File Me Pretty

File Me Pretty

September 23rd, 2011 @ 1:13 pm by Miss Fox
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My current obsession is not so much wedding planning (that’s a lie—yes it is) but creating and re-creating my wedding-planning binder. I am an organization freak, often too much so, with so many things filed in so many places that I confuse myself. I initially went to Barnes and Noble and bought myself a nice little wedding binder that claimed to come with everything I needed, was a pretty color, and seemed like a good fit.

Image via Abrams Books

Looking back, I may have wanted to wait a bit longer to buy it than a week after getting engaged, with a wedding two-plus years away. I quickly realized a few things:

A 9″ x 9″ binder, while still being three-hole punched, did not accommodate most of what I needed to put in it. Like normal sized paper.
The directions and advice it had could be nice at times, but I use the internet for that. I needed more space to write things, not read them…and that was what composed much of the book.
You don’t realize what you need in a planning book until you start actually planning. Go figure.
I should have made my own binder.

Not to mention the fact that I needed a whole separate “inspiration book” to put pretty pictures of dresses, centerpieces, etc. from magazines in. I hated that I couldn’t just put everything in one big book!

So I went to CVS during my next lunch break and got me a nice big binder, some dividers, and a ruler. And then I realized—hey, I need more dividers! And colors! And sticky tabs! And pocket sleeves! Woohoo!

I may have seemed to be going a little cray cray with the organization accessories, but I figured that the binder would basically be my bible for the next two years. All my ideas, contracts, lists, etc., would be going in that beautiful piece of organizational heaven. I started out with mostly inspirational pictures, but that baby has surely grown in the past year and a half!

And…I think I need a bigger binder. Yipes.

Do you have a wedding bible-binder of sorts? Did you make it or end up buying one?

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14 Responses to “File Me Pretty”

Member

heather5743 (message) 1,899 posts, Buzzing bee

Ha! This looks exactly like mine! I brought my binder in when I went to appointments, and they all said I was way organized. lol I’m just going to take that as a compliment!

9/23/11 @ 1:25 pm (reply)

Bee

Miss Porcupine (message) 428 posts, Helper bee

My binder is pathetic and neglected. I need those pocket fold dividers you have! I think getting that puppy organized may qwell my planning insanity that is setting in (but probably not).

9/23/11 @ 1:39 pm (reply)

Member

PWheels (message) 31 posts, Newbee

I actually have about three different organizing tools. I have a little checklist binded book from Barnes and Noble but I couldn’t put any papers in it so it is purely my ideas and checklist book. Then I have a huge binder that I constantly put things in and pull things out of that includes all my contracts and notes and idea magazine cut outs. That got kinda crazy as I made final decisions so I got a mini binder for my final choices. I guess my decisions get more concrete as I drop down in binder size

9/23/11 @ 2:14 pm (reply)

Member

silversixpence (message) 75 posts, Worker bee

Pinterest!

9/23/11 @ 2:21 pm (reply)

Member

philabride2bee (message) 316 posts, Helper bee

Yay for wedding binder, a true necessity in my book. I bought a big pack of sheet protectors to put in my binder, which was awesome for putting vendor contracts and notes in!

9/23/11 @ 2:33 pm (reply)

Bee

Miss Fox (message) 859 posts, Busy bee

@PWheels: You’re probably right - I still have a ton of inspiration things stuffed in there, I’m sure it will go down in size when I finally make some decisions!!
@silversixpence: HECK YES Pinterest!!! That site is a godsend!

9/23/11 @ 3:10 pm (reply)

Bee

Mrs. Pony (message) 4,171 posts, Honey bee

I loved my binder. My MOH made it for me and it fit everything perfectly.

9/23/11 @ 3:20 pm (reply)

Member

kirabee (message) 1,402 posts, Bumble bee

“A 9″ x 9″ binder, while still being three-hole punched, did not accommodate most of what I needed to put in it. Like normal sized paper.”

Cracked me up!

9/23/11 @ 9:16 pm (reply)

Member

mkathleenwhite (message) 560 posts, Busy bee

I know what you are talking about. I finally gave up on trying to find a ready made binder that would work for me so I made my own. Originally I started with a two inch three ring binder but I found out very quickly that I was running out of space.
Enter the five inch three ring, could run it over with your car and nothing would destroy it, red binder. (Which I quickly proceeded to cover in black silk fabric and red and black damask ribbon. What else would you expect from a DIY bride.)

9/23/11 @ 9:36 pm (reply)

10.

Bee

Mrs. Teaspoon (message) 731 posts, Busy bee

Mine looked very similar to yours! So glad to go through and throw most of it out as you decide on things!

9/24/11 @ 12:40 am (reply)

11.

Member

Ocean (message) 223 posts, Helper bee

I also didn’t like what I was seeing at the book stores, so I made my own. I think it’s a 3″ binder and I included tabbed dividers, page protectors to hold my inspiration pics, a business card holder for all of my contacts, and I think most important - card stock on which to print FREE wedding checklists from russellandhazel.com. Gotta make sure those pages are indestructible! For the cover I slipped in a page I made in Word with a picture of our venue, on the next line our first names “Stephanie & Christopher” and the date of the wedding on the last line. So far this baby has kept me UBER organized! Although, we are still a year away so we’ll see how long it lasts!

9/24/11 @ 4:28 am (reply)

12.

Bee

Miss Sunhat (message) 865 posts, Busy bee

I’m jealous of your binder - I feel like I should have made my own as well. I’m not using it like I should - need to get on that!

9/25/11 @ 6:27 pm (reply)

13.

Bee

Miss Skunk (message) 120 posts, Blushing bee

You are so on top of it. I have nothing like this. I started blogging in hopes of keeping my head on straight!

9/26/11 @ 10:23 am (reply)

14.

Bee

Miss Kettle (message) 909 posts, Busy bee

I bought a binder that was able to be customized. And I love my binder. It had a combo of pockets, notepads, and as-you-need-them forms to add it. I of course added more tabs and folders, and I got it perfect!
You should weed through your inspiration pics and take out the ones you’re not inspired by anymore.
Also, as I narrowed down my vendors to the ones I actually went with, I took out the old ones (along with old inspiration) and put them in another binder bought especially for that purpose. I will put it all back together for whenever the next one of my girl’s gets engaged. But it helps me to only have what I actually need in the binder I lug everywhere.

How’s that for cray cray organization? I have two binders organized the exact same way but split between old and new!

9/27/11 @ 4:35 am (reply)