December Daily 2010 | Q&A (the questions)

I know lots of you out there have started putting together your album foundations for December Daily. I'd like to try and answer any questions you might have at this point in the process (knowing that some of you haven't started yet and some may already have albums all put together). Feel free to leave questions here and I'll answer them in a new compilation post later this week.

For a full list of 2010 December Daily posts click here.

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121 thoughts

  1. Jackie Bremer says…
    11/01/2010

    Really excited about doing this - am doing a white cover and found a rice type paper with gold flecks in it and will add stars on the cover. Loved the idea of the door that someone else posted! I purchased the bazill cream colored 12 x 12 paper at my LSS and now am sorry I went that route - wasn't thinking as I will have to cut it down when I print them and will have too much waste. Wasn't thinking -I wouldn't have been able to get two out of it anyway.

    Reply 3 Replies
    1. Erika Bates says…
      11/02/2010

      jackie,
      fortunately cardstock is so handy to have around! The scraps you'll have left will make great tags or small cards. I had to get 12X12 as well since my local shop was out of the smaller

    2. Terri Porter says…
      11/02/2010

      My scrapbook store was out of the color I wanted in 8-1/2 x 11 and so I bought 12x12 and was glad I did. I was able to get two templates printed on one sheet with less waste and a 12x12 sheet is less expensive than two 8-1/2 x 11s. I have a wide format printer and was able to print before cutting them to size, but I think you could cut the paper in half first and then print if you don't have a wide-format printer.

    3. Heather says…
      11/02/2010

      You can cut a 12x12 sheet down to 8.5x12 and print 2 sideways on each sheet.

  2. Erika Bates says…
    11/02/2010

    Bless your sweet heart Ali, I don't know how you do it all! I know you've been working on a source for your white cover paper, but have you found anything similar? I really love the simple look of it. I'm thinking about using a messy look circle stamp and clear embossing as an alternative. thank you thank you for all you do!!!

    Reply 1 Reply
    1. Paula in Australia says…
      11/03/2010

      Hi Erica I did my cover with circles and it is much the same ad Ali's just not white. Mine is red rice type paper and I stamped a paint circle on it by getting an old toilet paper roll and dipping the round end in paint then "stamping" it on the paper in a line. I love how it turned out! It is different each time and has texture because the circles aren't always the same as the paint is thick in some sections and not in other sections. The cover feels rough as you can feel the texture of the paint. I don't have a blog but can put it into the DD flickr if you would like to have a look.

  3. Erika Bates says…
    11/02/2010

    at the risk of totally hogging the q&a (sorry guys) I forgot I had one more question. I noticed that you used each of your transparency designs twice. Since I'm trying to learn as much as I can about design as I go, I wondered if this had a design purpose? Does it help the album flow or tie together or something, or just handy being able to get two pages from a sheet? It looks great by the way, just curious:)

    Reply 1 Reply
    1. Claudia McDaniel says…
      11/05/2010

      Since the transparencies come 12x12, I'm assuming there are two of each design because you can get two out of one sheet. That's what I did.

  4. leah a says…
    11/02/2010

    Hi Ali!!

    I e-mailed you this question.. not sure if you received it or not but i'll ask it here anyways. I was just wondering if you were planning on putting the album in some kind of box or anything after it's all completed- to keep it nice and dust free?

    Reply 0 Replies
  5. Jess L. says…
    11/02/2010

    How often are you finishing a layout/page? Do you set aside time each day to complete a page? Even with a pre-assemble/template, I had a hard time keeping up with my DD last year --I've already decided to do a better job of writing daily notes/journaling, but I'm worried about getting backlogged again. (I don't have a photo printer at home.) Thanks in advance for your thoughts.

    Reply 0 Replies
  6. AmyW says…
    11/02/2010

    I plan on doing a 31 day December Daily. I downloaded the #25 but was wondering if you have a 31 that I could use for the front cover. Thanks:)

    Reply 0 Replies
  7. Lora says…
    11/02/2010

    Ali, Love the idea of a December Daily. I made one last year and it was so much fun. I think its wonderful you made a very simple album this year to encourage people to "just get started". However I found out when I sat down to start my album, the main reason why I liked the Dec december daily is the fun I got from playing with ALL my stuff. To me this album is so liberating. I can play as much as I want! I don't really try to work around the pictures BECAUSE I don't have any yet! It's an opportunity for me to be totally free. Thanks for making me feel that whatever I do, is the right thing for me! Okay, the question. I was looking for pictures from previous years. I think for your DEc 2007 album, the pictures are linked to the CK website and the links are no longer there. Is that album anyplace else?

