First we’ll get to the freebie download for all of you lovely people, because you know we heart you for reading our little ol’ blog. Since we’ve made a tradition of designing a homemade calendar each year (and 2012 ain’t gonna wait just cuz we’re mid-kitchen reno) we stole a moment – while the wood putty dried – to throw something together for the big one-two.
Our calendars from the last few years have all been text-based (you know, as opposed to full of photos). Like our 2010 calendar, where we assembled a dozen weird family phrases & inside jokes and laid them out in simple bright colors:
Or our 2011 calendar, where we used a numerical fact about our family to represent each month (ex: May, the fifth month, said: “Five years in Richmond” and July, the seventh month said: “Seven years spent together”).
Well, this year we ditched the text-on-white theme and went full-on photographic…
Each month of our 2012 calendar features a photo that we took that same month in 2011, so it’s an easy way for us to look back and say “oh yeah, so that’s what Clara looked like exactly a year ago.” Admittedly a photo calendar isn’t a groundbreaking idea, but it seemed really fun to toss together since 2011 is the first full calendar year that we’ve spent with Clara in our lives. And that girl can pose like Tyra Banks.
We gave each pic a “historical” feel by applying a free Photoshop action from the Pioneer Woman called “Heartland” (you can download that here) and then we brought color back into the calendar with a bright curvy border on the top and the bottom. The font that we used is a free download called Lobster (which you can get here).
And speaking of downloads, you can download our Photoshop file featuring all twelve colorful frames here. Which means you can personalize the whole thing for yourself (and then print it out and hang it proudly in your kitchen/office/mudroom) by:
- adding your own photos as a new layer behind each frame using Photoshop
- being sure to download the font if you’d like to alter the text (otherwise it could switch to a default and look wonky)
- applying the Heartland action to your photos if you want a similar look (or you can making ’em black & white, full color, etc)
Now all we’ve gotta do is buy a new color ink cartridge so we can print this sucker out on cardstock, cut it to size, and hang it in our finished kitchen (probably with a binder clip or two so we can easily rotate each page out as the months go by). Oh wait, guess we gotta finish the kitchen before we can “hang this in our finished kitchen”… so maybe it’ll be up by February or March. Haha. Either way, happy almost 2012 everyone! Hope you have fun making a little calendar of your own (or even whipping some up as gifts for friends and family members)!
But on to the secret… a little package arrived from my Secret Santa! Remember I mentioned that sweet Mrs. Limestone invited me to play along among a bunch of awesome fellow bloggers (and I was worried I would totally choke when it came to figuring out two perfect gifts to send someone’s way throughout the month of December)? Well, this package arrived all festively wrapped with a little “Peace On Earth” ornament on top…
… and I opened it to find this adorable silver box from Pottery Barn that reads “Good things come in small packages.” Which makes this 5’2″ gal smile.
And there was a little bit o’ sparkle going on – like fairy dust. Which all made sense when I cracked the lid to find three sweet ornaments with the hubster, the beanster, and my initials on them. So cute.
Anyone have any guesses which of these bloggers might be my secret Santa? I don’t have a clue but I love the suspense of it all!
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Mrs. Limestone at Brooklyn Limestone
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Michelle at 4 Men 1 Lady
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Bryn at Bryn Alexandra
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Emily at Emily A. Clark
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Shelley at House of Smiths
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Melissa at The Inspired Room
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Janell at Isabella and Max Rooms
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Paloma at La Dolce Vita
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Jacin at Lovely Little Details
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Nicole at Making it Lovely
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Marian at Mustard Seed Interiors
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Lauren at Pure Style Home
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Tanya at Save the Date for Cupcakes
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Michelle at TenJune
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Sarah at Thrifty Decor Chick
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Laura at You Stir Me
As for my new little ornaments, off to the tree they went! Not only the three initial ornaments but the little glittering birdie too:
Here’s our little C in action. I love that these babies aren’t breakable – so they fit right in with our paint chips and ribbons.
The red on the initials tie right into the red ribbons, and the glitter around the edges gleam like our sparkly snowflakes.
Oh and our tree has filled out quite a bit over the last few weeks. Care to guess why?
Yup, many of the ornaments on our little homemade advent calendar have been popped off the door where they were hanging…
… and onto the tree. Clara and I have had fun finding the perfect place for each one as each day goes by.
