Tuesday, August 30, 2011

7 Ways to Keep Those Little Scraps of Paper in Plain Sight

animal-shaped desktop memo holder

Are you one of those people who needs to keep a few pieces of paper in front of you at all times — not files, but individual little notes? Is a wall-mounted bulletin board not going to work for you? The perhaps one of these desktop products will suit your needs.

Let's start with the Morris memo holder, available in five colors and sold many places, including here and here.


oversized paper clip memo holder, with hand-carved base

Oversized paper clip memo holders have been around for a while - but they don't usually look as beautiful as the hand-carved ones from DA Woodworks, which sells them on Etsy. Update on Dec. 12, 2012: DA Woodworks still has a store on Etsy, but doesn't seem to be active there any more.


pewter armadillo memo clip

And then there are the clip-style holders. Some of them are sort of cheesy looking, but this pewter armadillo memo clip looks pretty wonderful. Update on Dec. 12, 2012: Sadly, I'm no longer finding this product.


magnetic desktop dots hold things in place

Magnetic Desk Dots are another idea — but not if you have small children around. I found them through the always-interesting Uncommon Goods. Update on Dec. 12, 2012: This is a discontinued product — so if you want some, get them now while some vendors still have them in stock.


tabletop bulletin board

Ballard Designs has a tabletop message board. Update on Dec. 12, 2012: Ballard Designs no longer carrries this product.


desktop business card holder

Desktop business card holders could also be used to hold other small pieces of paper.




And for those with somewhat larger papers to keep handy, a repurposed toast rack — available in many styles — can work well, too. They don't have to be anywhere near as expensive as this lovely sterling silver toast rack.

Related Post
Now Where Did I Put That Note?

6 comments:

Rozhmaizite said...

nice! so many ideas!

Rachel said...

Great post Jeri. Just this last weekend, I went to a vintage/antique market and got a little wooden box that used to hold slabs of butter. It's perfect for holding all those little scraps near the phone!

Marcie Lovett said...

Another great selection, Jeri. Even though I encourage clients to dump the scraps, there are always one or two notes that need to hang around for a little while. The Morris is so cute, I might have to get it for myself!

And trust Ballard Designs to have the classiest answer with that double-sided tabletop board.

I used to use a toast rack to hold bills, until I went digital. I still think it's a pretty way to contain paper.

Thanks for keeping the ideas coming!

Cynthia Friedlob said...

So many good ideas, but I'm going for the toast rack! There is simply no way for me to be paperless -- although I finally have eliminated sticky notes on my computer by using a program that allows you to put digital sticky notes on your desktop! Every little bit helps.

Pauline Wiles said...

Love those magnetic desk dots and of course the armadillo is in a class of his own.
I did bring back a toast rack with me from England last year, with the plan of putting kitchen coupons in it. It's become a bit of a catch-all but looks nice enough.

Jeri Dansky said...

I'm glad so many of you enjoyed this collection. Thanks for all your comments - it's always interesting to hear which items people like the most.

Rachel, I'd never heard of the old wooden butter boxes, so thanks for introducing me to them. (Once I knew they existed, I could Google them.)

Marcie, I agree - let's be realistic and acknowledge that many people will have a few notes hanging around, at least for the short term.

The English Organizer, how smart to bring a toast rack back with you. I'd never seen one until I visited England and stayed at a B&B. And who knows how its use will evolve over time.