Makeover Time!

"Cher's main thrill in life is a makeover. It gives her a sense of control in a world full of chaos."- Dion, Clueless

Hello, lovelies! It's been a busy week, and I am fully aware that I have been a totally MIA blogger!

But anyway...

My computer was looking a little bland and cluttered, so this week I gave her a little makeover!

My first order of business was taking care of my generic, factory wallpaper. About a year ago, my computer crashed, the hard drive had to be completely wiped, and the operating system had to be reinstalled. After that, I just never got around to changing my wallpaper from the boring standard windows background. I got a little inspired and here's what I came up with:

Before:

After:

 The font is called "Monogram KK" and I found it here.

I also decided to update my terrible system for organizing my documents.

I forgot to screencap it, but you can probably imagine: desktop halfway filled with random documents, random folders that go with applications floating around, documents with terrible names, etc.

You can see it in the pictures up there, but here's a close-up of my new and improved desktop:

I also have my recycling bin in the lower right corner.
Basically, the only things I have on my desktop are the bare necessities: Easy access to My Computer and My Documents, internet browsers, and my recycling bin. Anything else is filed away in its appropriate folder.

I also reorganized "My Documents"

The idea was to create general "umbrella folders" that specifically fit my needs. Each of my files fits into one of these folders, and most of them contain subfolders to organize further. For example, my "High School" folder contains a subfolder for the year and, within each of those, a folder for each class I had documents for. So, for example, if I need to look up a PowerPoint I created for my Spanish class Junior year, I know exactly where to look.

Also, some folders have two different homes. For example, my "Blog Pictures" folder is located both in "My Pictures" and in the "Blog" umbrella folder in "My Documents".

I want to do more of these organization posts, so let me know in the comments if this was helpful, and if you'd  like to see any more!

Have a fabulous day!

How-To: Preppy Monogrammed Binder Cover

Whenever I buy binders, I like to get the kind with the little plastic pouch on the front- they tend to last longer for me. Also, I'm always looking for ways to make my school supplies prettier, so what better way than to make a personalized cover for each binder!?

These are examples of two covers that I've made.

I'm going to show you how I made the pink and green one.

You'll need 3 sheets of cardstock, 2 coordinating sheets of

scrapbooking paper, a pencil, scissors, glue, and a permanent marker.

First, glue the long sides of 2 sheets of cardstock together.

(You only need about 1/2 inch of overlap.)

Then, lay the cardstock on top of the binder and mark off where it will be cut.

Make the marks a little further in than the absolute edges,

because the pouch is slightly smaller than the actual binder.

Glue the paper that you want to be the background onto the cardstock.

(To be sure it's the right size, glue the whole sheet of paper and then cut off the extra.)

Use any software that allows you to edit text (Word, Photoshop, etc.) to type out your intials.

Make sure the letter that will be in the center (your last initial) is larger than the other two.

The font I used it called "Cutie Pop" and can be downloaded here.

If you're using photoshop or any other image editing software,

make sure your canvas size is proportional to a standard sheet of paper (8.5x11 inches),

so your letters print true to size.

Cut out the letters, and go over them with a permamnent marker,

to cover any edges or marks from cutting them.

Turn each of the letters over on the back of the second sheet of scrapbooking paper,

and free hand an expanded outline of each letter.

They can be round or squared off, depending on the font you are using.

The outlines should look something like this when they are cut out.

Glue the printed letters onto their outlines.

Finally, glue the letters onto the background, then slip in your binder and enjoy!