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It’s the end of an era. Last week, the Bureau of Public Debt announced that effective January 1, 2012, financial institutions will no longer sell paper savings bond certificates. This move is in alignment with the U.S. Department of Treasury’s initiative towards all-electronic transactions, as announced in April 2010.

It’s estimated that eliminating “over-the-counter” paper certificate sales will save $70 million over the course of the next five years. Indeed, as of December 31, 2010, the government had already stopped selling paper savings bond certificates through payroll deduction plans, so this was the logical next step. The combined elimination of payroll deduction sales and individual OTC sales is predicted to save $120 million over the next five years.

Of course, savings bonds themselves aren’t being eliminated — just the certificates. You’ll still be able to purchase bonds though the TreasuryDirect website. You just won’t be able to roll them up, tie them with ribbon and present them as gifts to your loved ones. You won’t be able to hoard them in your bedside drawer or roll around on a pile of certificates (not that Paper Doll would want to hear about it if you did.) You can still invest, but there’s no more pomp or circumstance about it.

U.S. Public Debt Commissioner Van Zeck recently stated, “Savings bonds are very much a part of this country’s history and culture, and will remain a part of America’s future – but in electronic form…It’s time for us to take a 1935 model and make it a 21st century investment tool….Investors will no longer have to worry about misplacing, losing or storing paper savings bonds.”

While that’s true, investors may now have to worry about misplacing password-protected account cards or slips of paper onto which they’ve written their bond numbers, or about web fraud. But it might be argued that, collectively, we’ll be losing something else, as well.

KEEPING THE NATION’S BOOKS

The elimination of paper certificates saves the government space (for storing savings bond certificate stock and other tangible resources), expenses for tangibles (ink for printing, certificate paper stock, postage, and envelopes), and fees paid to banks and credit unions for processing bond applications. Financial efficiency is a good thing.

It’s uncertain, though, what kind of impact the change will have on sales of savings bonds. It’s been reported that sales rates for savings bonds have decreased 53% since 2001, and digital sales accounted for only 11% of the $1.2 billion in savings bonds purchased from October 2010 through June 2011.

Maybe most consumers didn’t know they could purchase bonds electronically, but with 89% of purchases in that period being paper certificates, one has to wonder whether going digital might dramatically decrease the number of people buying savings bonds overall. It depends on whether they’re buying them for inflation-hedging investments or more ineffable qualities.

THE SENTIMENTAL VIEW

Great-Grandma and Great-Grandpa, who probably still revel in the ritual of going to their bank branches to purchase saving bonds for the newest acorn on the family tree, will have a few options. If they’re web-savvy, they can use TreasuryDirect; if not, perhaps their kids or friends will help them pursue the online process. Or, more likely, they’ll get a crisp $50 or $100 from Ye Olde Bank and skip buying savings bonds altogether.

And it’s not just the older generation. While I-series bonds currently have a nifty 4.6% return, EE-series bonds, at 1.1%, don’t exactly yield exciting returns on investment. Then again, people don’t buy them, at least as gifts, solely for the ROI. People also give savings bonds because of the old-fashioned visual and tactile appeal.

As a professional organizer, I’m happy about the increased efficiency and reduced costs. And yet, as Paper Doll, I’m a little melancholy at the shuttering of yet another lovely, old-fashioned tie to the past. Sure, I’d long since gotten used to the idea of “book entry” (i.e., digital) stock ownership in lieu of having actual stock certificates. Somehow, keeping tangible stock certificates around made me feel a bit like Scrooge McDuck, hoarding my gold! But savings bonds?

Savings bonds have always brought to mind a semi-antiquated but memorable way to deliver a gift spanning time, from past to present to future. I received savings bonds upon my birth and bat mitzvah, and have blogged previously about how my college crowd has made it a tradition to collectively give savings bonds when anyone in our group gives birth or adopts. When I purchased my first car, the bulk of my down payment came from bonds issued in 1967, and before cashing them in, I took time to read the old typefaces on the certificates and the sprawling handwriting styles on the accompanying cards’ sweet, optimistic messages.

