[ Ali Edwards ]

Documenting The Documenting

I am a fan of photobooths.

Anytime I see one I grab whoever is with me and we jump inside. We drop coins in the slot or gently coax in dollar bills (making sure they are crisp and right-side-up) or swipe a card. We make a few poses, laugh a lot, and in just three-or-so-minutes this glorious little strip of images is released into the world. There's one at our local movie theater and there was a fantastic one at the Ace Hotel in Portland where we stayed with my sister a few weekends back. The images above were captured at the hotel.

I found a site that can help you locate photobooths in your area. Check out this link to Photobooth.net.

When I was going back through my photos from our weekend one of the things I noticed was that we had a couple photos that documented the documenting. These photos, captured by my Mom, show us in action. They show us together, doing our thing, living a little bit of our story inside a photobooth.

Do you have any photos that show you or your family participating in the process of gathering images?

Maybe it's a photo of you taking pictures of your kids, or your favorite flowers, or your pet, or your coffee cup - whatever it is that you love to take photos of in your life.

If not, it may just take you asking a parent, friend, partner or even a child to snap a couple shots. Maybe it's with a camera phone or a point and shoot - anything that can capture an image you can then use on a layout in conjunction with the photos that you took (or were taken by something like a photobooth).

Having both captured tells an even richer story.

Here's the layout that combines the inside and outside photos (click the image below to view larger):

JOURNALING : The Ace Hotel : Portland, Oregon. One of the reasons I was excited to stay at the Ace was because I knew about the famous photobooth that sits in the lobby. I love photobooths. It's impossible for me to pass one by without inserting some money and getting photos taken with whoever happens to be with me at the moment. Over the course of the our stay we the booth three times. Once with me, Anna & Simon. Once with me & Simon (and one where Chris popped his head in the booth). And once with Chris, Simon and me. I love these shots. They are dark. They are imperfect. They are silly. I also love that we have a shot of us from the outside (taken by my Mom). It's a bit of documenting the documenting. It's always cool to see ourselves from the outside. A peek at us in action, together, hanging out. Family getaways like this are also really important to me. Getting out of our daily routine is refreshing and fun and always an adventure...just like popping in a photobooth.

SUPPLIES
DIAGONAL PATTERN PAPER : Studio Calico Dash
SQUIGGLE-ARROW PATTERN PAPER : Cosmo Cricket Detour Joy Ride
YELLOW STRIP : Studio Calico FabRips
BLACK DASH PATTERN PAPER : K&Company Poppy Seed Gray Dots
YELLOW LETTER STICKERS : Basic Grey Origins Micro Mono Stickers
CAMERA CIRCLE STICKER : Studio Calico Die Cut Stickers 20% Extra Flashy
FONTS : Adler, Garamond
LITTLE WHITE EPOXY HEART : Making Memories

And the Brene Brown DVD goes to...

The comments today were just awesome. Ordinary moments of everyday life are treasures - thank you for sharing yours here.

I have so many favorite ordinary moments.

One of my current favorites is that each night as Anna gets close to finishing her dinner one of us will start the bath. As soon as we get her down from her highchair she toddles as quick as her little legs can carry her straight into the bathroom. She is a very big fan of bath time.

This is simple nightly ritual which is so ordinary right now will be just a memory in the blink of an eye. I am savoring these moments.

You Are Worthy : You Are Enough : Brené Brown DVD Giveaway

For quite a number of years now, I have believed that scrapbooking is a way to own our story.

Through documentation and exploration and simply getting the story down on paper we come to know ourselves better. And as my friend Dr. Brené Brown says, "we gain access to our worthiness."

I first met Brené, a researcher, writer and professor, a few years back at our now annual Oregon Coast summer retreat. She is an exceptional woman who inspires me in so many ways, most especially through her concept of wholeheartedness. We bonded over some of our "better" type-A qualities, years & years of swimming, good old sarcasm, and the fact that we both "like our crazy right up front."

Karen did a great interview yesterday with Brené here.

This week Brené is celebrating the release of her new DVD titled The Hustle for Worthiness with a Week of Worthiness on her blog. To help her celebrate I am giving away one of these DVD's today.

One of my favorite ways to celebrate "who I am" and "what I believe" is to capture the ordinary moments of life - the moments that tell the real everyday stories of our family. Leave a comment below sharing one of your favorite ordinary moments for a chance to win Brené's new DVD.

Comments will be closed tonight at 8pm Pacific with the winner posted shortly after.

Getting Real : Thoughts On Creativity & Scrapbooking

It's definitely starting to feel a like spring here today. It's warming up, things are blooming, and I have that wonderful inclination to open all the windows to let the fresh air inside.

Among other things, the weather makes me want to clean out my garage. It also makes me want to rid myself of the excess once again (a continual battle that seems to hit a fevered pitch when the weather turns a bit warmer).

