Being new home-owners has really kept me motivated to try and stay organized in every aspect of our lives. I am attempting to pare down all of our stuff, not only to keep our house more beautiful {and clean}, but more efficient for our every-day living.
I must admit I had binder envy when I saw how organized Kelly over at The Complete Guide to Imperfect Homemaking is with her recipes.
I mean who wouldn’t want this adorable-ness looking back at them while cooking or baking?
Since this is what I see whenever I try to find a recipe…
I was determined to create a beautiful binder, too. I {obviously} haven’t had a chance to try out every recipe in every cookbook I have {and really don’t have a plan to rid myself of all these books}, so I chose to make my binder a place for favorite tried-and-true recipes. This way I don’t have to dig out a specific book and flip through the pages until I find the recipe I need.
Since I was so determined to get organized, I set off collecting all the books I knew I would take recipes from, plus all the magazine clippings and hand-written family recipes I had. *Yikes*
Thank goodness for the Martha Stewart Home Office line at Staples! I love all her products, and they just happen to match perfectly with my kitchen! To get my recipe binder started, I purchased a 3-ring binder, lined binder paper, page separators, and sheet protectors with tab tops.
After sorting through my recipes, I created 5 categories for the binder: Appetizers/Party Foods/Beverages, Main Dishes, Sides & Snacks, Desserts, and Kids Recipes. Eventually I will get more page separators and create sub-categories; but, for now these categories work perfectly for my needs.
In the front of the binder I placed my page protectors {which are each separated into two pockets} for recipes that I need to try. These are really reserved for magazine clippings and grocery store recipes that usually end up loose all over the house. I have a pocket for each category in the binder.
Some of my recipes got hand-written into the binder {the lined-paper comes in handy for this}, some were typed up and printed on card stock, and the magazine clippings were cut neatly and taped in.
That’s it! Do you have an organized & beautiful recipe binder, too?
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This is such a great idea. You’ve inspired me to do this with my recipes. Thanks for sharing at Fabulous Friday Link Party at Doodles & Stitches!
Thanks! I’d love to see before & after pictures if you get a chance :-)
sam {at} atkinsondrive {dot} com