I first discovered Anna back in 2004 shortly after beginning my digital journey. She was on the team at the digi site I hung out at. She answered many of my questions in the forums and I really admired her work and followed her as she’s been involved in different things in digiland. Our paths crossed again a while back as she started coming on The Digi Show and I have really enjoyed getting to know her better and working with her. She is an amazing and inspiring artist as well as memory keeper. I am thrilled beyond words to finally have Anna joining us in The Digi Files this month! Let’s take a closer look at “ArtPlay Palette Ablaze” that is included in The Digi Files this month:
Here are some layouts created using Anna Aspnes of Anna Aspnes Designs’ contribution:
Layout by Karen. Supplies: ArtPlay Palette Ablaze by Anna Aspnes of Anna Aspnes Designs.
Layout by Jenn. Supplies: ArtPlay Palette Ablaze by Anna Aspnes of Anna Aspnes Designs; Fonts: Jailbird Jenna and Small Typewriting.
Layout by MissKim. Supplies: ArtPlay Palette Ablaze by Anna Aspnes of Anna Aspnes Designs; Template by Jenn Lindsay; Fonts: 2 Peas Airplane and Century Gothic.
Layout by Katie. Supplies: ArtPlay Palette Ablaze by Anna Aspnes of Anna Aspnes Designs; Font: The King and Queen.
Layout by Amelia. Supplies: ArtPlay Palette Ablaze by Anna Aspnes of Anna Aspnes Designs.
You can see more layouts created with this kit on our “Team Inspiration” page.
Anna Aspnes is a UK native and military wife living in Colorado with her husband and two children, Ella and Luke. She is an independent digital designer at Oscraps, while creating digital albums and slideshows for Smilebox, and acting as a member of Wacom’s Penscrappers Panel. Most recently, she’s been chatting about her passion for modern memory-keeping on the The DigiShow. Formerly a contributing editor for Digital Scrapbooking Magazine, her layouts, designs and articles have been published in a variety of scrapbooking publications such as Creating Keepsakes and Somerset Studios.
Anna says…
I have always been very interested in art and design growing up and had lofty dreams of becoming a fashion designer, but was persuaded to pursue my linguistic abilities, specifically German and French at the University of Leeds in England. I completed a Bachelors Degree in German Language and Literature but feel that I was destined be an artist. I ultimately found my way back to my passion.
I am very athletic and enjoy lifting weights, swimming, biking and running. I like the simple life and also enjoy a glass of red wine, movies that make me laugh, good conversation and just being home with my family.
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I started taking photos and scrapbooking after the birth of my daughter in 2002 as a way of sharing her with family in Europe. I played with paper for the first 6 months but struggled with the clutter in the 900 square foot Japanese apartment that we were living in at the time. Digital scrapbooking was just beginning when I saw my first digital layout with blended photos, words and artistic elements. I was immediately charmed by this medium and knew this is how I could combine my love of both my growing family and creating art. There were only a handful of designers at this time, and the more layouts I created, the more requests I received to make my art available for sale. I started small, and have slowly built up my business over the past almost 9 years, which now promotes a no rules and playful artsy approach to modern memory keeping.
I am inspired by anything that is unique, outside-the-box, brightly colored and just plain fun. I am particularly drawn to modern and abstract art. I adore textures, paint and curves. People also inspire me, especially those that do not just take from the world, but give back to it both in actions great and small. I believe to live fully is to make a mark in this world and I would like to think I make a difference in the lives of others by sharing my Art for use in documenting memories.
Computer: I work primarily on a PC desktop (8 GIGS RAM) built my husband. I also have a MacBook Pro G5 (8 GIG RAM) which I also love and tend to use for non-work related tasks. I like to use both platforms independently of one another. It provides a sense of separation between my work and home life.
Programs: I have Adobe Photoshop CS4 on my Mac and use iMovie for my iPhone video clips. On my PC, I use Adobe Photoshop CS5 and Lumapix Fotofusion for scrapbooking. I also use Adobe Illustrator for designing.
Camera: I have a Canon 20D SLR which I typically use with my 50mm 1.4 or 16-35mm 2.8 Wide Angle Lens. I would really like to upgrade my camera at some point, but I’m very much of the mindset that if it is broken I probably can’t justify it. It’s still so much better than the slew of point and shot cameras I have tried or my iPhone 3 that I use for taking photos on the go.
