One of the things I am liking most about my approach to Project Life this year as opposed to last is that by pre-planning my pages, I am able to fit a lot more into my layouts. Last year I just printed out all my photos as 4x6s and found a way to fit them all in. Oftentimes that meant adding in a lot of extra inserts. There was nothing wrong with that – it was what I had time to do last year and I'm just happy to have those photos in an album – but because of this my albums from last year are probably bulkier than they need to be, and I also don't feel like my stories were necessarily told in the most cohesive or organized way.

This year I am taking a few extra minutes to plan out my layouts ahead of time using a template similar to this one that I created for myself, and I am really loving using multiple photos in one 4×6 slot, or even fitting a picture + some journaling in a smaller 3×4 slot.

Here is my Project Life for Week 11. This was the week we had Claire's little birthday parry at home. Since I did end up with so many pictures from that event, I included an extra insert for this week using an American Crafts page protector.

2012Week11a

Here you can see how I used one of Cathy Zielske's Tiny Templates (I absolutely love these) to fit two photos + journaling in one 4×6 slot in my insert:

2012Week11e

The back of the insert + the right side of my layout:

2012Week11c

In the bottom right slot, I fit four photos in a series (Claire blowing out candles and eating cake) onto one 4×6 print using a free(!) photo template from Paislee Press.

2012Week11b

I also used three of my 3×4 slots to include both photos and journaling. Sometimes (as seen on the left and right), I just print out small photos and attach them right onto a journaling card. Other times (as seen in the middle), I use a Tiny Template.

2012Week11d

Here is my Project Life for Week 12. This was the week of Claire's actual birthday. I included a 6×12 insert (I talk more about those here) to incorporate this blog post I wrote about Claire turning 4.

2012Week12a

The back of the insert + the right side of my layout:

2012Week12c

You can see in the top left that I used another Paislee Press 4×6 photo template. I especially love this one… something about the white space on the top and bottom really appeals to me.

2012Week12d

The latest product I'm excited to try out in my Project Life album to fit more photos in a small space? These new Layered Photo Sets. Do you have any great tips for making the most of your space in Project Life? I'd love to hear them!

Products used:

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17 responses to “Project Life: Making the Most of your Space”

  1. LeAnne Avatar

    Thank you for a great post! I am brand new to project life and I love the simplicity of your pages. Great inspiration! I especially love the templates you shared.

  2. Lucia Avatar
    Lucia

    Great pages! Your insert looks like an American Crafts page protector since it doesn’t have the two 3×4 slots at the top. I liked both versions of this type of protector since sometimes I want the 3×4 slots and sometimes the 4×6 size is better.

  3. jenniferwoodbury Avatar

    You are right – it is an American Crafts page protector! Thanks for pointing that out – I will update my post. I use both this style and Design G a lot, depending on how many vertical/horizontal photos I have!

  4. Laura Avatar
    Laura

    Hi Jennifer!
    I am new to PL and just curious how you use the digital PL templates vs. the physical card stock and photo prints? I started a few months ago and have just been printing 4×6 photos and using the core kit to fill in the blanks along with the journaling cards that I am writing by hand on. Do you just create digital 3×4 cards and digital 4×6 prints/cards and then print them off to put into the page protectors? I guess where I am confused is I assumed that if I used the digital PL templates I would be priting off full pages vs. the smaller 4×6 and 3×4 pieces.
    Thanks!
    Laura

  5. Debbie Avatar
    Debbie

    These pages look amazing! I love to see your weekly photos, but I especially love to see how you pull them together in the layouts. Thanks for the inspiration!

  6. Mary Avatar
    Mary

    What font do you use for your text? I LOVE it!

  7. jenniferwoodbury Avatar

    Mary, the font is Archer.

  8. Jeanette Avatar
    Jeanette

    Hi Jennifer,
    Was wondering what font you’re using for Project Life?

  9. Jeanette Avatar
    Jeanette

    Never mind…I just read the previous comment. Can you tell me where I can get it?

  10. jenniferwoodbury Avatar

    You can purchase Archer here, but it’s not cheap unfortunately:
    http://www.typography.com/fonts/font_styles.php?productLineID=100033
    This font looks like a similar alternative for a lot less:
    http://www.myfonts.com/fonts/exljbris/museo-slab/
    Hope that helps!

  11. Krista Avatar

    Where do you get this font? I can only find it at it’s foundry and it’s super pricey… i don’t mind paying for great fonts, but that one is crazy. 🙂

  12. Krista Avatar

    oops… you already answered below 🙂

  13. Amy B Avatar

    Love the rainbow cake…been saving that idea for my little girl for a party someday! My mom still makes me my favorite anytime we’re together on my birthday (I’m 38!) and sometime even fed ex’s it to me on dry ice: red velvet!

  14. Amy B Avatar

    Here’s a similar one that you may be able to download for free:
    http://code.google.com/webfonts/specimen/Copse

  15. Amy B Avatar

    Here’s a similar one you may be able to get for free:
    http://code.google.com/webfonts/specimen/Copse

  16. Kim Avatar

    I have been using Cathy’s tiny templates as well, but find that my words are getting cut off when I go to print them on my printer, both when done at home and professionally. It’s like the printer is somehow cutting off 1/4 of an inch from the image, and it makes a difference in how it looks. How are you able to keep all of the words onto the template? Thanks for your thoughts!

  17. jenniferwoodbury Avatar

    Hi Kim,
    Yes, if you have your words too close to the edge they will get cut off. The only way I know how to avoid that is to make sure I leave a pretty healthy margin around all the edges.

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