Sketches, sketches, sketches

If you are a blog reader of mine, I think you’ve figured out that I like to use sketches. Probably 95% of the time I use a sketch.

I go back and forth as to my sources for sketches. And some of the time I actually sketch from what’s in my head.

Let’s be serious people, there are really no original ideas in scrapping. A sketch that I came up with in my head is going to be similar to someone else’s layout at some point, right? It’s mine because of how I put it all together but the bones are probably similar to someone else’s in the world.

So sometimes I scraplift, sometimes I use an existing sketch and sometimes I pull something out of my head. I don’t really have a preference. It’s whatever inspires me at the moment.

My favorite go to sketches, hands down, are Becky Higgins. That girl is way talented and I love her clean line approach. It works with my style. Her sketch column in Creating Keepsakes is one that I tear out often.  Her book is a permanent fixture in my scrap bag and I pull it out a lot.

{Oh, holy cow…I just saw that it’s out of print and going for over $60 at Amazon…wow! If you don’t own it, just start your own, collecting her sketches from her column each month in CK and downloading the extras at their website…you’ll have a nice collection in no time!)

Another fun source that I’ve used here and there are PageMaps. I love that Becky Fleck posts both single and double pagers each month and that she includes a .pdf that you can download.

The Basic Grey team uses her sketches for their monthly newsletter.  Scroll to the bottom left hand corner of their page to sign up for their newsletter…lots of fun eye candy each month!

But lately my best source of inspiration is my own sketch book.

I’ve posted before how I use this but over the last year I have really been using it more and more. Whether they are sketches drawn from my tear out sessions or sketches drawn from my head…I go here first. Even if I use a sketch from one of the Beckys, I usually copy it again in my book so that I can get that feel of sketching it on the grid (I guess I’m visual that way?) and get a better idea of what size pictures I need.

And here’s a fun thing to share…my pal, Kinsey, has a cute cute download so you can make your own sketch book. How fun is that!? Maybe after this journal is filled, I’ll just get some grid paper and make my own. Or maybe not…scrap time is limited in these parts! :)