What's My Style?

Suppose a scrapbook contest asks you to describe your style in 75 words or less and you freeze. “What’s my style?” you ask several friends who know your work. Their answers usually give a set of characteristics that classify your layouts into a specific category. This is called style. There are several ways to group these unique traits that portray style and I’ve narrowed it down to five basic categories.

Contemporary
*Bold/Pop/Modern/Geometric/Linear/Asymmetrical

This style is innovative and fun. These scrapbookers seek out the newest products and use them in original ways. Colors tend to be bold and dramatic, and papers are alive with movement. Photos and other elements are often placed at angles. Journaling is lively and often sports a pithy quote or two.

Products that Fit:
Arctic Frog
SEI
Sassafras Lass
KI Memories

Contemporary example by Shelley Burkett:

Traditional
*Classic/Clean/Elegant/Restrained/Timeless/Formal/Symmetry

This style has a timeless feel. It seeks a clean, ordered look and maintains balance by using the smallest amount of embellishments. Colors tend to be solid. Patterned papers have a universal appeal with more modest and reserved patterns. Photos are usually straight and sometimes not matted at all. Journaling gives the facts and specific details of events. It describes the places and people in the photos.

Products that Fit:
Chatterbox
Daisy D’s
Sweetwater
Melissa Frances

Traditional example by Briana Fisher:

Artistic
*Lumpy/Textured/Depth/Artist Supplies/Crafty/Asymmetrical/Informal

This style uses the medium of the craft artist to weave its magic. These layouts have depth and texture applied with a paintbrush or palette knife. Fibers, wood, and metal doodads find their place next to photos and journaling to produce a page that has much to see and feel. Title letters are stamped or hand drawn. Journaling often consists of quotes and words, and is hidden behind photos or on tags in pockets.

Products that Fit:
Basic Grey
Junkitz
Rusty Pickle
7gypsies

Artistic example by Maureen Spell:

Romantic
*Embellished/pretty/Victorian/Floral/Feminine/Romantic/Shabby Chic

This style is vintage and pretty. Papers are usually torn, stitched, inked and crumpled. Lace and buttons are common embellishments, giving a decidedly feminine appeal. Journaling tends to be romantic and deeply personal.

Products that Fit:
Anna Griffin
K & Co.
Sonnets

Romantic example by Amy Stultz:

Whimsical
*Cute/Colorful/Stickers/Cartoon/Playful

This is a style that focuses on the photos and allows for the unique personality of the scrapbook artist to shine through. A quirky, eccentric and delightful twist is the essential flair that the whimsical artist brings to the craft of scrapbooking. Journaling is funny and sparse, providing smiles and laughter.

Products that Fit:
Paper Fever
Doodlebug
Karen Foster
Flair

Whimsical example by Polly McMillan:

Eclectic
This category doesn’t mean that each layout has all of the above groups combined but that you, as a scrapbooker often create layouts that fall into several categories depending on your mood or subject. While you may be an eclectic scrapbooker, it’s likely that most of the individual pages you create will fall into one of these categories.

As you become familiar with these general styles and experiment with different papers and techniques, you will develop your own unique style. You will possibly see yourself as a blend of several and come up with your own combination such as Traditional Romantic, Whimsical Artistic, or Contemporary Traditional. A defining assignment would be to create a layout about yourself using your favorite papers, embellishments, photos, quotes, etc. You will see a “style” emerge as you focus on using elements that symbolize “you.” And the next time you are asked, ”What’s your style?” you’ll have the answer --

CONTEMPORARY TRADITIONAL with an ARTISTIC touch of WHIMSY!

That’s me!

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