Part 2: How to Plan, Pack and Scrapbook on Vacation

In the first post, I set myself up with a calendar of the trip, I decided how many pages I would do for each "event" and finally, I made a diagram of the project using "sticky notes".

On to Step Two: Product Planning and Shopping
   I created a video for this step, so if you prefer to watch the video, please feel free. Click here to watch now.
  My goal is to get as much of this project done while we're on vacation as possible, that means I really need to be prepared with the products I might use. 
  At a recent scrapbook show I purchased  a few things that I though migh work well for this trip.

  I had a Page Planner Page with me so I was able to keep all the things together as I purchased them.

  Back in  my Studio, I was able to combine the products I had purchased, with the items I found in my ScrapRack.  Then I was able to sort the items by page layout.  Using the Sticky Notes to create the project diagram was really helpful. (See the first post in the series or view the full article on our website - click here.)

To view images in a larger format click on any image.

I used the "sticky notes" for the project diagram to match up the products I had either recently purchased or that I had in my ScrapRack to give me a good idea where each of the products might end up within the project.

These are the items I pulled from my ScrapRack.  It was easy to flip through the sections looking for main topics that might be appropriate; Travel, Camping, Outdoors, erc.

A possibly perfect diecut for the title page.

Several choices for our day out on the ATV.

Canyoneering and Rock Climbing

Rafting day - Shop, Shop, Shop

Hiking is a family favorite, I know I need more for these pages.

Getting there and getting home, travel goodies should be easy to find at the Pennsylvania CK Convention.

We love to mountain bike, I was surprised that I didn't have much stashed for this topic.

The Grid List!

Creating the Shopping Grid List was the goal for this step in the process.  Once I had pulled all the items from my ScrapRack and laid them out with the "sticky notes"  I was able to create a Gird of the project.  I made a note about the items that I already had for each of the blocks (pages) on the grid.  When I'm shopping over the next few days, I'll be able to fill in the grid as I buy things for each page.

I'll carry some extra small sticky notes with me when I shop so I can tag each item as I buy it.  I'll also make a note on the grid, but should the items and the list get separated, It will still be easy to combine things in the studio when I get home.

Practicing what I preach...preparing to "scrap-away"

 Hi Crafters -
 In about 10 days I'll leave for a family vacation in Moab, UT.  If  you've never been there, I would strongly recommend a visit.  It's one of the most beautiful places I've ever been.  All of that aside, my goal for scrapping this trip is to do it while I'm there.  So I'll be packing up everything I need in one TravelPack with a couple of Spinders.  I've never attempted to actually complete the pages for an event while I'm there, so I thought I'd do a blog post(s) documenting the whole process. 
  First things first.  In order to bring enough without bringing too much, I'll make decisions about the number of layouts I'm going to do before I start packing.  To do this I just need to sort of "map" out the trip.  Here's our itinerary in a nutshell.
July 31 - Travel to Grand Junction, CO (1 - 6)
August 1 - Drive to Moab, Visit Colorado National Monument on the way. (1 - 6)
August 2 - Full Day River Rafting Trip (2 - 12)
August 3 - Monument Valley hike and tour (2-12)
August 4 - Canyoneering (1- 6)
August 5 - Day hike into Arches National Monument (1 - 6)
August 6 - Full day Razor Rental (2-12)
Augutst 7 - Hang out in town (1-6)
August 8 - Drive back to Grand Junction and fly home
  When I plan pages, I plan for 6 photographs per 12x12 page.  The numbers following the days events indicate the number of pages I plan to do for that event and the total number of photographs I'll choose for each of the layouts. I'll have a "Title" page in the beginning and 1-3 "snapshots and scrap traditions" pages at the end.  This is where I put fun pictures that don't necessarily fit in with any of the specific event pages.  The "snapshot" pages are a great way to include random fun shots, but avoid scrapping whole pages about one little thing.  "Scrap traditions" are the included with most of the big family events.  These cover a couple of categories - everyone writes about what they liked most about the trip, we make a list of the restaurants we visited and rate them, we generally include our road maps with notes, highlights, etc.  and then a final section that usually has tickets, memorabilia, etc.
  Next I'll do a little sketch to be sure the pages will layout properly in my album.  If they won't layout correctly, I might move a snapshot page into the middle so that the 2 page spreads are always facing each other properly.  I actually use small "sticky" notes to do these so I can get a really good sense of how things will go together. This "sticky note" layout plan will be really helpful when it comes to picking, purchasing and packing.

                    Click to view a larger image on our website.
  With this trip my plan is to do 12-14 pages.  Just knowing this allows me to be sure I have enough background paper and other "continual" elements to get a lot done, and it will be really easy to pack everything I need.
  In my next post I'll start pulling things out of my current supply collection and begin making a list of things I'll need to purchase and add before we leave town. Hopefully I'll be able to find everything I need at the Lancaster, PA CK Convention next weekend.
  I'll also be posting these directly to a page on our website.  Click here to bookmark that page on our website.
Thanks for stopping by,
Tif

Digital Idea Organization

There are so many great ideas that we find on the internet, in emails, posted on Facebook or pinned to Pinterest.  Keeping track of all of them can be overwhelming to say the least.

