The Dog Eared Pages

By Kate Riley June 15, 2012

I have a confession to make and I’m sure it’s a common affliction among some of you.  I am a magazine hoarder, I repeat, I am a full fledged 100% magazine hoarder.  Who shall join me in this self inflicted misery?

I’ve subscribed to many publications for many years, always looking forward to them arriving in the mail every month and I love them and won’t end my subscriptions anytime soon, but what happens is as you know is they stack up quickly and soon you’re left with a pile of paper to either keep or recycle, and I much prefer the latter, but my “Oh there was that great article about boxwood hedges” or “I can’t throw that issue away, that amazing kitchen is inside!” takes over my brain and the piles ensue.

piles of magazine

I decided at the beginning of the year I’d be much better, oh yes I would!  I’d cure my magazine hoarding problem once and for all!!  (insert culturally relevant female empowerment song).

I’ve always dog-eared my favorite pages in the past for reference but what to do with all those articles/spaces/nifty ideas on pages that add up and up and up to piles of magazines filled with ideas and information that I cannot part with?

the dog eared pages

Pinterest has made it easier, now I know I can usually find a space online within a month of publication but I’m forgetful and rarely look for them that way.  I’ve struggled with what to do with all these dog eared pages for years.  Throw them in a binder?  Sure, I guess, but it has always seemed too utilitarian and this is where the practical side of me loses out to the “Why can’t it just be pretty?” side of me and a battle rages within.

As I was strolling through Michaels the other day I spied some simple and affordable white canvas bound sketch books and thought, hey, those would make great “books” to help me solve my “hoarding of the dog eared pages” problem, and an idea was born.  These things always happen if you casually stroll the aisles of Michaels, but I digress.

sketch books

 

There’s something so nostalgic about taking the time to make books out of clippings of your favorite things.  I’m not really a scrapbook person but I do prefer holding reading material in my hands (books, magazines, newspapers) rather than getting all my information digitally and I think it has something to do with my love of reading an actual book with pages and the fact I work online all the time and I just want to hold and look at paper pages in my hands.

So I started the slow, laborious, but ultimately satisfying process of taking over the kitchen island for a few nights and while the kids read or played and while I caught up on the news, I began making books out of my piles of magazines.  Who can spy the necessary element of sustenance for such a task?

kitchen island project

 

To start, I set a few ground rules 1)  Only years 2009 – 2011 for now.  2)  Purge anything outdated or unimportant.  3) Absolutely no reading the old magazine again, only the dog eared pages ONLY the dog eared pages!!!!  *slap*  4)  toss the article if I’ve pinned it on Pinterest (there was some overlap) and 5) put a serious dent in those piles ASAP at the request of your tolerant husband who really needs those magazines to disappear for a little more shelf space.

I began with a volume on interiors.  Notice how I say “volume” as if this is some sort of encyclopedia project (which, let’s be frank, it may become because I do so love interiors).

renovation style bedroom

favorite spaces in book

real simple pages

Inside, I also included all those articles deemed helpful for remodeling or building, you know, for my “next house”.  :)

types of wood for remodeling

 

I only got halfway through it when I felt like turning to a new subject which was about all things outdoors (garden or spaces).  A moment of silence please because how ridiculously awesome is that fountain?  *le sigh*

outdoor spaces in book

 

  And I also started a third “volume” on DIY projects and crafty type inspiration.

diy project book

 

Maybe I will write a book about interiors someday, but for now these little “books” of mine will do just fine.  I also love the idea of whittling over 100 magazines and 200 dog eared tear sheets so far to three half filled volumes that will eventually be filled up and preserved as little books on the shelf for years to come.   Double sided articles were secured only along the top with a glue stick to allow me to flip up the page and read the other side in the future.  I have many more magazines to condense, but I’m off to a great start.

volumes on shelf

 

I wonder if my daughters will pull my “books” off the shelf years from now and wonder about my taste.   Will rustic furniture and gray kitchens still be stylish?  Will making pillows out of old clothing still be en vogue?

pillows from old clothing

  Only time will tell.

How do you manage or organize your magazine subscriptions?  Commiserate with me.

 

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179 comments

  1. I’m guilty of the same thing Kate! I have a plastic bin of all of my magazines with dog ears, highlighted areas in my office closet. I like-y your idea! I’ll be popping in Micheals to check out the artist canvas books!

  2. Oh Kate…you are a girl after my own heart! Rushing to Micheals this weekend to buy a few of these. Looking forward to organizing all of my dog-ears in the very near future.

  3. OMG I LOVE THIS IDEA!!!! I too am a magazine horder. I too have a husband that needs for them to go. I live 45 mins from Micheals, but I want to run right there!!!!

  4. I have been doing something similar with the pages from my creative writing magazines for years! The sketchbook I put them in, though, is larger in scale and has one of those curly metal binding things. Your books are so much prettier and look lovely on the shelf (instead of in the cabinet or rubbermaid tub with all of my other notebooks, folders, binders, and loose leaf pages). Your idea came at the perfect time: as I try to organize all of my writings and inspirations while I prepare to move. Thanks so much!

  5. I love this idea!! And your beautiful handwriting on the spine! Quick question-did you run into a situation of having an article run front to back on the same page? How did you adhere it so that you would be able to access both sides? Thanks!

    • Hi Kate – the solution for a two sided article is easy, I just used the glue stick along the top so that I could easily flip it up to read the backside if necessary – some mags rund their articles page to page like that (House Beautiful, Real Simple) while others break them up between ads (BH&G, Country Living) so that solved the problem for me!
      Kate

  6. This is a beautiful idea! I just started subscribing to home magazines and I may have to implement this now to save heartache in the future! Nothing annoys me more than magazines piling up! This could also work great for those important articles in parenting magazines!

  7. This is very familiar to me! I’ve only recently developed a love of home design, but my previous weakness was collecting articles about fashion, beauty and food from women’s magazines. I cut out the articles I was interested in and put them into plastic pockets in a binder. If you place the pages back to back, you get to save a LOT of information and there’s no glue involved. I think your idea is so much nicer though and it looks beautiful!! And, just like you, I still prefer to read actual books. There’s nothing like smelling the pages of a new book when you open it!! (Weird, I know!!!)

  8. So many magazines, so little time. I have the same issue tossing great mags.

    I used to keep tear sheets of favorite projects but that system of organization got lost in all the everyday hussle. I must get back to it.

    The sketch books you used are so much better looking than the old binders I use.

    Nicely presented solution.

