This week cleaning my desk I realized I had some gifts in progress - and no memory of what my goal was, or what details were important. I’d love to tell you this only has happened once but the truth is - it happens a lot when I’m not organized enough. Hello friends of Archer & Olive - May Flaum here and today we’re talking handmade gifts and setting yourself up for success with notebooks and notepads.

I filmed a video to share with you that walks through all of the ways I organize myself, and how I work out what ways of using my notebooks will help me the most.

A few notes I think will be helpful:

1. Ask yourself questions. Who is this for, what supplies do I have (or need), what special steps or details do I need to remember, and what is my idea/vision are my basics.

2. Check in with reality. This one is hard for me as I’m the girl who will decide at 10pm she’s got a great idea for… tomorrow! But think about this project, and how much time and energy it will take. Is it viable now? For your timeline of when you want or need it? How about budget? Adjustments may need to happen.

3. Don’t be afraid to draw bad sketches! I show you my terrible drawing all the time - but you know what? It helps me tremendously to see my rough sketches and visions with words and notes to recall what I was wanting to do.

4. Sticky notes are your friends! Use them to make a tab for quick reference if you don’t have a dedicated project notebook.

It’s up to you if you want to get fancy with design, adding decorations and such or just keeping it basic. No wrong answer here! Should the method you try not work for you or get results - don’t be afraid to mix it up and try something else!

I definitely am a crafter who has phases, goes on a specific craft kick for a while and I try to honor my mental health and respect my precious free time by using my notebooks to save ideas for future, ideas that don’t fit my life right now.

A huge benefit to keeping notes and organizing my thoughts and plans with regards to gifting things to other people is that I am better able to envision how things will work, if the project is viable - and keep track! Often I like to make a batch of something such as holiday ornaments or goodie bags - and this lets me remember everyone on my list and make sure nobody gets left out!

These tips and ideas will work on pre-made or semi-homemade gifting for any occasion as well - and would also work well for party planning. I am already feeling so much better prepared for the upcoming months, and I've got a much better vision of the projects I want to prioritize, and what I'll need to make that happen. 

I am always here to support you! Please feel free to reach out to me @craftwithmay on social media like Instagram, Facebook, or TikTok! I love chatting and am always happy to root for you and cheer you on as well as help you troubleshoot. If you try any ideas from this article and post to social media I encourage you to tag @archerandolive, @archerandolive.community and use hashtags #AOShare and #archerandolive so that the community can see your work as well.