True, I’m a creative.
I’m a right-brained person but I’m also (obviously) “Type A” and enjoy organizing and staying on budget. Excel and Pinterest both work great for me!
My intern, Molly, is AMAZING! She also loves Excel. Now, who loves Excel? Honestly, I mean its just numbers, right? But, one weekend I decided that in order to get really organized on the Rocky Bay Home project, I would marry Excel and Pinterest. One being mathematical and analytical tool and the other being creative. And… it worked! Thankfully, I knew that Molly would set the equations that would work in the way that I needed them to. Admittedly, I sometimes mess it up and she needs to go in and fix my math but overall it works.
I have everything listed in rows that I need to purchase as well as specify and sub-contractor estimates. In addition to the grand total budget, I have sub-totals that break down each category (for example, tile). The columns across provide information from: room, vendor, specifications, ordered, delivered, budget cost and actual cost.
The process of marrying Excel and Pinterest has been a productive and fun. I’m always checking myself between the creative and functional. This process has been quite fulfilling and responsive.
I create a similar document for all my clients referred to as a Project Status Log (PSL) but it doesn’t’ always include the budget line. Moving forward we will try to add this column when my clients choose. The contractor gets an updated list of materials from the PSL to keep everyone updated on decisions and specifications. At the end of the project, my clients get an entire list of materials used on the project – an excellent resource for any future need.
I encourage everyone who is working on a project to start with Pinterest and quickly marry an Excel sheet for a productive, creative and realistic outcome.