MESSY OR NOT? Many scrapbookers who do wonderful work are 'messy'. Their pages are lovely. And if they are happy, I am happy for them. I love to look at great pages. I don't mind if their desks are stacked up as they work. But, honestly, from what I hear, there are very few 'messy' scrappers who feel happy with the amount of pages and albums they are getting done. I think a better term for them is BUSY scrappers! Aren't we all busy with family obligations and life in general?? Don't we ALL need to make the most of our hobby time?
There are tens of thousands of gals who want to know how to scrapbook more efficiently, get more pages into albums, and preserve their family photo histories. They know they want to get organized, get more done, and finish more layouts. A page or two a month is not making their stack of completed albums grow faster than that stack of new photos coming back from the developers.
Why get organized? Simply because you will be more productive. Knowing where your supplies are and how to set up your workspace effectively will make you scrap faster and more often. You will get your albums done sooner! Scrapbooking.com web hostess Helen Naylor says, " An organization method can help you maximize your scrapbooking time and ensure that you don't forget to include precious photos or memorabilia in your album. I highly recommend finding an organization method that suits you!"
Honestly, I was not 'born organized'. Some people are raised in tidy, orderly homes and pick up the habit from their parents. They learned early to limit their belongings, activities, and purchases so that maintaining order was second nature. Others may have been raised in 'messy' but loving homes and perhaps decided as adults that the messy aspect was not for them. They had too much disorder and mess when young so they taught themselves early on to keep tidy.
I am afraid I was neither of those extremes. My parents were average on cleaning the house, average on organization with an average amount of mess for a family of 6 and my attitude toward cleaning and organization was that it was not overly crucial or too important. I have always loved to craft and create and write and there was always something better to do with 65 spools of crochet thread and 27 containers of pony beads than sit and organize them! Taking up scrapbooking about 5 years ago just added all kinds of stickers, papers, photos, and albums to my boxes and bins. I wasn't a slob-- but I wasn't organized. Things were sorted, but honestly they were not always easy to put my hands on or use immediately! In the beginning, I was NOT organized.
ORGANIZATION: Step One is to Analyse your Personal Page Scrapping Routine.
Organized does not just mean neat or tidy rooms. It means efficiency and productivity. If you say you are tidy and organized but you are not turning out the pages at the rate that makes you happy--then maybe you need to look at several other aspects of organization BESIDES tidiness. Check here for tips on general organization by renowned author Julie Morgenstern.
Ms. Morgenstern recommends examining how we work within our spaces. How can we be efficient? How does your time schedule and your scrapbooking space work? Is your schedule allowing you time to scrap (Think January and New Years resolutions here!) Is your space clean --but not really efficient and usable? How does the workspace FUNCTION for you?
When you scrap a new set of photos, what steps do you go through? Jot your routine out and write down your basic steps and take a look at the list. Mine looked something like this when doing a recent winter layout....
| MY ROUTINE BEFORE ORGANIZING MY SPACE: |
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Get the idea? I may be getting an aerobic workout here, but I am not getting far on that winter page! :) The design plan of my area was not efficient! I usually plan, trim photos, pick papers, and assemble pages before I journal and add my title. I use my page additions binder and my page kits binder for every layout.
KEEP IT HANDY: Switch a Few Things Around
I decided to organize my desk/supplies so they are much more handy. Function and customizing the space to work for me in the order I work is important. I like to sit and scrap for hours if I can. I don't want to get up 60 or 70 times during the course of an afternoon. So, I moved the newly developed "unsorted photo" boxes further away to the shelves and brought the pen caddy and the binders with my page additions closer to keep on top of my desk and the Iris carts beside me.
Simply put, analyze where you have stored items. Think about how you like to work. Then, put things where they are most useful. Items used most often should be closest to you. Occasional use or long term storage can be placed further away. I have since found that many office efficiency experts say they less you have to get up and hunt for supplies, the more you will get done in a day. I am sure that is true for us scrappers too! Every time you get up, it takes at least a minute to find your item and come back to work again. Searching for ten things? That is 10 minutes wasted. If you had it handy, those minutes could be spent scrapping, not hunting for that darn scissors....
