Idea Journal

I’ve heard it said that a messy desk is a sign of genius. Well as much as I’d like that to believe that, in my scrap room, a messy desk is a sign of having too much stuff! So this past week, when I was thinking about my New Year’s Resolutions, I had a stroke of brilliance (hey… maybe I am a genius!) and decided to become more organized.

It wasn’t easy! But are any of the resolutions we make for ourselves truly easy? Be it eating healthier, saving money, or exercising, there’s a point where you have to face facts and be honest with yourself.

So the first thing I did was to sit down and go through all of my patterned paper. For me, patterned papers are a lot like fashion. If I haven’t attempted to use them (or wear them) in the past two years, I’m never going to. So I created two stacks – one, a stack of paper to give to my mom (she’s recently started scrapping) and two, a stack that I plan to donate to the local Women’s Center. I did the same thing with all of my packaged embellishments and chipboard.

Next, I went through all of my scrap papers. If the scrap wasn’t any larger than 6” square, I got rid of it. I always have good intentions of using my scraps to make cards, but that never seems to happen. So I just keep adding to the pile and, before long, the scraps are taking over!

I took a break at this point and had a Snickers bar. Guess I can scratch the resolution of eating healthier, huh? But… packed with peanuts, Snickers really satisfies… and I, therefore, gained a second wind.

So I went through all of the drawers of my desk and organized them. I tossed away the junk and put all of the tools in their proper homes. Once I’d completed this task, all that remained was my pile of “inspiration”. I have a tendency to jot ideas down on post it notes, doodle sketches on napkins, and clip layouts from craft magazines and photos from home catalogs. And as much as I have every intention of using these ideas, I can never find what I’m wanting because it’s in complete chaos!

And this is when I had another brilliant idea (genius, I tell ya… genius!). Using some of my scraps, I covered a simple spiral notebook (one with a hard cover) and embellished it.



Now all of my “inspiration” is in one area! I divided it into sections: Clippings, Sketches, Page Ideas and Titles & Quotes. And, if you’ll notice, I also placed a large binder clip on the front cover. Now whenever I clip something out of a magazine, I can just pin it there until I have the time to sit down and categorize it properly.

Now when I sit in my newly organized scrap area, I feel inspired instead of aggravated. No more mess – no more clutter… nothing occupying my scrap desk but creativity!