The Best Day Ever?

This is me trying to get over my blogging inertia. Over the years I have always meant to blog more, but sometimes didn't find the time. And then in the last few months, I stopped meaning to blog more. It just fell off the list of things to do. So I will attempt to get back into the spirit of sharing. I will share my work (because I have been busy at my scrapbook desk), and hopefully  there is something of interest for me to add to the great, big, blogosphere. Worst case, my family can see what I make and pictures of my kids.

So, let's begin.

I'll start with my latest creation, which is about my most recent birthday. In case you weren't sure of when that was, it's there in the title for all the world to see. I had a most ordinary birthday this year, which often leaves me feeling a little bummed at the end of the big day, but this year I loved every minute of my super simple and relaxed birthday.

I have to admit, I don't know that I'd label it "The Best Day Ever," but I really like that paper from Pink Paislee, and it was a great day, so, please, don't mind the hyperbole. It also wasn't my 500th birthday, as it says on the cake, but that's part of the story.)

A bit about my creative process. Sometimes when creating, you have those layouts where it all comes together -Bam! Bam! Bam! and you love it all right away. Even if you struggle at it, you love it when it's done. I had a much more tentative relationship with this one while it was happening. There are a lot of different  patterns here, and I thought it looked good, but I wasn't quite sure I should be trusting my judgement. I walked away from it a lot, and came back to it a lot, and each time I still liked the way it looked together. So, at some point, I had to commit. And then slowly I added some elements to keep it all tied together. My least favorite part of all, always, is figuring out how to format the journaling so that it says everything that I want it to say, it fits in a certain amount of space, and that it looks cohesive and intentional. But, I am pleased with the results here.
When I returned home from work today I was surprised to find how much I liked this layout. That's often how I know if a layout is done; I leave it for a while, and see what my first response is when I see it again.

Do you have a method for knowing when your layout is complete?