Ribbon and Trim - update

I did it. I finally made the move to pull the ribbon and trim from the binder in with the baggies. As I mentioned in a prior post just recently I was thinking about doing this. I am really glad I did.
The ribbon and trim was in this binder

It was a great solution - just not cost effective for the volume of ribbon and trim I have collected. The biggest portion of what I have I got at a garage sale of another miniaturist who had passed on.

But I didn't toss out the binder - I will use that later for something else. I already have something in mind.

The photo boxes storage was holding all the baggies including the added in bits, but it was getting really tight.
I decided to go with two photo boxes.

This just gives me space to move the baggies to look at colors.
I already have decided to add more dividers, but since these were cut by me, I haven't gotten around to that part yet. Anything previously combined, I will just turn the card around and write the new label on it.

New computer and a photo book about miniatures

A fellow miniaturist shared they had gotten a new computer recently and was having trouble with the transition.  It dawned on me that I had also gotten a new computer recently as well and my transition went fairly smoothly. I thought that I would provide and update to various posts related to organizing.

First, let's talk computers 

I got my new laptop as a birthday gift to me. I wanted a new one because I was having issues with one program and Windows 10 on my previous laptop. That program was My Memories Suite 7 (I get no benefit from you trying or purchasing the software), which I had purchased after trying several online programs and also a trial of this software. 
I had discussed with hubby on whether I could just upgrade my laptop by adding memory or something. He did his research and told me that for the cost, I might as well pay more and get a new one instead. Isn't that the way of things (ridiculous)! After doing some research myself, I agreed with him and off we went to looking at availability locally. I have not reached a point where I am willing to buy such online. It also helped me decide that I wanted a touchscreen. I've wanted a Surface Pro for some time, but that was not in my budget. Especially since I knew that I would have to purchase a keyboard.
My solution was a 2 n 1. Tablet and laptop. The cost of being able to separate the screen from the keyboard was out of my price range considering the operating requirements we had decided on. I could have gotten the separate thing for the same price but no upgrade on the other requirements. After using this 2 n 1, I feel that having a tablet and separate keyboard isn't a big benefit I really need. Most of the time I am using the keyboard. Plus the 2 n 1 flips around and I can stand it up.
The size of the storage is 1 TB and way more than I feel I need. But that was not my deciding factor.
I won't go into details about the computer itself as your needs may not be relevant to mine. My point is really that we did our homework for my needs and shopped within our total budget. It was more than I wanted to spend, but getting a new laptop vs just upgrading was the difference in cost that gave me what I really wanted.
I am super pleased with my 2 n 1 and I think it will last me a while. Well, I sure hope it does.

Second, before I transferred - back up

I think it was still this year, we bought a back up drive. It's a WD My Passport Ultra. It has 1 TB of memory, which was more than my prior laptop had at the time. Because of that I partitioned it, which allowed hubby and I to share it. He got more space as he does videos and needed more. Although we still have lots of space right now. I further partitioned my section so I could have one area that was just for auto backup. I use WD's software for that and I was already familiar with this brand as I use it for a work as well. 
I only back up files (pics, vids, music) and not software, so size equal to the laptop hard drive doesn't need to be matched.
I don't like online backup although I do use OneDrive for photos and my OneNote files. The OneNote is so that they sync across devices and OneDrive is just what I selected to use for photos so they are available from my phone to my computer and I have stuck with them.
I am not the best at backing up regularly. I guess I need to set a reminder. But I have done it several times this year. Maybe every 1.5 months or so, which isn't too bad. I do it more when I am busier making files so it works for me.
Before I could transfer to the new laptop, I did a backup of the old one of the files I normally back up.
I want to remind you that it is really important to backup your files. There are many options and I won't get into those. Cost, convenience and availability are factors to consider.

Third, transfer files

OK, I considered a way to do this via wifi, but decided it would just take too long. I did download a program to both laptops but then later decided why not just use the backup drive since I would be using it for backups anyway in the future.
I downloaded the software needed for backups and then did a restore from backup to the new laptop. I am sure there was another way to do this, but it was just how I went about it.
In addition to miniature related files and photos, I have a bunch of family photos and also my scrapbook files and albums.
Because I had changed names with one laptop to the other and I did a restore, the files copied to another user on the new laptop. This wasn't an issue for me as I was able to easily copy them to the right location afterwards. In hindsight, I should have paid more attention to the restore location and that wouldn't have been an issue either.
Now, all my old files are copied to the new laptop and in the same locations. Course I did do some clean up of duplicates and such.

