creativity+organization=successful blogging! -Ali

creativity+organization=successful blogging!

Hey, Hi, Hello “A New Beginning” readers! I’m so excited to be hanging out with you all today! Justine has asked me to share a little bit about how I stay organized, so lets get right into it!

First and foremost I have a crazy love affair with journals, paper, stickers, markers, washi tape and the like! SO I use all these things in my journal/planner! Especially my blog planner. For example, I use washi tape to make little book mark tabs! I use a different design for each subject! The grey checkers patterns means “blog ideas”, and the green tree tape is for calendars, and the blue striped tape is for road trip planning! 

{image: washi tape tabs photo}

One of the most effective and efficient tools for running a successful blog is a calendar! Preplanning and writing your posts ahead of time will save you a lot of grief! Trust me! Especially if you have weekly features. You can write them a few weeks in advance and then have more time for your day to day posts. You can even schedule your posts for specific times and days! Very helpful! I like to plan larger scale blog features that include guest posts, projects, diy’s, and my calendar lets me make changes and adjustments before I have to commit it to a post. I like to use stickers to mark things like birthdays, anniversaries, and other holidays...just for fun...that’s really the only reason. I’ll admit, my journal/planner isn't always very neat! I tend to have to rewrite my calendars if they get too sloppy! I just go a little crazy. Because of this I really should start using pencil on my calendar but I just can’t! I handwriting is much more legible in pen! My favorite pens, since we are on the subject, are the Pentel RSVP pens. It’s all I’ve used since high school! If they ever stop making them I think I’ll cry.

Many times I feel a little uninspired to write a post so I like to incorporate pictures, tape, markers...whatever! I’ll start with a goal list or even a to do list to clear my head so I can think and then do mini collages from Anthropologie, Urban Outfitters and other catalogues, and of course magazines like Bust, Nylon, and Boho! 

Inspiration coordination! I love to tear pages from magazines, save business cards, fliers, news clippings, whatever...and keeping all of them organized can be quite a task. I suggest using a plain ol’ 3 ring binders and have one for each subject. Just like school! I have a binder for personal stuff, diy projects, journaling paper, and articles. I have even started printing my posts and keeping them in a binder for safe keeping. I have a folder I save up papers in and when it gets too full I go through and sort it all out into my binders!

I hope you enjoyed this little peek into my planner :) I know I enjoyed sharing! 

.::love ali::.

p.s. look how cute washi tape made our Christmas presents this year! <3