Hello lovely Peeps!  I am guessing by now you have seen the January kit.

Do you agree that it is just so sweet?  And I just had the perfect photographs and story for it.

I went back home to the Philippines in 2024 to see my family after 14 years.

One of the warmest memory from that trip is that one of my cousins who I grew up with took the time to see me.

We were the first grandchildren and only had each other to play with when we were little and  has been best of friends since then.

Our family has told stories of us when we were little and how we fight like a cat and a dog , but equally wouldn’t be without each other.

We have both grown , but not apart.  Though we are living on other sides of the world,  we keep in touch and when we do get to spend time together,  we make the most of it.

The January Kit – Best Friends was perfect to document our friendship.  Yes we are cousins , but we are also best of friends.

I love the colour theme for this kit , but to be honest , I struggled to find a suitable page for journaling.

After flicking the pages for a good few minutes , I finally got to a page that I think I can adapt and keep to the colour theme.

The Photographs

I picked out photographs from our childhood and from the time we saw each other.  We tried to recreate the photographs , but sadly things have changed.  The photographs has been taken in the same place, but things has changed – the house has changed.

As usual , I started by cutting out the photographs and backing them with one of the kit papers.  I wanted to create a polaroid like effect.

Looking at the photographs, it  has given me feelings of nostalgia.  I reminisce those fun times we had when we were young.

Creating the page

To make everything cohesive, I cut one of the kit paper into 2.5 inch strips , used one of my punches to create a decorative scallop edge and glued them on each side of the page.

I wanted to use the sketch inspiration from the Zine , but I really struggled with it.

So , I thought I’d use it as a guide and create the journal layout  with elements from the inspiration.

I also wanted to ensure that there is somewhere I could journal on.

The pink envelopes and cards were handy for this.  So I glued them on each side of the page.

I then glued the photographs.

At this point , I realised that I have mostly covered the scalloped edges, but I thought that the design from the paper is still visible, so I was okay with it.

As for the sketch inspiration , I have glued banners at the top left and bottom right.

The finishing touches

Now for the finishing touches !

I have used the cut apart washi strips , cut apart embellishment card, stickers and paperclips to complete my page.

I have also swapped the cards over  – light pink with the darker pink envelope and vice versa.

I also cut the the best friends quote from the zine and included it on my layout.

I used the paperclip arrow as per the sketch challenge m but also added a couple more , but pointed in a different direction.

And added the stickers bows to complete the page.

Oh , by the way , I cut a trip of the fabric and created a tab on the side of the page and pinned the charm on it.   It will be peeking through. the sides…

I just love how this page turned out.  I was so anxious that it is not going to come together , but it did in the end.

That’s the magic of the kits.  The themes and colours just guides you !

Well that is it for me my lovely friends.  Back to studying I go , so wish me luck!

Lots of Crafty Hugs , Sheryll