Pocket Talk

On today’s show, Jess is speaks with Sabrina Poole aka Mrs. Scrap and Plan. Living near Scaramento, California with her husband and two kids, Sabrina is one of the most prolific memory keepers I follow on IG. Starting as a digital scrapbooker, then moving into traditional, pocket page, memory planning and TN pages, Sabrina IG handle “Mrs. Scrap and Plan” clearly communicates her love all all crafty things. Currently Sabrina creates for Kellie Stamps, Colorcast Designs, as well as Traci Reed Designs. In conversation, Sabrina discusses how she actively chooses to be happy every single day, how she juggles multiple projects on the go and her scrapbooking evolution. This is a great conversation for anyone who is interested in balancing creative life, family life and mental health. Enjoy the show!

On today’s show, I am speaking with the lovely, Sarah Zayas. Living in Southern California, with her husband Omar and new daughter, Felicity, Sarah is a stay a home mom. Currently Sarah creates clean, modern graphic traveller’s notebook layouts and pocket page spreads for Studio Calico and Citrus Twist kits. She has previously been on design teams for Ali Edwards and Feed Your Craft. In part two, we discuss balancing life as a caregiver and creative playtime.  Enjoy the show!

On today’s show, I am speaking with the lovely, Sarah Zayas. Living in Southern California, with her husband Omar and new daughter, Felicity, Sarah is a stay a home mom. Currently Sarah creates clean, modern graphic traveller’s notebook layouts and pocket page spreads for Studio Calico and Citrus Twist kits. She has previously been on design teams for Ali Edwards and Feed Your Craft. In part one of our conversation, we discuss Sarah evolution into paper crafting and how she balancing her creative time with being a new mother. Next week we will focus on how she creates her gorgeous TN spreads.   Enjoy the show!

Today Jess' speaks with Andrea Williams, one of her scrapbooking friends in real life! Jess first met Andrea at Crop and Create Markhamin 2015. Andrea has been completing a December Daily project since 2013 and also completes traditional layouts, Project Life, and Week In The Life. In this conversation we discuss the products she is excited for this year, how she completes layouts during the month of the December and how she incorporates memorabilia into her pages. This is a special "memory keepers in cars getting coffee"! Andrea was a great sport to record our conversation in a car and we hope you enjoy Andrea's awesome positive energy and outlook on scrapbooking as much as we do. Enjoy the show! Show Notes:  Crop and Create Ali Edwards December Daily Ali Edwards 2018 6x8 December Daily Red Album Paislee Press 2018 Decemeber Daily Mini Kit Elle's Studio Candy Cane alphabet Elle's Studio Document December kit

Welcome back to season 3 of Pocket Talk! On today's show, I speak with Ali Edwards and Katie Jaeger about documenting the holidays. Specifically, we chat about their upcoming in-person crop, the December Daily Prep Party. In our conversation, we discuss the motivation for organizing this type of event, how it differs from Story Camp and what to pack, if you are attending. If the December Daily Prep Party isn't is the budget this year, don't fret! Ali and I discuss some of our initial plans for our 2018 December Daily projects. Notably, the 2018 December Daily order period starts Thursday September 6th & the last day to register for the December Daily Prep Party is Monday September 20th. Enjoy the show!  Show Notes:  Ali Edwards Katie Jaeger December Daily Concept December Daily Prep Party Ali's New York Entry from her 2012 December Daily

On today’s show, Jess reconnects with Jessica Upton, scrapbooker and business owner of ColorCast Designs. In our conversation, we reflect on the projects and layouts we created in 2017 as well as our crafty intentions as we move forward in 2018. Jessica and I both reveal our One Little Word as well as discuss our thoughts on the Patone Colour of the Year and what trends we hope to see in the scrapbooking industry in 2018. This is a great show for memorykeepers who are curious how others deal with their Project Life albums at the start of a new year if they are, air quotes, not caught up from the previous year. Enjoy the show!  Jessica Upton Instagram Colorcast Designs Becky Higgins Project Life Elle’s Studio Ali Edwards One Little Word Ali Edwards December Daily Ali Edwards Story Camp Scrapbook & Cards Today Crop & Create Jennifer S Wilson / Simple Scrapper : Core Habits for a Happy Creative New Year Kelly Purkey Traveller’s Notebook Kits Patone Colour of the Year: Ultra Violet Creativation Jennifer McGuire Organization Meghann Andrew's Blue / Purple Layout

