Off the screen and onto The Storyboard, with memory maker and creator, Natasha Ahmed
Welcome to The Storytellers, our series spotlighting the creatives bringing their ideas to life with The Storyboard.
Meet Natasha Ahmed — a digital designer and content creator with a passion for scrapbooking, junk journaling and getting special moments off the screen and onto the page.
Tell us your story!
Hello! I'm Natasha and I am a digital designer and content creator. I started my career after leaving university with a Graphic Design degree and whilst working a corporate job for three years, I decided to leave and pursue full time content creation and design. A lot of my work is focused on illustration — I love to create little themed mood boards or digital scrapbooks and I also love to junk journal and make my own crafts.
I've really discovered my own sense of design when it comes to my art — I love all things maximalism and combining colours and textures together to curate an eclectic, nostalgic art style. I now get to work with my favourite brands that feel authentic to me (like Mustard Made!) and align my sense of design with them.
How are you using your Storyboard?
I set up my Storyboard right opposite my bed so it's essentially the first thing I see in the morning. I've been using it to create an ever-changing moodboard where I've been pinning my favourite moments of the month. I love that it grows and updates with me as I obtain more physical memories.
"I've been hanging up my photostrips, my film pictures and postcards that I've received. It truly is the perfect place to store all my mementos."
How does having a physical space to create a vision board help you bring your dreams to life?
A vision board is a perfect way to plan and envision a life for yourself in a way that is hopeful without it feeling like too much pressure. Plans change all the time so I love that it doesn't feel so permanent with the Storyboard — I can just update and add to it as I please which I think is quite beautiful with a vision board!
When you think about yourself in 5 years' time, what do you hope your life will look like?
I would really love to have my own collection of stationery. I already own a small business where I design and sell my work on phone cases and stickers but I would love to expand into journals, craft kits and my own sticker book.
What do you love most about scrapbooking?
I love all forms of scrapbooking, whether it's physical or digital. Digital diaries have made me push my sense of design even further by making my own stickers and tokens and I love making them to document my month instead of just a photo dump at the end of the month. I think this appeals to others as it also makes them want to create an archive for themselves that they can look back on at the end of the year.
"I hate the idea of all our images just being locked inside our phones, never to be looked back on again — so I think scrapbooking is a way to create a physical archive for yourself whilst being able to express your creativity."
What is junk journaling?
Junk journaling is collecting all the pieces of scrap that have a memory attached to them and documenting it in your journal. Start by collecting receipts, movie stubs, concert tickets — anything that is physical even if it's a napkin from your favourite restaurant and just making a fun little spread out of them. Collect stickers and actually use them rather than saving them for a special moment. Write down your goals for yourself.
"I truly think junk journaling has no rules, it's a fun creative outlet and the purpose is to enjoy yourself whilst doing it."
What does a typical work day look like for you?
I usually start my work day by going through my emails and processing my orders on my website. I'll then focus on some illustration work either for myself or for a client which usually takes the most hours of my day. I'll also balance in making content, whether that's a "How-to" video for my own channel or a piece of content for a brand — edit it and then send it over for approval.