Yesterday I hosted a "how to" webinar on getting all of these ideas organized into one easy to use digital notebook with Microsoft Office OneNote.  If you have Microsoft Office on your computer there's a good chance you have OneNote.  There are a couple of other similar programs that you can use, Evernote is a free download.  It doesn't quite have the functionality of OneNote, but it will do a pretty good job for you.

If you've followed along with any of the Get Organized Challenge Series, the Digital Organization Class fits right into the mental system I teach in those classes. (You can view the video recordings of the most recent Summer Challenge by clicking here, or if you prefer to join us from the start with the Back To School, Back to Scrapping Fall Challenge - Click here for information and registration.)

Getting your Digital Ideas Organized is easy if you just think about them in a few major categories.  If you're already following the ScrapRack 4 Section System, those categories are the perfect way to set up your notebook.
1 - Alphabets
2 - Themes A-Z
           Animals, Baby, Camping, Sports....
3 - The Calendar Year
            Seasons and Holidays
4 - The Rainbow

Once you establish those basic sections in your OneNote Notebook, you can add other sections to keep track of things like; Stamps, Punches, Cricut Cartridges, New Product you want to try, a shopping list....etc.

You may want a section just for design notes, or for ideas from a individual designer you really like.  Links to products, Youtube Videos, and other crafty things can easily be added.

If getting your Digital Ideas Organized is something that would help you in your crafty endeavors, I hope you'll take some time to watch the recorded version of the webinar.  Click Here to Watch Now.
If you prefer to watch the webinar on our site rather than on youtube, you can view it by clicking on this link and just scrolling down to the bottom of the page - it is posted just after the Summer Get Organized Challenge recordings.

Thanks for visiting my blog!
I hope you're enjoying the summer.
Tiffany
www.TheScrapRack.com
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Photos instead of  Fabric

Create a Changeable Gallery to show off your SnapShots

  

The digital camera allows us to take pictures of our everyday lives in ways that we would have never done 10-15 years ago.  In today's webinar we talked about Photo Organization.  One of the questions that was asked - "What do I do with all of these everyday snap shots?  I'm not going to scrap about them all."

You know me, my life mantra is "If it's easy it will get done." 

 So, if you want to share, display, use, your snap shots, create an easy to change Gallery in your home.  Photo enlargements are really inexpensive so you can even hang large photos.

I used a curtain "rod" set up from IKEA and hung photos instead of fabric.

  

Project Organization: Lesson 5 - Paper Sorting, Organizing and Storage. Posted Today

Project Organization is well on it's way. We spent the first 4 lessons "getting ready to get organized." Now, in lesson 5 we are putting what we've discussed in the first 4 lessons to work with Paper Sorting, Organizing and Storing. I've included the video here, but there is also an article posted on the website.

In this video I used the following products:
Paper Storage Boxes
SuperSized Single Storage Pages
Self-Adhesive Tabs
Sideloader Singles can also be used in place of the SuperSized Singles.

Want to read the full article - click here.

To view all of the Project Organization Articles - click here.

To join the Project Organization Email List - click here.

Project Organization - Lesson 3 is posted

  Project Organization was designed to give small manageable organization tasks throughout the year.  Each Monday a new lesson will get posted.  Some are just articles, some will include a video component.

 This week's lesson outlines the 4 Section System.  The 4 Section System is your Road Map for getting and staying organized.  One of the reasons organization systems fail is because we tend to organize to the "container" size or shape we are filling rather than to an actual system.  A system allows your supply collection to remain flexible. Adding in new categories and eliminating categories you'll no longer use.

  I know many of you have taken the time to learn about the 4 Section System, but for those of you who haven't, it's the perfect way to "think" about organization.  I would strongly encourage you to read this week's Project Organzation article.  In the article we discuss how the 4 Section System works in a ScrapRack, but you can apply the ideas to any number of storage tools.

  Visit the Project Organization Home Page now - click here.
  Want to go directly to the 4 Section System Article - click here.

  You'll be amazed at how easy it is to find what you need, when your brain knows where it is located.

Project Organization Starts Today!

Christmas decorations are put away, kids are back in school - it's time to tackle organizing your craft supplies!  This year we're offering the Get Organized Challenge (starts 1-17-2012 click here for more details) and a brand new program called Project Organization.  Some of you are familiar with the Get Organized Challenge.  It's 8 weeks of somewhat intense organization challenges. 
Project Organization on the other hand is a weekly article and/or video posting that gives you one small organization task to do each week.  Project Organization lessons will post each Monday and continue throughout the year.  You can do them all,  or just "cherry pick" the lessons that most apply to you
Our first lesson - Prepare to Purge - will get you set up for success with a simple task of setting up a "Purge" box.  Important to this lesson is taking on the mental challenge of parting with some of things you've been hanging onto in your craft supply collection. 
If you'd like to get an email each week when the lessons post, please click on the box below and join the Project Organization Email List.

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