Anything Else: I couldn’t live without my Bamboo Pen and Touch tablet. I have had various tablets all varying in size and price and I still gravitate to the smaller less expensive ones which are portable and easier to use in my opinion. I also like to use my Epson 4990 photo scanner, which allows me to create digital files from life ephemera and from which I am able to create a variety of brushes for my digital pages.
*Think less and do more*
I think this can be a valuable lesson in many aspects of life but particularly so in scrapbooking. It’s so easy to get caught up in what you could or should be doing instead of actually getting it done. The Art of over-thinking can really prevent you from discovering your creative zone, so next time you start your next layout, don’t think about what you’re going to do. Just play. Let your photos and stories, your digital products and tool, the colors and shapes guide you and you’ll end up at a destination you never thought were possible.
My favorite product is always my latest product but if I had to pick one it would be ArtPlay Palette Poppy. It was created by using my favorite colors.
AnnaBlendz Basic No. 1 BrushSet (Formerly known as Basic Gradient Masking BrushSet No. 1)
Here are some of my favorite products by Anna Aspnes:
Here are some more inspirational layouts using Anna Aspnes’ products. All of the layouts are linked to the originals with credits.
Go have a look in Anna Aspnes’ store! We will randomly select a winner from the comments to win $10.00 in product from her store! (Comments must be posted before midnight EST to qualify)! Anna’s DSD sale is still going on, so hurry and grab some goodies while you can:
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My sister in law is interested in starting Digital Scrapbooking. I’ve shared your site and Anna’s with her today!
Please let me know if she has any questions.
Thanks so much for the GC. I think I need to buy a lottery ticket now! I’ve been browsing Anna’s store for hours and am so undecided… there are so many special things there that I can’t choose!
Anna is a Unique designer, her kit are between scrap and painting. Great source of Inspiration everytime she create a Kit. Thank you to make us discover more about her.
Anna’s work is amazing! I have loved the way her art has evolved over the years and am enjoying the ArtPlays.
I love Anna’s stuff – soooo much to choose from that I don’t know where to start!
Anna is one of my all time favorite designers! I already some of her items and look forward to spending some time creating with them very soon. Love her ArtPlay, ArtsyBlendz, and just everything she does!!
Love Anna’s templates and kits. Always an inspiration.
Everything Anna does rocks… Love the Fotoblendz…. never been brave enough to try them out but I’m checking out your links above to figure it out! Thanks for contributing. Love listening to you on the digi show!
Kathy, please feel free to email me if you have any questions. You can also download a free Instructions for Use eBooklet from my store which will give you basic instructions on how to use my different products sets.
http://www.oscraps.com/shop/home.php?cat=400&treem=1
I’ve really been wanting to try more blending and artistic effects on my layouts and have been eyeing Anna’s stuff – I was SO thrilled to see her in the Digi Files this month!!! Thanks for featuring yet another amazing designer!
This kit is beautiful. I love Anna’s art and really enjoy having the ability to let go of clean lines and make something crazy!
Anna’s kits and templates are awesome! I never feel worthy to scrap with them. LOL! I love this month’s kit and am so happy I’m an annual subscriber. Thanks for the chance to win!
I just love the creativity that Anna’s ArtPlay Palette’s inspire. I was terrified of them at first, but have learned to let creativity and imagination take the stage and see what comes of it! Encapsulate, Wiked, and Thankful Heart are some of my favorites, but I also just adore using her brush sets with….well, everything. Thanks!
Anna, as always when I see one of your ArtPlayPalettes… I’m in awe!
I was curious this morning to see what I already had in my stash by Anna and found some stitching and some word art and some pretty brushes. Working with Anna’s kit stretched me and I really like the pages I put together. I’m going to find some time to go look through those articles Anna posted earlier today. Anna, how cool that you responded to so many readers! <3 From your shop, I was taken by the brushes and the gradient brushes listed above. I may have to do more shopping before tomorrow. What a cool kit! I think the FotoBlendz look super cool too. Thanks for a chance to win!
I love being one on one with my customers Sharon. Glad you were able to find something you liked in my store. Please let me know if you need any help.
I love Anna’s stitching! I have several sets and it is just the best.
I spent a lot of time in Anna’s store last night, but of course I would love to go back with a $10 gift certificate this time!
She’s my idol!