OTHER CLOUDS ON THE HORIZON

For investors, the situation is somewhat dependent upon how smoothly the transition works. The old Legacy Treasury Direct system whereby investors could purchase and redeem Treasury bills and other securities by telephone or mail is also being phased out in favor of an all-digital plan, but has been fraught with glitches and marked by complaints from older investors.

In addition, two other practical issues are in play. First, the TreasuryDirect web site, although improved, is still not as fluid or intuitive an interface as, say, Google. It can be clunky. Also, there’s growing consumer concern about hacking and web fraud. Even if the interface is improved and TreasuryDirect’s web security rivals that at Fort Knox, perception becomes reality. Because savings bonds are not essential, poor PR could keep resistance high and purchase rates low.

WHAT IT MEANS FOR YOU: YOUR OLD CERTIFICATES

If you already have paper savings bond certificates, you can still redeem them at banks and credit unions, as always. If you have a savings bond which hasn’t yet matured, but was lost, stolen, eaten by the family pet or otherwise destroyed, you’re OK. It can be reissued in paper certificate or electronic form. (Paper Doll wonders why paper certificates are allowed for replacing old certificates when everything else is going digital.)

WHAT IT MEANS FOR YOU: GIFT-GIVING

Effective January 1, 2012, if you want to buy a savings bond for yourself or as a gift, you’ll first have to sign up for a TreasuryDirect account:

1) Provide your name, email address, bank or credit union routing and account numbers, and your taxpayer ID (Social Security or Employer Identification number).

2) Create a username and password and choose your security questions. (Safeguard the information you choose!)

3) Once your account request is processed (which can take up to 14 days, so plan ahead), you’ll receive an access card which will enable you to manage your account.

Next, to actually buy a gift bond, you’ll need to know a recipient’s full name, Social Security number, and, if applicable, TreasuryDirect account number. When the gift bond is processed, the recipient will receive an email, announcing the receipt of the gift in his or her TreasuryDirect account. You can also print a savings bond gift certificate, which makes the whole transaction a little less mundane than buying a Bobblehead on eBay via Paypal.

If you give a bond to a minor, the bond is placed in an online gift box until he or she reaches 18 years of age. At that point, the newly-minted adult can open his or her own TreasuryDirect account. Parents who wish to maintain a little extra control (or secrecy) can open their own TreasuryDirect accounts through which they can create custodial accounts in which the gifted bond may be safely kept.

Gee. Fun. Wow.

Sigh.

WHAT IT MEANS FOR YOU: A BIG CHANGE FOR THE INVESTOR CROWD

Along with the elimination of paper certificates, there’s a new change that primarily impacts serious investors. Currently, you’re limited to $5,000 in paper savings bond purchases, per year, for each bond series (EE and I bonds), plus another $5000, of each, per year, via the Treasury Direct website.

As of 2012, however, the limit will just be $5000 in purchases from TreasuryDirect. So, hey, Big Spender, if you were counting on buying $10K of each series of savings bonds per year, you’ll have to scale back and invest elsewhere.

There’s one exception. Currently, you can request to receive up to $5000 of your federal income tax refund in I-series savings bonds, and that won’t change with the new rules. Thus, while $10,000 of saving bond investment purchases via paper certificates have been cut out, you can recoup half that lost opportunity via your refund. It’s believed that for 2012, at least, those tax refunds via I-series bonds may be available as paper certificates.

WHAT’S NEXT FOR YOU?

Buying savings bonds electronically isn’t new. The government has been selling Series EE and I savings bonds electronically, 24/7/365, through TreasuryDirect since 2002. Opening and maintaining a TreasuryDirect account is free. Once you create your account, you can:

—Purchase, manage, and redeem Series EE and I electronic savings bonds for yourself.

–Purchase electronic savings bonds as a gift for someone else.

—Convert the Series EE and I paper savings bonds certificates you already own to electronic format via the SmartExchange feature.

