8 Big Ideas for Scrapping Your Big Trip!

Tell Your Story: LEGOLAND California

BIG IDEAS for scrapping your big trip

Greetings everyone! Are you ready for the rest of the California story? Today is the day as I finally put together the rest of the album with pictures of our two day visit to LEGOLAND, California. The Tell Your Story edition unfolds with multiple pages, multiple dies and lots of Big Ideas.

“The Road Block” For years I operated on the assumption that I did not have many photos to scrap from this trip because I had already scrapped a page and went no further. That layout consisted of two pages of approximately 1.5” x 1” photos (printed using a contact sheet setting.) I had taken on a new to us movie camera that also took 2MG photos. Don’t laugh. It was my first plunge into digital cameras and I was not impressed. I was also not well informed and expected too much. Those photos did not print out nicely at all not even at 3.5” x 5”. I was crushed. This was a trip of a lifetime, and nothing.

I really like the layout I came up with, but actually being able to see and enjoy the pictures was another thing. Here’s the layout I did.

Original layout inspiration

Original layout inspiration

Thanks Goodness I had a second camera with me that I used with film and those were far better, but because I had this huge road block in my mind, I never even tried to scrap these photos. Until now. I was surprised when I pulled out the photos for the previous pages you’ve already seen and began planning a layout for this post.

Gradually, I realized just picking a few random photos for a two page spread was going to fall short so I began to consider really big ideas of how to accomplish taking nearly 90 photos…almost all usable and complete the task of finishing an album.

I also pulled out a folder with all my “Stuff” from LEGOLAND that I totally forgot I had, like the maps and plane tickets along with LEGO textured paper I had planned to use. What a find!

Now usually I urge people who have tons of photos to scrap that they are so behind on to start with what is current and keep going. That is sound advice for those that are easily overwhelmed. However, it is equally true that your memory of older events you’ve captured in photos could easily fade as each day passes. Your memory fails, a loved one passes away, children forget that first rush of excitement of that special occasion and what could have been a great story to retell may dwindle and lose some of its shine.

So join me on this journey today and be inspired to catch a fleeting memory while you can.

Let’s begin with my story.

My son Andrew was nine years old when his father was given a terminal diagnosis and life expectation of a manner of weeks…a month or two at the most. As hard as it was for all of us to deal with, I thought my youngest child probably had the hardest time with it.

His father lasted much longer than predicted by doctors and there were often many stressful days as we watched my husband wither away. During this time I decided I needed to do something special for my youngest when it was all over.

He is a big fan of LEGO and I had big ideas for a trip to California’s LEGOLAND. I made plans, checked deals and anticipated the excitement. I know nothing can substitute for a parent, but new beginnings need places to start, and we needed some time together away from home.
So, let’s get on to the results!

There are six double page layouts and 13 pages all together. I have used 8 different patterns and several more than once. I have used four different grid colors, Red, Sunshine, Emerald and Bahama Blue. I have used LEGO patterned paper by Paper Wizard and small building block brads (eyelet outlet). I also created my own LEGO paper blocks by shooting several different LEGO collections we own, printing and cropping to fit the spaces I needed. I have also included five of our dies in the layouts.

MM TYS Big Idea layout 1

MM TYS Big Ideas layout 1

The second page of this calls for 6″ of photos in the strip area. Because I was working with 5″ photos and I needed to keep it balanced I only used 4″ of the photo. That required changing the photos on either side from 2×3 to 3×3.

MM TYS Big Ideas layout 2

MM TYS Big Ideas layout 2

 

MM TYS Big Ideas Layout 3

MM TYS Big Ideas Layout 3

 

MM TYS Big Ideas layout 4

MM TYS Big Ideas layout 4

 

MM TYS Big Ideas layout 5

MM TYS Big Ideas layout 5

On page 1 the center square pattern piece I mounted the 2″ square on a black 2.125″ paper tile.

 

MM TYS Big Ideas Layout 6

MM TYS Big Ideas Layout 6

 

MM TYS layout 7

MM TYS layout 7

Here are the dies used, plus Die Sets A and C.

MM New Dies used in Big Ideas

MM New Dies used in Big Ideas

Here are the Patterns used:

MM Patterns

MM Patterns

The majority of my photos were horizontal in orientation so I’ve made use of as many patterns that would accommodate them. Using Die Set C and the 3×4 block die I was able to retain a great deal of the original 3.5” x 5” photo. There are a couple of times I’ve made adjustments to the pattern to accommodate photos and I’ll note that as we go along.