I would love to win some Anna Aspnes product! Her art play pallette in the current digifiles is my favorite set this month
Thanks Leah!
I really enjoyed learning more about you Anna! I was surprised to see that you use FotoFusion! I started with that one and now must go see if I can find your gallery. I love all your work!
I’m a fan of the auto-collage feature
I love Anna’s work–I want to be her when I grow up!
I love what Anna’s products have pushed me to do outside of the traditional approach. So fun to PRETEND I am an artist. Her products are pure creative genius.
LOVE, love Anna. She’s one of my favorite designers!!! I’m so glad she’s part of the kit this month. Thanks so much for the giveaway!
I was so excited to see Anna’s contribution in The Digi Files this month. She is my favorite designer. I just love her products and the “play” that results from taking those pieces and placing them together on a layout.
I remember coming across Anna’s designs and being so excited at seeing this new and different approach to scrapbooking. I kept coming back to them and being totally unable to decide which kit to go for to try this new approach. Now I have lots of Anna’s products and can’t get enough – I just love them all!
Thanks for all the kind words and for having me here in the first place Katie and Steph
Anna Aspnes and Cilenia Curtis are two of my favourite creators. They both have such a distinctive style and a simplicity to their work that is very appealing. I too was thrilled to see an Anna Aspnes kit in this month’s Digi Files. Here’s hoping that whatever I do with it is worthy of it!
I just love Anna’s products, check out her website for great resources on using them. Her posts really helped me to just try out her things finally. Beautiful kit and this is just the push that I have needed to give the Digifiles a try.
Oh my gosh, the brushes – the masks – and so loving the script-tease sets.
Anna’s work is awesome. I’d love one of her ArtPlay palettes. Thanks for the chance to win.
Stumbling on Anna’s products a couple of years ago was the trigger for diving more deeply into digital scrapbooking and art journaling. I never paper scrapped and never understood why I’d want to make a page look like a paper page. When I saw her work I thought “wow…*now* I can start creating the pages that have been in my head all this time” … something much closer to actual hands-on art pages that I’ve done in the past.
The very reason I switched to digital almost 9 years ago
I had the fun of seeing a bunch of Anna’s layouts and layouts using Anna’s products in a Somerset magazine I was thumbing through at the bookstore a couple days ago.
Anna is amazing! I learned about her from my cousin who has been helping me get started with digital scrapbooking. Now I spend all my time looking longingly through all of Anna’s fantastic products!
I am in love with all of Anna’s designs! She is probably my favorite digital scrapbook designer hands down! Thanks for the chance to win a GC to her store! My wish list is miles long
Her brush sets are the best! I love them all.
I was so excited to see Anna included in this month’s Digi Files. Her brushes are fantastic and her ArtPlay sets are so unique. Thanks for the chance to win a GC to her store.
I’m so excited that Anna is a part of this month’s digi files! I love her products and enjoy listening to her on the Digi Show.
I LOVE Anna!!! She’s one of my most favorites!!! I LOVE her Art Play Palette Thankful Heart! soooo pretty!
I love Anna’s designs! She has taught me how to play!! Thanks, Anna!
And play you do so well Julie!
When I grow up, I want to be like Anna. One of my very first digital kits that I purchased was from Anna from a couple of stores back – she no longer has it available – but I love it still. I still need to practice more on the Artsy side of things – way out of my traditional, linear comfort zone – but Anna had a great article on her blog recently about combining the two styles – it was awesome and I think that it is doable. I love so many of Anna’s products – The Gift of You Album, Thankful Heart and Weihnachtsbaum are on my wish list and I’m off to buy the Art Play Forget Me Not kit. One more thing – I’ve loved every episode of the Digi Show – where Anna has been a guest. So many things that she has said have resonated with me. Thanks for this month’s contribution as well to the Digi files.
Thanks Karyn! Which kit was your first? I’m slowly getting around to reworking some of my older kits and so there is a good chance it will be back
Color me happy – I have an affinity (read obsession) for sunflowers and the primary colors in the kit make me smile. I’d love to see an Art Play based on it. Thanks for asking.
I love Anna Aspnes. I was so excited this month when I saw her in the digi files!
I just discovered Anna a couple of weeks ago and she has completely changed the way I scrap. Everything just goes together so smoothly and I feel so creative!
LOVE to hear this.
