Happy Planner Layout + New Home Updates | Colorful Leopard, Moving Progress & Crafty Happenings

This week’s Happy Planner layout comes from one of my most neglected Happy Planner sticker books - Colorful Leopard.

More than half of my sticker books have already been moved to our new apartment, so I just  reached into the remaining pile, grabbed one without looking, and told myself, whatever comes out, that’s what I’ll use.

Well… leopard prints it is!

It actually ended up being quite fitting because our new apartment came with a huge carpet in the living room featuring a giant leopard (or… jaguar?) in the middle. Funny side story - I had to Google the difference between a leopard and a jaguar because I thought it was a jaguar the first two times we visited the apartment. But after using this sticker book, I am now confused.

And even after Googling, I still can’t tell! 

What do you think?

I snapped a photo of it, and I also have a theory that Lucky refused to come out of his carrier the first few minutes after he got in when we visited because he got scared of the giant animal on the carpet. Whether that’s true or not, I wasn’t really a fan of the carpet anyway, so we had it removed.

For this week’s layout, I included big sticker with lots of boxes for my TTD (Things To Do) to help me keep track of daily chores, Design Team deadlines, and, of course… packing.

The stickers I used say:

• Do all things with kindness
• You are capable of amazing things
• Attitude of gratitude
• Hello Weekend
• On to the next adventure

Which pretty much sums up life right now because there is so much happening!

First Overnight Stay

Over the weekend, our friend Jay helped us move the first batch of our things to the new apartment, and we all stayed there overnight.

Of course, the very first thing I unpacked wasn’t clothes.

It was our travel magnets. 

I’ve joked for years on Instagram that after every trip I’d say, “I need a bigger fridge!” because I kept bringing home magnets from everywhere we visited. I also did that just recently, coming from our last cruise where I added 10 magnets.

Well… I finally got my bigger fridge!

It’s actually large enough that the magnets and photos that used to spill onto the side of our old fridge now fit perfectly on the front. Since one side now sits against a wall, I’ll probably move our weekly meal planner magnetic board to the front too. A little rearranging is still coming this weekend.

The fridge is practically brand new too. I was even the one who peeled off the protective plastic from the doors! There were still protective pieces inside on the glass shelves and tape holding everything in place. Of course, I still gave everything a good wipe-down and even washed the crisper drawer before using it.

Making the Apartment Feel Like Home

I’ve already made up both bedrooms with sheets, although we quickly realized we need another set of king-size bedding because both beds are king-sized and we only own one king sheet and one queen sheet.

Here it is... the queen fitted sheet struggling and failing to fit.

We also told Jay that the second bedroom is officially his room anytime he needs to stay over or has business in Dammam or Al Khobar.

My Favorite Corner So Far

One of my favorite parts of the apartment is our display shelf.

Everything on it was either handmade by us or lovingly gifted by family and friends, making it one of the most meaningful corners in our home.

Before

After

Top Shelf

• A light-up shadow box I made during a Bee Happy workshop (I haven’t unpacked the power cord yet!)
• One of the Marmee & Me candles gifted by Kaye
• Our 6-year-old Young Living Desert Mist Diffuser, still paired with our favorite Cotton scent
• A light-up Instax photo frame gifted by Chummy

First Shelf

• The colorful tile photo frame I made during an Arts & Crafts day with our Bahrain Beshies
• An Ugu Bigyan Mother and Child sculpture from my mother-in-law
• A candle Sean gave me for my birthday that has travelled from Australia to Manila to Malaysia and finally Saudi Arabia
• Ton’s clay throwing masterpiece (or… masterpiece with character). He actually shaped the bowl beautifully, but then overthought the painting. The result definitely has personality!
• My selenite tower, temporarily living in the living room while my craft room is still under construction. Hopefully it’s busy cleansing our new home.

Second Shelf

• A painted portrait of Ton and me for our wedding, gifted by my former colleague Anna, whose sister painted it
• A textured floral artwork by KM (she made matching ones for Kaye and me!)
• Another painted portrait from my niece and Beshie Girl, Sabi

The lower shelves aren’t finished yet, so I’ll share those once they’re fully decorated.

Craft Room Progress Report

The craft room is slowly coming together!

I’ll be sharing photos in the next few weeks to show the progress:

• Bed in the middle with the shelves still in pieces

• Bed moved against the wall

• Shelves finally assembled

• The first few baskets of crafty supplies happily resting on their new shelves while waiting to be organized

It’s still far from finished, but every unpacked crafting haul makes it feel a little more like home.

Closet Goals

Our bedroom closets have glass doors... which means messy closets are unfortunately not an option. Hahah

Right now they look beautifully organized, although that’s mostly because only a handful of clothes have been hung up so far.

Let’s see if I can keep it looking like this!

Lucky’s New Favorite Spot

Lucky has officially claimed his favorite sleeping nook.

It’s the top left corner of the couch’s backrest.

He lounges there like he owns the place.

