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november 14, 2006 volume one : issue eight From Found Style by David and Amy Butler  :Life is a process of continual discovery, and our surroundings should bear witness to the search. The best discoveries are those that are unique and exciting, with elements of the familiar and comforting. The same can be said for style, which can't be obtained by simply following a prescription. Good style is ultimately a found style - stumbled upon, discovered and collected over time. It is easier to hire a designer, choose to be either shocking or conservative, to use massive clutter or leave rooms nearly empty for effect. But homes that feature a true sense of style are most often those that have been lovingly assembled over time, piece by piece, matching old and new with creativity, common sense, thriftiness, and occasional humor. And they go on - so many good words about style. I came across this quote last night as I was looking for some home inspiration and was super excited to find that the words here completely relate to how I feel, not just about how I want my home to be, but about my scrapbooking style. I believe that style is a continual evolution. That it is constantly changing and growing, and I love the idea that it is wonderfully perfect to have a style which is in motion. That ebbs and flows and never has to stay the same - unity through fabulous chaos. Now before you freak out at the word "chaos" let's delve a bit deeper into an exploration of style. This is part one of a two part series on style - more to come next week. Enjoy. Peace. Ali style evolution : part one  We all have a style. We all have a yesterday, today, and tomorrow style. To start off this whole process I decided to take a look back at my own layouts (using my gallery at Two Peas) and explore my own evolution of style. (The following will have a bunch of links to layouts - if you would like to read this on a webpage with all the visuals included go here. I started scrapbooking in late 2002 and have always been pretty graphic in how I organize information on my layouts. Take a look at the second layout I completed above in the title for this newsletter (A Year In The Life): strong, straight, orderly lines. Even then, I loved telling stories that compare life over time. Many of my early pages included one enlarged photo. In looking back, one of my main goals was to find the points where things started to evolve for me. I think my first distinguishable evolution began when I started doing the Art Inspiration Challenges a couple years back on Two Peas . Each week or so a new inspiration was posted based on a variety of different works of art. Those challenges stretched me. Pushed me to try different things and to see things differently than I had in the past. Having the inspiration pieces as guides were totally influential in moving me along in my personal process. My pages began to look a bit more organic - circles began appearing as well as a more freeform way of working with elements. Here's a couple of my favorites from that period: Croquet, and Keep On.   Around that same time I began to focus more on real life - real life photos, real life stories, blurry photos - really cherishing and celebrating everyday life. Here's a favorite:  In our lives this was also right about the time we began becoming concerned about Simon's developmental progress. This is life art. What I notice, as I look back through my layouts, is that what was happening in our lives always directly impacts my art/layouts in one way or another. This is another reason I love scrapbooking. Not only does it document life, it reflects it as well. I can see so much of my own "stuff" in these layouts - emotional, artistic, etc., and I can tap back into all those feelings as I review these pages. Another time I can see growth is when I completed a bunch of pages to submit for the CK Kids Idea Book. These layouts differed because they were all two-pagers. Again, I was stretched to grow and adapt in how I was putting my layouts together. The resulting pages were very graphic and linear, definitely echoing my earlier layouts, yet had become more complicated as well especially with the addition of more photos. Here's a couple I love:   My gallery starts to get a bit "leaner" at this point. Now, instead of loading all my layouts onto Two Peas they were loaded into my first book and then into my second book. Next week we will take another look at style - I want you to take some time over the next week to check out your own stuff and identify some of your own style evolutions - see the Weekly Challenge below for more info. For today I want to leave you with these thoughts (also from the Found Style by David and Amy Butler :Great style doesn't happen overnight. Don't become impatient waiting for your look to evolve. You'll end up falling back on a theme, or hiring a decorator, or buying the furnishings for an entire room at a department store - all sins in the world of personal voice and creativity! Allow yourself the time and energy to make something great for yourself. The process should be as fun and inventive as the end product. You will make mistakes, but in the end you will have a good sense of your own style and an organic space that changes with your whims. weekly challenge This week I want you to take a bit of time to check out your own style. What defines your style? Create a layout shows examples of your own style evolution - write about how you have grown as a life artist/scrapbooker since you first began. These sorts of stories are so important as a part of your own personal history. How cool for your family to see all the layouts you have created AND a layout that talks about how you see yourself evolving as a life artist/ scrapbooker. Come by my blog and post your challenge layout link on Friday, November 17, 2006. Looking forward to seeing your creations. question & answer Q from Rosy : I was wondering when you handwrite your journaling on your layouts or projects do you journal lightly in pencil first and then go over in pen, or do you just dive in with your pen right then and there? I'm a little nervous about making mistakes (which I know is OKAY), but I was just wondering how you approach this. A : Good question. I am not a pencil first person. I just write. I figure out how much space I have and I just start writing. The more I handwrite the more confident I have become in my ability to fit my journaling into the space I have left myself. And do I make mistakes? Absolutely. Every time. I actually see that as part of the beauty of handwritten journaling. I like that my mistakes are right there - that I spell things wrong and use incorrect grammar. I think that beginning with pencil is a great way to start becoming more comfortable with your own hand - and if that is going to get you to write more, more power to the pencil. Eventually you will get to a point where you will trust yourself enough to begin with the pen. If you have a question you would like to have answered send me an email and write "newsletter" in the subject line. New Long Sleeve Women's Shirts in Life Art Shop  A few new shirts have been added to the Life Art Shop at Cafe Press just in time for the colder months (and the holidays). One of the new designs includes all the words from the 2007 Life Art Wall Calendar. Specially designed to inspire you to action in your life. Check out the magnets too. Copyright � 2006 Ali Edwards/AE Design/Life Art Media. Please do not reproduce any content without permission. Ali Edwards, author of A Designer's Eye for Scrapbooking and A Designer's Eye for Scrapbooking with Patterned Paper, is Creative Editor of Creating Keepsakes magazine where she writes a monthly inspiration column called Studio A . She is a wife, mother, artist, writer, and seeker of balance. Owner of AE Design and Life Art Media, she conducts life art workshops around the globe. You can find her online on her blog or contact her through email at ali@aliedwardsdesign.com
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