I was thrilled when I saw Anna as part of digi files. Her style is so unique and beautiful. Makes me want to do like she says, play without thinking hard on it. Thanks!
Totally!
Artplay Palette Pumkin Patch; any of her ScriptTease… there are lots of things I love in her shop!
Anna is definitely the top of the top in the digi world. Not only is she a stand out designer with quality, unique products that really enable you to tell your stories but she is an outstanding woman and mom too! I love it when I really admire the designer as a person as well as their work. Plus, my husband went to Hinckley High and his parents still live behind the big KMart on Chambers. So…when you post pix of your backyard on your blog, I get to see what is going on at mom and dad’s! Yeah, Anna! Oh, Script Tease, Word Transfers are my picks today…Anna has the best Word Art anywhere! Thanks for the chance!
Oh gosh! You’re making me blush Michelle. Thank you for being so kind and really I’m just a simple girl who just loves her role as a wife, mom, designer and memory keeper, even when it isn;t easy all the time. Love that you have folks in the neighborhood
I love Anna’s templates, especially all the Summer Album templates. Also love the Holly Overlays and Corners and ALL the Hipster Plumes!
She said it herself and I agree, “unique, outside-the-box, brightly colored and just plain fun.” Was so happy to see her included this month and now a chance to win a shopping trip to her store, marvelous.
Love, love, LOVE Anna’s product! Oh did I mention I love Anna’s product? Thanks for the opportunity to win!!!!
Oh my goodness, I just love everything Anna creates! Her designs are amazing!!
I love her designs! I’m just getting into digital scrapbooking and I think she’s one of my favorite designers I’ve seen so far.
I am in love with the Encapsulate art play palette, I can’t wait to play with the kit that is included in the daily digi.
Big Anna fan here
Oh and thank you for including my October Colors layout here! What a surprise! Love this article, as I can never get enough Anna. Oh and I WANT Ablaze…guess I will need to subscribe 
Oh and please PICK ME!
I love Anna’s products (took me the better part of the day to download my DSD goodies from her store!) and firmly believe you can never have enough Anna goodies in your stash:)
Thanks Sharon for your support
Your title and Anna quote are not the same. You just wanted us to think about it. Right? I am so not “artsy” but with Anna’s help I maybe could do it. I so appreciate her blog with helpful explanations of how to use her products.
Hi Jeri,
My main aim in my scrapbooking is to create arsty pages quickly so that I can create more meaningful pages. I use simple techniqies to yield complex results and my art is intended to help you do the same. The Think Less Do More is all about getting on with creating pages as opposed to getting lost in the fear.
Anna
I have admired Anna’s style and products for some time now but honestly been a little intimidated by them. I’m so excited to try out the Artplay Palette!
Ashley,
See the links I posted to Mary’s comment above yours. I did a whole free mini-series on my blog about ArtPlay Palettes to make them less intimidating. If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to ask
Anna
This is so lovely… Not my usual “style,” but I am looking forward to playing!
Hi Mary,
These articles might be of help to you:
A series on demystifying ArtPlay Palettes:
http://annaaspnes.typepad.com/anna/artplay-palettes/
ArtPlay meets Traditional:
http://annaaspnes.typepad.com/anna/2011/10/artplay-meets-traditional.html
I just found Anna and I love everything – her ArtPlay Palettes are perfect for all my backyard bird photos!
i simply love Anna’s ArtPlay Palettes, her templates, her unique word arts and her brushes! i could eat and breath Anna Art!
I was so excited when I opened the Digi Files and saw Anna’s name. I have several of the Artplay Palettes, Fotoblends and Transfers, but not enough! Haha. Would love to win especially with the DSD sale till going on! Thanks for the chance.
I love Anna, her products constantly amaze me, as does her ability to add even more products to her repertoire. My favorite kit of hers is Encapsulate, although the one included in the Files this month is awesome. So excited to see that on the first!
Thanks for the chance!
I love Anna’s products. I think my favorite are her Artsy Layered Templates which help this definitely non-artsy scrapper achieve such a cool result. Leslie
What a fantastic range of products you have in your store Anna. I think you have lots of great brush sets, overlays and word arts. xx kel
Anna is the best there is ……………… !!!
I love her ArtPlayPalettes: it’s só easy to play!
Thanks Kelly and Viv. I’m happy to be able to inspire you