One of the concepts I have been thinking about lately is the concept of "getting real." It seems to work hand in hand with shedding excess - it's about adjusting expectations and clarifying and moving forward with less pressure, less fear, less of whatever it is we don't need in our lives.

For me, getting real right now is about setting reasonable expectations. Because scrapbooking is a big part of my job, I am working on figuring out how to get real and find that life/work balance. It is a continual quest as the two are inherently integrated in my life. Also on my mind is finding that balance between taking a risk and extending myself in other artistic directions and staying in my creative "safe space."

Getting real for me also means living with intention. It is an attitude and a way of looking at my everyday life and the choices I encounter from minute to minute.

I see getting real as a very positive thing.

Getting real is a process that often involves identification and some sort of action. It may be that you begin something or it may be that you end something - a behavior, a thought, an unhealthy process. It may also mean saying yes to a new opportunity or saying no to something that is not bringing anything positive to your life or your art.

Getting real is about giving yourself permission to change, making adjustments and moving forward toward a richer existence. It's about not wasting a moment in this precious life of ours. It goes so very fast.

Here's some additional thoughts related to getting real about your creative life (if you don't scrapbook just substitute that word with another word such as paint, draw, write, etc):

• Get real about why you scrapbook and the role it plays in your life. There's no right or wrong answer here, it is simply taking the time to think about scrapbooking's place in your life.

• Get real about what you think scrapbooking should be and what it actually is for you. There are no rules, no ways that it is supposed to be or should be. Embrace what it is for you or make some changes if you want it to be different.

• Get real about the time you have to scrapbook. Get real about how much you are spending on supplies. Get real about how many albums you really need to tell your stories.

• Get real about spending time on you. Get real about finding that balance between all the different things that are important in your life.

• Get real about your personal cycle of creativity. I know for me there are ups and downs and ins and outs. Riding the down wave is a part of the process.

• Get real about whatever it is you are holding on to way too tight. Get real about your expectations for yourself. Perfection. Competition. Want. Commitments.

• Get real about telling the story that has been waiting to be told for months or years or decades.

• Get real about wasting time that could be spent in more creative ways. Get real about procrastination and the negative effect it can have in your life.

• Get real about the amount of projects on your to-do lists.

• Get real about your potential as a creative person. Where do you want to take your creativity? What is your focus? Telling your stories? Imparting a sense of creative wonder in your children? Hanging out with your friends as you make stuff together? Having your work in a gallery?

This week take some time to generate your own get real list. What's on yours?

Originally published April 17, 2008 as part of my AEzine newsletter series. I will be periodically bringing content back from the archives, updating/adapting, and re-publishing here.

And the giveaways go to...

Congratulations to the following:

Two people will receive Compositors from moiratools.com.

(1) sarah • I love my camera, because it can capture the memories I want to hold onto and help me rememeber those that i will want to look back on later on, even if it might not be right at the moment. I love when they say a picture is worth a thousand words.

(2) dawn • My favorite new tool is my fisheye lens! I haven't had the chance to try it out yet, but am super excited to get some creative shots with it soon! I would love to learn more about photography! Great giveaways!

One person will win the “Life is Good” collection kit ($30) AND the add-on kit too ($10) from Treasury of Memories.

ereive • My favorite creative tool is probably my vintage typewriters that I recently got on ebay and had refurbished. I have one with a regular font and one with a cursive font. They are amazing. They give everything that little bit of vintage flair that I am loving right now. It's funny that I use my computer so much for so many things, but at the end of the day, I would just rather use the typewriter to journal... I love them. :)

Clickin Moms is giving away a 6 month membership.

KathleenB • My favorite tool right now would have to be inks! I love to ink everything. Great giveaways again...thank you so much. Hope your family is on its way back to good health soon!

If you see your name above please email me ali at aliedwardsdesign dot com with your contact information.

Sponsor Giveaways : Treasury of Memories, Clickin Moms, moiratools.com

Two people will receive Compositors from moiratools.com.

moirai Compositor is a super simple Photoshop script (for use with CS3 or CS4), that helps you create anything from collages to albums in just minutes. The innovation in the Compositor is it starts with the images and builds a design with them instead of forcing images into a stock design. Check out our videos to see how the Compositor works.

• A new user interface makes the tool easier to use: Picking the dimensions of the final image is more straight-forward and looks just like the Image Size dialog in Photoshop®. Other options are now defined similarly.
• Picking the images for your composition is easier than ever: You no longer have to load all of your images into Photoshop® in exactly the right order. The new interface allows you pick other images to include by browsing files on your computer. You can also re-order the images before generating the final composition.
• There are new options for the final composition so the tool can do more for you: You can specify borders on the individual images in the composition, you can specify background colors other than white, and you can even pick another image to use as the background.
• Best of all, you get to choose the final layout: Instead of a layout being automatically chosen, you are a given a choice of numerous layout options. This flexibility guarantees that you’ll get the composition you want with no hassles.