Next, email

Email was really super easy for me.
I had to purchase a new copy of MS Office. I get this through a home use program via work for a great rate. You may can get a similar one if you work for a company - ask about their home use program.
The copy of office was Office 2016 and is the latest. I used 2013 before and 2010 still on the work laptop. So far the differences is small.
In Outlook 2016, I added my three main accounts: personal, mini and junky. I talked about why I have these separate here. 2016 does work a tad different but more in appearance. In the background it is syncing all my folders automatically, which is what I love about IMAP email protocol. 
The only issue I have is not with Outlook but in the way I manage contacts. I don't maintain them in Outlook but in Gmail. I had to go to Gmail, download a copy for importing to Outlook. Then in Outlook I had to import the file. Both of these steps were fairly simple. 
I maintain them in Gmail so I can have them on my phone. I do make sure that my phone syncs to the web. This is super important if your phone ever crashes. I've heard too many people complain about not having their contacts. Pay attention to the settings for accounts so that isn't a problem for you.

Last, my scrapbook software and use for minis

Wait, stay with me even if you are miniaturist
One issue I had with the software was a menu. This menu wasn't showing but I could tell it was actually working just not right. My point that applies to miniaturists is to keep trying and solve your issue. Don't give up it could be as simple as mine was. It was a difference in screen size. The popup menu was apparently designed for a slightly larger screen so it showed blank (all white). Once I resized the popup window the menu items show up. Quirky, right?
It did take me trying to remove and reload the software and some other things before I finally figured it out. It wasn't anything wrong with my files or the software not working. In this software, one of the menu's you use to select the album format appeared white on the screen. Blank it seemed but yet I could click in this seemingly blank area and it would select something. What I figured out was that if I resized the menu, then I could see it like it is supposed to be. It did take me several tries to figure out what was wrong. 

This process is really important. I wasn't doing anything wrong, nor had the program loaded incorrectly, it was just a simple little formatting issue in the software that my smaller screen caused or possibly the ratio of my screen. I kept trying and I ultimately found a solution. If there is nothing else you get from this post, please keep trying. Don't assume it is always something you did wrong. It could be the actual software has some sort of glitch.

Miniaturists - stay with me I still have more to say about this software that relates.

I use this software mostly to make family photo albums. But I recently had printed a photo book that is about miniatures. This book is a flip book that you open one way to view it like a story book. Flip it over and view it like a how to book for the project. The photos are all of my Mother Goose Nursery Rhymes miniature project I made. I'll share about that book in another post.

The software uses files they call elements - we would call printies. These files could be used in miniature. They do not require the software to work. Many are free to be downloaded. These files could be printed for wallpaper or backgrounds.

Do I always need to organize my way? Finally, one issue I had is related to my obsession with working with things in themes and by color. I have had this software since January and since that time I have been downloading the elements to use. Back when I started I didn't like their way of organization, so I was moving them to folders according to how I think of things. This meant the digital paper files were getting sorted by color instead of the designer theme they had. 
BUT - here's the kicker... it was taking me extra time each month when I got new ones to move them around. After doing this for 7 months now, I realized that I was better off just leaving their organization. As much as I hate it, it is livable. It wasn't the time that was already spent each month that bothered me. It was that each month I would have to continue doing this to really keep up. Some months it was getting harder to find time to do it, so they were building up.
When I mentioned above that I was able to copy over my files from one computer to the other, well... I did that initially. But due to another issue - that turns out wasn't an issue. I decided to start over and I downloaded them all again, just so I have their setup and don't have to try to put them back in the folders they had them in. It took a few evenings while watching tv and I was all done.
I could have choose to just use their setup with the new downloads, but I choose to start over instead so everything was according to their system. Had I been further along (a year of files) I might have gone with the half mine system and half theirs.

Go Digital - Day 28 of 31 Days of Organizing

As I alluded to yesterday, I am trying to go digital whenever possible including as it relates to minis.  There are several ways that I do that.

Scanning

In order to go digital if one has paper saved, one needs a scanner.  I have a three in one (print, scan and copy).  

There are two basic ways to scan: photo or pdf.  I use photo if it is likely to be used in a document later or need printed on photo paper.  I use pdf if it is instructions or reference.  But can go either way (or even both) depending on what is scanned.

When scanning - ideally we should name it and put in the right folder as we are doing the scan process.  But it is ok to let the computer call it scan1, scan2 and then move it and rename it later.  Just do it sooner rather than later.  

I went through a bunch of my saved papers I and scanned them.  Or I recorded/typed the notes in OneNote - more on that below.