—Enroll in a payroll savings plan at work so you can purchase electronic savings bonds, the cost for which gets deducted just like taxes, insurance, 401(K) contributions, United Way donations and other similar payroll deductions.

—Invest in other U.S. Treasury securities (like T-bills, notes, bonds, and Treasury Inflation-Protected Securities (TIPS).

GOT BONDS?

As of July 1, 2011, there were 45 million matured, unredeemed savings bonds worth approximately $16.2 billion, just sitting there. Are any of them yours? Be sure to check the savings bonds you own via TreasuryDirect’s Savings Bond Calculator (to see the current value) or Treasury Hunt (to see if you’ve got money waiting for you).

SOME PARTING ADVICE

The last time I wrote about savings bonds was in January 2008, in the post Lost and Found: Savings Bonds (and saving yourself a headache later on). While some of that advice may become moot, much of it will remain useful until all of the 672 million outstanding paper savings bonds (both matured and not-yet-matured) — worth $181 billion — are cashed in. Thus, please avail yourself of the advice in that post if you want to know how to:

• Record and safeguard your savings bond certificates and associated information outside of the TreasuryDirect savings bond management system
• Locate and/or replace missing savings bond certificates
• Redeem savings bonds

Of course, you could opt to exchange your paper savings bond certificates for digital versions using SmartExchange. Then, at least, you won’t have to worry about which bonds are held digitally and which are still held via paper.

Readers, what do you think? Will you miss savings bond certificates? Will you embrace the digital system completely? Do you have any savings bond stories? Please share your thoughts in the comments section below.

As I write this, today is all about a specific piece of paper. On the first Independence Day after I started writing Paper Doll, I merely shared the text of the Declaration, because no commentary was really needed. Nobody debates the weighty significance of that document in our nation’s history, nor, indeed, in the grand scheme of history, outright.

At a recent networking event, a new acquaintance inquired about my client work and then asked, somewhat bemusedly, if he’d heard correctly, that I blog about paper. He spat out the word paper as if we were discussing hoop skirts or the Whig Party. To this digital wunderkind, paper’s role in his life was as insignificant as the napkin with which he wiped away his pizza drippings. While he undoubtedly didn’t mean to be derisive, he was dubious that the subject of organizing paper had much impact now, or that it would in the future.

Upon reflection, it occurs to me that I answered a bit defensively. Having researched and prepared numerous presentations on the topic, I was able to provide statistical evidence on how and why Business Week’s 1975 prediction of the Paperless Office didn’t come to pass. And certainly, for my clients, and for the many readers who write in with questions and topic suggestions, the piles of paper, the deluge of documents, the clutter of scraps and statements continue to be problematic. But more and more often, to solve the needs of the more digitally-minded masses, I find myself offering technological solutions along with standard paper fixes.

Thus, on a holiday weekend where we celebrate the endurance of revolutionary (pun intended) ideas committed to paper, I find myself considering the future of paper, in all its forms. As I began to search the web, I was somewhat comforted by revisiting the pilot episode of The Tomorrow Show, Mo Rocca’s webcast about Tomorrow’s Paper.

(Go ahead. Watch it. We’ll wait.) Nonetheless, it’s intriguing to think, not just from an organizing perspective, but from a more general one, what’s going to happen with our paper?

Money — Certainly, paper money has its disadvantages. It’s easily lost or stolen, fares only moderately well after a few tumbles in the washer and dryer, fades, crumples, and can be eaten by pets. And paper money has competition. Electronic payment via credit card has existed for more than half a century, and similar payments via debit cards have encroached on the use of paper money for more than 25 years. Moreover, mobile payment, using cell phones as a digital wallet, began in Japan and now influences purchasing behavior worldwide.

Indeed, our neighbors to the north are eliminating the paper portion of paper money altogether. Starting in November 2011, in order to combat counterfeiters and increase currency durability, Canada will replace paper currency with money made of paper-like plastic polymers.

