How to Keep Up With and Organize Blog Ideas

Have you ever been ready to make something you saw on a blog or wanted to give the original creator credit for a copied craft, recipe, etc. but can't remember where you saw it?  I read a lot of blogs faithfully each day.  I love recipes and craft ideas.  Over the years I have really started to accumulate some wonderful food recipes from these blogs.  I thought and thought about a logical way to save these recipes and still be able to remember where they came from in the future should I blog about making a recipe.  That way I could give proper credit to whoever's blog I got it from!  This is not an easy task.  I did come up with a great idea!

First I cut and paste the recipe or craft idea, or tip into Microsoft Word.  I clean it up some and take away unnecessary commentary.  If a picture of the item is posted, I include it.  At the beginning of the recipe, I also include the name of the blog and the author and the date.  That way, later, when I make the item, I can give proper credit on my blog to whoever made it.  But it doesn't end there...

I also print each of these recipes/ideas out on 8 1/2 x 11" paper and then store it in a sheet protector in a 3-ring binder.  This allows me to keep the recipe clean and ledgible for future use.  I can also categorize these recipes so I can easily find desserts over salads or etc.

This binder has inside pockets.  I use the top pocket to house a folder labeled "printables."  This is for all those free designs people in blogland share so nicely!  I print out copies of designs for free and keep them in this folder.  The bottom pocket is for stuff I need to file.  But since it's so easy to file in this binder, I rarely have backlogged stuff to file! 

Each section has a tabbed divider.  I have the following dividers set up:  crafts, recipes, decor, organization ideas, party ideas, and tips.  But you could make whatever tabbed dividers you need. 

Today, for example, in my tabbed divider for crafts, I inserted the page to the right from Creative Crate's blog.  This is a craft idea for making a "look what I did" art display for the kids! 

This page is in the section labeled "decor."  This is a photo off Flikr of a really cool Dodge truck sandbox.  I love this idea!  I don't want to lose it, so it went into my binder. 

These same principles can also be applied to sewing projects, organizational suggestions, etc.  With the overwhelming amount of helpful ideas on blogs today, it's too much to try to just remember it all in your head.  This is a great way to store these ideas and keep up with them for many years to come.

How do YOU organize your own blog ideas?  Any suggestions for a new way for the rest of us?  Please share!  Jennifer with Hope Studios is hosting a great Tutorial Tuesday linky party here.  I'm linking this idea up with her party for a chance to win a $30 gift certificate to Single Stone Studios!