Sounds sensible and easy but you may not 'see' the organizational problems you have until you list the steps in how YOU scrapbook. People who journal in pen can put the writing pens in a handier place than someone who journals primarily by computer. If you use your xryon or any tool daily, it should be much closer to your workspace than tools you use weekly, monthly, or less.
For example, I have lots of idea books and like to browse through them when relaxing....but not when I am scrapping. I am sure they do influence me, but the idea books and magazines do not have to be right beside me on my desk during the scrapping process. So I now store my magazines on a bookcase near the sofa about 10 feet from my desk. If you consult idea books and magazines every layout, put them closer to you.
Don't waste effort or time. In scrapbooking, time equals pages. Is your space set up to go from a-z in an orderly way? Or are you zigzagging back and forth to find the photos, idea books, trimmer, patterns, and so on? Do you have to carry your bits and scraps 4 or 5 feet over to the nearest trash can? Not good! Get one for right where you sit! If you get a huge popcorn tin or potato chip tin for the holidays, keep it. Line it with a plastic bag and use it for a cute trash can! Do you use eyelets every other page? Keep them handy! If not, place them further away. Common sense, yes, but how many of us have not really applied this basic plan to our scrap areas?
ON A BUDGET? That's Okay too!
Need desktop organizers but don't have a big budget? I often hear gals say they can't organize because they have no budget for fancy totes, racks, and bins. Really, this is no excuse! :) Just get creative! Cut down cereal boxes and cover them with pretty recycled wrapping papers to make magazine holders, paint a peanut butter jar or a quart canning jar with acrylic paints for a pencil holder, use some plastic pill-by-the-day compartments for small items like punchies. Clean pizza boxes can hold 12x12 pages or papers. Crates, baskets, and bins or any type can also be pulled into use for storing odd shaped supplies like your tools. Diaper wipe boxes, when cleaned out thoroughly, can hold a month's worth or more of 'yet to be sorted' photos. Just mark the dates on the side of the box with a Sharpie pen. Need a scissor and brayer or crimper tool holder? How about an old Coke crate or antique tobacco tin?
Renting? No wallspace? Can't hammer nails into the walls? Don't give up! Pegboard is inexpensive. Make a freestanding unit.
Use a paint roller and some paint to give the pegboard a quick, neat look. Make a panel that is structured like a room divider with the pegboard in three large 5x2 foot hinged frames. Set the hinged frame unit between your desk and the wall or even beside the desk as a wall or screen. You can then hang supplies from the pegboard panels. Don't keep all your supplies on the floor. Use wall space whenever possible for vertical storage.
Old spice racks can be found at rummage sales and are terrific for holding glues, small brushes, Undo bottles, tape refills, and some punches. The clear wide top spice bottles can hold all sorts of beads, eyelets, brads, q tips, and many other small items you like to see and have handy.
NEED MORAL SUPPORT?
The plain hard truth of being more productive and staying organized is it is hard work. We have to take the time to sort and upkeep our work areas daily and weekly. Scrapbooking groups and loops offer moral support. And other peoples' simple solutions often help us stay motivated so we can keep up the good work. There are two free Yahoogroups for scrapbookers who want to get more organized. These lists share good ideas, have contests, games, and challenges to keep you on task.
And there are even more articles at the following site that will help you get a handle on organizing other aspects of your busy life so you have more TIME to scrap:
Like many of you, I am still not completely organized. I still have my piles of paper to sort now and then. But I can say I am making progress. Like you, I want to head in the right direction. I want to be more productive. And being more organized has helped me do that. Being able to find my supplies quickly, work efficiently on my albums, and really enjoy my scrapping time means that in the long run, my family benefits. Pages get done. Albums get done. Then the whole family can enjoy the albums sooner. And isn't that the point?
Happy Scrapping!
~Rockester
