Extreme Makeover...Classroom Edition

Maybe it's the New Year a coming and the desire for a fresh start that it brings.

Perhaps it's the fact that you can only log in so many hours in a jungle themed classroom surrounded by animal prints before you start feeling like you are the lost cast member from Jersey Shore.

I got it in my head that I needed to makeover my classroom.

This isn't a new concept for me. In fact, I typically start from scratch with a new theme for each school year. I have not, however, made over my room midyear.

Oh the excitement.

Surely you have scooted to the edge of your seat in eager anticipation for the unveiling of my new theme. If not, I'll give you a second to get your scoot on. :)

Actually, it's not a theme.

Unless being a crafty Goddess of all things paper and rocking a Cricut is a theme.

I'll explain.

I used to scrapbook. Hubby even let me have an entire room in the house dedicated to my lovely hobby. It rivaled any scrapbooking store with the hundreds of papers and die cuts and funky scissors and stickers. I would spend hours designing layouts and even more hours shopping for supplies.

And then I stopped. Babies...life...who knows? I just got busy and stopped making the time.

But, I missed chronicling our family history. So I recently designed a digital album using Photoshop and had it printed through Shutterfly.

Swooooooon!

That baby is beautiful. It includes hundreds of photos all bound neatly into a hardcover, 12 x 12 album. While I did spend an absurd number of hours working on it, I was able to do so just about anywhere my little MacBook would go. I worked on it in the car, during my lunch, and even in the waiting room of the doctor office. I'm hooked.

There were two problems though. I missed the creative outlet of getting all messy with glue and I have an entire studio stocked with supplies.

And so I've decided to create a bunch of projects for the classroom and thus the idea of a makeover was born. There is no real theme. I'm simply going with bright colors (mostly aqua and lime) accented with black.

I'm looking forward to dusting off the Cricut and having some fun this vacation being creative.

As you can see in the photos, I got a head start on the day before vacation.

I had hoped to get in there this week and do a little work, but a pesky blizzard kept me home yesterday and prevented my free childcare...um, I mean my parents, from visiting until next weekend.

So into the little basement studio I go with my 5 year old assistant to spend the twins' nap time cutting, adhering, and embellishing some to be determined projects. Stay tuned.