New Diary Appeal with Gel-A-Peel

If you believe the zillions of magazine covers at the start of January, New Year equals New You. Well, I may not totally agree with that sentiment, but New Year definitely does equate with New Diary, and there's something very cathartic about that. Whatever worries and troubles the past twelve months have thrown at you, you can wipe the slate clean and start afresh on the 1st January. As the saying goes, life is an open book full of blank pages... you write the story as you go, and it's always exciting wondering what adventures and discoveries the new year will bring. We've got off to a great start so far as a family - we're only three weeks into 2018 and we've already set foot in six countries ! OK, I'm cheating slightly - England/France was for New Year celebrations visiting both sets of grandparents, then a week in Norway for me on a teacher exchange, with a train change in Belgium and a flight from Amsterdam, and this week Sophie is in Italy on a school trip. Apart from a fortnight in Bulgaria this summer, that's probably it for our globetrotting adventures this year though !

When I was in Norway, I found a great little shop selling all types of journals and memory books and I bought a few for me and the girls. For Sophie and Juliette, I bought  each of them a diary with weekly personality quizzes and spaces for memories and feelings that I'm sure they'll enjoy looking back on in years to come. For me, I opted for "642 Tiny Things To Write About" (for example, "Fill in the blanks : In my next life, I wish to be ..." or "You've just heard that your favourite potato chip flavour will be discontinued. Write an indignant letter to the manufacturer" ! - I may use some of these ideas to inspire creative writing lessons at school) and "My Future Listography : All I Hope To Do In Lists". Writing down your hopes, dreams, worries and innermost thoughts is supposed to be great for mindfulness and living in the moment, and Gel-a-Peel sent us a lovely surprise in the post which carries on the theme : a blank diary and a pack of Gel-a-Peel to customise it with.

I've shared lots of posts over the past year or so, showing you some of the funky things we've customised with Gel-A-Peel, but if you're still unfamiliar with the brand, it's an air-drying silicon gel that can be used on all manner of materials including wood, glass, plastic, paper and fabric. It can be squeezed out of the tube, just like glitter glue, using a variety of nozzles for different textures and effects.

It can also be used on its own, freehand or using the enclosed templates and moulds, to create 3d embellishments and even jewellery.

 Juliette never needs asking twice - she loves decorating and personalising her belongings so she immediately starting filling the moulds and leaving them out to dry. It takes quite some time for them to set completely so it's best to leave them overnight.

And here is her finished design, complete with oodles of hearts and jewels, all stuck on with a little more Gel-A-Peel. All that is left now is for her to fill up the pages with the story of her life and the highlights of 2018. I bet I'll never be allowed to read it though !

Disclosure : We received some Gel-A-Peel and a diary to customise.