    Reply 0 Replies
  8. Teal Myre says…
    11/02/2010

    Ali - I love this project, and may actually try to do it this year! (Maybe I should finish April's Week in the Life first!) 31 days, or even 25 seems kind of overwhelming to me, and I'm afraid I wouldn't finish it. Have you seen anyone do 12 days, or Christmas week, or any other version? Or, have you seen people title their project something other than December Daily?

    Reply 2 Replies
    1. Terri Porter says…
      11/02/2010

      I did a "12 Days of Christmas" album a few years ago and it was very doable. The past two years I have done the first 25 days of December and, while it does require a commitment, I love those albums so much that I plan to do one every year.

    2. Nathalie says…
      11/06/2010

      Since my Project 365 turned into Project 143 Sticky Notes, I share your concern. I've decided to jump in anyhow, create the pages in advance 1-25 and then take it as it comes, so some days will have a "daily" picture and journaling and others will have random lists of things I love about this time of year or favorite holiday movies and traditions, memories from Christmas past, and cards that we got in the mail that day. I figure, there's no way to do it wrong and whatever I do, I'll enjoy looking back on it!

  9. Leah S says…
    11/02/2010

    Hi Ali - I have a question regarding taking indoor photos. I’m currently on day 2 of my Week in the Life project and will be participating in December Daily (just about completed my book). An issue that I’m running into that I know will come up in December is my indoor photos being yellow and grainy. My house is on the dim side to begin with so some of this is to be expected and using the flash on my Nikon D80 only washes out the subject in the foreground and darkens the areas in the background. I’ve been playing around with different settings and use a tripod at times but have not found anything that works. My questions: 1) Is there a setting, ISO, etc. that you use when taking indoor photos w/o a flash? Your photos always look quite a bit less yellow and grainy. 2) I understand that you sometime use an external flash, which one do you use or what is you advise for searching for a good external flash? Thanks Ali!

    Reply 4 Replies
    1. Heather says…
      11/02/2010

      Obviously I'm not Ali but what I do is first, turn on as many lights as I can. Then I set my ISO as high as I can, on my camera that is 1600. I shoot mostly in aperture priority (Av on my camera), and set the aperture as wide open as I can go (4.5 down to 1.8, depending the lens I'm using at the time). Finally, after I upload, I use Auto Correct or Auto Level in PSE to adjust the color if I need to.

      I don't have any good suggestions about camera flashes since I try to avoid ever using one (and I only have the built-in on my camera too). I would think it would depend on what brand your camera is.

      Hope this helps! :)

    2. Terri Porter says…
      11/02/2010

      I also try to avoid using my flash when at all possible, using some of the same techniques that Heather uses. If I absolutely HAVE to use my flash, I use a diffuser which keeps you from getting that "blown out" look of too much flash. Ask at your camera store what type of diffuser will work with your camera. I got mine (for my Canon 40D) from garyfong.com. It's called a Puffer and it works really well.

    3. Leah S says…
      11/03/2010

      Hi Heather & Terri, thanks for the suggestions. Heather, I adjusted my ISO and aperture last night per your specifications and it was a HUGE difference. The improvement is amazing. I'm also going to try a diffuser for when a flash is necessary. Thanks again!!!

    4. Paula in Australia says…
      11/03/2010

      Hi Leah the ISO change does make a huge difference... just a bit of friendly advice from someone who has made the "mistake" ISO 1600 photos when blown up too big can look grainy too especially if you are taking them in daylight if you forget to change the ISO back when outside :-)... I took a lot of photos of my daughter during the day outside in full light that were beautiful but taken on ISO 1600 because I forgot to change it back. They were ok but were grainy when I got them printed and got more grainy the bigger I went with the photo's. Just thought this may save you a bit of heartache.

