Crusade No. 51 ~ Home Sweet Home

 

 

Thank you to the handful of crusaders who took on the last challenge and shared it with us.  It's always so fun to see how each of you interpret it.  I appreciate how much time it takes to complete the work and then blog about it - but in doing so you widen our perspective of how to work in a journal, AND we got to know more about you.  So thanks!

Since last summer we have been on a renovation spree at home.  We gutted and re-did the entire bathroom, and other rooms just got facelifts.  New paint in the kitchen, living room, and our daughter's room.  Seems we cycle through the house every five or six years.  With new paint comes a few other new things.  I have always kept a record of each new look.  I love revisiting pages I made that document the kids rooms from when they were alot younger.  It's part of our history and the visuals evoke many memories.

My challenge for you this month is to make a page or two about your home.  You can tell us about where you live now and how you have chosen to represent yourself within.  Or you can revisit all the locations you've lived.  You could start an evidence page of all the things that are important to you in the home, or you can share a simple story about the walls that surround you. 

The spread below shows how I recalled every address I once called home.

 

When we paint the walls I always brush onto some tags - these are not only great resources to carry with me when I am accessorizing, but one always goes in my journal as part of the story.

 

 
 

Look around you.  What can you capture - with clippings, or with photos, that could be inserted in your journal?  What do you want to remember?  As we know, things change.  Maybe things don't change that often at home as changing a room is different changing your hair color.  But someday you will be happy to have these pages. 

 

 

Above are some of the photos I took to use on the 2010/2011 renovations pages.  Below are pages done several years ago from our previous color scheme.  I included paints, clippings from napkins and tablecloths, upholstery, and drapery.  I even attached the "test" paper from some stamping I did on the walls.

 

My first career was as an interior architect/designer.  I worked on hotels and restaurants and had several residential clients.  Proposed plans for hotels would be presented on design boards for approval.  For my residential clients I kept loose files, and eventually assembled everything into this journal.  LOVE having all of it right there on the pages.  Not only a great resource, but fun to remember the event of designing someone's living place - filled with their personal choices.

Here are some of those pages, from the archives...maybe they will provide some inspiration:

 

 

 

 

 

 

The beauty of *evidence* pages as they are records....documenting something of significance, and don't need to be polished and 'finished' so to speak.  Think about how you want to interpret this challenge.  Be literal and illustrate the details of your home - or go fantastical and makes pages of your dream home.  Or be sentimental and write about your childhood home.  These pages are for YOU.  Do not feel like you have to give up your privacy to participate.  To keep things sacred you sometimes have to keep them secret.  I get that.  Share what you are comfortable with....but make the pages as I promise you will love that you did....someday.

 

 

Archived links have been relocated from sidebar to here.

Cath Sheard
Cathy Cervantes
Daisy
Elena Nosyreva
Jane Royal
K
Karen Davis
Maria
Maria (again)
Melanie Philpott
Michelle Ward
Quinn McDonald
Rosemary Griffin
TJ
Viki Banaszak

Comments

[Judy N]

Michelle!
How fun! I need to put the thinking cap on to see what it is I want to do....I have been wanting to document the addresses I have lived in my whole life (there are 4) but I want to document my current home as well. Perhaps I can do both!

FUN crusade! Can't wait to get started. Thanks for continuing to put up the Crusades. I don't know if you know just how much I look forward to this each month and how much you are appreciated!

Until later,
Judy

[michelle ward]

Judy, thanks for sharing your enthusiasm for this crusade and for letting me know you follow along each month. Means alot to me to know that.

[viki]

This looks like another fun crusade. I can't wait to give it a go. I am finally out of my neck brace and better able to play for any length of time. Maybe I'll be able to do some catch up pages too :)

[daisy]

Oh my oh my ... this crusade has already had me scrabbling through my old paperwork for information ... I realised that I didn't know all the addresses that I've lived at, so I've been off hunting them down and then much to my delight, finding images of them on the internet. So it's been a delightful exercise already. Thank you!