NOTE FROM ALI : I had the chance to try out this script software last night and it's really pretty cool. It's easy to tell the program the photos you want to use, choose the layout and hit a single button for it to do the work of re-sizing the images to fit in the grid. I can definitely see using this for scrapbooking both digitally and with paper. Cool product. The only bummer is that it only works with CS3 or CS4.

One person will win the “Life is Good” collection kit ($30) AND the add-on kit too ($10) from Treasury of Memories.

Ready to have some fun? Check out this playful collection of papercrafting goodies in the “Life is Good” Collection Kit by Treasury of Memories!

You’ll enjoy a variety of great products from My Mind’s Eye, Creative Imaginations and so much more…all coordinating and ready for you to have fun! With just one kit, our design team created a super chunky mini book, three scrapbook pages, AND ten adorable notecards! Colorful handouts are also included to share creative inspiration too!

PLUS this month’s collection has a great add-on kit! And it’s perfect for a Mother’s Day gift or for any special occasion!

Check out their blog for creative ideas and for great specials valid this weekend only!

Clickin Moms is giving away a 6 month membership.

Here’s the funny thing about photography. It’s one of those activities that seems like something you have to do all on your own: you find the shot, you set it up, you take the picture. And yet, when you think about it, one of the most rewarding aspects about the whole process is sharing with other photographers. That’s what Clickin Moms is all about.

Clickin Moms is a community of women who have the same passion for photography that you have, who have questions about what they’re doing just like you do, and who want to know more about how to do it better – same as you.

What kind of new camera should I shop for? What in the world do I do with it once I get it? How do I capture nice sharp images like I see on the internet? What types of shots work well in scrapbooks? How do I set up my own photography business?

Clickin Moms is a welcoming, generous, supportive group made up of everyone from beginners to pros. And it feels about as close to friends and family as you can get online. What a forum for sharing images and ideas! You can show others your photos and get constructive feedback about them. Learn about a ton of subjects – everything from technical areas like lighting to practical stuff like the business of photography. Even host your own lesson on a subject others want to know more about. And if you have your own blog, you can join the affiliate program and earn commissions by referring your readers to Clickin’ Moms.

On top of all the support that is available to every member every day, Clickin’ Moms has recently started to offer photography workshops. These incredibly popular classes come in several varieties, geared towards various levels of photographers and topics.

No matter where you are in your photography journey, this is a group that’s worth getting to know.

TO BE ENTERED into this weekend's giveaway please leave a comment below sharing your current favorite creative tool or product (if you are reading this on Facebook please come to my blog to leave a comment). Comments will be closed at 8pm Pacific on Sunday and the winner's posted shortly after.

Have a wonderful weekend!

365 : Project Life Update

My Project Life for this week is going to be all about prescriptions, medications, and doctor's visits. An ear infection for Anna and strep throat for me and a cold for Simon and lots of work for Chris (who somehow managed to miss this super-fun being sick experience).

Looking forward to a healthy week next week and getting back to work. I like work.

Regularly scheduled giveaways coming tomorrow morning.

Family Sick Day

Over here we are on Day Three of sick Simon + sick Anna + sick Mama. Fevers and coughs and sore throats and stuff/runny noses all around. Hoping tomorrow everyone will be feeling a bit better. Be back soon!

Using 6x12 Divided Page Protectors In Scrapbooking

Last week I shared a few Today You 4x6 photos with digital journaling and wanted to show how I am incorporating these into my albums.

Sometimes when I use my computer to journal on my photos in Photoshop I will then use the photo on a layout with embellishments, etc. Other times it's just nice to journal, print, slip-in, and be done.

It's no secret that I am a fan of divided page protectors in my 12x12 albums. These new 6x12 page protectors from American Crafts are great for adding photos or journal cards or embellished 4x6 cards or ephemera directly into 3-ring albums.

I also think this is one of the things I like about digital scrapbook products - they can easily and simply be added to a photo, printed, and placed inside a page protector such as this one above (or in a 12x12 divided page protector). The story gets told.

You can also achieve this same look without using digital products. After printing photos grab some journal blocks (made by lots of different companies such as these from October Afternoon or you can always just use a piece of cardstock from your scrap box), write your story, adhere it to your photo, and slip into the pockets.

This is scrapbooking.

On the backside of these photos I am planning to use the same Toady You theme with three photos + journaling for a day in Simon's life.

You can read more about my overall album organization process here.

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The Third Annual Slice of Life Challenge at Two Writing Teachers begins this week. You can read more about the challenge here.

Mark Your Calendar: Week In The Life 2010

Just wanted to let you know in advance that I am planning to do another round of my WEEK IN THE LIFE project this year from April 19th through the 25th. Much more info to come as the date gets closer.

For more information on this project in the past go here: Week In The Life.