  10. Michelle B says…
    11/02/2010

    Do you have any favorite Christmas scrapbook products this year?

    Reply 0 Replies
  11. rkokes says…
    11/02/2010

    I would really like to try this project, but I struggle because I have one Christmas with my family the day after Thanksgiving, and a second with just my husband and kids on Christmas Day. It is too big of a time slot to do November and December for me, so I am not sure how to handle the album. Any thoughts?

    Reply 1 Reply
    1. Paula in Australia says…
      11/03/2010

      Hi Sorry to butt in but maybe do just a Christmas 2010 Album and don't have timeframes/days just document your preparation for each event. What things to do you different for each event, baking for each, Santa visits, presents for different family members etc... traditions for each that sort of thing. The Christmas we have with my Family is very different to the Christmas we have with my Husbands family but it seems to work well. Hope this helps :-)

  12. Macy says…
    11/02/2010

    This is my first December Daily! I'm super excited and hope i can stick to it! I wasn't really planning on ordering an album to put my pages in, so do you have a specific album that you recommend that is available at Hobby Lobby or Michael's?

    Reply 0 Replies
  13. christen says…
    11/02/2010

    i am wondering about the size of photos to use for the baseball card page protectors. i have bought several different types in the past and haven't had luck printing out my photos to get them to fit. i usually have to crop them too much or mat them on cardstock. what size do you print them out at? thanks!

    Reply 1 Reply
    1. Terri Porter says…
      11/02/2010

      I've used the baseball card pages in my past two DD albums as well as this year and the size picture that fits in them is 2-1/2 x 3-1/2.

  14. Sarah says…
    11/02/2010

    Any tips for keeping the albums durable, yet light enough for little ones to handle easily? My toddler loves photos, but I worry about failing adhesives and fragile papers.

    Reply 0 Replies
  15. Heather says…
    11/02/2010

    My question isn't so technical: Once your foundation is done, how do you cope with not being able to work on it anymore for the entire month of November? I am dying for December to get here so I can start taking pictures already!! LOL

    Reply 2 Replies
    1. Terri Porter says…
      11/02/2010

      I'm right there with you, Heather! Every time I go into my scrapbook room I longingly look at my DD album all ready and waiting for me to start filling it. One thing I am doing to help with the wait is taking Ali's new Halloween Mini Album class that she just announced. I had a ton of Halloween pics, so this is the perfect thing to do to keep me busy until December comes. Check it out!

    2. Heather says…
      11/05/2010

      Terri, I decided I should work on trying to finish up my Week in the Life album... you know, the one from last April!!! LOL

  16. Nicole says…
    11/03/2010

    Hi Ali, Thankyou for the opportunity to ask a few questions about the DD Album.

    I'd welcome your thoughts/comments on:
    - Incorporating photos of your Children's Xmas crafts in the DD albums - and what do you do with the crafts after Xmas?
    - Documenting Xmas activities that occur prior to the start of December (we have our first Xmas Party next weekend!)
    - Documenting gifts given and received on Xmas day in the DD album

    - Have you thought about going back and doing DD albums for years prior to starting the DD albums (2006?)? (I think that your digital templates would be great for this)
    - Also, what adhesive do you recommend for sticking photos back to back?
    Thanks in advance - N

    Reply 0 Replies
  17. Carrie says…
    11/03/2010

    How much of the foundation do you put together in advance, not knowing exactly what photos and what words you'll want to include for each day? I'm not exactly sure how much room to allow, especially since my pages are different sizes. Is there a set answer to this? Or do you just flex with the pages and do it as you go? I guess what I'm struggling the most about is assigning numbers to the pages, and then being in a dilemma when I have more/less to say than that day's page allows for.

    Reply 2 Replies
    1. Paula in Australia says…
      11/03/2010

      Hi Carrie I struggle with the number thing myself so when I do put numbers in my foundation I just "temporarily" put them on so if I have to move them I can. I do permenantly attach some with stitching, brads etc and for these days I just go with it and work around the number. For the temporary ones I simply staple them or use repositional adhesive so I can move them if I need too.

