A few weeks ago I finally finished my 2023 December Daily Album and sent it off to print. I shared the pages on Instagram and the official December Daily group Ali Edwards has on Facebook, but I wanted to share them here in the blog as well. It’s easier to explain my process on some of the pages in a little more detail within a blog post than on social media.
I’ll start with a few details of the album.
It’s 6x8.
I create all of the pages on my iPad Pro in Affinity Photo for iPad.
For 2023 I mainly used digital products by In A Creative Bubble (IACB) and a handful by Ali Edwards.
My albums are printed in hard bound books by ZNO. Once I receive the album, I will create a walkthrough video and add it to this post, so check back mid November to view it!
This will be a fairly long post with lots of photos, so grab a snack, a drink, and settle into a cozy spot! Let’s get started!
Cover // This is the front cover of my album. A few things are going on here. First, the pattern you see at the top and bottom is digital paper and not part of the main graphic. Second, the main graphic–meaning the words and illustration–is one file image. It’s original size is 4.25”x8.25” (traveler’s notebook size) and I decreased the size slightly so I could add the patterned borders at the top and bottom. And third, that main graphic was originally black and white. I recolored parts of the graphic. In addition several of the illustrations on the graphic had colored embellishments available, so I just layered the embellishment on top of its matching black and white version! I’m thrilled with the way it turned ou. I just love it.
Day 1 // The “template” used is of my own design. I actually think I used it in my 2022 album as well. I loved the shape of the pink banner/tag with the date. Its original was yellow and had some other words on it. I just placed a color overlay on it in Affinity Photo for iPad and added my own text!The QR code was created in Affinity as well. I LOVE that I can now create QR Codes in Affinity, right on the page! No more relying on a third party app to create QR codes!
Day 2 // Page on the left is my own template. Page on the right is one from IACB.
Day 3 // The left side of this spread was super simple-just placed a 6x4 journal card above a 6x4 photo. I then added circle with the Shape Tool in Affinity and placed the date inside. The page on the right is a piece of digital paper from IACB. I then added some of the digital stamps from different IACB kits I had in the white squares.
Day 4 // Both sides of the spread are IACB templates. However, the page on the left was originally a traveler’s notebook size, but I adjusted it to make it for for a 6x8. The top of that page was black on the original as well. There was no color. I used a variety of tools and techniques to add color to the various elements on the title.
Days 5 + 6 // The graphic on the left is actually a 3x4 journal card and I just doubled the size for it to fit a 6x8 page. The right side is a layout I created myself, adding the blue background to match that on the left. The 3x4 journal card was altered to fit the square placeholder.
Days 7 + 8 // Both sides of the spread are IACB templates. Even though two different days are on a double-page spread, I still like to tie the pages together through repetition. On days 5 + 6 it was the blue color background as well as the color green on both pages. On the spread below, you can see I used the same floral/geometric pattern, the same color red for the background of the dates, and the same font and pink color for the title. This gives the spread continuity.
Days 9 + 10 // IACB Templates were used but I changed the titles that were originally there. The font used is BD Supper if anyone was wondering!
Days 11 + 12 // My own layouts! Journal cards and digital elements are from various holiday IACB kits.
Days 13 + 14 // Two different sized templates were used here: a traveler’s notebook size on the left and a 3x8 on the right. Although there isn’t a repeat of color from one side to another, I repeated the 1/2 circle shape to bring a bit of continuity to the spread. One of my favorite things to do when the color just isn’t right in a photo is to turn it black and white, just like I did with the photo on Day 13.
Day 15 // Really easy page. Full page photo on the left, with self-made date tag. IACB template on the right. I changed the title, though!
Days 16 + 17 // I just love the way this spread turned out. My own design-no template used.
Day 18 // Again, no templates used on this spread. I just think it’s a fun page. Anyone else into Galison puzzles? We love them at a our house!
Day 19 // The layout on the left side was loosely based on a template by Ali Edwards. I added a digital paper from IACB to the right side. The green traveler’s notebook paper was centered in top!
Day 20 // Another full page photo on the left. Note that the same banner was used as in Day One-I just used a different color overlay. Page on the right is my own design. Background paper is by Ali Edwards.
Days 21 + 22 // IACB traveler’s notebook and 3x8 templates placed on top of dotted digital paper by Ali Edwards. Something to remember for 2024 DD, you don’t have to write a big, long story for each day! Day 22 is an example (as is Day 7).
Days 23 + 24 // Full page pics for the win!
Day 25 // The left side of the spread is a template by Ali Edwards. The layout on the right is my design. All digital products on this page, and the “Christmas” 3x8 card on the left are by Ali as well.
And there you have it–my 2023 December Daily Album. Thanks for taking the time to read! Please feel free to leave any comments/questions you may have!
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