papertrey ink:: moments inked :: making pretty lists

I make a lot of mental notes in my head, but when it comes to shopping, goals, and to-do's, I have to write them down.  I can jot them down on boring white paper, or I can create far prettier lists that inspire!  What began as something to do in order to avoid another task has become a common practice...

We have officially entered sports.  My 5-year-old began playing t-ball in March and after a 10-day hiatus during spring break, we are returning with a vengeance that includes one practice and 2 games per week during April.  We are not used to this kind of schedule.  (I personally hate having this much to do--and yes, I realize this is nothing compared to what some--many--families endure on a weekly basis.)

This t-ball schedule means planning ahead for meals is a must.  It means an organized trip to the supermarket is a must because it's necessary to have the right ingredients since I'm only going there ONCE a week, if I can help it.  So...lists, planning, and preparedness are going to keep me sane for the month of April, and maybe it will become a habit as we're looking into a couple of other activities for BOTH kids once spring ball is over.

Out came all my Papertrey Ink Moments Inked goodies.  I needed to make these lists but I was not exactly looking forward to this task because of the overwhelm I was expecting to come with it.  So I got playing around with my supplies and before I knew it, I had spent an hour making lists!  Not lists with actual lists on them, mind you, but decorated notepad and Post-it paper.  I used stamps and dies and coordinated all my notes with my April MI planner colors.

They were a lot of fun once I got going--obviously much more fun than meal planning--and I was able to make a bunch to have on hand.  I'm guessing they'll get me through the entire month of April and May will require entirely new colors!

I've been using my Planner Banners die with patterned paper scraps for months now, because I think the banners are adorable and versatile.  Not only do I use them for planning, but I use them in my other crafting endeavors, as well.  So I make a lot and I use up a lot.

Because I did something similar with some thank you notes for one of my first ever MI posts, I layered 3 banners and stapled them to the upper corner of a sheet from the notepad.  I stamped "Groceries" or "Menu" and left some of the others blank to fill in later.

I also use them in my planner to add a little more color.  (**And these Active Symbols stamps could not have come at a more perfect time!  "PRACTICE@" and "GAME@" dot the pages of this month and make keeping track of the times super-easy.)

I also love the tab die cut (aka Overall Sticky Note Divider), used here with a label die from the Tabbed (or Binder) List set.  Most of these lists are disposable so I kept the embellishments simple.  The banner die allows for making 10 banners with one cut; the tab makes 4.  The label only makes 1 at a time, but I had several white pieces left from another project so it was quick-going.  Generally, when I die cut my scrap paper, I cut a few other often-used pieces while I'm at it.  It saves A LOT of time.)

I stamped different tasks on the white label , matted it to the tab, and stapled them to the list paper with mini staples.  Cute and easy. (*I used the notepad refills for all my lists with the die cuts.)

For the Post-It notes, I decided on stamping a couple of simple patterns in inks that matched my month.  These started because with all of our running around, I have to have a ridiculous amount of snacks in the house.  Not to mention, Gus needs a school snack everyday, and then we go to the park after school where the kids generally eat a snacky lunch, so I need a variety of things they won't get sick of eating but that are easy on the go.  And I need to have all of these snacks written down!

That's where my first Post-It list came from.  I wanted to keep it in my Health and Wellness planner (I'm using my MI spiral for that, seen in this post.)  I stuck it to the first page of the month and can easily move it to next month.  It's right there when I'm making my grocery list or packing up food for a game.

I simply took the 'x' from the Posted stamp set and stamped it repeatedly around the word "snacks".  Done.  Then I took the same idea in a couple of other colors (this time Hawaiian Shores and Canyon Clay instead of Aqua Mist and Melon Berry).  Moving the stamped design to the bottom of the sticky notes allowed me to create a few for future use, too.

These lists are so easy and they look nice on my work space, too.  If you work ahead a little bit, they'll only take you a couple of minutes to whip up, so give it a try!  And the meal planning/grocery list I was stressing over and avoiding?  Yeah, those only took about 15 minutes.  I needn't have worried, but I got a fun project out of it, so I don't mind!

Papertrey Ink supplies used:

Stamps:

Active Symbols

Posted

Posted II

Listed

Family Banners

Dies:

Planner Banners

Divided Die

Listed Die (Tabbed or Binder)

Ink:

Aqua Mist

Canyon Clay

True Black

Hawaiian Shores

Melon Berry

Other:

Moments Inked Memory Planner: Spiral Edition

Post-it Notes (3 x 3)

Post-it Notes (3 x 6)

Notepad Refills

Berry Sorbet Bitty Dot Paper

Plum Pudding Bitty Dot Paper

Paper Basics White Card Stock

Other Papers from Crate Paper

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