*** DECEMBER DAILY 2024 *** MEGAAA thread

I got a Portrait for Christmas last year and did use it a couple of times for my DD23, but I haven't done much with it the rest of the year. I really wanted those scalloped squares, but I didn't necessarily want all that plastic. It looks like they're gone, so I'll need to get the digital and make them myself out of cardstock or vellum. I missed out on the felt numbers, but again, I can make those in a smaller size and make as many numbers as I wish. honeypea and breakfastattiffanys , we'll have to encourage each other as we learn how to use these things!

And you can cut out the mirror image to stick on the back instead of leaving it white!

You can both buy the digitals and cut them out!

My portrait is so old that I can print and cut easily but I learned some tricks to make it work.

That little book is adorable! I know you said it's from Etsy, but would you mind sharing the name of the shop?

jeremysgirl I am so glad you are going to make this project work for you!

Are Ali's digitals easy to use? First time I'll have a Cameo for DD. 😁

Awesome!

And I love the little red book. So cute. That will be a really nice size to work with.

There were a handful of things I was considering grabbing from the AE release - a few page protectors, one of the stamp sets and maybe some small embellishments. But the $29 flat rate intl shipping charge just kills it. I could grab the 6x8 album to make it a little more justifiable, but I don't really need it and I'm not in love with the design.

I am going to say yes .  

I think the value this year is definitely there and there is a lot of versatility.  I was looking at older albums and kits the last few days. There are always a few items I don’t use and paper I don’t love, but for me personally, I think I can and will use most of this kit.  I also think the AE team continues to get better at demonstrating multiple ways to use things. Even Kelly Ishmael’s examples in the product post this year were just gorgeous and helped me begin to see how things will work together.  This could also be motivating people to go ahead and buy!  I think this is a very cohesive kit as well.  Sometimes the variety in there does not all play nice, but this kit seems seamless.  

Getting excited for the posts, product play, etc!  Good luck with your decision

I think I'm going to drag out my cameo and make myself some of those die cut insert pages. I didn't get them because I only liked 2 or 3 shapes. I've cut my own transparency pages before and added white vinyl so I'll probably use the template I made and go from there.

I'm thinking that with so few companies doing a full DD style of kit, AE has almost cornered the market unless you want to make a kit up from scratch. No more FJ, KP has disappeared without a word...I'm trying to think who still offers kits?

This is the first year I have purchased AE products for DD and I am really excited! I got the main kit, the scallop 2x2 plastic tags, the specialty journal cards, and the die cut pages. I’ve only been doing DD a few years now but they are some of my favorite albums to look back on because I usually take the time to be very creative with my photos and products. I love being able to print photos larger than what will fit in my PL and really highlight my favorites. That being said, I didn’t do a DD last year because nothing much had changed from the previous year. I told myself that, due to worries about storing redundant albums, I would do a DD again when I bought my own place and this year is the year!!! I should be moved in to my new place, with small craft room, by Christmas time and I am SO looking forward to getting my Christmas decor out of storage for the first time since 2019!
That being said, I want to document the season but am also being realistic about my expectations. I’ll be moving into an older house that needs work so the next few months will be filled with house projects and moving and getting settled. I know I will be overwhelmed once December rolls around so I decided the best option for me is to tackle DD in a way that allows me to take the guesswork out of it. I will be using the main kit and getting a lot of inspiration from Ali’s projects as well as others. I don’t have the bandwidth to reinvent the wheel this year, I just want to document the season and new season of life with pretty stuff!
I am not usually enough of a fan of Ali’s DD products to buy her stuff but this year’s colors make me happy and it is non traditional enough that I like it. I also do not like red and would rather have different greens, golds, blues, and pinks for Christmas so this year’s release is great for me. I also do 6x8 and I’m excited to see what Ali does with that size this year.
I did buy just the green floral/foliage album last year and was planning on using it this year but now I’m afraid that it clashes with the products so I am unsure what to do. I also have an old red album I could use but… see above😅.

I’m surprised nobody brought this up yet but I do not have a cricut or silhouette so I have to rely on dies for cutting. Does anyone know of or have a 2x2 scallop square die that matches the products this year? I love the idea of diecutting my photos/ephemera to match the 2x2 square tags. I might have to go down a scrappy rabbit hole and find one.

Will CT have a Christmas kit? I don’t get their newsletter anymore, but they used to have DD stuff too.

Usually, yes. 

alleyscrap after a quick google search:
Uniquely creative
Scrap dragon
Lisa Horton

All have nested scallop square die sets that could be useful 🤗
Note I’m in Australia so some might not be available in the USA for a decent price