On today's show, Jess speaks with the fun and fabulous Tracie Claiborne and Tiffany Lowder aka The Scrap Gals. Living in Nashville TN and Bowling Green KY, these close friends have been creating scrapbooking podcasts for the past three years. In addition to inspiring conversations in their online creative group, they also host in person retreats with Crafty Jen Schow. This a fun cross over conversation where we chat about the logistics of taping an audio show, the secret to Tracie and Tiffany's friendship, what co host is the most organized and what is making them creatively happy right now. Enjoy the show!

On today’s show, Jess speaks with scrapbook design guru, Cathy Zielske. Living in St Paul Minnoesta, with her husband Dan, daughter Aiden and son Cole, Cathy has been creating clean and simple layouts for more than a decade and has two books to prove it! Cathy has also been working behind the scenes in the scrapbook industry: first as Creative Director for Simple Scrapbooks magazine and currently as Art Director for Scrapbook and Cards Today. In our conversation, Cathy shares her motivation for updating her newest class, Design Your Life 2.0, shares how Stacy Julian impacted her teaching style and why card making is currently making her happy. Enjoy the show!   Cathy's Digital Projects Cathy's Simon Says Stamp Products

On today’s show I am speaking with the fun, fantastic, technique focused, Vicki Boutin. Living with her husband and two kids in St Catherines Ontario Canada, Vicki has been scrapbooking for more than 15 years. In 2006, Vicki won the Creating Keepsakes Hall of Fame. Currently is a contributing writer at Scrapbook and Cards Today Magazine, and travels the world teaching scrapbooking classes. Recently, Vicki became a product designer releasing her own mixed media line with American Crafts. Full disclosure, I could listen to Vicki talk for hours about her creative process; and in this interview, I let her take the stage to do just that. Vicki’s passion for memory keeping and fondness for this creative community is infectious. I am so priviledge to know Vicki and to call her my friend. I hope you get as inspired to try something new, as I did by our conversation. Enjoy the show!

On today's special "on the road" episode, Jess talks with attendees and organizers of the June 2017 Ali Edwards' Story Camp. Held on Friday June 2 and Saturday June 3, 30 attendees and 9 creative team members traveled across the US and Canada to Eugene OR. This once in a lifetime opportunity / small memory keeping event was organize by Ali’s right hand woman, Katie Jaeger. Over the of the weekend, Ali taught three classes which include sessions on design and storytelling. Enjoy the reflections on the weekend that was!

On today's show, Jess' shares an audio diary from a recent weekend crop, Crop and Create Moncton. Join Jess as she reflects on her own teaching process, events of the weekend and interviews with attendees; teachers, and organizers like Catherine Tachdijan, Vicky Boutin, and Nicole Nowosad. Jess hopes this episode inspires you to scrapbook with friends, attend a crop at your local scrapbook store or sign up for Crop and Create event.   Scrapbook and Cards Today Tracey Bank's Moncton 2017 Crop and Create Video  My Stamping Studio   

On today's roundtable, Jess' speaks with Ali Edwards, Brandi Kincaid and Pam Baldwin about all things Week In The Life! In this conversation we chat about streamlining our process, how a project like this can help you reflect on the life you want to live and how to be "successful". This is a great conversation for anyone interested in completing an intensive project like this. Enjoy the show! Show notes: Ali's 2017 Prep Post Jess' 2010 Week In the Life Album Jess ' 2012 Week In the Life Album Jess' 2016 WITL Photos & Words

On today's show, Jess' speaks with Diana Sanchez, Krista Wells and Crafty Jen Schow about being behind, "catching up" and some things we feel guilty about in our scrapbooking. The panel discusses strategies for dealing with these and tips and trick for moving forward. This is a thought provoking show for both traditional and pocket page scrapbookers! Enjoy the show!

