Search This Blog

Friday, June 10, 2016

Moving in to the Foxy Notebook System


Hi everyone! This is Jes. Kris mentioned last week that she and I have joined theFoxy Fix design team.  I'm over on their blog showing how I use the Foxy Notebook system. We have received several comments on Facebook, Instagram, and YouTube asking about our setups, and I wanted to share with you all as well.
Be sure to check out the Foxy website as well! http://foxy-fix.myshopify.com/

I'll first do a quick walk through, showing how I set up my Foxy Notebook and inserts. I'll also show you how I've incorporated the new Bujo Foundation and Elements stamp sets into my bullet journal system. My notebook of choice is the new Rowena 2.0, in the Grand 8 (A5) size. (I actually changed my cords out to the gorgeous mint straps, but I forgot to take a photograph before sitting down to write this up, so you'll have to wait to see those next time!)
 My Foxy Notebook currently holds two Notebook Inserts, two other previously purchased journals that contain information I need on hand, and a dashboard insert. I love the dashboard because it lets me change out the covers as the mood strikes. I decorated this one with the lovely Floral stamps (design 1).
The first page in my first insert is my bujo key, and following that is my June monthly spread.
I used several stamp sets in this layout.  For the large boxes at the top, I used one of the columns from Column Set 1. The squares are stamped with the Square Set.  A trick to lining them up (which I actually thought of AFTER I finished this entire page!) is to use a t-square ruler and lightly trace a frame work in pencil.  I ended up just eyeballing it. 
The days of the week and June header all come from the Bujo Basics Part 1 set, while the banner around June and the numbers are all from Bujo Basics Part 2. Finally, I used Bujo Dividers and Borders Set 2 to separate my days from my notes section.  To stamp the borders, I used my long block from Fiskars, but it was hard to hold, and the bottom part of the border was difficult to align. I recommend getting a block with a good grip like this one from My Sentiments Exactly
After my monthly calendar, the next few pages are my weekly spreads for June. Many people plan day by day in their bujo's, but that doesn't work for me.  I stamp out a basic weekly layout, and if I end up needing more room for to-do items, I create a master to-do list on the next available page.  For June, I chose to make several weekly spread layouts to give you an idea of all the different things you can do with the Foxy Fix stamp sets. I haven't listed every individual set, but you can find all the sets I used here: http://www.foxyfix.com/collections/clear-stamp.   

This tracker was created using the mini calendar stamp found in the Tracker Set. You can only track seven things at a time, but that's perfect for me.
Here is a close up of my weekly spread. The boxes are not all lined up perfectly, so this is where that t-square I mentioned would be helpful again.
Kristine Bryant, one of the other two designers, challenged me to do a layout using only the new elements sets. Challenge accepted!  Can you believe this entire spread is made with only three stamp sets? All the framework is done with the Floral Page Layout Design 1 set, and the days, dates, and banners are all from Bujo Basics Part 1 and 2
To get the florals in the right place, I drew a line down the center of the page and stamped out all the corners on either side of that line, then lined up the other half of my box with the first set of corners. So much easier than how I did my monthly spread! 
If your area is too small to allow you to have four corners, you can cheat a corner using one of the straight vines, like I did here.
Finally we have my favorite spread so far!  This layout features the Hexagon Set and the Bujo Dividers and Borders Set 2. (It's a bit difficult to see the left side well in this shot, because I used yellow, but you'll see it up close in a moment.) 
This week is extremely busy, so I knew I was going to need a lot of room for my to do list. But for such a busy week, there weren't very many things that needed a specific day.
The boxes at the top will be perfect for things that have a deadline, while the checklist below will help me keep my to do list straight. 
The weekend days share a box so that I could fit all 7 days on one page and because there is very little happening those days.  The four large hexagons on the lower part of the page will hold my notes for the following week, menu plan, daily activities with my daughter, and any bills that need to be paid. 
Some of you might be experienced stampers, and many of you probably aren't - regardless, you're probably all wondering how various ink brands work in the Foxy inserts. (Yes, you see Memento dye ink in these photos!)  I'll post a video in a week or two showing the different kinds of ink and how they work on Foxy's paper.  

I absolutely loved putting these layouts together, and I hope you enjoyed this walk through of the first month in my Foxy Notebook.  If you have any questions or comments, please be sure to comment below!  I'd love to know what you think. 

Make sure you subscribe to the Foxy Fix blog so you don't miss a post!
Find us on Facebook, and follow The Foxy Fix and the design team members on Instagram for more inspiration:
The official Foxy Fix account: @thefoxyfix
Jes Brandon (that's me!): @jes_planning
Cheryl Reiter: @cherylreiter
Kristine Bryant: @teachplancraft















Thursday, June 9, 2016

So, Here's What's New...

Hey, everyone!  It's Kristine with you today, and I've got kind of an atypical (for us) blog post for you.  Normally, Jes and I post twice a week, and we aim to always have some kind of planner or craft to show you.  We've been pretty good about sticking to our self-imposed schedule, but this week I fell down on the job.  These last couple of months, things have really picked up for us - and these last few weeks have been REALLY nuts, but in the best possible way.

So, many of you probably know that for 3 months now, Jes and I have been creative contributors for Sweet Stamp Shop.  We have both used Sweet stamps for almost a year now to make projects - cards, planner layouts, bookmarks, you name it - for our own personal use (many of them showcased here on the blog), and now we get to make those things for Sweet to use in their marketing.  It's something that we've both wanted to do for a long time, as we've been Sweet fans for awhile now, and in March we were asked to join the Sweet family as monthly contributors.  We're proud and honored to be affiliated with Nicole Rixon and her amazing company. 

We didn't think life could get better...and then a couple of weeks ago, it did!  We've also both been selected to be on the first ever Foxy Fix design team.  If you've never heard of Foxy Fix, go take a look - they're an American company (as is Sweet Stamp Shop) that makes the most amazing leather notebooks and totes, and they've recently launched a line of clear stamps designed specifically for bullet journaling.  If you follow Jes and I on any of our social media platforms (Instagram, Facebook, YouTube), you know that we both have recently converted from traditional planning to bullet journaling - the timing was perfect, and we caught the eye of the lovely Wan Chin Lim (@wansplansandexplorations) and Kelly, the owner of Foxy Fix.  As experienced stampers, she thought we'd be perfect (along with Cheryl Cooke Reiter) to lead the way into bullet journal stamping, and we're thrilled to have been chosen.

So with all this going on, we've both had a lot more creative deadlines to meet - and that's why you're getting this wordy post on Thursday instead of the cute card or craft you should have gotten yesterday, lol.  We hope you stick with us, because there will be lots more bullet journal eye candy coming, as well as some really super new products from Sweet Stamp Shop (seriously - you're going to flip when you see what's coming in July!!).  If you don't already, consider following both companies so you can see all their yummy products and the cool stuff we're making for them.  Thanks, and we'll see you again with more crafts soon!
















Sweet Stamp Shop

Foxy Fix
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/groups/401187463379995/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/thefoxyfix/

Sunday, June 5, 2016

Hey, everyone, and happy June! (Can you believe it's June already??  Where on earth has this year gone?!) I've got a short video for you today showing the last week in my bullet journal. After 3 weeks, I'm still enjoying the system and figuring out how it's going to best work for me. This week, I used a column layout, where each day took up half a page. My running to-do list is at the top, and a couple of daily chores and important tasks are at the bottom. The very bottom contains my "days of school" countdown - we're getting so close to the end of the year now!

I hope you enjoy this quick, 4-minute video. Feel free to let me know what you think in the comments! Are you using a bullet journal? Let me know what's working for you!