Organizing my Photos

When I was a little girl, our idea of looking at old photos consisted of pulling out the big cardboard box out of the closet and spending hours opening old photo containers (the ones that the photos come home from the store in) and rummaging and digging. With a little bit of time and a few supplies, Mom and I have finally sorted out that box and gotten them into albums. Here is how you can get rid of that photo pile and get them organized into an album in no time at all.

Here are the supplies you will need to organize:

A photo storage system (can be as simple as a box or a store bought system)

3 by 5 Index Cards

A Photo labeling pencil (normally are anywhere from $1-$4)-specifically used to write on the back of your photos without ruining them.

First Step: Figure out how you want to organize the pictures

There are many ways to organize your pictures. Cronologically, by event, by child, and on and on depending on what your pictures are. Decide how you want to organize and stick with it. For my kids, I do cronologically because it is fun to see the growth of each child as you flip through your pages.

Second Step: Get your Supplies Ready

Make sure you have your photo labeling pencil, storage box, and index cards ready. It is important to have all the supplies within reach, so you are not frustrated while organizing or do all that work for nothing. Lay our index cards out on the floor or on your table. Each index card will represent a different activity/event, depending on how you are organizing. Ex: For my daughter, I put all Christmas on one index card, all New Year's eve events on another, and so on. You want to be able to quickly scan your piles of pictures and see what pictures go where.

Third Step: Pull out your Photos

Now it's time to organize them! Pull out pictures and begin sorting them on your table or floor. I usually do this on the floor, because there is much more space and I don't knock them down as easily, but it is totally your preference. This can take some time, depending on how many photos you have and how detailed you are organizing them. If you have years of photos, I suggest sorting into years then, refining your detailing into smaller time periods. Once you have organized all the photos into their correct index card, you are ready to place them into your photo box.

Fourth Step: Organizing photos into Photo Box

On each index card, write the event, date, child...ect on the top. Then one by one, begin putting them in your photo box in the order you would like to scrapbook them. The ones you want completed in your album first need to be closest to you and then move on. Put the pictures in and the index card right behind it. This way, you can glance into your box and see where each event or group of photos are. Once you have placed all your photos into the box, you are ready to scrapbook. Now, when you have free time to complete your pages, all you need to do is pull out one event and scrap it. No need to reorganize or get frustrated because you forgot a picture on a previous page.

I hope this helps organize and scrap more of your precious pictures more efficiently. :)