Project Life Special Guest: Ali Edwards

I am sure like many of you, Ali Edwards has been a long time inspiration.  When I first began scrapbooking I remember pouring over her articles in Creating Keepsakes Magazine.  Her method of documentation was unlike anything else I had ever seen.  Her focus on the story AND the photos taught me so much about creating rich, meaningful layouts.  She has (and continues) to contribute so much to this wonderful hobby called scrapbooking, and is as genuine as can be.

When she began posting her Project Life pages to her blog in 2011, I couldn't help but be intrigued with this different system of documentation and scrapbooking called Project Life.  We are thrilled to have Ali here with us today at Elle's Studio!  She created a Project Life spread using many Elle's Studio products and answered a few questions.

1.  When did you start Project Life? 
My first attempt was in 2010. It's a partially completed album (one that actually fell down off it's perch and needs to be totally put back together). I plan to get back to it at some point. In 2011 I completed all 52 weeks. I think the biggest thing for me was posting weekly on my blog - that definitely helped keep me accountable and develop a really consistent schedule for getting it done. Through that process it has really become a part of my life routine.

2. What do you love most about Project Life? 
I love that it's a place for small & big stories. I love that it's uncomplicated (you can make it as complicated as you want). It really doesn't take a lot of time once you get in a rhythm with your photos and journaling and realize that it's really more about the complete album than it is about any particular week. 

3.  Now that we are 7 weeks into the year of Project Life and the newness has worn off,  what advice do you have on "keeping up the momentum"? 
My biggest advice to people is to keep it simple, keep it accessible (out in the open so you can add to it during the week) and establish a routine for printing photos.

4. How do you determine what items go into a Project Life album vs a layout?  
Good question. I'm actually still working on that. I've got a couple goals for myself that I'm working on implementing related to layouts. I haven't been making as many as I used to (partly I think because of Project Life and partly because my general workload has increased) but I want to bring that back into my creative practice. I imagine that the layouts I will be doing will include longer stories (you can see longer stories I've included in Project Life here.)

We have a giveaway today!!!  We are giving away a prize pack containing Ali's favorite Elle's Studio items.  Leave us a comment on this post for your chance to win the items listed below.

1. Collected Note Tags.  2.  Red Pennants  3. Lil Snippets: Dates 4. Lil Snippets: Pink and Red 5. Lil Snippets: Yellow and Orange

Thank you so much Ali for joining us today and sharing your Project Life with everyone at Elle's Studio!!

Ali Edwards’s passion resides in that very special place where the stories and images of life intersect. Designer, blogger, educator, author and mother of two, Ali is well known for capturing everyday life with photos and words and creating scrapbooks from those moments that often pass by in an instant.

“I started scrapbooking in 2002 as a way to organize all the stuff I collected after the birth of my son. It has become so much more than an organizational process for me. Through the techniques of photography and personal storytelling I have discovered my voice. My hope is that by sharing the stories of my life and the methods I use to document our days, others will feel inspired and encouraged to record their own.”

Since embarking on this creative career, Ali has written four books about scrapbooking, authored a popular monthly column for Creating Keepsakes magazine, conducted workshops around the globe & online. She currently designs digital and printable scrapbooking products for Designer Digitals, stamps for Technique Tuesday and blogs daily at aliedwards.com

To learn more about Ali and her work visit aliedwards.com.

Project Life was created by Becky Higgins as a way to simplify how you document life and preserve memories. Photo pockets used in my Project Life album are created by Becky and can be found here.  You can read of all the Elle's Studio Project Life posts here.

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