To be fair… he probably does.

Crafty Updates

Even with all the moving, I’ve still managed to squeeze in quite a few crafty projects!

Kendra’s Card Challenge

I’ve finally shared the last batch of my June #KCC23 cards - Cards 11–15! I’ll also be posting a quick reel next week showing all 15 cards together.

Traci Reed Designs

Last week I only shared the cover of my Besties Who Brunch mini album, but this week the flip-through video is finally up!

If you’d like to see more photos and the rest of the Design Team’s projects, be sure to check out these posts on Traci’s blog:

• That's my Best Friend....Scrapbook her with the Besties Who Brunch collection!
• Celebrate Friendship with a Besties Who Brunch Interactive Mini Album

I’m also busy working with her brand new collection releasing July 24!

On the personal side, I finally finished my Travelers Notebook documenting our latest cruise, exactly one month after we got home! That’s a huge improvement from the eight (or so!) months it took me to finish my Alaska cruise notebook.

This is also my first Travelers Notebook I’ve completed from cover to cover, documenting two cruises from 2025 and 2026. It’s wonderfully chunky and I absolutely love it.

Bee Happy

Eeeekk!!

I’m so excited for this project!

I made one of those viral DIY journal covers… using one of my Bee Happy eco bags! It’s not published just yet, so for now you’ll just have to enjoy the front cover!

Miqueka Scrap

I also finally completed an overdue Design Team project with the Nuestro Dia collection. And I made a wedding mini album.

This one is a little different from my usual albums. Instead of lots of flaps and interactive elements, I leaned into a more mixed-media style using stamps and Lindy’s sprays.

I wanted to add texture paste through stencils too… but then I remembered all my pastes were already packed in the new apartment!

Even so, I really like how the simplicity turned out.

Paint Anywhere Challenge

I’ve also joined Fuumuui’s Paint Anywhere Challenge for Watercolor Month.

I’m currently on a five-day streak, and hopefully I’ll keep painting every day until the end of the month.

Naturally… I’m making every single painting Harry Potter themed.

Here are Days 1 through 5!

Al Ahsa Checklist

Last night’s dinner was takeaway from Maza, our absolute favorite broasted chicken in Al Ahsa.

Ironically, it’s the only fried chicken I’ll happily eat even though they don’t serve gravy.

The chicken is just that good. 

Life has been a whirlwind of luggages, packing, Design Team deadlines, unpacking, and trying to remember which luggage I packed things in. But little by little, our apartment is starting to feel like home, my craft room is slowly taking shape, and Lucky has already chosen the best seat in the house.

So here's cheers to more unpacking, more creating, more little adventures, and finding joy in every corner of this new chapter. 

Kelly Bangs' Wonder Club Collection | A Vintage-Inspired Interactive Mini Album

Kelly Bangs is back with another beautiful collection, Wonder Club - a charming collection filled with vintage-inspired patterns, florals, and nostalgic little details that celebrate treasured old school memories and life’s simple moments.

As usual, I instantly fell in love with the florals in this collection, and of course, my first project had to be a mini album! One thing I really enjoyed about Wonder Club is that it isn’t overflowing with pink. I always seem to gravitate toward the pink and yellow papers in every collection, and my mini albums almost always end up looking very pink. So this one felt like a refreshing change.

…although, let’s be honest, I still reached for the yellow paper and the pinkest pattern I could find for my pages. Some habits never change! 

For the first spread, I used one of the yellow patterned papers to create a tri-fold page with an extra flap on the left. I added a butterfly tuck spot that holds card, and at the back, there is a mini folio which opens up to photo mats or blank spaces for journaling. A pretty ribbon keeps everything neatly closed. Inside, you’ll also find more tuck spots and little embellishments tucked throughout.

The center panel features a pocket holding a tiny hand-stitched journal. You can use it as another mini album (yes, a mini within a mini!), a journal, or a combination of both.

On the right panel, I created corner tuck spots with a small journaling card tucked inside - also perfect for photos, notes, or little memories you’d like to keep.

For the second spread, I went all in on the gorgeous florals using my favorite patterned papers from the collection. I added two mini pages in the center to create the illusion of four pages, making the spread feel extra interactive.

Both the left and right panels feature folder-style inserts with photo mats on the front and back. Inside each folder are pockets filled with tags and blank journaling cards. The left insert has a side pocket, while the right features a belly band for a slightly different look.

The center mini pages include more photo mats and pockets with adorable mini cards tucked inside.

The third and final spread is where I tried something completely new - shaker pockets and a flip shaker page! I had fun experimenting with this design, and I’m really happy with how it turned out. Next time, I think I’ll make the shaker walls a little thicker so I can add even more fun shaker bits inside.

Enjoyed making this album and Wonder Club made it so easy to layer beautiful details while keeping everything pretty and just nostalgic. I hope it inspires you to pull out your favorite memories and create something special of your own. Happy crafting! 

Check our Wonder Club collection here!