    Enjoy your day,

    Lisa

  9. I implemented a discipline a few years ago that works a treat. I have a basket that is about the size of a file box with three compartments in it. My magazines get put into the basket as soon as I have read them cover to cover. The two main ones I subscribe to go in the first to compartments; the third holds the occasionals. When a compartment gets full I schedule a time to sit with a coffee/tea/glass of wine and pull out 6-8 issues of each magazine. Then I go through each magazine tearing out anything that catches my fancy. It could be an ad, a photo, a recipe, whatever. This usually reduces a pile of 12+ magazines to a stack of a dozen or so pages. I then let the pile of pages hang about for a few days until I file them. That way I can do a second cull. If I can’t figure out why I kept something, I throw it out at this point. I then file the clippings in file folders with appropriate names – built-in shelves, garden, etc. I prefer files because it gives me the opportunity to go through them every now and then and turf stuff. I find I look forward to these culls because previously I never really looked at my magazines again. And I could NEVER find the photo, articles whatever that I wanted when I wanted it. Now I know where to look when I want something. It is a simple system that takes very little time (and it is time I really enjoy) and lets me continue to feed my magazine affliction without guilt – and the chance of appearing on one of those hoarding shows!

  10. WOW! What a great idea! I am inspired :)
    I’ve actually never thought too much about it – I just keep the whole magazine if I want to save most of it, but now, I can keep just the pages I want AND make it look cuter! Thanks so much for posting

  11. I used to be much worse when my mother was alive and would hand me all of her Good Housekeeping, Southern Living, Martha Stewart, etc. magazines after she read them. As for me, I subscribe only to Cooking Light and the occasional quilting magazine (my husband gets a wine connoisseur magazine). What I’ve done is take empty binders (usually from work), buy a ream of cardstock, a package of tab dividers and a bottle of rubber cement, and clip out things I like to paste into various binders. The recipe one is by FAR the fullest, and on occasion I’ll decide I didn’t like something as much as I thought I did, and tear it out or paste over it. I have another, smaller binder which has decorating and travel ideas (travel being segmented into with kids and without kids). I haven’t added to that much since mom died and I stopped getting her leftover magazines. I realize I need to start a quilting one to include not only magazine patterns but ones I print from e-files. Thanks for the reminder!

  12. Guilty! Except, mine pile up because I never have time to read them. I continue my subscriptions in the hopes that time will suddenly become available, but the arrival of beautiful new magazines is now met with equal parts excitement and guilt. I have begun avoiding the free subscription offers that have always sucked me in, realized that I get all of my news online, and whittled down my subscriptions to just my absolute favorites (Real Simple, BHG, Clean Eating, Cooking Light, and Parents — for the Gymboree coupons). I am considering a 3-ring binder and sheet protector system for the recipes culled from cooking magazines…

  13. What did you do with the articles that span from the front of one page to the back of the same page? You can’t glue it down without losing half!

  14. Super Genius!! I have had a magazine problem for years and I started putting my dog eared pages in to the boring clear sheets in a boring binder. I love your idea because it looks so pretty on the shelf! it can become a total keepsake!

  15. I did this same thing last week. Even clearing out the major issues of HB, AD and TH that had so many pages turned down that “how could I throw them away”. It felt so liberating to throw those things away. I did separate my pages as to subject as you did. Still, I will never give up the print editions in favor of digital. I’ve tried but find myself just looking at the pictures and missing the written word.

  16. Just like you, I had subscriptions and wouldn’t let hubby recycle a one of them, even if I hadn’t read fifteen of them and the piles had been building into towers for months. But then we moved into a 1200sf house with one closet for 5 people (yep, one closet. five people). The towers had to go.

    Now I library. They have all the magazines I love, and I can check out one or twenty at a time. I take photos of inspiration pages and keep all the photos on my swoonie little flash drive that is shaped like a Penguin (you can find them in all their animal glory at CVS).

    xoxo michele

  17. I’ve had a magazine addiction for years, but I keep a drawer in my file cabinet for my clippings. I have hanging folders for everything from perennials to basement remodels. It’s fun to go through them every once in a while to see what was too trendy and what stood the test of time. Surprisingly, I still like many of my clippings from years and years ago.

  18. Great idea! I have a binder with the clear page protectors. Works for me right now but I love the idea of a bound book.

  19. I have been using a similar process for years now. Mine are just cute 3 ring binders so I can add or re-arrange pages as needed. I also use the 3m double sided removeable tape to hold the cuttings down- they can also be moved around the page if need be.

    It’s a lot of fun to look back through it from time to time to see what favourites have actually made it into your home (sometimes when you forgot you’d saved a cutting of it in the book!)

  20. OMG you are a miracle worker!!! I have the same problem except I have a huge binder full of pages I have ripped out of magazines over the years since I am only allowed to have so many actual magazines laying around. I have always hated the way it looks and some of the pages are more ripped then others so this is the perfect solution! I am taking your idea on this one.

    thanks!!

  21. I LOVE this idea!! I also have a collection of magazines, with many pages that I folded as future “note to self”, but because there are so many, I hardly ever go back to check on them. This would help me out so much, and now, I will grab me some sketch books as well.

  22. Love this! And, yes, my mom did this in the 60’s with binders and looseleaf. How much fun did we have going through and looking at all the hip and cool things she wanted to do. This is great.

    My addiction goes like this… read it, read again – dog ear it, look at the huge pile a few months later, rip out all the dog ears that I still like and put in a shoe box, shove the shoe box under the sofa and pull out the lap top and get sucked into Pinterest. Works for me ;-)

  23. Those three volumes are so stunning! My heart sings for this project! I have the same, horrible additction to magazines! I have stopped subscribing to most, but every now and then I just need to throw an issue into my grocery cart. I can’t stop! I love beautifully formed magazines! My worst obsession from the past decade was scrapbook magazines. I would spend HOURS pouring over those pages, sorting articles into filing systems for future reference. I still use that filing system. As of late, my first love, home magazines have come back to the forefront. I was thrilled to discover that the library of my new town (I just moved 2 years ago) allows magazine circulation! My old city did not! Oh my! The librarians must have thought I was insane! I checked out piles and piles of magazines for months! I read them during kids’ football, basketball or soccer games/practices. I dog eared (with Post It notes) favorite articles or ideas and actually color copied some ideas. This only added to my already crazy collection of dog eared magazines. Like you, I decided I needed to condense. I went the “binder” route this time. I do refer to this little gem of a binder too! Even though Pinterest has added to my love for collecting all things pretty and clever, there is something about magazines. I just love the completeness of them. I am glad you found a way to keep them beautiful and complete while still pairng down and letting go! Awesome!

  24. I use four binders (one for each season) with page protectors and sectioned off with crafts/diy and holiday ideas; breakfast, lunch, dinner, and dessert recipes; health and exercise; makeup and hair; and clothes. I try to find the more recent material online to add to Pinterest but some of the magazine spreads have a lot more details than the online versions (particularly recipes). I was very thankful for my binder recently when my modem crashed and I couldn’t get on Pinterest for recipes!

