Monday, March 15, 2010

personalized gifts

Each year, during our girls weekend at the beach, we bring little gifts for each other. It is a fun tradition that was started a few years back. These little gifts can be anything from candy, mixed Cd's, lotion, to a package of brads. It is always a treat to receive these fun gifts. This year, I created binders for each of the girls. I found fun binders (they were all different) while I was out & about at various stores. I personalized each binder with their name, using American Crafts Thickers, some cardstock and a scallop punch. I then added buttons, flowers, ribbon & bling.













On the inside, I made page dividers using my Quikutz file tab die. They were simple to make & the tabs matched the color of the cover of each binder. I added a package of graph paper just in case they wanted to use their binders as sketch books. I also included meal planning & grocery shopping sheets just in case they wanted to use their binders for grocery shopping. The binders really can be used for anything. I will have to share my personal sketch book one of these days. It is red with tiny white polka dots...would you expect anything different ;-)?














I think it is time for a fun little give away. Leave a comment, sharing your favorite organization tip/tool. I will create a personalized binder for the individual that is picked(randomly)by my boys on Friday. Anyone is eligible to win, as long as they leave a comment...link your friends.

18 comments:

Kristen said...

oooh...raimi these are cute! my favorite way to organize my scrappy stuff is roygbiv of course. :)

Lisa said...

Raimi, I love my binder! Thank you so much! (BTW, don't put my name in the drawing.)

Amy said...

So cute Raimi! I have a binder too - just not so fancy. I just put tabs in it and make lists. I like to make lists and check things off!

Morgan said...

Raimi, after all this time I still can't believe how talented you are! You amaze me all the time, and I have to tell you that I was reading your blog the other day and my husband says "What nice thing is she doing for someone else now?" because I always tell him how sweet and kind you are to everyone you know!

Laurie, the girls and Scott said...

Here's a simple but super easy thing I did to help stay organized. I have a weird nook by my garage door where I put hooks. Each girl has their own hook and that's where they put their backpacks, coats, dance bags, etc. Shoes go underneath. Now when they get home they know just where everything is supposed to go.

Meridee said...

Raimi you are so talented. Thanks for sharing your skills. Since I love to cook so much, I try to stay organized with my recipes. I have a binder which divides up the different areas of food (i.e. breakfasts, breads, cakes. . .). When it comes to main dishes, I have them organized into areas such as mexican, chinese, soups, salads, pork, chicken etc. It works for me.

Lisa D. said...

Raimi, you come up with some of the cutest things!! You are so talented! I once heard that you should only touch something once that way you won't be inclined to set it down once you're done with it, you'll put it back. It's served me well!

Stephanie said...

What a beautiful binder! You are amazingly talented!! I have a binder that I keep by the phone (not fancy AT ALL) where I keep important information like phone numbers, cell numbers, schedules, class lists, scout info. etc. Many are in sheet protectors. I know if I need any of this information, it's right there!

Kimmie said...

How super cute Raimi!! One way I try to keep us organized is that I have an weekly schedule set up in Excel that each week I put on our appointments, tasks, reminders for school, meal plans and household chores I plan to tackle. Then I stick it on the fridge and cross off or add to it as the week goes on. Really helps me not to forget the little things and keeps Sam in the "know" too! :)

erin said...

I'm not trying to influence the judges or anything, but I would like to first mention...ahem...that I LOVE soccer, Legos, and The Lightning Thief, and I think boys rule! Ok, so now that that is out of the way, my favorite organizational tool is ironically my "family bible binder". I got tired of a drawer full of papers, so I created one that has a section for everyone in the family. Then when I get a soccer roster/calendar for the season, it goes in w/ that boy's section. Same with their class lists. Our family binder also has a section for address/phone lists, ward lists and the front page is laminated w/ info for the babysitter so I can just leave it out on the counter for her. This is long, sorry, but I do love having everything at my fingertips (and your binder is way cuter than my black plastic one)! ;)

mer said...

you are the cutest friend raimi! :) i'm still in the process of getting things organized... wawawa. but right now piles and to do lists seem to be dominating my world. there is something so wonderful about crossing things off!

Kim said...

Ditto on the "phone binder!" I also have a coupon binder. I use thegrocerygame.com when making my weekly shopping list. Of course, to make my grocery bill stretch a far as possible using coupons and that website is a must! To make couponing not so time consuming they must be organized! My binder is divided up by grocery subjects: baking, meats, dairy, frozen foods, etc., then each section is divided further by foods: yogurt, cereal, lunch meat, etc. Each coupon cut out is placed in it's appropriate pouch (I use photo sheet protectors) according to expiration date. My coupon binder also has a pencil pouch with sissors, extra labels and pens so I don't have to hunt for anything when planning my weekly shopping trip. The grocerygame.com helps me plan my menu, the coupons in the binder help me save money and I'm never without dinner for my family (in a perfect world, that is!)! Both the website and the binder are invaluable tools! Good luck and I'd be happy to post pix if anyone wants to see it, kinda hard to visualize! Good luck!

Candy said...

If you like personalised gifts, I'm sure you will loooooooove Snapily.com! Check out!

katie said...

Everything is a jumbled mess in my head. But I do write most things down on a regular calendar. Not very exciting. You are so talented Raimi!

mj said...

super cute binder! i have one basket in our kitchen for each of us. stuff goes in during the week, then on saturday morning everyone has to put their stuff away.

Anonymous said...

Very cute binder and you are very talented. I see new things you do on a daily basis that impress me. I have a large spot next to my bed that is empty and I put all of my cloths I want to wear there. That is my organize tip of the day. JK

Love you Honey.

Annie said...

you're amazing! seriously. i love it.

lorelie said...

You have such an amazing eye for color and creativity! I always love what you do and that you love to do so much for others. I hope that same generosity that you share comes back to you again and again and again and...