26 July 2007

ideas + inspiration

i star many posts i read. i think of google reader as my virtual box of treasures and ideas. i especially enjoy the party ideas, the deep thinkers, the gorgeous letterpress, the pretty presentation, the amazing furniture pieces, the cute office ideas, the fashionable outfits, the amazing photographs.. all dreamy ideas i need to either print out or memorize for future inspiration. what do you do with blog posts you love? because i am in need of a system.

in real life.. i tear up magazines, print out articles, save business cards, hoard invitations and slip them into plastic sleeves and organize them into binders by topic. although a bit embarrassed about my perfectionist color coding tendencies, i have to admit, it's a handy dandy system. now that the collection has grown, a browse through a few pages never fails to get the juices flowing.

recently i gave these babies a major makeover. i narrowed their topics and put a tad more effort into the labels. {i have enough pretty paperie scraps lying around.. why not put them to good use?!} for example, previously i had a binder all about parties. and soon it was overflowing with party themes, party favors, party recipes, table settings etc. therefore, i decided to break it up. why not have an entire category for favors? it sounds silly, but heck, let's be honest, i love favors & gift ideas. all the ways to dress them up, package them so pretty. you guessed it, now Favors has a binder of it's very own.

full of eye-candy from favorite glossy magazines, it's like window shopping for ideas at a moment's notice.

arts + crafty motivation comes in waves. thankfully, projects seem to come knocking whether i'm ready for them or not. these keep me on my toes and remind me of all the refreshing designs out there. i have to keep reminding myself, not all the good ideas have been taken. keep trying.

my categories are:
christmas is coming • inspiring articles • a california lifestyle •
home for the holidays • around the world {travel} •
favors + gift ideas • invitations • parties + gatherings •
personal art portfolio • stationery + paperie • diy crafts •
dreamy home + housekeeping • fashion, beauty, health •


29 comments:

jordan said...

Good topic.

I print out the images that are especially inspiring and keep them with my inspiration binders. I also use my blog as a way to keep the stuff I love in one place. I've thought about starting a private blog just so I can keep my ideas organized better.

Robin said...

Wow! I love how those binders look! I don't have nearly as much stuff, right now I just keep magazine rip-outs in a couple hanging folders. I need to do better with my recipe binder, though.

Anonymous said...

*you* are my inspiration! wish i were that organised. no doubt you throw amazing parties.

jess said...

I love binders and I love your binder system! Right now my printed pages are in file folders.

If you're interested, I wrote about a Firefox add-on I use to take quick screenshots...I love it (I won't upgrade Firefox until it works on the new version).

Christie said...

I want to be put on a shelf in your studio. I'd love to watch as new books were added, inspiration found, and creativity emerged. You are so inspiring. Love it!

Ashlynn {mamabear} said...

organized!

Jake said...

you're hired! next time you come you can get my binder system going...k?

People St.Clair said...

thank you for giving me inspiration to get all my magazines and clippings organized.

Design Addict said...

i'm just getting ready to do the same thing. i've got all my clippings in accordian folders right now but that doesn't work. so i bought some plastic sleeves and was going to buy one big 3" binder but looking at how nice your collection looks, i'm considering just using 1" binders. they're probably a lot less cumbersome. i'm also glad to know that i'm not the only person that does this. my family thinks i'm weird. by the way, i really enjoy your blog. and i'm totally going to look into bloglines...i don't know what it is but i'm a magazine and blog addict so my interest is peaked.

Anonymous said...

That is marvelous. I wish I was that organized with my magazine addiction. It is one reason I have a blog, so that I can keep things in one place, but there are so many more inspirations that I can't fit into my blog.Thanks for giving me a little motivation:)!

kaitlin said...

you're so organized! my husband would *love* if you came and organized my stuff like that (okay, I guess I could do it, too...) As it is, I have mostly piles...and too many magazines. *le sigh*

Anonymous said...

