Most crafters have about a zillion craft books, each book with one or two super-cool projects or techniques we’d like to try someday. If you’re like me, the minute you close the book after looking through it the first time, you forget all about the project. Or worse, you remember it, but have no idea what book it’s in. Here’s my system for making my dead-tree craft books “linkable”, “taggable” and “searchable.”
Create a quick sketch and description of the project on a hangtag that will dangle from the book like a bookmark. You can easily fit 3 projects per hangtag. Use two hangtags if you need to. Most books, in my experience, only have a few projects that are must-dos. This makes your books browsable and searchable without taking them off the shelf, great if you are wondering, “Which book had that appliqué lampshade?”
Then, create a companion notebook that is tabbed for your favorite craft categories, and create the same sketch and description there, along with a “link” to the title of the book that it’s in.
So now, you can search or browse for your previously “favorited” projects by looking at the hangtags on your books, or by perusing the relevant category in your companion craft books notebook.
If you want to shortlist a project, i.e., “Must make this, soon!!!” then snap a pic of the page and upload it to Evernote.
This system allows your offline craft database of books to act more like an online database!
Created with flickr slideshow.
A2 Urban Farmers 