  25. I too am a hoarder! I have been a “magazinaholic” most of my adult life. I wrote about this obsession in one of my blog post also, http://ruminationsandreckonings.com/2012/03/21/happy-birthday-ruminations-and-reckonings/. Over the years I have tried several different methods of trying to manage them, including dog-earring, cutting and pasting to piece of paper, putting into a plastic sleeve and organizing in a notebok, and finally just tearing out the pages and filing in a file. I do like your suggestion because I love to go back and look at the ideas. Might have to try this.

  26. AMEN SISTER!!! This gives me hope…maybe now I can justify the 97,843 lb. stack of magazines in MY house, too. Michaels, here I come!

  27. Hi Kate,

    What a great idea and they look so pretty in the canvas books. I’ve tried putting pages in binders but the pages are so thin it just doesn’t stay all together.

    Good luck with the grapes and I look forward to seeing you next week at Haven :-)

  28. Hey why don’t you switch your subscriptions to a Kindle Fire that way you can keep them and thye won’t clutter up your home. I have been getting BHG on the Kindle and I loooove it. Now I have my magazines wherever I go!

    • Hi Yvonne, I don’t own a Kindle or Nook, my husband has an iPad and I like to catch up on blogs that way, but I’m so old school, I still love to lok at the good old fashioned paper pages! I suppose someday I’ll make the switch – it’s the future for sure!

  29. I’ve been making binders (actually spiral-bound notebooks) for over 10 years now! I have about 20 spiral bound books and they are still growing! Thank god for pinterest! I would have even more!! And I still have to rip out three years of magazines to put in my “style files”.

    I must ask, are you typing the pages in that book or is there a sleeve? If you’re taping, what are you doing for articles and pictures taht are carried on two-sided? I find in my binders, I have to type them togehter like a book, so I can see both sides without have to untype or pull out of sleeve.

  30. That’s a brilliant idea! I’m actually really good about throwing away magazines, but that’s mainly because I know if I allow myself to keep any I will turn into a complete hoarder! I might have to do something like this so I don’t have to deny myself any more!

  31. I so needed this!!! I use the cheap, ugly binders from work and they aren’t display worthy so the books sit in a box that never gets reopened. This is perfect!! I’m excited and can’t wait to transition! Thanks for the inspiration!!

  32. Oh Kate! I feel your pain as well. I subsribe to many mags as well, and have tried to cut back, but end up buying them on the newsstand anyway! I keep my tear sheets in file folders….I did keep them in a binder at one point, but I found it too time consuming putting them in page protectors. Your method is absolutely beautiful! I have a hard time of getting rid of my Stye at Home issues, so keep those for a few years! Have a wonderful weekend! Angie xo

  33. As I read a house magazine, I dog ear and then go back and rip the pages out and put them inside page protectors…then put them inside a three ring binder…with tabs…with similar headings as yours…I did some tabs as rooms such as “master bedroom” or “kitchen”…..My best friend loves telling other people I do this and its mildly embarrassing but I can’t help myself!! :)

  34. Wow–what a fabulous (& beautiful) idea! Mine are sorted, labeled & filed into file folders right now, but your books are much more streamlined!! Thanks for yet another terrific inspiration, Kate.

  35. I “justify” my magazine subscriptions by carefully cutting out the few items I want to keep and recycling the magazines to the VA hospital here in Houston. Since I take my husband for appointments several times a month, I try to take a few older magazines, re-read them and cut out what I want to keep and leave the magazines behind for someone else to enjoy. The only reading material for patients and visitors is whatever is donated, so check around to see if there is a clinic or hospital that could use your old magazines or paperbacks.

  36. I use a 3 ring binder and page protectors for my dog eared pages. I also have one with kid activities and one devoted entirely to parties!
    -Wendy

  37. Fantastic idea! I don’t know why I save magazines because I never go back through and look at them like I think I will. This way it’s easier to find inspiration without having to flip through pages and pages. Will be doing this with newer magazines. We moved recently and I got rid of older magazines, which was really a good thing!

  38. I like three-ring binders with page protectors so I can file pages alphabetically (I’m a bit OCD, I know.) I sew “book covers” from duck cloth (like a linen-canvas) so the binders present more as books. I’m a constant organizer/purger.

  39. Love your idea! I only hoard two magazines and both are out of print… well… one came back: Domino and ReadyMade. Magazines like House Beautiful, Better Homes and Gardens, Dwell, Atomic Ranch and Martha Stewart Living get the rip treatment. I rip out pages that I like and put them in a pile… or five. I’ve done this since I was a teenager. I’ve always done the binder deal, but your idea is way cuter. I like the idea of having a space where I could write. Sometimes I like something not because of the color but because of the style or because I can improve upon it. I then rip it out and forget why. I hate looking at a picture and thinking, “I know I kept this for a reason, but why?!” lol.

    And I know I mentioned a ton of magazines. I justify buying magazines because I buy my books at Savers or I get library books. See? I save money on real reading material and splurge on pretty pictures. :D

  40. I have the same problem! I love collecting and reading magazines, but really haven’t gotten around to organizing them yet… so they’re all sitting in a box in my room from when I moved this May. The collection book is such a great idea!

  41. I did the same thing a few years ago. Then I donated every magazine I owned to a nursing home. The next step was to stop the madness: after 30 years of subscriptions, I slowly cancelled every one of them.

    Funny thing about the binder. I rarely looked at it and when I did, a lot was outdated. Pinterest is my go-to for information now. (No dusting and storage required!!)

  42. OMG, this posting spoke to me!! I love the solution to such a familiar problem. Now all I have to do is buy the supplies and re-read all of my magazines so I can dog the ears : )

  43. You wanna come and scrapbook mine cause it is a magazine pig pen in my office loft right now! I am adding this to my to do list – damn you Kate :)

  44. Evernote is great for that. You can set up different notebooks and then scan and upload your favorite magazine pages/articles. You can also tag each entry and do a search on your uploads.

  45. What a great idea! You are so organized and make it all look so beautiful! I just had a thought, too, that these sketch books could be used to store smaller works of your child’s art, which are also hard to let go of.

  46. Hi there! Oh, boy, do I share your problem! And here’s what I discovered helps me…it’s a free app called Evernote. Have you heard of it? I recently got an iPad, and so I downloaded Evernote, and now I am freed!! I just snap a picture of the room or recipe or project idea, and then tag it into a folder. Now all of my ideas are in one spot, I can recycle magazines without breaking out into hives that I’m going to want THAT particular issue someday, and my ideas are portable!

