What's a card saying "hi" & a fruit platter have to do with Organization?? Well,as you know,where there are friends & family, there always seems to be Food!!!Yesterday, I had a get-together with some of my card making/scrap booking friends.Summer made some yummy,garlic pizzas for us.My Mom has been making these since I was a teen & they're not only good,they're simple to make!!

GARLIC PIZZA

Take a pre-made pizza shell,liberally dot with butter.Sprinkle on garlic powder,garlic salt,oregano.Cover with shredded mozzarella cheese. Bake at 400-425 for 10-15 minutes-till cheese is way you like it. That's it!! Simple but good!!

That's me(! ), Erin , & her Mom (& my good friend), Brenda.
This is what it looks like when the creative process is in action. Amazing how really cute things come out of our creative mess!!
Summer continues to work on baby's scrapbook as she awaits the arrival of Ariana.( Notice corrected spelling)(Yes, I spelled it wrong before!) Onto Organizing!!!

Can you guess what I'm going to talk about getting organized today?? That's right,some simple stuff to make card making/scrap booking materials a bit more manageable!!

I love my Label maker!! It's a simple,inexpensive tool for organizing you'll use over & over again.It looks so much tidier than a messy scrawl with a sharpie marker,okay,it looks so much better than my scrawl!!!! If you happen to be a natural born,exquisitely artistic & neat writer than by all means use your talents.I applaud you. Really. You're royalty among the rest of us peasants.Go ahead.Really.I won't feel bad ....some of us are just naturally gifted.Others,such as myself ,buy & use Dymo label makers.

Why label? See above photo's. When you have friends & family over you can direct them to an area where they can easily find things.

Notice drawers.See labels. Friend wants to use brads.Find drawer labeled "BRAD". Open drawer & retrieve said item. Voila' !!!! Everything has a place & a place for everything!! This WORKS!!!!!

I have 3 sets of plastic drawers that fit on my shelves.On top of the drawer sets I have things that won't fit in the drawers. Mini ink spots with labels facing out, a re-purposed drawer from my Grandmothers treadle sewing machine that I have rolls of ribbon in. A card making tool kit.

I like to group things the way I'd use them-all pink tags together in one bag,etc. Baggies make a great & inexpensive organizing tool also. I have my card stock scraps organized by color family,each in their own bag. What's the purpose? If you have your things organized,you'll be able to spend more time on the creative process than the hunt & find missions some of you have been on!!(Hee hee, I know your secrets!!!) You'll have less waste by knowing what you have,knowing where to find it & using it. How many of us have found something stuffed away so long that by the time it re-surfaced we didn't even like it anymore or it had got faded or crumpled?

My 8 1/2'' by 11'' card stock papers are filed in my filing drawer. Instead of printing what each color is on a label,I took a piece of card stock from that color family & put that in the tab instead. It works great!! Paper is easily accessible,out of light to prevent fading & can't get crumpled or bent-unless you're careless putting it in or taking it out. You're able to see in a moment exactly what you have on hand,what needs replenishing,what you've "outgrown".

Which leads us to getting rid of stuff. You decide how much space you want your hobbies to take up.When you exceed that space, it's time to go through & get rid of things. Or stop buying. Or,if you bring home something,a like size item needs to go. Only give good,usable stuff away,others,toss out. If long dead Aunt Fanny gave it to you & you haven't touched it in 5 years or more,chances are you won't in the next 5 years.......& it is okay to get rid of it!!!!!

My stamp sets are organized on the bottom shelf of a bookcase.They're organized by all phrases & alphabets together.All general stamp sets are organized by size of container with all labels facing out (On all sets,Not just these!). And large background stamps in another stack. When these exceed the space,it's time to weed out or stop buying!!!!

When things are managed,you control the stuff,it doesn't control you!!! It's easier to clean,easier to find,easier to use!!!