Quick Paper Organizer (Entryway Organization)

No post yesterday.  My son is sick and isn’t sleeping well (worse than usual at least), which means no blogging time for mommy.  So I have two posts for you today to catch up, both about entryway organization on the final day of “Entryway Month!”

One thing I’ve fallen in love with since I started crafting is the ability to make what I want, how I want.  For example, I wanted a way to organize more of the paper cluttering up our entryway (other than the bills and coupons I put in my wall organizer) but a quick look around Office Depot didn’t produce anything suitable.  So what’s a crafter to do?  Make my own, of course!

I started by having my husband make a box out of leftover wood (from the photo display top of my shoe rack).   I could have done it myself but he’s much faster so I let him.For size, I wanted it to fit file folders, obviously, but not so many files that I was able to overload them with papers before dealing with it (taking care of, tossing, long term filing, etc.) so we aimed for the width of a cereal box (my husband just found whatever scrap wood he had that was about that size and made it work, bless his woodworking abilities!).

I then set about making it presentable for my entryway table.  I’ve already described my love of Mod Podge but let me say that this love continues with each new project.  It is so versatile and FORGIVING (as a novice crafter I definitely need that part).   I chose a dark pattern out of my Recollections (from Michael’s) Black and White paper pad (which I also used for my shoe rack’s photo display and the chalk and eraser holder on my wall organizer).  I love all of the patterns and will probably use them in many more projects since they’re so pretty (I always have a really hard time picking a favorite to use).  I wanted a darker one so the file holder didn’t stand out on the table but still looked nice.

I’ve always used a sponge brush when applying Mod Podge (I heard it can be troublesome with brush bristles) and I think it makes it really easy to apply and clean up.  I placed the first sheet so that it wrapped around one of the corners and went halfway across the back of the box.  I didn’t want the seams on the corners because it makes it harder to get the corner tight.  I then lined up and cut each of the other sheets to wrap around the box so that the pattern continued all the way around (except for on the first and last sheet which is why I started on the back).  Be sure when you pick your paper that there is a repetitive pattern if they care that they line up.  A lot of the patterns I really like I can’t line up because there’s no repetition from one side of the sheet to the other.    I then applied Mod Podge to the box and placed the paper on it.  I used an old gift card to gently smooth out any bubbles and then cut (the top and bottom of the corners so they had a tight fit), glued and wrapped the top and bottom parts as I put each piece down.  After I had the whole box covered, I let it dry overnight (I don’t know if that’s necessary but I ran out of time while my son was napping).  The next day I covered the whole thing in another layer of Mod Podge and let that dry (on some rice containers so I didn’t accidentally get it stuck to the table).  The extra layer made it shiny and protected and really gives it a finished look (with a little texture from the brush).  After it was dry, I added my files and found that my home organization binder (more on that later) fits perfectly as well (YAY!).  I want to eventually get (or make) more attractive, coordinated files but these will work for now (Office Depot really wasn’t showing me anything the other day). 

In case you’re curious, the files I have in this organizer for easy reference and use are as follows:

• Attention Needed!!!
• Receipts
• To File (Long Term)
• Taxes
• Medical
• and one for each of us (me, my husband and my son)

As I was thinking about what kinds of papers I’m usually trying to find a short-term place for, this is what I came up with.  I have a space for long-term file storage in the office, so this is really just for quick reference or short-term storage filing. I would love to hear what you have for files in your quick filing system (if you have one).  Please tell me about it in the comments section below and join the conversation!