journey collection and added black reinforcement circles around the holes.

Die-cut another base page and stamp the background. I’ve used Background Stamps 2 with tan ink. Die cut the photo frame pieces using Planner Essentials 24 – Photo Frame Pages. I’ve cut the background portion from coordinating pattern paper and the front piece from black cardstock. Adhere this unit to the base page, add photos and captions.

Insert pages into your planner. I’ve used the Espresso Planner Cover which will go nicely with my Greenville documentation.

Hope you enjoyed my tutorial! See you next time.

Annette