Got a few ideas floating around, but it may be a while before they fully form ... just love these crusades xx

[anne bagby]

Michelle, I love these pages! they are better, and prettier, than a a diary. Just think of your children showing them to your grandkids: this is what our house was full of! This is what our house looked like in year 2000. Of course I am a paper sample junkie, I love wall paper and fabric. Really nice.

[Tusia]

Fantastic theme! And I love all your fabulous inspiring works! Thank you Michelle.

http://ototusia.blogspot.com/2011/05/art-journal-i-art-piaskownica.html

In that post you will find also my layout, where I used your stamps :) I love them!

[daisy]

Thanks for another fabulous crusade Michelle, which I throughly enjoyed.

Visit me at http://distinctly-daisy.blogspot.com/2011/05/home-sweet-home.html

I'll put the kettle on!

daisy xx

[K]

I recently discovered your wonderful site and just completed my first challenge. I can't wait to do more!

http://iamrushmore.blogspot.com/2011/05/street-team-challenge-no-51.html

[Elena Nosyreva]

Michelle,

Your pages are gorgeous.

http://elenas-digi-stuff.blogspot.com/2011/05/crusade-51.html

[Cath S]

Thanks for that Michelle; this Crusade was the perfect way to end my weekend. http://cathsheard.wordpress.com/2011/05/22/series-evidence-home-sweet-home/

[TJ]

This was such a great challenge Michelle. Thank you! We know we will not be in this house forever so I'm actually relieved to document it because it's the only "house" our child remembers. This is important! Plus, it helps me keep practicing in Photoshop! Best wishes for the long holiday weekend, tj

http://studiomailbox.typepad.com/tales_from_studio_mailbox/2011/05/tjs-house-a-digital-tour.html

[missyk]

Hi Michelle

Here is my unfinished piece for this crusade..... I'm coming back to it!

http://littlecraftingmiss.blogspot.com/2011/05/home-sweet-homes.html

We just moved a couple of weeks ago and you have inspired me (again)to keep a journal of this house and its progress.

I really love your crusades....... :)

Karen

[Jane]

Hi Michelle,
My post is up, finally! Busy month but I was so excited to work on this project, thank you for another GREAT challenge! Happy Memorial Day to you.

[viki]

Just finishing up my post. It isn't where I was trying to go but when things fall into place, sometimes you just have to roll with it.

[Cathy]

I too am new to this site, and couldn't resist joining the crusade! thanks for sharing

Cathy

[QuinnCreative]

Squeaking in under the wire, I just figured out how I wanted to handle this to make is visually interesting while trying something new. I combined photography and journaling for a blog post: http://wp.me/p2H1i-1Eq
Now I'm off to see what others did!

[Rosemary Griffin]

Hi Michelle, I just posted the latest challenge. Lots of fun, I loved looking at your past life as a designer. Thanks once again for encourageing us.

[sheila]

Hi Michelle, here I am checking in a day late!! Not feeling so well and ended up sleeping a good part of yesterday!! Thanks so much for the challenge, I enjoyed doing it and am always grateful for what you suggest!
http://sheilasteaandtoast.blogspot.com/2011/06/gpp-street-team-creative-challenge-home.html

[Melisa]

I missed this challenge when it was current but I'm glad to find it now. My home is in a half decorated state as it is. It's new and the color schemes are different, none of my old stuff works (fine with me!) but I can't decide on new stuff. I'm going to start a whole new journal just for my home. I'll include the colors and items I am actually using and some dream pages, too. I think it will help me make decisions and finally get something done, here. Thanks for the inspiration, Michelle. I just loved seeing your pages for this one!

[Melanie Philpott]

Better late than never! I found this challenge really thought-provoking, thank you!

http://messbymelanie.blogspot.com/2011/06/gpp-street-team-crusade-51.html