On today's roundtable show, Jess speaks with Jen Chapin, Crafty Jen Schow & Tracy Banks about their experience creating process videos. Whether you are new to process videos or are looking to enhance your skills / equipment, this conversation has something for everyone. Enjoy the show! Show Notes: Jen Chapin's Youtube Video Jen Chapin's Favourite Video Crafty Jen Schow's Youtube Channel Crafty Jen Schow's Favourite Video Tracy Bank's Youtube Channel Tracy Bank's Scraproom Video Tour      

On today’s show, Jess speaks with the articulate and artistic, Pam Baldwin. Working as a nurse in Hamilton ON, Canada, Pam lives with her husband Brett, and two kids, Liam and Emily. Currently Pam creates for Ali Edwards Design and teaches the online workshop, Text Tricks at BPC. I love Pam’s breath taking work and how she balances her heart felt stories with clean design. In our conversation Pam discuss how interest influences her scrapbooking process and her love of typography. Pam also opens up on she documents motherhood and the messy stories that don’t often get told. I loved chatting with a fellow Canadian!

On today's show, Jess speaks with fabulous roundtable guests: Jennifer S Wilson, Krista Wells & Barbara Picinch. In our conversation we chat about how we documented 2016 and the plans we have for the new year. We also discuss what is making us happy with our memory keeping right now.

On today's show, Jess speaks with the wonderful and whimsical Kelli Rich. Known online as Forever and a Day Create, Kelly lives in Utah with her husband Quincey, and three sons: Radley, Greyson and Crew. A hairstylist by day, Kelli designs beautiful layouts for Coco Daisy and makes and sells adorable bow ties for kids. I love Kelli's use of white space and bright & bold pops of color on her pages. In this conversation, we discuss living with our memories, color choices and how she chooses between documenting in her planner vs. a mini book vs. a scrapbook page.

On today's show, Jess has another special roundtable episode; Jessica Upton of Colorcast Designs, Kellie Winnell of Kellie Stamps and Tracy Banks from her Mercy Tiara youtube channel, discuss how their are tackling their December Daily projects. Guests discuss a variety of approaches to documenting the holidays including incorporating their photos into an existing Project Life album and how to balance self care with being an intentional documenter during the month of December. This is fun / motivating conversation for those in the middle of completing their 2016 December Daily projects.

On today's show, Jess chats with the energetic and creatively enthusiastic, Barbara P. Living in Sacramento, California with her husband Larry and her daughter Simone, Barbara has scrapbooked since 1999. Formerly a Studio Calico Design Team member, Barbara currently creates for ColorCast Designs, Kelly Purkey Shop and is a teacher at Big Picture Classes. In our conversation, Barbara discusses her evolution from traditional to digital to pocket page scrapbooker and her favorite colour and font to create with. Barbara also reflects on what kind of crafter she is. This is a really fun chat that will make you want to scrapbook!

On today’s special roundtable episode, I am speaking with three great former Pocket Talk guests about December Daily. Jennifer S Wilson of Simple Scrapper, Krista Wells from the Kelly Purkey Design Team and Petra Corcoran from Jot Magazine share their tips and tricks for completing your favourite holiday project. Enjoy the show!

On today’s show, Jess' speaks with clear headed, kind and creative, Krista Wells. Living with her husband Matthew, adorable cocker spaniel, Eugene in St. Johns NewFoundland, Krista is the lover of food, fashion and travel. Currently, designing for Kelly Purkey & Feed Your Craft, Krista also teaches classes in person at The Paperie. She has also been published in Scrapbook and Cards Today. Scroll through her instagram account or blog, and you will understand why I think she is the "Canadian Kelly Purkey"! In this episode, Krista shares her product driven approach to pocket page scrapbooking and shares how she uses photos as “place holders” in her album. Enjoy the show!

