Think about all the graphic websites that you love. We love these sites for what sets them apart - for their sense of uniqueness and creativity. Let's face it - no one likes a copycat. I get bored sometimes when I see the same style over and over again. Don't get me wrong, I sometimes try on a "fad" or "trend" (since that's all it is) on a design just to see how it will turn out, however, I always try to add my own twist to it! That is my advice to you - if you are going to "copy" without being trashed about later, you might as well try and make it your own? That's how a "style" is born.

So, what is a style? Could the answer to that question be grunge, vector shapes, sparkly blends? Could style be the certain brushes you love to use on every layout? Or the types of textures you use on all your graphics so they seem to be coherent? All these answers could very well be what "style" is. After all, we each have our own definition. But, how would one "find" their "style"? Even the greatest artists in history had some source of inspiration - but do not be mistaken. Inspiration and Copying is not the same thing. To copy is to strip all creative thought from one and spit it back out for all to see. Where is the fun in that? Inspiration - that is something new. An inspired piece is created from bits of the past and molded by visions of dreams. Ok, so I might be getting carried away here, but I hope you understand what I mean. To be inspired doesn't mean you have to copy a certain "style" to get the same result. To be inspired means to get your brain thinking, to get those creative juices flowing!

When you first started out designing, you probably wanted to try and copy a certain layout or graphic because if you are successful - you feel as if you have achieved what others, who are at a higher designing level, have achieved. The only difference between you and those who you "copy" from is that they have been through the long journey of designing. They have found their "style" through countless attempts at designing and their risk-taking with trying out new ideas.

So how do we create without copying? This is a good question. There are plenty of reasons why "copying" is good. It forces you to discover how the designer created certain effects, but that is about it. If you do any copying, the extent should only reach as far as educational purposes. Other than that, copying is useless, unethical and unoriginal.

Study not Copy. Study how the artist as placed certain elements and why they chose to do it. Some are comfortable with designing a first rough draft of how they layout would look like - but in the end, it is in the creating process that a style is born. I can guarantee you now that most layouts are accidents! Until recently, I use to open Photoshop with a blank new canvas and started designing with nothing but the goal of creating a layout in my mind. Somehow, the pieces fall into place - you just have to find these pieces (they could be images, textures, small details like brushes, shapes and patterns..etc). It doesn't matter if you are a beginner or experienced, we all start from the same spot - a blank canvas.

If you worry about trying to be "better" than a certain designer so you can get more visitors, you should just give up. Web design or any form of art should never be competitive, but expressive. It takes away all spirit and heart when you want to crush others. Same goes for if you don't want to reach for your potential and copy others instead.

So, to answer thus article's question - What's your style? To tell you the truth style si not in what you use to create, but how you create. Take what you like, what you find attractive and what your abilities can give you into a design. You can go far if you know where to start, so stick to what you are familiar with and then move on from there. For example, if you have a bubbly personality, try to express that in your designs with things that would represent it - bubbles perhaps? From there, you can see how else you can express your personality with the way you place these items and how you can combine this expressive ideas with other elements such as images, textures and brushes. Another example can be your likeness for school supplies (geeky, I know, but I love back-to-school shopping!). Yes, this is a silly idea, but you can definitely go somewhere from here. You can begin to mesh supplies into your designs such as using ink platters, lined paper for backgrounds, ring-bound notebook as a vertical divider and so on, thus creating a sort of notebook type design. From this you can create your style by adding your own twists. For example, you can focus just on highlighters and explore how you can use these fluorescent colours to communicate your personality or, better yet, you can take your favourite school supply such as a notebook and create a sort of collage or scrapbook type style with your own flavour and colours. The possibilities are endless, but the idea sprouted from a single inspiration.

My advice to you: find something inspirational and get creative with how you express this idea when you design. It may feel good to re-create someone's design, but it feels better when others want to copy you for your unique style! Go ahead, you will have some bragging rights when it comes down to it, so get to work!