Organizational Tip of the Week - post crop clean up

We all come home from a crop with a few layouts that just need some simple completion work, printing out some journaling, finding that last photo or an embellishment. Make an in process box or place at home so you can complete these prior to your next crop. That way you can go into your next crop with a clean slate vs some completion work you can easily complete in 15 min. at home. You'll get more completed pages and less stuff to drag to each crop! Happy Scrapbooking - Autumn

Organizational Tip of the Week - Preparing for a crop part 3

To really get organized for a crop you'll want to create a box for your paper, photos and embellishments. You can use a new pizza box if you find the correct size (should fit in your crop bag), they also sell plastic 13x13 boxes for this purpose in many chain craft stores. I recommend the plastic boxes that have locking hinges.

You now have your box, photos, cardstock, paper and list from parts 1 & 2.

1 week prior to the crop - Choose your embellishments, rub on letters, anything else you may want to use on a particular project. I place these in a separate box but you can add them to your paper and photos if they fit, you just want to be sure your paper wont get bent.

This is the best way to save time and be organized for a crop. Happy Scrapbooking - Autumn

Organizational Tip of the Week - Preparing for a crop part 2

To really get organized for a crop you'll want to create a box for your paper, photos and embellishments. You can use a new pizza box if you find the correct size (should fit in your crop bag), they also sell plastic 13x13 boxes for this purpose in many chain craft stores. I recommend the plastic boxes that have locking hinges.

You now have your box, photos and list from part 1.

1 week prior to the crop - Choose your paper and cardstock. Create layers in the box with the paper and photos. I use cardboard dividers. If you are missing something, add that to your list. If you need to shop prior to the crop, now is the time. Set these aside until part 3.

Happy Scrapbooking - Autumn

Organizational Tip of the Week - Preparing for a crop part 1

To really get organized for a crop you'll want to create a box for your paper, photos and embellishments. You can use a new pizza box if you find the correct size (should fit in your crop bag), they also sell plastic 13x13 boxes for this purpose in many chain craft stores. I recommend the plastic boxes that have locking hinges.

1-2 weeks prior to the crop - select and print the photos you want to use. Also make a list of the layouts you want to accomplish. Set these aside until part 2.

Happy Scrapbooking - Autumn

Organizational Tip of the Week - coupons

Keep you coupons in your car or planner or purse (where ever you are sure to have them with you). Even if you don't think you'll be going to that store, sometimes plans change and then you wished you had it. Personally I keep all my coupons in my car so if I end up unexpectedly at a craft store I can make use of the coupons. Even just using a coupon to buy your adhesive will save you a lot over a year! Every little bit helps and you can't use them if you don't have them. Happy Scrapbooking - Autumn

Organizational Tip of the Week - clean out paper

Ok - Lets face it - we all buy paper we think is pretty, or "in" to be used at a later date and then we don't use it for whatever reason. Go through your paper and set aside patterned paper you know you wont use. Cardstock you can always use so it is good to save that. Maybe you don't need wedding paper or baby paper anymore, maybe you no longer like plaid or polka dots - whatever the reason there is no sense in cluttering your supply up with things you'll never use. I recommend selling it in coordinated packs at a local scrapbooking tag sale or using ebay. Either way you'll get some cash to buy paper or other supplies you will use. Happy Scrapbooking - Autumn

Organizational Tip of the Week - crop bag

This may seem obvious but every 4-6 mos clean out your crop bag. Restock supplies you always maintain, take stock of supplies you regularly use and note items that need to be replaced or purchased. Pull out items you wont use and set them aside to sell or donate. Take everything out and clean out any misc. items from the bottom. If you have a new favored supply or tool be sure you have it packed in your bag when you re-pack it. Scrapbooking - Autumn.

Organization Tip of the Week - layout list

I get to crop once a month, so I try to make the most of my time. I always start preparing for a crop by looking at my pictures and making a list of the layouts I want to accomplish. You can even make a larger list of your backlog items to help you plan out what needs to be done. It's a simple task but very effective. Happy Scrapbooking - Autumn.

Organizational Tip of the Week - Embellishments part 2

Now that you have gathered all your embellishments together and put aside items you no longer want or need, it is time to organize them. Depending on how much you have, there are several good totes on the market with small locking containers to store and organize them. If you have a local scrapbooking tag sale you can usually pick up storage containers at a good bargain if you arrive early. Take a critical look at your supplies. I find it best to put my embellishments in categories. ie. brads, eyelets, buttons etc. These are my "staple" embellishments I always carry to a crop.



