One Year for Ainsley

I have a special little friend that I have not seen since she was just a few weeks old and the first of October she will already be turning one! I have been making the "First Married Year" books (more on those in a later post) for about five years now, and when little Ainsley was born, I thought I would like to try a "Baby's First Year" version. There had to be a few changes to the format, and I wanted the pages to be more appropriate in color and embellishments for a baby girl, but other than those tweaks, it was pretty simple to create based on the "Married" books. The hard part, as always, was finding the time. These books seriously and without exaggeration, take at least 40 hours, start to finish to make. I always love the end result, but to begin is always daunting!




This is the cover of  Miss Ainsley's book
with the ribbon trimming that matches her nursery!


True to form, I started this book when Ainsley was born and finally just got it shipped off to her a couple of weeks ago. Her parents had been taking oodles of photos, so I had no doubt that they would have just the right ones to insert in the completed pages, AND at least I sent it before her birthday!!!

So here is a little peek at some of the book pages......

A mix of Easter, the inside cover, St. Patrick's Day, and Spring

Easter Detail



Stamping for texture and buttons to hold kite strings



All the flourishes, ribbons, and other embellishments are
adhered in a way that photos can be slipped under.
Photo placement is crucial, but once placed the embellishments draping
over the photos give the book that "custom" look!



A  little proof that although it was definetly a "girlie" book,
not all the pages were pink! Her nursery is white, black, and apple
green, so I wanted to showcase those colors in some of the pages also.

There are always some pages that just "have" to have certain colors!



A little composite of the Fall holidays!



A peek at Christmas, 4th of July,
New Year's Day, and Valentine's Day



A little more pink for photos of those who were anxiously awaiting her
arrival at the hospital.



Celebrating that very exciting "First Birthday"!



A few pages in the back for special times during the first year
that holidays don't quite cover.

So there you have it! My first ever "Baby's First Year" book. In all there were 28 pages.  I altered the cover and remade the inside of both the front and back cover as I always do with the "Married" books. I add pockets, and envelopes that coordinate with the facing pages and this allows
for a little emphemera storage!

I really enjoyed this first attempt.....but I will have to say the books are tiring....especially when I feel like I am a little pressed for time. I didn't allow time to carefully photograph the pages and for
that, I am entirely sorry. I wish I had taken the time and perhaps borrowed my son-in-law's camera for some really quality shots.....what's that saying about "hind-sight" being 20/20 vision. Ah well!!!
I have a brand new grandson to make a book for and I will be sure to take better photos of that....
Live and learn? I've lived long enough, haha, you'd think I would have learned these lessons.

Thanks for taking a peek....Have a marvelous Friday and weekend! It's Fall, glorious Fall, so go out and enjoy it! Love and peace to all!