    • GREAT idea Valerie, can you then Pin it from Evernote, I love that idea!

  47. What a great idea! Sounds like a prefect project for a winter evening in front of the fire! Thx for the inspiration!

  48. We’re totally on the same page (no pun intended!). A few years back I started a binder with dividers and put all my pages in plastic sleeves. While it works okay, I don’t keep up with it well, so end up with piles just like yours. And now I’m running out of room and I really don’t want to start a new binder. I’m thinking your books are just the answer!
    Thanks for sharing!

  49. I use plastic binder pages and make a 3 ring binder of my cross stitch magazine patterns I want to make some day.

  50. We came up with out solution to the cooking magazine madness using these Ikea organizers: http://www.thebookofjimmy.com/organizing-those-cooking-magazines/

    We subscribe to three cooking magazines, and over the years have amassed enough to separate them by season – which is nice since the magazines generally give recipes based on seasonal cooking and ingredients.

    I really like what you did here. It’s certainly more involved than our solution, but I think the end result is pretty nice. That, and you only keep what you want.

  51. OMG Kate…you are awesome!!! This is a great idea for sure. My hubby would love this idea. I’m right there with you that I have too many magazines that I love way too much to just get rid of. I will be adding this to my to-do list. Such a great idea. Love it. Have a great weekend Kate!!! :)

  52. My husband just complained about all my magazines yesterday so I think I will def have to try this out. I also hoard the store magazines that I get in the mail (Pottery Barn, West Elm, ect) to spark ideas…so it’s a pretty big pile too.

  53. OMG-you are a younger me!!!!! I do like the idea of those white books from Michaels tho, I presently use folders, not a neat.

  54. This is a great idea. In the past I’ve purged my hoarded magazines, usually a few years worth at a time, by ripping out the pages I want and transferring them to a hanging file folder. Not nearly as nice an idea as this is. Did you have to glue the pages into those books?

  55. I’m glad this idea sounds good to you eather. I did the same months ago to condense my Shape and Mi Casa magazines… and it works very fine.

  56. I LOVE this idea for so many different types of magazines! It’s a bit more challenging with fashion and home decor mags because they can go out of style but none-the-less there are certainly timeless designs and ideas that can be referred back to. I love the added touch of handwriting on the spine! I love what you said about your children looking through them in the future. I wish I had something like that from my mom, it would be neat to see what her style was.

    I just gave away a ton of magazines but I think this would be great to make for all of my fitness magazines, workout programs never go out of style! It’s a great way to tame all of the torn our recipes I’ve kept over time! ;)

    Thank you for sharing!

  57. What a great idea! :) I wondered about the double sided article dilemma before you addressed it, and considered to myself that if you *really* wanted to feature it easily, one could simply make a color copy as well in those cases.

    I have several binders that currently house my clippings within page protectors, though they are stored in a closed cabinet.

    This is a very eye appealing solution for collections that will be stored within site.

    I think you were wise to set some ‘ground rules’ up for yourself before beginning your project as well.

    Cheers!
    ~H

  58. i have a horrible habit of not reading them for weeks, sometimes even after the next issue has arrived. but i still can’t stop the subscription. this is a great idea for after i finally get around to it though!

  59. I have found an accordion file works best for all of the recipes I’ve collected through cooking magazines. I have yet to transfer them to a book because I find it handy to just pull the recipe I need at the moment and there are probably a thousand recipes in there, but the idea of using the file as an interim solution still has appeal if actually sitting down and “scrapbooking” the clippings is out of reach at the moment (such as if you have small children constantly vying for you attention whether or not your workaholic husband is home)

  60. Aren’t you a smarty pants?! I am a magazine page dog-earer too. I finally waded through all my magazines a couple of months ago and donated them to a friend’s grandma who LOVES to read magazines, and didn’t care that my MS Living was 3 years old. (yeah, it was bad) I wish I’d thought of this idea, but honestly, I think it would have taken me forever to go back through and cut and paste. Maybe I’ll start with my current issues!

  61. Wow — your books are gorgeous and so YOU in every way. Lovely!

    I, on the other hand, could never keep up with this effort. I am long-term-project inhibited. For those like me, I’ll share my fast n’ cheap alternative: file folders. Step 1: Dog-ear the pages of stuff to keep. Step 2: As soon as I’m done with the magazine, tear out those pages. Staple as needed. Step 3: Much like you’ve done with your books, I have file folders labeled with various categories (new kitchen, paint colors, crafts, gift ideas, vacation ideas, etc.). Step 4: File the torn-out pages accordingly. Step 5: Store the files in their own section of a file cabinet or in a file box. If using a box, you can cover it with some paper you love. Another alternative (with less space) is an accordion file.

    Done! : )

  62. Ahh, I’m a magazine hoarder too! We have a vintage trunk as our coffee table, so I stash them in there so they are out of sight. Otherwise, my husband would go nuts seeing them in stacks all over our place.

  63. this is sooo great!! I hold on to all my Living magazines for way too long…i was cutting out things i liked and putting them in sheet protectors in binders…but this is way better & way cuter than cute! thanks for the inspiration ♥ (and the motivation to go through and purge!)

  64. It’s a great idea. I am a magazine hoarder too. I have them organized all over the place. I don’t even know if I could do your method and I would be afraid I might skip over something that I might love at some point. I do love your idea…I may have to seriously consider it.

  65. I am also a self admitted magazine (and all paper really) hoarder. I have a husband who gets tired of my paper piles, so while he’s at work I discretly pile the older magazines in boxes which I then neatly label and stack in his garage… it’s not the best plan for actually being able to access and find that recipe/idea/article I couldn’t possibly live without and therefore the reason I must save said magazine. This is a brilliant idea that I can add to the to-do list!

    I have been trying out magazine subscriptions on the iPad (many are free if you’re a print subscriber) to see if it’s a reasonable replacement – and I do like it. If I find a recipe/idea/article I want to save, I take a screen shot of it and save it to a photo album… haven’t figured out (or really thought much about) a better way to organize and save it – but it gives me a digital reference to find the information I’m trying to save easily in the future! Much easier than the magazines in my boxes piled in the garage =)

  66. What a great idea! So pretty! I have gotten into the habit of tearing out a magazine page I like right when I see it and putting it in a folder for later. When I have time, I put the pages in clear page in a big binder. I am terrible at organizing, and the binder isn’t as pretty!

  67. I am sooooo in love with this idea… now I have a week-end project :-) These will look so beautiful on my bookshelf too. Thanks for sharing all your wonderful ideas!