Love me some holiday traditions! Maybe I was an elf in a past life. Those little seasonal activities and crafts (like our annual calendar and our ornament advent calendar) are hardly expensive or time consuming – but they’re so much fun for the family to get into the spirit. Especially little Clara. And when you’re dreading/gearing up for days and days of cabinet sanding and priming and painting… ya gotta love a little holiday spirit in the half-torn-apart house to keep ya smiling. Maybe we’ll play Christmas music while we putty and pretend the sawdust is snow…
Update: You can check out all of our favorite holiday decor finds here – many of which are under $15!
Natalie V. says
I don’t know who your Secret Santa is, but I totally think you drew Shelly at the House of Smiths. I just saw the gift she received and it has “Sherry” written all over it!
YoungHouseLove says
Haha, I’ll never tell! Well, unless it’s time for me to spill the beans. Then I can’t wait to find out who has me and tell everyone who I had!
xo,
s
Kali says
Love your calendar idea, maybe I’m crazy but I can only download the month of January. Help… it’s the best gift for Grandma!
YoungHouseLove says
The months are in front of each other on different layers, so just hide the layer labeled “January” and it should reveal February behind it (and so on!). Hope it helps!
xo,
s
michelle says
well, i didn’t download the calendar, per say…i totally stole the idea and copied it to make my own. took me all day, but i am very happy with my result. Thanks for the great jumping off point! ~m
YoungHouseLove says
Aw so glad!
xo,
s
julie says
Your paint chip tree decoration idea is genius. LIKE LIKE LIKE! Who says Christmas can’t be brightly coloured?! :)
Sabrina G says
Dearest YHL, I just discovered what the “play selection” button does in photoshop while applying the Heartland Action to my February photo for your calendar template..2012 is going to be a GREAT year..this just made my year. I have been double clicking each action..dont ask..photoshop noob here..Happy New Year :) Sabrina
Pam says
So who did your secret santa turn out to be? I can’t find the answer here or on Mrs. Limestone’s blog!
YoungHouseLove says
I still don’t know who mine was! I think folks are waiting to receive their second gift and then will reveal it all in one full-monty post! Can’t wait!
xo
s
lindsey g says
hey guys! just wondering what printer you all use? i am needing a new one that is mac compatible! thanks a ton.. and hope you all have a grand new years this weekend!
YoungHouseLove says
We have a wireless HP Photosmart one, which we love for the quality but can sometimes be quirky about printing wirelessly (sometimes things shoot out super fast and other times it takes foooooorever). Hope it helps!
xo,
s
Kathleen says
Thanks so much for the sweet calendar! I just downloaded it, but only can seem to find January. Are all the months suppose to be included in the download?
YoungHouseLove says
Each month is it’s own layer, so if you make the January layer invisible (click the little “eye” icon next to the layer) you’ll see February behind it… and so on and so forth…
-John
Kelley says
The calendar is awesome…. i am unable to download it all or do any month. can you help. Please feel free to email me kbshaw77 [at] gmail [dot] com
YoungHouseLove says
Sorry you’re having trouble, but I’m not sure what specific help we can offer without more details about what’s not working – we haven’t heard of anyone having issues downloading yet.
-John
Kelley says
Hello… I got it to work. I was having a new mommy sleep deprived moment. I absolutely love the calendar. I am printing them out this weekend. Thanks!
Kate says
I’m late to the party, but I did want to let you know I linked back to this on my blog today! thanks for the creative present you made for all of us
YoungHouseLove says
Aw thanks!
xo,
s
Jesette says
Hey Sherry! I was wondering if you could tell me how you created the frame for the calendar. I’m working on a little project and wanted to recreate it, but I’m having difficulty. hehe Thanks
Marin says
I love the calendar! I’ve been wanting to make some of my own art like this for our nursery. I know you mentioned photoshop – is there a particular version you would recommend buying for a beginner?
YoungHouseLove says
Photoshop Elements could probably do it! Any of their small beginnger ones would work I think!
xo,
s
Andrea :) says
I’ve been enjoying your 2012 calendar all year, as well as grandparents who I’ve shared it with. Will you be sharing a 2013 calendar with us as well?
Thanks,
Andrea :)
YoungHouseLove says
Oh man we’re so late with that! Hope we can make one again!
xo,
s