If you are local to CT Memory Lane in Marlboro CT is having a tag sale on May 24th. Happy Scrapbooking - Autumn

Organizational Tip of the Week - embellishments

Gather all your embellishments and clean house. This may take a while but there is no sense keeping or toting around things you will never use. Partially used supplies can often be donated to local charities. Good items you no longer want can be swapped or sold at local scrapbooking tag sales. You can also put several unwanted items in a decorative basket and donate it for a charity auction. Happy Scrapbooking - Autumn

Organizational Tip of the Week - digital pic storage

Every 3-4 months I save my photos onto CD to make more room on my hard drive. (ok - I also have an external hard drive copy just in case) I generally organize my photos in monthly photos by shooting date (since the camera downloads them that way). I get rid of "bad" photos and then save several months onto a CD. I make a backup CD which I store and I put the other copy in a CD holder glued to the back of my scrapbooks for the same time period. They sell self stick CD envelopes in many scrapbooking stores for this purpose. Happy Scrapbooking - Autumn

Organizational Tip of the Week - ordering photos

With digital photography we all seem to take more pictures than we are used to. To save time and money download your pictures to your computer - I back up to an external hard drive for security. Once you have them there look at the photos critically and select only the ones you will use for your layouts and save them to a separate folder. You can either burn the whole folder to a CD which saves time at the store since you can select all or upload to an on-line photo service which is often less expensive. Happy Scrapbooking - Autumn

Organizational Tip of the Week - camera

It seems obvious but many of us don't carry our camera all the time, you never know when you can get a great shot. How many times have you said you wished you had your camera with you at an unexpected time? They are not just for events anymore! You'll never miss a shot if you carry your battery with a fully charged battery - or a battery back-up. Happy Scrapbooking - Autumn

Organizational Tip of the Week - Photo List

If you have an event coming up, especially something like a wedding or family reunion, make a list of must have photos. As the event occurs you can refer to it to be sure you have everything you wanted. There is nothing worse than wanting a full family pic only to find out you forgot to take it when you had the chance. Happy Scrapbooking - Autumn

Organizational Tip of the Week - Must do layouts

If you work on your scrapbooks in non-chronological order as most people do, it is important to put together a list of layouts you want to do. You can also add to this list, layouts you want to do in the future. I call this my "must do" layout list and when I am not sure where to start at a crop this is where I look. I am able to pull a project I feel like working on while I accomplish a layout I need to do. Happy Scrapbooking - Autumn

Organizational Tip of the Week - Letter Stickers

If you are like most scrapbookers you have many sheets of sticker alphabets with the letters you use most frequently missing. To use up the odds and ends you have left combine several alphabets for a more whimsical look or you can even mount the letters to paper to create a variety of new looks. This will breath new life into your supplies and allow you to use more from your stash. Happy Scrapbooking - Autumn

Organizational Tip of the Week - Chipboard

I find it easier to find a chipboard embellishment when I want one by storing them all together. I have a large ziplock bag so I can easily see what is inside. If you have a large selection you may want to put letters in one bag and shapes in another. Happy Scrapbooking - Autumn

Organizational Tip of the week - patterned paper

When organizing your patterned paper each person will have their own twist. I like to organize mine by themes (holidays, beach, zoo, girl theme etc). I do break out a few of my favorite paper lines so I can easily find them. I love Crate paper, Kaleidoscope and Basic Grey. I use a 12x12 paper filing cabinet with hanging folders - Oriental Trading now has a 12x12 paper storage cube which will hold hanging files for your 12x12 paper. Happy Scrapbooking - Autumn

Organizational Tip of the week - cardstock by color

Have you ever dug through your paper stash looking for a particular color of cardstock? Your best bet is to put your cardstock by color. I use only main colors - blue, green, yellow etc. Although I know some people will go even into shading - lt. blue or dk. green. Find something that works for the colors you work with most. You will find it easier to find your cardstock and save time in the process. Happy Scrapbooking - Autumn

Organizational Tip of the week - layout ideas

We all have a stack of scrapbooking magazines somewhere - maybe even with some layouts marked but how often do we actually go back to them? I got a 2" binder (I prefer D ring style) and filled it with plastic page protectors. As I see a technique or layout I really like from a magazine I rip it out and insert it into my idea notebook. That way they are all easily within reach and in a format I can put in my crop bag and take to a crop. Happy Scrapbooking - Autumn