  68. Hi Kate – This happened to me several years ago when we moved. I realized I was out of control when my hubby asked me to trash the magazines before the move. Instead, I boxed up every magazine up and marked the boxes fragile. It wasn’t too long after the move that I bought a bunch of notebooks and clear sleeves and started ripping and cutting. I since now even have “books” of recipes broken down by subject. Oh how I also love the touch of a magazine or book. Thanks for sharing!

  69. Amen to what you did! I too am a magazine hoarder and I still have not found the guts to tear up my beloved mags! Someday, I will do the same, but for now, I have cut up only catalogues and things I love in them and placed them in a HUGE binder. :-)

  70. I am not alone! It was only yesterday while doing the housework that I looked sadly at my magazine piles (yes piles). Love your idea!

    Can I ask, did you free hand the title on the book spine? And did you use a fabric marker?

    Thanks!

    • Hi Rebecca, yes free hand in my strange cursive, and I used a colored Sharpie but they bleed just a tiny bit.
      Kate

  71. I have started doing this same thing recently with both decor and recipes. I just put them in a binder with those plastic sleeve protectors. Not the prettiest thing but it works well for recipes, no more olive oil smudges. LOL

  72. I have the same affliction or should I say I did. Pinterest and blogs have about killed that for me. BUt I have magazines from the late 70’s, old Woman’s Day and Family Circle and I have tons of Family Fun magazines. I raised my kids on the fun projects and plan to share them with my grandkids. I started doing what you are and never could finish it so then I started taking all the adds out so at least my stack was smaller and writing my fav articles on the cover. I honestly have some magazine’s memorized. It’s funny to look back and see what your taste was and also funny to see how what comes around goes around.

  73. Question – what do you do when you wanted to preserve something on both sides of the sheet? (like a several pages feature or something…)
    Love love this idea!

  74. I am addicted to magazines too, which surprises me given my addiction to perusing the internet with my laptop constantly going. There’s just something so decadent about holding a shiny, colorful magazine and dreamily turning the pages. If you happen to have magazines other than decor/renovation your local seniors’ home would LOVE to have them. Obviously the dears in there can’t renovate and so have no need for that genre, but all the other magazines are gratefully accepted when I take a stack over to them. I always have several different kinds because I also run my own little hair salon in my house and my clients need something to read, so I have Martha and People, etc. Think about it… it may help ‘downsizing’ your mag stack a little easier if you know they are going to a good home.

  75. When I’m traveling in a car with my husband, I always take along a big stack of old magazines. It’s a good time to rip out articles and cull magazines.

  76. Too funny! I’ve been afflicted with this hoarding malady for 30+ years! Even moved boxes and boxes and boxes of magazines to Europe for several years. Told my husband that they would add to the weight of our shipment (corporation was paying); that I would toss them there; and then we wouldn’t have to pay for a lot of extra weight when we moved back. I planned to take up that space and weight with antiques! Guess what? Couldn’t part with my magazines! Back they came with us!

  77. Hi, my name is Angie, and I’m a magazine hoarder too. I came up with a similar binder solution, and found I’m pretty picky about what goes into them, so it’s been easy to cut down on the mag stacks!

  78. Hi Kate: Yup, I hear you!! Looks like you’ve got your problem solved. On Pinterest I found an item where the person used old magazines to make a foot stool. They stacked the magazines on a piece of wood the same size (you could put wheels on it if you wanted to) and held them in place with beautiful belts (or you could use gorgeous scarves). My sister is going to stack equal groups of 4 and place glass on top and use it as an end table. Actually, it’s her husband who has a serious addiction to travel magazines – and entire wall of them!!!

  79. That is a great idea. I don’t recall seeing those canvas books before, but I will have to look harder, won’t I?! My magazine pile is similar to yours and while I try to purge every few months, there are certain ones that I refuse to get rid of. I’ll have to steal your idea in the very near future! Thanks Kate! By the way…have a great time visiting family and at Haven!

  80. I love how beautiful and concise your white books are! Perhaps you’d like to know the system I’ve been using for many years? (Not quite as elegant, but my books live in my studio, so….)

    I use the following equipment (could be any manufacturer):

    2 Ikea metal cabinets with drawers- I think there are about 7 drawers to each small cabinet. Each drawer is labelled according to my interests: Outside, House Images, Kitchen, DIY, BookMaking, etc. I also collect images & ideas related to my artwork and images from other artists I admire. These drawers are just the right size for most magazine pages.

    1 Big box of sheet protectors (usually kept ready to go in one of the Ikea drawers).

    1 Fiskars portable paper cutter for trimming sheets (with pencil case containing scissors, glue stick, tape)

    Lots & Lots of empty Binders. (I like the 3″ kind with D rings and currently only use white, myself)

    When time & inclination strike, I pull images from magazines & toss them into the appropriate drawers. When a different time & inclination strike (or the drawer gets too full), I trim the images and put them into sheet protectors & then usually, back into the drawer from which they came.

    Eventually just the right mood arrives for putting all the images inside sheet protectors and then into the appropriate white binder.

    I have nearly thirty binders now, and I use them a tremendous amount. Even though some of the ideas may be presently outdated (I’ve been casually creating these binders for nearly fifteen years), it’s impossible for me to go through even one of them and not become re-inspired and creatively energized within just a few pages. Recently we’ve been building a house and the binders have provided tremendous inspiration & reassurance about our design choices. When the same idea keeps showing up again & again…. I guess images that truly speak to the heart never become silent.

  81. Such an amazing idea! I mean it’s brilliant! I have recently stopped buying new magazines because I don’t have enough space in my new tiny apartment in London but I will definitely try it when I go back to my apartment in Greece!

    Thanks for sharing!
    Maria

  82. Inspiring ideas, from one magazine hoarder to another! Feel like Pinterest has made it harder for us…now when I have have a free moment I am pinteresting and the magazine piles get higher (well, the first free moment is always devoted to your blog ;) but do love your book idea!!

  83. I, too, dog ear magazine pages. Then once a month, I look back at them and tear out the ones I really want to keep before passing the magazine on to girl friend to read. Yes, they get some missing pages, but, hey, it’s free! I file the town out pages in labelled file folders in my desk.

  84. Thank you for mentioning about only gluing the top of the magazine pages to flip. I was beginning to be a little curious how you were able to decide on which side would be the only side up while, of course, the other side still had something fantastic on it! I have been in the process of eliminating my magazines like this too (only, it has taken me longer – thankfully I rarely get new ones in so I don’t get too overwhelmed). I do like the book idea better too. I was going to put mine in binders with clear sleeves. :( This is much cuter!

  85. Are you having any trouble with the books getting too thick and not wanting to close well? It seems like this would happen adding so much material to a book with a fixed spine. Love the idea. Just wondering.

