Manuals, Registrations & Warranties ... Oh My!

Those multi-shaped, cumbersome, rarely used, but must be kept papers, pamphlets and booklets that come with purchased items. What to DO with them all?

And wouldn't you know, when you need one, where is it?

For years, I have had them all stuffed in plastic zip lock bags. Well, some of them anyway. For the most part, they have hidden themselves in various piles and other files - never to be located quickly.

In the midst of organzing some other piled filing, I decided that these needed to be attended to - for my sanity!

The latest pile of rounded up manuals and receipts:

Has now been organized into an old unused three ring binder. I used stiff cardstock (pink) inside the sheet protectors to make turning the pages easier, and to help separate the info into categories.

These are separated by kitchen, main house - such as furniture, heating and a/c, fans, garage and outdoor items, baby, and electronics - like computers, remotes, speakers, telephones.

I often write specific details on the item, such as the purchase date, store, or who the gift was from. If it was installed by a professional I will also note who installed it. I do try to keep receipts with the user guides when I have them. 

And then, this binder is stored neatly on the office shelf, all nice and pretty. Who would suspect the contents?

I find that this organization is also helpful should an item be sold at a yard sale or on Craig's list. I feel it increases the value of the purchase for the next owner.

This is my method of organizing these, for now anyway...  How do you skip down the yellow brick road, making sense of all these items in your home? File folders? Shoebox? Digital? What works the best for you?

I'm linking up at this fabulous blog party over at Someday Crafts where it is Whatever Goes Wednesday!