In one embodiment, a method is provided for use in a system in which a user may edit an artifact and a diagram representing the artifact. The method includes acts of temporarily removing, in response to a request by the user, an artifact portion which corresponds to a diagram element on a diagram (e.g., a class diagram); removing the diagram element from the diagram; replacing, in response to a request by the user, the artifact portion in the artifact; and replacing the diagram element in the diagram, wherein the diagram element retains at least a portion of customization performed by the user previous to its removal from the diagram. In one embodiment, the method includes creating a representation of the diagram element which provides an indication of the customization performed by the user, storing the representation in a data structure when the artifact portion is temporarily removed, and retrieving the representation from the data structure to recreate the diagram element when the artifact portion is replaced.