    Valerie

    • Hi Valerie, great question! Yes they expand a little but not so much to endanger the binding – the magazine pages are pretty flimsy so with them halfway full they are expanding a bit but not too badly. :)

  86. I too suffer from a condition that causes me to hoard magazines! This year is the year that I have promised to downsize my ‘collection’ for my new husband’s sanity and to produce some space in our little home (for more ‘stuff’ I’m sure!). Love the simple white notebooks you have used! xxx

  87. OMG!! This idea is MARVELOUS!!!!! I was dog-ear’ing pages the other day & wondering the SAME exact thing!!! I love the idea of those books. I’d love to talk more but I’m out the door, headed to Michael’s!

  88. Hello – my name is Kathy and I’m a magazine hoarder. (everybody say “Hi Kathy”) Welcome to the Magazine Hoarder – But I Don’t Care Meeting!!
    Right now I have EVERY issue ever printed of the Food Network Magazine – almost all of Bon Appetite and every one of the last FIVE years of the now defunct Gourmet Magazine (I still grieve over that!) Hundreds of quilting magazines, crafting magazines and magazines dedicated to all things Christmas. Oh – I forgot I also have most of the Thanksgiving/Christmas issues for Good Housekeeping, McCall’s (I still miss that one also!), Ladies Home Journal, Woman’s Day and Family Circle. So Kiddo – I know your pain! I’m not even counting the 50 years I’ve been collecting cookbooks! Time to go now – I think there’s a new issue of SOMETHING out there, waiting for me!

  89. I have tried various methods over the years, finally settling on the digital method. I scan the dog-eared pages onto my computer, being careful to organize them as I go along, and save them to a thumb/flash drive. I’ve found it much easier to refer to the pages this way and have even emailed ideas to friends from my neatly organized and accessible collection.

  90. Magazine clippings and stacks of magazines. Look at the huge group of people with a common interest (problem). I love the book idea, but can’t bear to tear pages out of some of my magazines – Bon Appetit, Budget Travel, Conde Nast Traveler. But I have gotten better about regular magazines. Good news is, I haven’t paid for an actual magazine (except Budget Travel) in years due to my Coca-Cola obsession and My Coke Rewards points as well as Freebizmag.com.

  91. Did I miss? How are the pages mounted? I am going to Michaels tomm! Thanks!

  92. I have the same problem. However I’ve started a new routine, as I initially go through the magazine I immediately rip out the photos/article I want to save. Then I trash the mag after a couple weeks. I save the mags when the whole darn thing is too good to throw away. But I will go back and read them years later. I’ve save all my Cottage Living mags…gosh I miss that one.
    I hope to run into you at HAVEN!!

  93. Great system, and it looks cute! I have hundreds of magazines around the house much to the dismay of my lovely husband. I’ve been trying to go through at least one a night in the past few weeks and tear out the pages that I want to hold on to. I’ve started similar stacks to how you organized, and but have included two additional on recipes and household tips. I used to keep these all in binders within page holders but found out that scanning them as a PDF onto my computer actually worked the best for me. I rename them and sort them into the correct folder by type. The coolest perk about scanning them in, is some of my favorites I’ve moved over to Evernote and keep them with me as we’re trying to re-do our kitchen and add our front yard. Now I have the photo and ideas with me on my iPad or iPhone at the store.

    • Such a great idea Carrie, thansk! My scanner is a beast, wish it was easier to use, but I love the Evernote idea!
      Kate

  94. Did the binder thing last month. And it was actually fun to look back at all the things and have leafed through it a couple times since.

  95. I’m the same way and I have used a black media book to put my articles and pictures in, and I use a label maker to identify my books!

    I have one for interior decorating, one for projects and one for Fashion!

  96. I recently bought a cute magazine holder and am limiting myself to whatever magazines will fit in it. I try to take action on the things I mark in my magazines ASAP (i.e. tear out the recipe, enter the giveaway, look for the outfit online to pin), and then when the holder is full I’ll take them to work to leave in the break room. But I love this idea! Your books are so pretty.

  97. Oh, I just keep buying more baskets to house them. I do have a binder that I eventually organize them in, but you know, your beautiful books have me thinking…
    P.S. CAN’T WAIT to see you, friend! Safe travels!!
    xoxo,
    shaunna

  98. I ABSOLUTELY LOVE magazines, especially home decorating magazines and I LOVE those books you got to put your pages in. Gorgeous.

  99. I love you Kate. Was reading your article and decided to take the oldest issues and throw away everything. It’s a rainy day anyway. I promise I wont read all of them again, just lokk here and there. And I am not making any scrapbook, I have no time, patience or vocation for this, and besides: my kids already will have tons of junk to throw away when times came. Just this morning my young son asked: mam, waht will happen of this house when you move into a retirement home? this sets you to think.

  100. Please consider donating the unused portions of your magazines to mercyhousekenya.org :)

  101. Oh I can totally relate! I been a magazine hoarder since I was in high school- I had every issue of several years’ worth of In Style. Now its changed to more “grown up” and “serious”magazines like Real Simple, Canadian Living, Chatelaine and oh about any housey magazine I can find! Not to mention all the catalogues, And dont get me started on all the recipes I’ve been hoarding… What is it about magazines?! I actually applied your same approach last summer- it was the perfect thing to bring camping and on boring car rides. As part of “packing” for the big move to our first house, i spent hours in the fall cutting, ripping, sorting. But i havent done anything with all my precious findings yet. I love, love your idea of different volumes and using the white albums- I’m going to try that out! Ps. I find that since I went through all my mags, I am now much quicker at tearing out my “keepers” and not letting my pile grow! Oh, and maybe somehow I can get you to write the names on my book spines!

  102. Looks lovely on the shelf – i have done a similar for years and it’s fun looking back at the stuff you used to like. Great way to get inspiration too. I got to the point that i had so many books though it was getting complicated so now i scan everything and electronically file it. I give the scans meaningful names so i am able to search for something plus i divide the folders into “room layout” “sculpture” “DIY” “recipes” and so forth so if i just want to browse a certain subject for inspiration it’s nice and easy. Then you can include favs from pinterest etc and everything is in one place. i’ve done it with some recipe books that only had one or two recipes i used also. best thing: no clutter and saving trees :^)

  103. I’m laughing a little inside because I remember my first three books. That was ages and ages ago, and now I have over 100 of those books filled (all organized by topic of course). They’ve been immensely helpful to me over the years, but now that they take up so much space, I’ve started scanning relevant articles and saving the digital versions. As for my books, once I’ve finished scanning them, I give them to crafty teachers and high school students with dreams of their own. Those books have been well loved and it’s a joy to pass them on, even if I do miss them on occasion.

  104. I do the same thing with photography that inspires me :) only one book so far though!

  105. As much as I love blogs, I still have a fondness for magazines!

    One way to use the magazines is to make a collage. As a teen, we would do this and tape them on our notebooks.