Naming and tagging digital items
When naming files or photos, I think it is important to either have them in a proper folder that helps me know what they are or take time to give it a really good name.  To save time later, we want to name them what the file or photo contains, not just the date when it was saved or taken.  Some photo programs allow one to add tags and that can be helpful later when doing searches.  Can also use Windows Explorer to add tags to files - select the file, without double clicking to open and then look for the Tag field.  Tags are something I haven't done much of, but would be useful if I took this time to do so.

Don't print

I try to avoid printing whenever I can.  If a kit instructor provides the instructions digitally online,  I print a copy to pdf.  Most computer these days have this automatic, but if not, just search for a print to pdf program and have that available when you print. 

Don't use paper to start with

This is hard for me but becoming easier as I get used to doing it. For years, I was accustomed to writing down my ideas, steps, notes or whatever.  But today, I try to use OneNote.  

OneNote is software by Microsoft that is similar in concept to a paper notebook/folder or binder with different sections.  Sections then have pages or sub-pages.  

I have three notebooks:

• Just stuff - non mini - my everyday life)
• My Projects - miniature projects
• The Organized Miniaturist - this blog

So this is how it looks in OneNote

This pic is actually rotated - it normally shows as a side bar on the left.  

At the top are the sections within this notebook called 'My Project Ideas'

That * tab has a drop down arrow - which means I have even more sections (or tabs). The one to the right of that, is a new section button.
OneNote adds the sections(tabs) to the right as you add them, but then they can be rearranged or moved to another notebook if desired.  The colors are automatic but can be changed.
My sections are organized based on a project or a related topic.  There are many ways that I could do this.  By miniature scale would be one way.

Within each section, one then adds pages.  

The pages are what can be typed on or pictures added, or draw a sketch (with a mouse this is painful, but I have a stylus for my phone.)  If you add something here from the internet, OneNote will even paste in a link so you know where it came from.

The pages can also be sub-pages.  I use a page then as a cover page, then the sub-pages are the contents.
Sections can also be grouped, but found that doesn't work great on my phone.

Up to this point there isn't much that is too different from using folders on a computer or even paper, but look at the above pic at the top of it and you can see the Search box.  I know computers have search functions for files and folders, but I can say, not like this.  (I could have taken time to add tags, but I don't really need to do so in OneNote.  Although for other search functions it might be helpful.)

Let's say I am looking for "swaps", this is what OneNote found for me in my three notebooks:

I can then easily click on one of those and go to that page in whatever section.

One thing I love about OneNote - it AUTOMATICALLY SAVES.  I don't have to remember to save ever.  And I can look at that save information if I want to know when did I record this note.

Another thing I love - I can access it from any computer that has OneNote installed - I just have log in to see my notebooks.  So I can make a note about something on my phone and I can see that note on my netbook later.  I have been keeping track of the 31 ideas in OneNote and I can quickly see what my next topic is.  I take photos with my phone (with the regular camera but I could do it from OneNote if I wanted). I don't want to turn on the computer to see what I need pics of and with OneNote I don't have to.

If I do take a photo in OneNote - I can draw on it as well.

Yes, I can print from OneNote and it will add headers and page numbers automatically.

If you also use Outlook, you can flag as a task to be done.  I do use Outlook and I do flag emails, but I have found I don't particularly care to use this aspect of OneNote and Outlook together, at least not for minis. I also use OneNote in my real life (non-mini) job.

There is more to using OneNote that I have not touched on, but if interested one can review the help files in OneNote and also on the web. There are similar apps available that I have tried, but I am sticking with OneNote because I like the structure best of the ones I have seen and tried.

My Documents

Ok, so now I want to share about what I did and still have in place before OneNote.  It is a legacy system but I still use it as at least it is on the computer and it still works fine, just as a transition to using OneNote more and more I find I am not putting as much into these folders as I used to do, that is except for pictures.

I have a similar set up to OneNote with my folders:

• General stuff folder
• My Minis folder - pics and other files related to minis (This blog related stuff goes in here)
• Other stuff that Windows organizes

All of this falls under the Documents library that Windows creates.  

Within the My Minis folder are folders:

- By scale

- By topic (not specific to scale) such as rabbits, raggedy, furniture ideas

In the by scale folder are folders such as '1-48 projects' and '1-48 projects completed' among many other folders.

In the 1-48 projects then are sub-folders then for each project.  Some of those then have additional sub-folders for ideas, instructions, particular aspect of the project, finished or in process pic folders.  

