Many of you have seen (and contributed!) to the "
Great Organizers I have Known" thread. We love hearing about what makes a swap run smoothly for you and we love all the positive energy that the thread has created.
In that spirit, we've created this feature to highlight some of our special and outstanding organizers from the swap boards. We'll meet some of our amazing organizers and pick their brains about how they keep on top of everything organizing requires.
For the start of 2013 we are featuring one of our most prolific Ongoing Swap organizers
TroubleT! TroubleT has organized an impressive 35 times with 30 of those occasions in an Ongoing Swap! Currently TroubleT is organizing the
January 2013 Birthday Swap.
Without further delay, let's give a warm, hearty Craftster congrats to
TroubleT our newest featured organizer!
What is your favorite thing about organizing?This might be hard for some to believe but I actually like doing the spreadsheets with all of the data and files. I'm a geek that way. Let me make lists and chart things and I'm a happy gal!
How on top of things do you need to be to successfully manage an ongoing swap? An ongoing swap definitely requires an organizer to be on the ball. If you're not, you can easily find yourself buried in an avalanche of PMs to sort through. I make an effort to be online every evening, usually after my kids are in bed, so that I can have time to devote to just doing updates.
What do you see is the main difference in an ongoing and a regular partnered swap?
What I like the most about ongoing swaps is the flexibility that it gives to the swappers. You get to choose who you craft for and what you want to make for them. It also gives you a chance to step out of your crafty comfort zone in baby steps if you want to do so.
Do you prefer a huge swap, or a small one? Why?I prefer the smaller swaps. I feel like I have less time to chit chat and enjoy the swap with the larger ones because my time is spent with updates rather than watching the goodies in the gallery.
Do you like using a co-organizer?I do sometimes, especially when it's a swap that is going to occur during a busy time of the year. Being a teacher, August, December and May can be hectic so I've called on some fellow Craftsters a couple of times to help me keep my sanity in check.
If so, how do you split up organizing responsibilities? I usually do the main swap thread to follow up on communication and the swap feedback. I ask my co to handle the gallery as well as update the spreadsheets as packages start to arrive.
Any particular tricks or tips you'd be willing to share with other organizers?
Use Google Drive! It's easy to set up a swap spreadsheet there and you can share it with your co-organizer very easily. If I'm doing a partnered swap, I use post-its to work on matching people up. Each swapper gets a post-it on which I have things like allergies, crafting ability (if applicable) and their location if they are international. I post them on my living room wall to figure out my pairings. I'm a very visual person so this works the best for me.
What would you say is the most important element of making an ongoing swap fun for everyone?Staying on top of your communication and updates. PMs roll through constantly with questionnaires and claims. I take the time to contact each new swapper to welcome them aboard. I reply to claim PMs with their send dates.
Where do you find your swapping AND organizing inspiration? PINTEREST! I LOVE that site but who doesn't? LOL
What was your favorite swap you organized, and what do you think made it a success?I would have to say the Hoopla swap that I organized back in the earlier days. I loved seeing how people interpreted their themes into stitching, such amazing creativity and talent.
Is there anything else you'd like to share?Never be afraid to give organizing a try. Also, don't be afraid to ask to co-organize with one of your favorite organizers just to get your feet wet in the process before you take off to do your own swap.