On today's show, Jess speaks with the incredibly inspiring Diana Sanchez aka The Lovely Pear. Living in Midland Texas with her husband Shawn, son A&J as well as  two dogs & two ducks, Diana is currently on the 2016 Becky Higgins Project Life Creative Team. As a Project Life newbie, Diana has only been scrapbooking since June 2015. Her passion and enthusiasm for pocket page scrapbooking reminds us to "just start". Check out Diana's drool worth Instagram account or  her amazing 2016 title page - one of my favorites!  In this conversation we discuss how Diana got started scrapbooking with Project Life, the resistance her friends express to scrapbooking & how she styles her finished layouts for social media. We also chat about her favourite actions. Enjoy the show!

On today's show, Jess speaks with the charming and clever, Emily Webster (aka Emily Records). Living in Northern California with her husband Jeremy and daughters Sienna & Riley, Emily learned Photoshop in highschool and now is a digital scrapbooker. Currently she creates for Paislee Press & One Little Bird Designs. Formerly she was on the Ali Edwards Design Team - her first design team ever! What I love about Emily is her resourcefulness and "can do" attitude. In our conversation, listeners will learn Emily's three mantras for scrapbooking & how she uses her smart phone and computer for completing weekly layouts. This is a great conversation for anyone interested in scrapbooking on a budget using pocket pages. 

On today’s show, Jess speaks with the sweet and stylish, Emma from the website Create the Simple. Living in the UK with her husband, Emma works in London in finance and carves out time for memory keeping on evenings and weekends. Currently she creates for Ali Edwards Design and Kellie Stamps. What I love about Emma and her layouts, besides her clearly defined colour schemes, is how she has adapted her process & pages to fit her memory keeping goals. In our discussion Emma tells us her favourite fonts, why she switched from 6x8 to 6x12 and when she is most productive. It was a pleasure to talk with Emma! Enjoy the show!

On today’s show, Jess' speaking with the passionate and persistent Jessica Upton. Living in Colorado Springs with her husband Keith and her kids, McKenna, Riley and Kiefer, Jessica is the owner of the embellishment company, Colorcast Designs. Jessica has been a scrapbooker for the last 14 years and currently she is on the Sahlin Studio Design Team and the Amber LaBau Creative Team. What drew me to Jessica’s modern & colourful pocket pages is her ability to create texture and visual interest through the use of simple embellishments. During our conversation what impressed me the most about Jessica’s process is her clear sense of purpose for creating. In our chat Jessica discusses the rewards and challenges of owning her own business and what it’s like to manage a creative team and how she keeps herself accountable to create pages.  Jessica is such an energetic and open individual, I loved chatting with her. I am sure you will be inspired to scrapbook after listening to our talk.

On today's show, Jess speaks with Jen Carlson. Originally from St. Louis, Jen now lives in North Carolina with her fur children, dog / Winston and cat / Gracie. By day Jen is a process engineer and by night she is an avid scrapbooker. Don't believe me? Listen to the list of design teams Jen is currently on: Ali Edwards Design Inc, Colorcast Designs, One Little Bird, Sahlin Studio and Amber LaBau Designs! You can also check out Jen's work on her drool worthy instagram account: @jecarl.  What stands out in this conversation is Jen's clearly defined process for mundane tasks like downloading and printing photos. In contrast, she then follows her inspiration to create pages. Jen discusses tips for taking great photos on a DSLR and how she approaches storytelling on her pages.  Enjoy this conversation!