So this is how that looks:

My minis

 -1-48 projects
  - Bookhouse
   - in process pics
   - instructions
   - other misc ideas
 -1-48 projects completed
         with similar folders within
In the past the instructions would be done in Word or in Publisher.  But today, i would start them in OneNote, then once I needed to start preparing them to print, I would copy over into Word or Publisher.  This is because OneNote is great for taking notes, but Word and Publisher give better layout options.
My pics would be in the documents folders (Windows would recognize the folders for the My Pictures section as well).  
I also may have a pinterest board going that is related to any project I have in mind.  

Photos
Since I use my phone to take pics I do have a lot of miniature related pics on my phone.  I also organize these in albums by year or by scale.  The 'by year' is for non-mini and 'by scale' is for the mini related photos.  I find that having pics of minis (even the older ones I didn't take the photo using the phone to start with) are good to have on my phone so that I can share with others what I have made.  It is great to pull up my picturetrail site, but can't always do that if can't connect to the internet.
All photos mini related on my computer are filed under the Minis folder - I do allow Windows to also look for these folders based on having photos in them, but Pictures folder is not my go to for looking for mini related photos.

Come back to tomorrow for day 29 of 31 - getting near the end of my organizing blog spree.

Happy Miniature Organizing!
Preble

31 Days of Organizing - Day 4 Re

Day 4 of my 31 Days of Organizing Ideas is all about "Re"

Recycle, Re-purpose, Reuse and Re-evaluate  

Use items more than once whenever possible.  

I am not advocating that we save everything because we can make something from it, instead just consider what could be done with it before tossing it out. In the working world, it was a big thing to talk about thinking outside the box.  No matter what you call it, think beyond the intended use and consider it for something else.

Some of the things I recycle are egg cartons, bottle lids and butter/margarine dish lids.  I use the butter dish lids for paint palettes.  I like that they are flexible making it easy to peel off the dried paint.  They are a good size and easy to replace should I decide to toss them. The bottle lids make a great pot for putting glue in and can also be used to ship in. The egg cartons - foam ones for making faux bricks or stones and the paper mache ones can be torn up for simulating bark or cut to make faux stones as well.
When it comes to storage, I have recycled shoe boxes to store projects in and to organize other supplies.  I have also covered cut down laundry detergent boxes with contact paper to make magazine boxes and paint bottle boxes.  Cardboard, or chip board as I think is more correctly called, can be cut up to make miniatures with (like faux stones) but also cut and taped together to make trays.  I use trays in a larger box to layer my beads and findings.  I add handles of tape to each end so I can lift them out.  The trays each hold small plastic boxes, but another solution is to use the interiors that held candy in - the paper liners or even plastic liners.  This may not be the best idea for beads as they could fly everywhere if spilled, but for small swaps or other small items that one might want to seperate, it would work.
As I reorganize (yes, I do organize and then later decide to reorganize) I prefer to re-purpose an existing container for another purpose. Take my ribbon and trim for example, when I decided my plastic shoe box type box was too small, I looked at what I had on hand and re-purposed a large cookie tin.  The cookie tin was quite tall and I was using it hold a project. The project didn't need storing in the tin and the tin kept me from going out and buying a larger box.  Once a solution is decided on, doesn't mean it can't be considered again later for other things. 
I am presently in the middle of collecting enough used small priority mail boxes to hold my paint.  This will allow me to sort my paint into smaller groups.  Since I store my paint on a shelf that is just the right height for paint bottles, these will act like drawers just like the cut down laundry boxes I currently use.   
A simple re-evaluate example is the divided boxes manufactured for fishing tackle. Finally the industry has figured out these boxes are great for crafters and hobbyists as well. They are not just on the fishing aisle anymore but in the hobby section, too.  I am suggesting that we think about all things this way.  Is there another purpose that I can use this whatever?  Whether it is an item to make miniatures with or an item to store them.  
Another example of re-purposing is to take a hanging travel organizer for cosmetics and use it for storing and traveling with tools. Don't wait for the industries to re-market to us as hobbyists.  
Yet another idea along this line is T2T - Trash2Treasure - this is when someone provides a list of household items that we can make something from.  This has been held as challenge on one of the lists I am on.  This type of challenge is very helpful to see items in a different way.  Even if I don't participate, it is fun to read what others have used and how they used them.  The T2T challenge is more about using items to make miniatures in a different way, but I think it helps to get the brain used to thinking about other things in a different way as well.  

Come back tomorrow for another organizing idea during my 31 days of organizing.

Happy Miniature Organizing!

Preble