We are so very excited to welcome our first guest of 2021, LeeAnne Jones! LeeAnne creates beautiful pocket pages, filled with gorgeous photographs and simple, yet thoughtful details. LeeAnne worked with our January 2021 kit and add-ons, and created yet another fabulous pocket page spread. Don’t miss the fun tips that she’s sharing about the two techniques she used on this spread. Let’s take a look!

Hello crafty friends. My name is LeeAnne, and I’m thrilled to be a guest designer on the Elle’s Studio blog this month. First up is a pocket page spread looking back at February 2019 using the new January 2021 kit and extras.

Supplies | January 2021 Kit, January Labels, True Love Stickers, Puffy Heart Stickers, Dark Pink Puffy Alphabet Stickers

I document monthly, and I’m pretty methodical about my approach. The month is nearly always limited to one 12″ x 12″ spread—although I’m no stranger to inserts and flip-ups as needed! When it comes to journaling, I make space for the details of important events and I use labels to write brief, sometimes silly captions for others. I also try to include either a quote from one of my kids or a description of some daily life detail that I want to remember. Here, I quoted a text from my husband, sharing something funny our daughter told him in the car. I feel like these bits will be most appreciated in the future. 

Design-wise, I lean toward minimalism. I try to wrangle what often feels like a chaos of photos and journaling by using white borders and by limiting my embellishments to a few repeating shapes or textures. Here, I used the hexagon die cuts from the January 2021 Kit and Puffy Heart Stickers. It adds a bit of cohesion. Still, I like to get creative, too, and I incorporated two fun techniques on this spread. First, I used some Fiskars Paper Edgers scissors to mimic ripped tape. On the title page, a scrap of white cardstock as well as several True Love Stickers transformed into layers of faux washi.

The second technique is a hidden tag. As I was journaling about my post-tea exploration of Japantown, I recalled the photobooth pictures we took—and then I tore up my house looking for them! I fussy-cut my favorites from the photo strip and adhered them to the front and back of the tag-shaped die cut from the January Kit. Then, I tied a ribbon at the top and created a pocket behind the journaling card for stowing the tag. I love that these silly photos live here now instead of in my kitchen junk drawer, which is where I eventually found them!

I often include a photo collage (or two!) in my monthly spread. Typically, these are for multiple photos of the same event, especially one with few people (like an art exhibit) or one that was more about “me” than my family. Since this album is for the whole family to enjoy, I try to not take up too much space with my solo adventures. I make the collages on my phone with the Pic Stitch app, usually in a square grid. Then, I attach the print to a journaling card for a pop of cohesive color and room for journaling, and insert it into a 4″ x 6″ pocket.

I had so much fun playing with the new Elle’s Studio products this month. I hope this has given you some ideas for your pocket page documenting. I’ll be back in a couple weeks with a different project. See you then!

LeeAnne Jones is a writer and editor for lifestyle and travel magazines—although she has pivoted to cookbook editing and social-media marketing during the Covid-19 pandemic. She lives in the San Francisco Bay Area with her husband and two young daughters and has been scrapbooking off and on since attending a Creative Memories party 20 years ago.

Find more of LeeAnne’s work on her Instagram feed.