2012 Resolve to Get Organized Series

Week 2 - Piles of Paper - January 24, 2012 - 

This is self explanatory. This is where we start thinking about how we are going to organize our stuff, or get ourselves mentally prepared to get organized and stay that way. I like the 4 part system because it makes sense.

Alpha/Numberic

Themes A-Z

The Calendar Year

The Rainbow

What else could you possibly need!

So I started sorting my paper first into this system, and it is easier to begin this way because it really sets out how the stuff will be set up. I started with the rainbow and what didn't go in there became either a theme or or holiday etc... I put all those pages in the paper pads that have the pop out tags and letters in the alpha section.

I had my little purge box right there next to my heaps of papers. Even though we were just sorting through papers this week, I ran across a lot of scraps, of course, and die cuts that I had made, and embellishments. It was very easy to slip each thing into the proper section and  subdivision by color or theme and so on.

I am not done with the paper yet, and I think it is supposed to be a work in progress throughout the series. I have taken apart some of my paper pads, but not all of them simply because it is easier to keep some together, where the other ones can be separated and stored in different themes or colors. This is especially true for me with two of my pads that I bought to dedicate to wedding/anniversary albums only. I put them on a paper shelf by themselves.

I haven't really purged much paper - just some scraps that are too small (3x3 or smaller).
I pulled the spines out of 4 of the binders that I used for my college classes and cut some plastic kitchen cutting mats to 12 1/2" x 13" and punched binder holes in them.

I get these at the Dollar Tree. There are 2 of them in a pack for $1. I usually keep these around to make stencils, or use as mats on my desk when I use my craft knife, but I discovered that they are perfect to make the covers and dividers for a "trailer trash scraprack" LOL!


I also cut ribbon cards out of these because they slip right into baseball card holders.


Then I got the crazy idea to make ribbon/fiber boards. I made a template out of cardstock and this is what I came up with:

This measures 8 1/2 x 11 inches

I converted this image into sure cuts alot and made an svg file. I cut one out of the plastic mat, and even though I multi-cut 4 times with a deep cutter blade, that really only gave me the lines to go by to finish it with my craft knife.


Anyways, once it is cut out, it works perfectly. It goes into the binder, holds 11 ribbons or fibers flat! It measures 8 1/2 x 11" so I can still slide it into a page protector. So I made 6 more and ran out of plastic...


On the up-side, The leftover plastic strips were cut into 2" strips, hole punched and I will stick things to them that I can't punch holes in for my binder.


I use plain old garden variety paper clips to hold my ribbons and fibers in place in the wide slits in the middle.






I originally set my binders up with baseball card sleeves, two 8 1/2" x 11" page protectors, a ribbon/fiber card, then a 12" x 12" page protector for each sub-section. Then I ran out of baseball card sleeves and ran to Staples to get more. Did you know that Martha Stewart has a new office product line at Staples? OMG! She has the 4 pocket, 2 pocket and zipper pocket sleeves. (They have the fold over tabs to keep your stuff from sliding out!) OH MARTHA! 10 in a pack for $3.99- sorry Tiffany, that beats the daylights out of your 10 pack for $12.99 plus shipping. I had to give up the 12x12 size for 8 1/2 x 11, but I can live with that!


OK, so now I had to restructure a bit, but I don't feel as cheated out of the whole Scraprack experience, because my stuff is nice and secure now. Don't get me wrong- I still lust for the real Scraprack, and if I had 4 or 500 bucks I'd get online and buy it in a hot minute, but for right now I am "mentally preparing" for the day I will own one! (Just click the imaginary PayPal button to donate to my cause!)