    Another use is a vision board. I did one recently and even had my 9-year old niece make her own.

  106. I absolutely love this book idea. I too am a magazine hoarder. Last summer I made the step of purging the magazines and keeping the good pages. However, it’s been a year and they are still sitting in filing folders. I’ll have to be on the lookout for these canvas books. Love it.

  107. LOVE your blog. Thank you!

    This is a great idea. I’ve also done something simlar but not as pretty. I use composition notesbooks, cutting and pasting articles and bits and tips of interest. I have one for house ideas, several for craft ideas, and a book that is for “my” style – outfits that I like or bits and pieces of wearbles. I look through this one before I go on a shopping trip to remind myself of styles I like. This generally keeps me focus on things that fir in the “my” style and keeps me from getting wardrobe pieces that really aren’t me.

    Now I need to run to Michael’s and get everything into prettier books! Tahnks again!

  108. I do the same thing! Magazines are my guilty pleasure but it’s so easy to let them take over so I started this binder trick a couple years ago with all my fitness magazines and the different workout moves. The sketch books actually are a better idea for home inspiration because you can write what you like about the pictuers next to it so thank you for that idea!

  109. I use a mobile phone app, Evernote, that allows me to take pictures of magazine shots, add notes, and file them into folders that I create. My phone then synchs to my computer. I use it for recipes, design ideas, landscape ideas, etc. You can also clip web shots. A great advantage, it’s easily portable.The free app limits your monthly usage, the upgrade allows more storage. A shelter magazine editor featured the app in his monthly editorial as an end to his hoarding!

  110. Last year I purged 3 rubbermaid totes full of my dog eared magazines. I have filled a white 3″ binder using page protectors and subject tabs; the protectors work great for those back to back articles and how-to’s. When I needed the instructions to do a project I just took it out of the binder where it was still protected in the sleeve and didn’t get messed up with a craft product I was working with…just wipe it clean. It was also very handy to take 1 page to the hardware store to find a product vs. taking a book. I do love the look of those nice white books lined up on a shelf but for myself, the convenience of the binder is priceless.

  111. I am so glad to see I’m not the only one with a dog-eared page problem! I started finally going through and tearing out the dog-eared pages but have done nothing with them up until this point – now I’m inspired to start my own little journals too… thanks!

  112. I am a magazine hoarder to, but now that we moved to a smaller place, I do have to clear them out, for hubbies sake, and to have some space left. So I am very happy with your article, it’s a lovely Idea, and gives me a great start to sort them out, not sure iff I will look for books or binders, probably will depend on what is most pretty in the shop.

  113. Mag hoarder here too!! Especially knitting mags. I just went through a similar ‘paring down’ project but used 3-ring binders and clear plastic 3-ring sleeves. It worked well. I also purged sewing patterns and then scanned both front and back of the pattern envelopes, printed them out and put them in binders in sleeves. Hopefully this will prevent me from buying patterns I don’t need!!!

  114. I’m definitely a magazine ripper (not hoarder), a trick I picked up from my mom. Actually, mom gave me a notebook when I left for college that had all sorts of useful articles for a new “adult.” So once I started getting my own magazines, it was a natural transition for me to do the same thing. I read and rip at the same time, then put everything in a pile to sort through every month or so. I’ve got different binders for recipes (with page protectors to keep the recipes from getting splattered), house stuff, financials, and other categories. I get an odd satisfaction from filing everything away, and it’s even better once I have a chance to look back through a binder.

  115. I do the same thing! Except yours are very neatly trimmed and well thought out, mine are just torn out and taped to the page in no particular order. I also make little notes beside the picture/ article. It’s so fun to go back and look at where my “mind” was 2 years ago. My, how my taste has changed (& improved) :)
    P.s.- I’m loving these canvas bound journals, ive been seeing them all over the bloggosphere lately. The possibilities are endless.

  116. What a beautiful job you’re doing of cutting and pasting. I remember doing that with my teen mags and food mags in culinary school. It was a basic notebook though. Nothing as pretty as those beautiful white books!

    This may seem silly but what I love best are the spins. How and where can I learn how to be as awesome as you are at typography?!

  117. Wonderful idea. I’ve already stopped my home magazine subscriptions for that very reason. Now I want to start all over again. Gee, thanks Kate LOL.

  118. I just recently started placing my in 3-ring binders in plastic sheet protectors (just the pages and articles that I love) but your way is so much prettier. I’ll be making a trip to Michaels soon!

  119. Hi, Kate! :) I just found your blog and am loving what I see! :) I, too have a nostalgic attachment to reading material with pages I can feel and crackle!!! :):):) I love this idea!! What I am wondering is, how did you make the binding labels for each notebook? Is your freehand just THAT gorgeous and artistic, or was there another nifty method involved? I’m dying to imitate!! ;);)

  120. I used to put my clippings in sheet protectors in binders, but they just sit there. Now I have gone digital… Pinterest for pictures of home design, an excel file of book lists, gift ideas, and projects that I want to try. And then an awesome app called Paprika that has become my cookbook of magazine recipes. I still have the problem of letting the magazines pile before I do anything with them. I have quite a tower now… *sigh*

  121. I’ve done the same with an inexpensive photo album. I have one for receipes, craft ideas, and another for interiors. Still there are some Magazines I can’t get ride of like any of the Stampington Publications.

  122. Hi Kate — A gal after my own heart! As I read your blogpost, I just kept nodding my head — that’s me, that’s me, that’s me! I can so relate to your love of magazines! It drives my family CRAZY, so I have to try to ‘hide’ them until I have time to pull out the articles I can’t part with! LOL! I love your idea! So pretty! How do you deal with different sizes — like magazine pages that are too big for the book? Thanks so much for sharing this. I feel sooo much better knowing there are others like me who have trouble letting go of those beautiful magazines!

  123. My daughter and I were just talking about what to do with our magazines ~ she unfortunately inherited my addiction. Your idea is perfect but just one question ~ what did you use to ‘glue’ the magazine pages in the sketch books?
    Off to Michaels tomorrow to pick up a few books!

  124. I love this! I have a 2′ stack of sheets already torn out of magazines I can’t bring myself to toss. For current publications I use a scan to PDF app on my phone and save it on my computer. My goal now is to be able to throw away/pass on/move to the guest room as soon as I’ve gone through a magazine. No more letting them lay around!

  125. So glad I found this post- I do the exact same thing but use binders. I’m not disciplined enough to limit my tear pages so it has gotten out of control. I’ve made it through my bhg issues and am working on my Cottage Living archives. Southern Living is up next! My friends tease me about it but I have my future house binder too and think it will make things that much easier when it is time to build. Thanks for sharing!!’. Ps I discovered your blog on pinterest (ditto on that) and love everything on it!! Great job!

