| Chatting With Angie Pedersen |
|
Author Angie Pedersen answers Rebecca's questions about her new book - The Book of Us. |
Rebecca
– About Scrapbooking Guide: I am so excited to be participating in this
virtual book tour for the brand new book The Book of US: A Guide to
Scrapbooking About Relationships. Angie Pedersen is here to answer our
questions about the book and give us some fabulous tips for scrapbooking our own
relationships. At the end of this interview, don't miss the Page Layout
Challenge that Angie has just for reader's here at About.com Scrapbooking.
Rebecca - Hi Angie, thank you for being here. I want to start out by asking you, What inspired you to write The Book of US?
Angie Pedersen - My husband inspired me to write The Book of US, in two ways. First, he actually made a sort of joke when The Book of ME came out – kidding around one day, he said, “Oooh, so first you got The Book of ME, next you can write the Book of Me for kids, then The Book of US, then the Book of You, then the Book of That Guy Over There...” My publisher took his words to heart, so The Book of US was next on the list. Second, for my husband’s 25th anniversary with his friend, he asked me to make a scrapbook celebrating their history together. I was so impressed with the strength and endurance of their relationship; I wanted to encourage others to celebrate their relationships as well.
Rebecca: So "The Book of Us" that you made for your husband was about his relationship with his longtime friend, what other types of relationships do you think would be perfect for a Book of Us album?
Angie: Any kind of relationship can be celebrated with a Book of US: friendship, romantic, family, groups – basically, if more than one person is involved, and you want to document it, it would be a great Book of US!
Rebecca: For long term relationships, how do you suggest organizing "history"?
Angie: There are any number of ways you can chronicle the history of a relationship. You could do an actual timeline, detailing significant dates from the day you met, trips you took, milestones and celebrations, through to present day. You could also fashion an album of random memories, not grouped chronologically, but in themes, like the album I created for my husband. His themes were things like Elementary School, Sleepovers, Common Hobbies & Interests, Movies, Jobs as Teens, High School, College, Road Trips, and Families. Basically you’re trying to answer the questions, “How did we get to this point? What decisions and experiences have put us on this road? Where has that road already taken us?”
Rebecca: In the book, you mention that a theme can help make putting a Book of Us together much easier. What are some of your favorite theme ideas?
Angie: Chapter Two is all about theme albums. Most of the projects featured in the book are theme albums of one kind or another. Having a theme helps unify all the layouts in an album project, and helps you focus more on specific memories, related to that theme. Plus, they’re so much fun to work on! I love the idea of defining and describing specific aspects of a relationship within a scrapbook, so some of my favorite themes are “The Dictionary of Us”, where you give definitions of words or phrases that apply to your relationship, and “Our Memory Triggers”, where you go around your house and take pictures of material things that trigger automatic memories of times spent together. These kinds of themes help portray aspects of your relationships that are completely unique to you and your loved one(s) – no one else is going to choose those words to define, or have those same memory triggers. That’s what makes these kind of projects so meaningful.
Rebecca: Memory and perspective are closely related. Explain how is perspective a key element of a Book of Us?
Angie: I think perspective is key in a Book of Us because a relationship is made up of more than one person. Each person adds something to that relationship, and helps define it. By including each person’s thoughts and words in the journaling, you help illustrate just how these people relate to each other, and what makes this relationship different from others.
Rebecca: Tell us about Celebration albums? How do they help define relationships?
Angie: For this kind of album, ask yourself, “What do we celebrate together? How do we celebrate together? When have we celebrated together?” This kind of a Book of Us shows all you’ve celebrated together – all the times when something worked out for the best, the times when you’re the most proud, the times when life is just simply good. Creating a scrapbook of these kinds of memories helps document everything that has brought you to this point, as well as reminding you of all the joyful moments still ahead of you. A Celebration album showcases all the events and memories that have meant the most to your “us” -- this helps define your relationship, because no one else will have that same combination of celebrations, or think the same things are worth celebrating.
