What’s in your notebooks and why?
My “little black books”. They’re really not that little, but they are black. Ok, so there’s a white one, too. That one is a new addition. (I couldn’t find a black one like it, so I picked up what I could.) My notebooks are 3-ring binders that hold 1/2 sized sheets of paper. As of current count, I have four binders, but am currently using only three.
I’ve mentioned before that I like to keep a paper journal of any complicated project I’m working on. By complicated, I mean anything that I would want to take notes about. I’ve begun adding in-process photos, notes jotted on scratch paper, finished project photos, and any closing thoughts/remarks.
Keep in mind, I’ve been online blogging for over 13 years. Writing a journal isn’t an unusual idea for me. Writing detailed notes about what I’m working on and why? That was a new ball game. Granted, my online journal wasn’t open to the public, but there were things I didn’t feel needed to be shared with my readers. Mostly, because I needed/wanted to get an idea out of my head and put some place I wasn’t going to readily lose or forget about.
I started keeping the notebook when I was working on an anniversary quilt for a client. There were so many ideas going back and forth, so many details to keep track of, that I couldn’t keep up with all of them. Given that my client kept changing their mind about what they wanted, or would make “Oh, how about this? Can you do this? Can you add that?” statements, I was getting very frustrated with the whole design process. I couldn’t get the client to settle on an idea and stick with it, until I started tracking them.
Life became a lot easier when I put notes to paper. I’d note the date, time, and summarize any contact I had regarding the project. I had reference points, progression notes, and design ideas. I’d begun to add in-process photos, too.
In case you haven’t noticed, I tend to get a bit “wordy” when I’m explaining myself. My notebooks became a place to put all of that. I could take notes in outline format, add colored highlights, add quick sketches, do whatever kind of shorthand I wanted, because I was about the only person that was going to read them. Later, if needed, I could go back and review what I’d written/done. I had my ‘story’, so to speak. It was, also, my documentation that I’m the one that did the actual work. This is where I keep any hard copy permissions, regarding the use of original artwork,from original artists. Yes, I have electronic copies, but I like to have a paper copy with my written notes, too.
The black binder with the book tape on the edges? That’s my main binder. It holds most of the current notes on a whole host of different craft projects. Yes, it’s organized by craft and then by actual project. Once the project is completed, all of those notes and stuff get moved into the fat black binder – my finished projects binder.
In theory, if I was taking notes on every project I worked on, I’d need a bookcase or five to keep all of my notes. This is why I only hand journal about projects that I consider “complicated”.
The white binder is a new addition. That’s for a couple of different things. One, it’s where I take my notes for my bobbin lace class. Of all the fiber arts that I work with, bobbin lace is probably the one that forces me to think the most logistically. Second, the white binder is where I put my ideas for this website. In a weird sort of way, in my head, they go together. I can’t explain it more beyond that.
I’ve been asked if I write down all of the ideas I have/get for projects. That answer is a quiet “no”. I couldn’t keep track of all of those. I may mull an idea over in my head, work out the mechanics, and even mentally build it in my head. That doesn’t necessarily mean I’m going to actually make the project.
As of this writing, I’ve got about two dozen art quilts in various stages. My written notes help me keep track of what’s going on with each one. I’ve just finished up with a few projects that are going to be given away as baby shower gifts. The only notes I took on any of those were photographs. I’m working on Christmas presents, again, my only notes are the photographs.
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