MY BIG IDEAS for Scrapping your big trip

1. Grid Colors. I went with the traditional LEGO colors to match our Scarlet, Sunshine, Emerald and Bahama Blue. If you are visiting any number of amusement parks across the country these are colors that will work. If you are scrapping a Disney Park you will want to lean toward Red, White, Black and Yellow and red with white polka dots paper or embellishments.

MM TYS LEGOLAND Color Palette

MM TYS LEGOLAND Color Palette

2. Pattern Papers used here were LEGO embossed papers with a shiny surface in each of the colors plus black. In gift shops at many vacation spots you will often find they have a package that will include a pattern paper unique to them. If you like it you may want to use portions on the grid layout as mats or filler areas. A little paper will go a long way and cover several pages. A great way to unify several pages of  a collection.

MM TYS LEGO textured paper

MM TYS LEGO textured paper

3. Brads and Blocks. One of my long ago purchases were little building block brads they were perfect little additions in various spots. You may find gems in your stash that would add to your pages. Taking a few sections of the pattern paper to create a few blocks to use as embellishments on the corners of some of the journal blocks can stretch that look throughout the layouts. Using our corner tile die that pattern paper can become photo corners.

MM_TYS Big Ideas

MM_TYS Big Ideas

MM_TYS_Big Ideas

MM_TYS_Big Ideas

4. Detail Photos. At the park I took several photos of the various trees, they were so interesting because they are not found in my neck of the woods. I also took close up photos of several of our bins of blocks from the various collections around the house! They make great filler blocks.

MM_TYS Big Ideas creating detail blocks with interesting photos

MM_TYS Big Ideas creating detail blocks with interesting photos

5. Using Dies. One of our newest dies is the Crossroads Die that covers a 4×4 square area. I thought it would look great in the center of one of the patterns. Using 4 color blocks each at 2” square I arranged them on my craft mat and then overlay the die piece in black. By trimming the excess off those pieces I had bits to fit nicely in the remaining open spots in each corner. Then it was applied to the grid.

MM_TYS Big Ideas Crossroads Frame Die

MM_TYS Big Ideas Crossroads Frame Die

MM_TYS Big Ideas Dies: Compass, graphic frame, circle die

MM_TYS_Big Ideas Dies: Compass, graphic frame, circle die

The compass point was a perfect choice for the Miniland USA with buildings and towns from across the fruited plains. Additionally on this page using two other cornerstone dies the circle die and the 2.125” frame from the Large Graphics Frame set for journal spots.

6. Incorporating maps. In my memorabilia find was a couple of park maps. Both were too big to fit onto the page in the layout so I photographed the map and then cropped the sections of the map I wanted to highlight on my page. One map was included on the Volvo Driving School page highlighting the location of the track in the park. Another map included and the entire map is reduced and place in the center spot of the final page between the blank “to be filled later” white squares.

MM Tell Your Story adding maps to your layout

MM Tell Your Story adding maps to your layout

MM_TYS_Big Ideas Journaling spots for other journaling from other people

MM_TYS_Big Ideas Journaling spots for other journaling from other people

7. Journal spots for my story for Andrew: I’ve created a card with a personal story account written to Andrew I hope you won’t mind if I don’t share those details. I have however included some of the story in the journaling spots on the pages I have presented and have left a page with two spots for Andrew to add a few of his own thoughts once he sees this collection.

Card with LEGO paper bits

Card with LEGO paper bits

MM_TYS_Big Ideas Journaling

MM_TYS_Big Ideas Journaling

MM_TYS_Big Ideas Journaling

MM_TYS_Big Ideas Journaling

MM_TYS_Big Ideas Journaling

MM_TYS_Big Ideas Journaling

8. Journaling blocks to be filled by Andrew of his recollections. Shared memories should have a place in your scrapbooks. It adds to the richness of the story you are telling and draws more people into it. I am always amazed when we are sharing a family story to hear each of my five kids with their own take on the events. Add those voices to your scrapbook pages and you won’t regret it.

MM_TYS_Big Ideas Journaling spots for other journaling from other people

MM_TYS_Big Ideas Journaling spots for other journaling from other people

Thanks for coming on this journey with me…perhaps you’ll tackle one of those piles of photos you’ve been putting off scrapping. Maybe you too have a mental road block in your way I hope you’ve been encouraged to try and tackle it and look at things from another vantage point. Relive an event, talk about the event with others there, and gather their points of view and stories. Then jump in with both feet! Enjoy!

Andrea Fisher

MM Tell Your Story LEGOLAND Big Ideas

MM Tell Your Story LEGOLAND Big Ideas