    2. Heather says…
      11/05/2010

      Carrie I struggled with that for a while too, being a total type-A control freak myself! I decided to let it go and really let in the "spirit of Ali" LOL... "it is ok." If I have more to say, I will add in an extra page, maybe a smaller one or a different shape... if I have less to say I will use more photos, or more product to make a page that is mostly just pretty to look at. Hope this helps! ;)

  18. Michelle M says…
    11/03/2010

    I am thinking about doing a Dec. daily album but I don't do something EVERY day in Dec. A lot of days are just very routine with work and school and not much happening to do with the holidays. I don't want to stress out about this project but want to have fun with it. Plus, I have a wide age range of kids (15, 12 & 4) and am not sure I will have enough to go into this album. Any suggestions?

    Reply 0 Replies
  19. Rhonda says…
    11/03/2010

    I would love to add charms to my binding but with the rings I'm kind of stumped. Do you have any suggestions on how to attach those oh-so-necessary do-dads?

    Reply 0 Replies
  20. Suzie Perrie says…
    11/03/2010

    Does your husband get involved in the December Daily process? If so, how? I am doing this to document my son's first Christmas and I want my husband involved too, but with him being gone 17 days out of the 25 I need some ideas on how to do this without focusing on the fact that he was gone.

    Reply 1 Reply
    1. Paula in Australia says…
      11/03/2010

      Hi Suzie My husband travels lots too and I struggle with how to make him more involved as well. This year for my album I have asked him to write our daughter a letter to be included in the album not just one from "us" but one from each of us so she can gain a different perspective from us both. Another thing I do is take photo's of when she is "on the phone" with him - this is just simply a photo of her with the phone as she is only 2 and doesn't hold it up to her ear yet, but I put the phone on speaker and let her hold it so she can "talk".

      Another thing I do is when we Skype I take photo's of that and it is really cool to see your husband on the computer and us looking at him. My daughter loves this! Another idea is get him to document his days away by writing something and taking a photo or 2 of what he does on those days. I find that it still documents our December eventhough we aren't doing it together. My husband took photo's last year of the santa in the shopping centre in the town he was in. That was really cool! Hope this helps and sorry Ali for hijacking your question time! :-)

  21. Robyn says…
    11/03/2010

    Do you do anything to reinforce the holes in the paper/transp so they don't tear down the road? do you use just a regular hole punch? Ilove this! I love everything you do!!

    Reply 0 Replies
  22. kate says…
    11/03/2010

    I haven't read all the questions, but mine would be - how do you punch the pages evenly? When making a lot of minibooks - I have a problem punching. I can't get through more than a few at a time by hand and then it's hard to line up with the rest of the pages. Would you suggest drilling or something else? Thanks!

    Reply 1 Reply
    1. Paula in Australia says…
      11/03/2010

      Hi Kate I make a template out of a bit of hardish cardboard and punch the holes in it first. Then I lay it on the other pages and punch the holes with it on top so all the holes line up. Hope you can understand this easily.

  23. Jeanal says…
    11/03/2010

    Hi My question is I would prefer to use a album instead of the rings probably like a small 3 ring binder style so i can add or move pages easily. Do you have suggestion for one that would be thick enough to hold all the pages I'am thinking 8x8 for size.

    Reply 0 Replies
  24. hannahk says…
    11/04/2010

    Hi Ali, I've been reviewing my DD09 album and thinking about this year's version. I loved making the album and for each date page I faithfully recorded an event or task that happened on that day. But I am wondering about making it looser this year and not being so rigid on keeping it in date order. Maybe just fill in what ever comes to mind each day, be that an event that day or something I want to remember from another day or even year. So my question is:

    How do you approach what to put on each page? Before Dec 1 arrives do you have a list of things you know you want to record and date in mind for each topic? Do you capture just things that happen on that day specifically or make a page from another memory and place it in any order?

    Thanks, Hannah

    Reply 0 Replies
  25. KENDRA says…
    11/04/2010

    First off.....HAPPY BIRTHDAY!!!

    I have a question......You have already created the "foundation" for your December Daily project. Once December starts, do you print pictures as you go? Do you wait until January to print and assemble?

    Reply 0 Replies

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