So, where did June go?

It seems like just yesterday we were coloring eggs for Easter and still telling our children to wear a jacket. Now the kids are out of school and it is time to buy some sparklers and fireworks! Where has the time gone?

Summertime can be one of the nicest seasons around. The designers at BTDL are scattered around the country. Down south, out west, up north, out east... we have ladies in just about every US timezone, as well as just about every climate. But no matter what the weather, there are some favorite events that we just love to scrap. Vacations, family picnics, summer blockbuster movies, days at the beach...

In addition to taking photographs, there are so many ways to capture those great summer moments, no matter how big or small. Journaling, of course, is one of the best ways to capture the magic of those memories. But don't forget the "little" things, too, that will help bring those memories back years from now... Below are some ideas of the "little" things that will add interest to your scrapbook pages, as well as make wonderful embellishments. Set aside a plastic page protector from your scrapbook and use it as an envelope to store all your goodies you find.

Vacations:
Ticket stubs, maps of theme parks, receipts from hotel gift shop, brochures from the hotel lobby, postcards, train schedule, business card from that little bistro you found that had the best pizza in town...

Movies:
tickets, reviews from the newspaper, clip of showtimes from the newspaper, write out a quote from the best movie you saw this season, a flattened popcorn box (not the one you ate from - I don't know that butter and salt are AF/LF :))...

Beach fun:
tags from your new swimsuit, the paper umbrella from that fancy frozen drink, the parking pass, postcards...

Family picnics and Barbeques:
recipe card of Auntie Edith's "Secret" recipe for sweet potato pie, the homemade invitation your 8-year-old nephew sent to everyone...

Birthday parties:
scraps of wrapping paper, a party hat (flattened out), birthday cards, the invitations, a list of guests, hang tags from a favorite gift, or the instructions to your three-year-old's new "easy to assemble" bike...

This is just a small list of things you could add to your book to make it more memorable. Ways to incorporate these items are also fun! Make a flower out of receipts or ticket stubs, use cards as envelopes or journal blocks, clip out pictures from brochures for instant clip art. That popcorn box would make a great pocket to store all those ticket stubs :)...

Inspiration

It is the middle of the night, and I can't sleep. I didn't watch a scary movie, no one in my house has a fever, and it most definitely isn't the pile of laundry waiting to be folded. There is always a pile of laundry to be folded in my house.

No. It is the small stack of scrapbook paper I splurged on today, sitting quietly in my scrap room. New and beautiful 12x12 patterned paper, fresh from the local scrapbook store. The pretty pinks from Basic Grey's "Sugared" line... the distressed loveliness from My Mind's Eyes newest "Wild Asparagus" series... The whimsical and haunting flourishes of the "FLEURISTE" papers from Cosmo Cricket...Images of double matted photos are dancing in my head, and when I remember the cute grosgrain ribbon curled up next to that pile of paper, I have to get out of bed. Who cares that it is 3am? There is paper that needs to be trimmed!

The designers at BTDL are often asked, "Where do you get your ideas?" Many times, it is a fabulous product that gets the creativity going. Song lyrics, old family photos, movie titles, that adorable picture taken at last week's family barbecue... what inspires you?

We would love to hear some of your stories of favorite inspired layouts, unusual sources of inspiration... What inspires you?