You forgot tell them about the binder labeled "Gear." That is my personal favorite.

Anonymous said...

I *heart* Google Reader.

It lets me organize the blogs I read into labels I create and then if I like an entry (like this one you wrote!) I will star it so I can go back later and read all my starred entries, and also I can click a button and email it to anyone in my email address book. It shows up - photos and all - as an email - so I'll have it sent to myself as well.

Then in my email, (I use gmail), I have labels (like folders) called "Inspiration" or "Links" (for further research) or I simply star the email and can easily find it again.

[disclaimer: I do not work for google/gmail/google reader)!


I love the way you prettied up the binders. I'm going to organize my magazine articles/inspirational scraps/blog entries in binders like that this weekend!

love.boxes said...

I wish my studio looked more like this last photo. I am organization challenged and you can't believe how frustrating it can be sometimes.

Whatever Dee-Dee wants said...

I love your binders! I have been collecting articles and pictures for a while now and need to buy more binders to organize them (again) your post gives me motivation to get it done.

Quelly said...

I want to go home and pretty up my binders right now!!! I love how neat and organized your shelves look - this gives me something to work towards.

Mique (as in Mickey) said...

You are my hero..;)

Melissa Angert {All Things Chic} said...

GREAT idea! I may have to copy your biner idea. All my magazine cut-outs are in an accordian folder that is rapidly getting too small!!

Lorilee said...

Marta, I'm drooling over this creative organization.
I love organization.

Jane said...

Great idea ..... as a fellow paper-saver, I'm always looking for ways to better organize my "stuff" .... and I love this plan!

Amanda Jean said...

great idea! your binders are beautiful.

mk said...

You are my fairy godmother! I have magazine tearsheets galore and I have been agonizing over the best way to organize them... My sister will thank you later as she rolls her eyes everytime I start tearing pages out of some magazine whether it is at our apt or someone else's... Thank you so much for visually sharing your binders. It has jumpstarted a new project for me.

Not to worry, all my files are organized in minute detail: wedding favors, skirt details, 1st impression entrance ideas (this is for a benefit I produce every year...)

Anonymous said...

What a fabulous idea! I have piles upon piles of articles & pictures I've fallen in love with and just know they'll come in handy someday!
The problem is, each time I think about organizing them I get so overwhelmed I allow them to stay tucked away in a bin. NO MORE! This week supplies will be purchased and I will try and recreate the gorgeous look you have here. Thank you for inspiring me!!

--cyndi

Anonymous said...

Be still my heart. You should start selling your binders (empty, of course). They are showstoppers! I have this sickness where I save up tons of magazines because I don't want to tear out the pages that inspire me. Now I'm thinking I can overcome this disease. : )

Tam
lessismorebloggy.blogspot.com

Curiosity Killed the Cat said...

i knew it - I'M NOT CRAZY!!! i do this, too, with all my tear sheets. my mother and friends think i need to be committed and that i am an ocd freak - which may be true - but atleast i'm not alone!! yay us . . .

~megs

p.s. i'm diggin this new site listography.com it seems like something you might like, too

summer said...

I'm in love.
This organization system is so wonderful in every way!

Anonymous said...

hello! thank you for this 100% wonderful idea. i am all over it.

dragonflydreamer said...

I love your blog. Coming across this post tickles me because I have been doing the same thing since early in my marriage. You are the first person I've found who does the same thing although yours are fancier. I even have the article "how to host a dazzling dinner party" in my very first three-ring binder!

xo Susi xo

Emilie said...

I thought I was the only person that did this. Glad to know I'm not alone :) I only have a few binders and use page dividers with tabs to help categorize. Like I have a home binder and within it, sections for each room: Kitchen, Bedroom.... But the plastic sleeves/sheets stick out too far so the tabs barely show up. I've been searching for the correct way to fix this. I can't seem to find any tabs or plastic sleeves that will work quite right together in a binder. If you have any suggestions please let me know. I'd really appreciate it.

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