On today's show, Jess speaks' with the super crafty and creative Trisha Harrison of Here at Number 30. Trained as a dental hygienist, Trish is the wife to Tyler and the mama to son, Ethan and daughter, Ava. If you are like me, you are a super fan of how Trish's work and how she simply elevates everyday documenting. Trish has been on the 2014 Becky Higgins Project Life and Paislee Press' Creative Teams. Currently she is on the Ali Edwards Design Team. In our conversation, Trish discusses her perspective on establishing a creative habit, she shares her crafting playlist and shares how Project Life has helped her cope with grief and loss. Enjoy the show! GIVEAWAY: To celebrate the end of season one of Pocket Talk and the birth of my second child, one lucky resident of the US will receive a newly designed Emily Ley Project Life Baby Core kit. To our international listeners, I am giving away, Liz Tamanaha's  newly designed Moments Like These Card Collection from Project Life + Stampin Up. I have purchased both of these physical products recently and I am so happy to share them with two lucky winners....Exciting, Eh! TO ENTER:  1. Sign up for my newsletter (Link is on my blog's right hand side bar) 2. Leave a comment this episode's post on Instagram. Tell me where you live, what you like about Pocket Talk and what you would like to see in season two of the show. One entry per person. I will draw the US and International winners on Friday July 31st, 2015. Thank you for your continues love & support and most of all for listening!

On today's show, Jess speaks with the sweet and stylish, Meghann Andrew. Trained as an interior designer, Meghann is the wife to Simon and stay-at-home-mama to Lizzy, a micro premie who is now 2 years old. Currently Meghann is on 4 design teams including: Elle’s Studio, Chickaniddy Crafts, Jot Magazine and the Scraptastic Club. In our conversation, Meghann discusses how she photographs pocket pages for design teams, her favourite go-to photo paper, and how she uses the collect photo app for completing Project Life and traditional pages. This is a great episode for memory keepers interested in incorporating pocket pages into their traditional scrapbooking process but who aren't sure how to start.

On today's show, Jess speaks with the lovely Tiffany Barker aka  Grey House Lane. Trained as an occupational therapist, Tiffany is the wife to John and stay-at-home mama to Kaley, Carolyn, Jake, Maggie and Amelia. Currently Tiffany is on the Big City Quiet and Love Day Seed design teams. Tiffany also sells her own digital Project Life products at her etsy shop. Calm and focused, you can see all of Tiffany's pages on her instagram account. In this episode, Tiffany shares how her style has evolved, her favourite lens and how she has developed her, "I just want to have fun attitdue". This is a great upbeat conversation about bringing fun back to memory keeping.

On today's show, I speak with the crafty and creative, Kellie Winnell of Give a Girl a Blog. From Victoria, Australia, Kellie is the wife to Luke and mama to 3 daughters: Kira, Chloe and Heidi. Currently on the Big City Quiet Design team and owner of  Kellie Stamps, her own online stamp shop, what I love about Kellie's pocket pages is how she documents her sense of humour and shoe collection. In this episode, Kellie shares her favourite embellishments, inks and iPhone apps and what she's currently struggling with. This is a great conversation about different journaling perspectives and how to include your kids in the Project Life process. On a side note: a huge thank you to Kellie for her patience as we recorded multiple times over a poor Skype connection!  

On today's show, Jess speaks with the articulate educator, Jennifer S Wilson. From Champaign, Illinois, Jennifer is the wife to Steve and mama to daughter, Emma. As the owner of Simple Scrapper, Jennifer helps thousands of scrapbookers to focus on what matters most. In this episode, Jennifer shares how she combines pocket pages & the library of memories system, how she uses smart phones & DSLR photos in her layouts & why she considers pocket pages as “art journaling for left brainers”. This is a great episode for listeners interested in how to balance making pocket pages AND traditional layouts. Enjoy the show!

On today’s show, Jess' speaks with designed focused and determined, Steffie Van Den Akker from the Netherlands. When she is not running after her two young sons, Julius and Oskar, or spending time with her partner Mark, Steffie volunteers as a photographer at a local hospital where she takes pictures of parents and their premature babies. Currently on the Laurel Lane Design team, what drew me to Steffie was her clean and modern Project Life Pages she shares on her instagram account. In this episode, Steffie discusses her love of white cardstock; how she documents family life in her monthly layouts and why she uses minimal supplies. This is great conversation for anyone interested in how to find their own unique pocket page style!

