Pastel Christmas - November 1-2-3 Scrapbook Layout

Hello! It's hard to believe that November is almost over and Christmas is just around the corner! Before the Holiday craziness hits, I thought I'd show you how I am working with the sweet Sugarplum Collection by Creative Memories. When it was released a month or so ago, many commented that they wouldn't be using it as the pastel colors wouldn't go with their more traditional Christmas colors. I was a little skeptical at first as well, but I've been playing with this cute collection and I'm smitten! I love the muted pastels and they have been working just fine with a wide variety of photos! So I definitely wanted to show you in this month's 1-2-3 layout just how lovely Sugraplum layouts can be!

If you're not familiar with my 1-2-3 Layouts, they use just 1 piece of double sided patterned paper, 2 pieces of Cardstock (or CM Album Pages) for the base, and we make the entire layout with just 3 cuts. Each month I provide you with a free printable with a sketch, cutting guide and the sample finished layout for inspiration. You can download, print it and follow along to create a fast and easy two page layout. This month's sketch has room for six photos, space for title & journaling, and embellishment clusters, but remember that it's just a jumping off point and you can customize it to suit the number of photos you have. Here is this month's sketch:

The paper I chose from the Sugarplum paper pack has the lovely navy snowfall pattern on one side and the rows of border strips on the other side. Border papers like this can be a bit of a challenge, so I also so wanted to show you how you can treat it like an overall patterned paper. So, go get something to drink - hot chocolate would be perfect! - and sit back for a few minutes to watch how to create this easy pastel Christmas layout:

Isn't the 1-2-3 process simple and quick? After making the cuts, it only took about another 15 minutes to complete the rest of the layout, and that was including the time needed to mat the photos onto some White Cardstock. To cover the seam between the papers and define the edges of the border strip paper, I cut the green and pink arrow/tree border stickers in half and placed them pointing towards the center of the layout. I created the embellishment clusters using both Sugarplum die-cut embellishments and stickers, adding a bit of dimension to some with foam squares, and a bit of glitz with the adhesive gems. Finally, I used the Navy ABC/123 Stickers for my title and journaled with my Black Dual-Tip Pen to complete the layout. Here's a closer look at the finished layout and a few of the details:

The Sugarplum Collection and other current products shown can be purchased on my CM website and don't forget to download your FREE copy of the sketch and cutting guide here so that you can refer to it as you create your own version of the layout. I always love seeing what you create with these sketches, so please feel free to share your layout on my Facebook Group page or leave a comment below!

Happy scrapping!