Rebecca: When I think about celebrations in my life, my relationship with my husband is, of course, foremost in my mind. Probably when many people think about a Book of US they think about romantic relationships. How is this type of book different than other relationship albums?
Angie: A romantic Book of Us is all about defining and documenting what makes this relationship different from others in your life. It allows you to reveal little glimpses of the intimacy you share with your significant other – how are you partners? How is this person your “soft place to land” (to borrow a phrase from Dr. Phil)? How does this person lift you up and support you? Creating a romantic Book of Us encourages you to dig deep to define exactly why and how this person is “The One”, and how you fill that need for them.
Rebecca: What suggestions do you have for getting input from your husband or boyfriend when creating a romantic Book of Us?
Angie: The easiest way is to ask outright. Create a list of questions you’d like answered, then ask. He can answer verbally, handwritten, via email, or whatever works best for him. Consider just asking some questions over dinner, or on a road trip, and jot down his answers later. Make it easy for him to give input, not a chore. Help him realize how important his answers are to you, and to your children (as applicable). Feed his ego a bit: “I love how you tell this story. It always makes me laugh.” Even a couple of sentences in his words will add his “flavor” to the project – if that’s all you can squeeze out, it’s better than nothing!
Rebecca: After creating about book about my relationship with my husband, I would probably next want to focus on our family. Can you give us some ideas for preserving family memories, without having to put together an extensive scrapbook? What if I only have a weekend? Or a few hours?
Angie: So many projects in the book are just fun quickie projects! Anything that includes a few family photos and some select memories can be meaningful. Try creating a small album with a finite amount of pages, like an accordion album, or a 6-page tag book. I made my “Our Book of Fun” tag album in about two hours, and that includes inking, stamping, and printing out the photos! It provides a quick glimpse of our family traditions and rituals that help keep us connected. An album doesn’t have to chronicle an entire year to share precious memories – each memory you document is a good thing.
Rebecca: Let's move on to larger groups of people now. Scrapbooks about groups create some unique challenges. Can you give us some tips for putting together group albums?
Angie: Group albums can be used in a variety of ways. You can create an album to show off your group, and describe it to newcomers. You can create an album to document a group’s history, including information on events and traditions. You can create an album to introduce the members of a group. It helps to decide first your purpose for the album – what information do you want to share? What is the goal of that information? To recruit new members? To provide historical documentation? To illustrate the strength of the bond between members? Pinpointing your purpose can help guide the entire project.
Rebecca: Speaking of group albums, tell me about Circle Journals. How do they work? What do you need to do to start one?
Angie: A circle journal (aka “CJ”) is an art journal that is shared among a circle of people. The group of people can be assembled because they are friends, or because they have signed up to be a part of the project. The CJ hostess chooses a theme, such as “My Favorite Color”, creates the first layout, then passes it along to the next participant. Each person is then allowed to interpret the theme however works best for her. This means that Circle Journals are a great opportunity to learn more about each of the participants, on a level not always available in everyday interactions. It’s a unique opportunity to deepen the relationship among the contributors. There’s a great article by Cathy Lucas and Katie Desiato at ScrapsAhoy about launching, creating, and hosting a CJ.
Rebecca: Finally, Angie, you have created a really fun page challenge for the readers of About.com Scrapbooking. The page shows how much we can learn about our lives from the details. How does this apply to a Book of Us?
Angie:
“It seems to me that the flow of meaning, the flow of life, is in the details.
Wherever I am, the details are always there, and the richness comes, I think,
from the harmony of the details - the fluttering leaf, the soft breeze on my
arm, my dog lying on the driveway looking down the street. There is a harmony,
and it is in the details. Don't miss the details. This is the richness. “ ~~
Gary Fuller
Each of the details in a layout like this is unique to your “us” – no other “us”
will have the same combination of details to document. These illustrations point
to your priorities, pastimes, and passions. Showcasing those tidbits adds
meaning, adds “richness” to any album, but particularly a Book of US, because
these are the people you have committed yourself to, and vice versa.
Click here to find the sample page and details for a Page Layout Challenge from Angie Pedersen. Make your first Book of US layout with this page idea.