  126. Hi Kate…

    I love this idea. I was contemplating on doing this however, I sometimes have magazine pages that are double-sided…so that kind of stunted that idea. What do you do with your double-sided magazine clippings? I ended up putting them in sheet protectors and decorated my binder. But I get the thinner binders so it’s not so massive and separate them based on categories. I have one for my makeup inspiration (since my profession is a makeup artist/hair stylist) and one for interior & color blocking and another for recipes. Do tell…do tell…

    • Hi Arlene, I addressed that in the article, I simply use the glue stick only along the top so I can flip the page if necessary to read it!
      Kate

  127. THIS is what I’ve been waiting for. Someone to figure out what to do with all my dog-eared magazines and catalogs. Oh wait, I meant to say someone who can show ME what to do with all my dog-eared magazines and catalogs. I have stacks and stacks that I refuse to throw away but also refused to invest in plastic binders full of plastic sleeves or the not-so-cheap-anymore scrapbooks. This is THE perfect answer!!
    Thursday morning I have to take my van for a 1 hour tune up at the dealer’s at 10a.m. Michaels shortly after that. And a beautiful scrappy, bookmaking weekend will be on the horizon.

  128. I am SOOOO glad to know that I am not alone in my addiction. I have stacks of pages ripped out of magazines on MANY different subjects. I have mine in file folders, baskets, trays, you name it, I have tried everything to control my stash. Next up- your idea and I hope it will be my last! Thanks!

  129. Great idea! What glue did you use for the pages? Glue stick or liquid elemer’s? Did you sheets crinkle over time?

  130. Awesome blog… I cannot believe that in my search tonight to find the “perfect” solution to curtail the crisis of my magazine collection accumulated over the past 10/20+ years that I would end up on your blog. I too just started to follow you on Pinterest. I’ve dog eared and tagged pages, used different colored post-its, pulled entire sections out and filed them into Ikea boxes to no avail, so tomorrow I start the binder system. I’ve even established a four star rule in buying a magazine – four great things have to pop out to me as I flipped through it on the store shelf… if not I don’t buy. And that’s not counting the ones that come in the door via a subscription. Books and magazines are “MY SHOES”.

  131. Love It! i too am a magazine hoarder with dog-eared pages to keep track of all my Inspiration and Someday / Maybe ideas. i started organizing – but tearing then filing in manila folders isn’t enough of a home for these gems i’ve collected.

    i have just recently discovered your site, and i applaud you – you manage to bring organization, DIY, design, streamlined & simplified together beautifully.

    Bravo!
    laine

  132. Oh my goodness, I never knew there was so many of us! I too remove articles that I want to save from magazines (mostly hair and makeup articles as I am a hair stylist/makeup artist, but also clothing, recipes, DIY, and interiors). For now I put them in 3 ring binders, in fact I just picked up a new 2″ binder today for my hair and makeup articles. It’s sort of serendipitous that I found you blog (directed from Ikea Hackers), because I was just thinking about how I wish there was a more aesthetically pleasing way to organize clipped articles. What a wonderful idea, and your other projects are just lovely. Keep up the good work, I look forward to seeing your future work.

  133. My gosh! So glad to know there are fellow magazine hoarders out there! I’ve had to move around a lot and my family hates me for my magazines. I have boxes of them! I’ve been trying to organize them forever, but I finally came up with the idea last week of what to do to get rid of most of them.

    I always thought of scanning and printing them, but was put off by the idea because of the cost of the ink. Then it occurred to me that I don’t have to print them, I just have to scan them!

    I thought of how you can add things to Pinterest, so I’m thinkng about organizing them that way. At any rate, I have finally found my solution.

    If I decide to keep them on my computer, I will open them in IRFANVIEW (a free photo-imaging program), and will reduce the size of the files in a batch-file. This way they won’t take up too much room on my hard-drive.

    I really do love your idea though and think I will use it for special things I want to keep at-hand.

    As for the double-sided articles, you could always scan the second side then print it. Thanks for the idea and for all of you fellow collectors making me feel a little better about my mags…:>)

  134. This is truly inspirational! and exactly what I’ve been looking for. For years I’ve had a bookcase in our bathroom dedicated to magazines plus a few 3 rings binders but it was no longer working. First of all we are working hard to downsize but I didn’t want to rely on electronic versions because like you I love holding a book… plus I just love the smell and feel of paper!

    So now I am off to Hobby Lobby to see if they have any similar books. I know my husband will be ecstatic as it is one more thing that can leave the house. Once again thank you for this incredible idea!!

  135. I keep magazine clippings in binders with page protectors. They are my ‘idea books’. I have gardening, decorating, crafts, scrapbooking, etc., plus another one for recipes.

    I go through my old magazines and do this maybe once or twice a year; it’s a great thing to do while watching TV (esp. sports).

  136. I, too, have been placing in some scrapbook binders: Winter, Spring, Summer, Fall, Christmas.
    In these I have tabs for: Recipes, Decorating, Crafts, Kids, & for whatever holidays

  137. OK, now I’m mad!

    I had every issue of Martha Stewart Magazine from 1990 taking up precious shelf space in my glass art studio. Decided recently I needed the room and didn’t know what to do with the mags after no one claimed them on Craig’s List (for free, no less!). It pains me to admit they went into the recycling bin, when I could’ve used this clever method to keep at least some of the info…

    [sob!]

  138. Bless You!! My hubby must feel that I am the only female who hoards magazines. Hurray! I am not alone!! Now I feel part of a group!! I won’t tell you what year some of mine go back to, but they are like dear friends. I also clip out and file away, and try diligently to keep them in some order. Thanks for the tips. YOU HAVE MADE MY DAY !!!

  139. I love this idea! I’m also a magazine hoarder, but often for different reasons, for example I save all my fashion magazines to use them for DIY projects. That reminds me, I really need to finish my post about the calendars that I made using these!
    btw, I’m your newest follower

  140. I am a terrible magazine hoarder and just can’t seem to throw them away. My mom actually saves them from different seasons and then strategically places them in the house when that season comes around again (coffee table, bathrooms, guest room nightstand). I’ve found near-perfect issues of Real Simple from 2005!

    For me, I have a magazine holder and they’re all stacked up just like your “before” picture. I love your idea, but don’t know if I have the patience to cut out all those articles! Pinterest has definitely helped me resist the urge to dog-ear every page I like, though!

  141. I store mine by season in milk crates..and I also place mine around the house seasonally..Everyone who visits loves to flip thru them..so alas, I’m giving in and just keeping my tried and true storage..

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