On today's show, Jess speaks with energetic and encouraging, Tracy Armstrong, aka Tracy xo. When she is not hanging out with her adorable adopted pup, Sophie, or creating super stylish paper crafting projects, Tracy is an administrative assistant at a prominent accounting firm in Vancouver, Canada. Currently on the Studio Calico design team, Tracy loves glitter, gold and visiting NYC. In this episode, Tracy shares her reasons for starting the single girl's scrapbook, how her Project Life stash/equipment has evolved and why memory keeping can appeal to everyone regardless of your age and stage. Bright and bubbly, I really think you enjoy getting to know Tracy xo if you don't already know her from blog or drool worthy instagram account. Enjoy the conversation!

On today’s show, Jess is speaking with the prolific and passionate Autumn Nguyen. Born in Vietnam and currently living in Northern California, Autumn is wife to Jim and mama to son Samuel. When she is not teaching science to grade 8 students, you can find Autumn documenting family life on her instagram account: @simplyautumnnguyen. As a 2014 Becky Higgins Creative Team, it is quick to see this memory keeper has embraced Project Life as a way of life. In this episode, Autumn shares how she organizes the 100’s of photos she takes every week, her work flow during crops with friends and how she has completed Project Life for the past 5 years, through various ages and stages­­. I am so inspired by Autumn’s enthausiam and I think you will be too! Show Notes:  Pocket Talk is now on iTunes! Please help other pocket page newbies by leaving a review on iTunes. Many thanks!

On today's show, Jess speaks with the lovely and super talented, Caylee Grey of South Africa. Starting in 2013, Caylee documents daily life with her husband T and adorable dog, Griffin. Caylee completes hybrid pages, combining digital elements and physical supplies with her beautiful handwritting. Currently Caylee is on the Paislee Press and Gossamer Blue Design Teams. In this episode, Caylee shares why she doesn't hoard physical supplies, her philosophy for creating pages and how she caught up from being 20 weeks behind in her Project Life album.  For more information about Caylee, check out her blog at CayleeGrey.com Show Notes:  Caylee's 2013 Title Page Album Today Sucked Freebie Card German Christmas Markets Blog Post    

On today’s show, I am speaking with the amazing, Rachel Del Grosso of Las Vegas, Nevada. An avid writer all of her life, Rachel transitioned into pocket page scrapbooking when she and her husband, Dom where expecting their son, DJ. Rachel was on the 2014 Becky Higgins Project Life Creative Team and currently is on 2015 Kellie Stamps Design Team. On this episode, Rachel opens up about struggling to find her personal style, how she saves time and money completing her weekly pocket page spreads and how she includes the small details of her week. For more information about Rachel or her shop, please visit her blog, Big City Quiet. Enjoy the show!

On today's show, Jess speaks with Petra Corcoran, of Brisbane Australia.  When she is not working as an CFO at an IT company, Petra is documenting daily life with her husband and three children on the "Gold Coast". Petra was on the 2013 Becky Higgins Project Life Creative Team as well as the Sweet Shoppe Design Team. Completing Project Life for the last four years, Petra discusses how she involves her family in documenting and reviews how she prints her photos at home. This is a great episode for anyone interested in completing a Photo-a-Day Challenge in their 2015 albums.  For more information about Petra, including her weekly project life layouts, how to videos and simple scrapbooking projects, please check out her blog at:  PetraCorcoran.com Enjoy the show!

On today's show, Jess speaks with Donya Gjerdingen of DonyaLuana.com Starting Project Life in 2012, Donya has successfully stuck with traditional pocket page scrapbooking for the past three years. In 2014, Donya was on the Becky Higgins Project Life Creative team and is currently on the Ali Edwards and One Little Bird Digital Design Team. When it comes to creating pages, Donya is the master at mixing black and white and colour photos. She also pays attention to detail, adding fun digital elements to her journaling cards.  For those starting out, Donya gives specific tips on how to develop your style around the 19:00 minute mark of our conversation.  Enjoy!