Welcome!
If you’d seen me before I could walk, you might have found me propped up against a coffee table, wielding a crayon like it was a magic wand. Creativity was my first language. But it was my mum who introduced me to the magic of paper collage — the art of layering life’s fragments into something whole.
My father flew fast jets in the Royal Air Force, and often brought home huge maps from his travels, the backs of which offered vast white sheets. My mum sketched simple line drawings — a snail, a clown — that became the foundation for my earliest creative adventures in cutting and pasting. Surrounded by fabric scraps, vintage buttons, and boundless curiosity, I learned that beauty could be crafted from life’s bits and pieces.
At school, I was the child who adored all art projects that came with a blank journal. Nature walks became pressed flowers and leaves, vacations became collections of shells, postcards, and collected treasures. I didn’t know it then, but I was already telling my story through art — layering images, words, and memories long before I called it scrapbooking.
Years later, after marrying into the United States Air Force, I found myself in Japan with our first digital camera, a growing family, and a tiny 900 square-foot apartment filled with love and humidity. Paper scrapbooking wasn’t at all practical, and then I happened upon the digital world, where pixels replaced paper and hard edges were dissolved.
I started with the free software that came with our camera and adventured my way through a few programs before I found a sweet spot with Adobe Photoshop. The limitless possibilities have always made almost anything possible for my scrapbooking. When I started posting pages in online communities, I was inundated with requests to share my artistry and techniques. And that’s how Anna Aspnes Designs began — out of a shared love for storytelling through digital artistry, photos, and words.
More than two decades later, I continue to explore the intersection of art and memory — pushing creative boundaries, teaching others how to blend imagery, simplifying digital abundance, and celebrating storytelling as both self-care and connection in an ever-changing world.
Because memories are the heart of our life experience — and documenting them is how we make sense of who we are.
Whether you’re just getting started, or ready to take a leap into advanced creativity, I’ll be here to guide you on the journey.
