December Daily 2009 Q&A and Holidays In Hand

Album cover in progress.

In the comments yesterday I received this series of questions from Jennifer. I thought it might be helpful if I addressed them in a new post today: 

The first thing I want to say is that THERE IS NO RIGHT OR WRONG WAY TO APPROACH THIS ALBUM. It can be anything you want it to be. I have been reading in the comments that some people are holding off adding the numbers until the actual day comes together to give themselves more freedom to move the pages around - I think that is a great idea! 

I am one of those people that likes having a certain structure to work within and around - it's one of my favorite puzzles to solve (a design puzzle). I go with what works for me - go with what works for you (but don't be afraid to try something new too).

There's really nothing inherently special about what I have put together as the foundation.

1. How do you determine the size of the pages when you are making them? 
There is really no rhyme or reason. I go for a balance of full page size and smaller sizes (and when I say "balance" I don't mean that I count them out - I go more by how it looks to my eye). 

2. Do you have a general idea of what you want it to look like before you start? 
I do have a general idea: I want it to be a mixture of textures and sizes. I want some pages to have photos adhered on the outside and some to be slipped into a pocket. I want to use white and red and green and beige/kraft as my color scheme. I wanted to include more vintage Santa elements this year. I also know that I want to include more full-page photos this time around. Is it mapped out? No. 

3. I LOVE yours and like the style but don't know how to determine which pages to put where. For instance, I always visit Santa with my kids. However I won't know what day I will actually do this so don't know what day to use the Santa paper on. Does this matter to you?
The quick and easy answer is no. Here's the longer answer: I included Santa paper (and Santas) because they are a part of the season of celebration. It's likely that whatever day we do go visit Santa may not be a day that has a Santa already included on the page and I am totally ok with that. I am also ok with moving things around and making adjustments as I am working on the actual daily documentation. Maybe the Santa tag I used on Day 14 just doesn't end up making sense  with what I chose to write about that day - I have no problem taking it out and substituting a different number and using the Santa tag somewhere else (and covering up the 14 with a word sticker). I try to be flexible and go with the flow.