Celebrating love…and getting philosophical in the process :)

Last weekend we went to what was probably the most wonderful wedding I've ever been to (except my own, of course ;) ) I don't think I've ever seen a couple so utterly, joyously and unashamedly happy as the bride and groom. And, being two of the most jaw-droppingly creative people around, they made their day exactly what they wanted it to be - a whole-hearted celebration of life, love and family. From the invitations made of old children's book illustrations to the 'hangi'/'hungi' (meat roasted in underground pit for a day and night) reception on her family's farm, and everything in between, it was just amazing. And I still get a wee bit teary - in a good way - when I remember his speech: "The day I met Laura, she ticked all my boxes. And ever since then, she's been drawing new boxes, and ticking them..."

From a what-was-inspiring-and-how-can-we-apply-this-to-scrapbooking point of view (because I know I'm not the only one who does that, hey??), I was really inspired by how authentically "them" their day was. There was nothing that was done simply because they felt they 'should', or because some magazine had said it was this season's "must-have/do". Every little detail reflected something of Jono and Laura themselves - and everybody there LOVED it.

I've been thinking about that and it struck me that while, yes, new products and trends are wonderful and exciting, and while it's good to try something new every so often, at the end of the day what's most important is that I tell my stories in my own authentic creative voice. I can think of several layouts I've done just because a product/style was trendy at the time, and they're definitely not the ones I enjoy going revisting once a bit of time has passed. I guess what I'm really talking about is learning to be satisfied with the way I express myself creatively, rather than letting what's fashionable, or other people’s opinions dictate it. After all, so long as I'm satisfied, that's what really counts, huh? It was a timely reminder (and seems to be an ongoing life lesson for me :-/ )

Enough philosophising! On to Layout Twelve. Here 'tis:

(That illustration below the photos was on the front of their invitations – just gorgeous) This was the easiest layout I've done in a long time, mainly because all the elements (book text, sheet music, scrabble tiles - scrabble tiles! :)  - keys, twigs) were just mimicking the wedding decorations. Too easy! In fact the hardest thing was trying not to think about all the supplies from my still-in-storage-stash I could have used, while I was buying this lot. Missing stash quite badly now - 9 months is a long time... Nearly there!

On a final note, thank you to all of you who take the time to leave comments – they really are very much appreciated! Ooh, and if anyone knows of a company that makes Scrabble style patterned paper, I'd love to hear of it. (I thought there'd be stacks out there, but apparently not...)