I think Angie's comment indicates why it was so wonderful for me to make this layout. I loved seeing my husband discover this in himself. He did discover a part of himself that he didn't even know was in there. I am pleased that in the context of our relationship, he has discovered many wonderful things about himself, that he might not have found if I wasn't his mate.
I also like scrapping about him because I want him to be an inspiration to other men, that they can allow themselves to develop some of their feminine sensibilities (like cross-stitch) and still be manly. Don't we all want to discover wonderful things in our mates that make them more lovable?
Wonderful lo! I love that you had him do his own journaling because you can feel his passion and excitement in it. A feeling that no one else but him could convey. I really love the different scene squares under the title and the big pic as a focal point. Discovering something you truly love is like discovering a part of you that was always in there just waiting and aching to get out. The other pics are wonderful too.
It is a paper layout. I am very proud of this photo on the left, because I know I took it, and I don't give myself much credit for photography. In this one, I think I really did a great composition and captured the boyishness that I love in my husband.
It is likely that the photo was taken between Camden and Rockport on the Coast of Maine, where Larry and I went for many of our mini vacations. Larry loved it there.
I love the colors of this, but mostly I love the photography. They are wonderful photos! I like that you used a large focal photograph which allows the reader to hear Larry's voice in his words. It gives the mind a bit of recognition when you go on to read the journaling and it makes it more personal. Your balance between the two pages is wonderful (as always). Is this a digital or a paper layout?
How did I get my husband to journal this? I told him that his kayak was such an important part of his likf and that I wanted to scrap it, but all I could do was make a pretty arrangement. I could not capture the true spirit of it because it was too personal and that I did not understand it well enough. I said the only one who could do justice to this was him, and that it needed to be in his voice. I asked him to write whatever he wanted to remember about the kayak. After he wrote it, I did a little editing, and included it as a journal.
I might get him to do this about a couple of subjects, but have to be careful not to ask him too much because he has made it clear that he has no intention to be a scrapper. He actually did enjoy the writing experieince because it brought the kayak to mind and that was a very good thing for him spiritually. He loved that kayak. He took it out every chace he got. He even did some plein air watercolor painting on it in a marsh. He wants to build a kayak now in his new workarea.
If the kayak had not meant so much to him, I don't think I could have got him to write the journal. So, my advice on getting husbands to journal is pick carefully a subject that he cares a lot about, and don't ask too often.
All of your "Larry LOs" are amazing, Ilene, but the look and feel of this one draws me in. I love the fact that Larry did his own jounraling (maybe you can give me tips on getting my Rog to do the same ;)!) and the photos you chose for this LO are just perfect! My only suggestion - and it's a minor one - is that it would be very nice to see a larger image of Larry's kayak. It's such an integral part of his story and I can see it in the upper right, but it seems semi-invisible to me, with all the trees and ground cover around it. Is there any way to crop out some of the greenery and place more of the focus on the kayak?
Other than that little thing, I truly do admire this LO - great colors, cute embellishments and great memories :)!
TFS - kimB
Maine is beautiful! I love living here. My favorite part of the journaling was the very end where it says the car is always easy to find - the kayak ontop. Heehee... so cute. The pictures are perfect. I like that you used red brads on the corners of the journaling to bring attention to the red kayak. Perhaps you could add some red to the first page for more visual flow? More red brads or a small lobster sticker (placed on the middle block below the title.) would be appropriate. But those are just some ideas. This is lovely. :) TFS!
wow Ilene! This is so awesome!! It's my fave one of yours! I love that focal photo, looks so right for the page. The colors and all the embellies are wonderfully masculine and go so well with the theme!
*** Finding myself on the Coast of Maine *** Larry’s Kayaking Odyssey Begins *** It didn’t take me long to fall in love with the ocean off the coast of Maine. It was so different from the ocean I was familiar with off the coasts of New Jersey, Virginia and North Carolina where I had visited and swam many times throughout my life. The first time I saw the ocean from Maine it was like I was seeing it for the first time, and was not the beaches that attracted me. I was told that even though Maine had one of the longest shore lines of any state only about four miles of it were sandy. The remainder could best be described as rugged. The water was cold and the wind coming ashore pushed large waves that crashed against the rocks. I was drawn to it. It excited me, and I wanted to explore it and the thousands of islands that lay within sight but out of reach without a boat. *** One weekend while I was admiring the beautiful sailboats in Rockland harbor, a kayaker came shore. He left his kayak on the grass and walked into one of the restaurants overlooking the harbor for lunch. I couldn’t resist. I went over to see his boat. It was the most beautiful thing I had ever seen. You could tell that he was traveling a long distance. There was all kind of gear strapped to the deck – a compass, a bilge pump and a nautical chart. It was gorgeous. I wanted one instantly. I knew that it would give me the access to the ocean and its uninhabited islands that I had been so longing to explore. The very next weekend I drove to Portland to check out a kayak shop not far from the harbor. I needed to talk to an expert before venturing any further. I had so many questions. They weren’t busy that day and the owner of the shop spent a lot of time answering questions and showing me different models that would fit my size and purposes. Somehow I didn’t order one. I told him that I had to think about it and more importantly talk to my wife first. The next Saturday found me back in his shop. He smiled when he saw me walk in the door. He knew I was hooked. He said that he had his kayak on his car and asked if I wanted to take it for a little spin in the harbor. It was the same model that he was recommending for me and it would give me a chance to try it out and see if I really liked the sport before buying. It was the fastest I ever said “yes” to anything. Before I knew it, I was down at the rocky beach with a kayak, paddle and life preserver. *** It is hard to describe the first sensation as you push off and feel the water support your weight for the first time. It was a sensation that I enjoyed every time it happened. To push off and glide silently out on the surface of the water while watching the ocean bottom drop away out of sight gave the same sensation as taking flight in a plane. Looking out into the harbor I knew exactly where I wanted to go – the closest island, where I was told there were the ruins of an abandoned fort built to protect the mainland during the War of 1812. *** The kayak was effortless to paddle. It sliced through each wave sending the spray back across the deck to wash my face. It was bracing. *** Half way out to the island I almost had a collision. There were no other boats close by and I was perfectly relaxed, totally enjoying the moment when paddling directly across my path about fifteen feet ahead of me was a mother duck and her six ducklings in row behind her as if they holding onto a string. They were completely unafraid of the kayak. It was as if I was a natural part of her sea world and that was just fine. She hardly even looked at me, but remained intent on making her own crossing safely with her little ones in tow. Soon I was making landfall on the stony beach of Fort Gorges Island. It was the fist of many island landings that were to come. I placed an order for my own kayak that day, a 17’ Eddyline “Wind Dancer.” *** From that moment on until we left Maine, I spent every moment I could out on the water with my new best friend – my kayak. Ilene used to joke that my car was always easy to find in parking lots. It was the one with the red kayak on top. ***
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