And yet, it is hard to imagine teaching your pre-schooler the relative value of money using toy cell phones. Will small businesses mount screen caps of their first digital dollars earned above the cash register card processor? Paper Doll believes that a combination of sentiment and various unfortunate truths about living at or below the poverty line (including an inability to afford the fees of using traditional banks) will keep cash as king for a while longer.

Checks — For years, Europeans have been laughing at the quaint use of checks by North Americans, as reflected in the first comment in a recent blog post on Apple issuing MobileMe refunds. Further, over the next seven years, Britain will begin outlawing the use of paper checks such that by 2018, “The check’s in the mail” (well, I guess in the UK, they’d say, “The cheque’s in the post!”) will be an antiquated reference, like dialing the phone or playing a record. The move will save $2 billion in paper processing and 45,000 trees, annually.

What about us? Aside from that nice $20 birthday check from Grandma or the oversized faux lottery check, we might not miss checks given how many people already use electronic funds transfer for online bill payment and credit or debit cards for point-of-purchase acquisitions.

Paper Doll is more worried about how the lack of checks (which, admittedly, I’ve almost entirely stopped using) will impact the already-slipping diligence with which people should oversee their money. I fear that when you cease to write checks, you’re even less likely to manually reconcile your “checkbook” or keep a register at all. And lack of organized control over financial information too often leads to lack of control over actual money.

it’s fairly obvious that although we’re more likely to read People in the tub than take our iPad in with us, magazines will also have to adapt or die. And can you imagine a child’s delight at reading a pop-up book or tracing a finger along the route of Harold’s purple crayon ever being paralleled by a digital device?

Phone Books — A few years ago, I wrote Phone Books: A Jaundiced Look at Yellowed Pages. Unlike many other types of paper, this product, at least, was something of which most of us were tired. While certainly we’re still mired in the opt-in/opt-out negotiation for the future of phone directories, the future looks a bit brighter for those hoping to say good riddance to bad paper.

Just last week, U.S. District Court Judge James L. Robart ruled that Seattle’s opt-out ordinance did not violate publishers’ First Amendment rights. In addition, he ruled that the benefits to the city, in terms of waste reduction and the privacy of residents, outweighed whatever burdens might be placed on the three litigant phone book publishers’ interstate commerce rights. Between May 2011 and last week, when Seattle residents were finally able to opt out of the books, and last week, 35,000 households opted out of receiving the books. Between digital alternatives and consumer dissatisfaction, the future of phone directories is coming to an end.

Maps — It seems likely that in the age of GPS apps built into our phones and cars, there’s little room in our future for paper maps, at least the kind that are impossible to fold into their pristine former arrangements and tucked neatly away in glove compartments. There’s a wealth of blog posts and discussion in the world of cartography on the impact of digital upon the traditional paper map, but none charmed me as much as a line from Peterman’s Eye:

…But no electronic display ever encouraged me to get delightfully lost the way studying a real map will do.

Indeed, how many young (and young-at-heart) adventurers have posted maps of their nation, their continent or their planet, using pushpins as markers to show where they’ve been and where they’ve dreamed of going? Paper Doll has a Doctors Without Borders world map affixed to a door, to ensure I can continue to learn geography, and understand the “where” behind the “what” on the news.

And can you ever imagine anyone getting excited about a Treasure GPS?

Letters — Sadly, between email, texting and the price of postage, most people don’t write letters anymore. I worry about the future of excellent greeting card shops, like the one owned by a friend, even as I jot off silly, ephemeral greetings via snarky SomeECards. And yet, ever hopeful, I still stand by what I wrote in Zing Went the Strings of My Heart: Organizing Your Love Letters.

The more I thought about the future of paper, the more my thoughts spiraled. To Do lists have become To Do apps, which I continue to cover, despite my love of a good paper list and the visceral satisfaction of checking off completed tasks. What about coupons? Even as Extreme Couponing captivates the nation,

I can’t imagine that location-based digital couponing programs like Yowza or the new American Express/Foursquare project won’t slowly overtake clipping coupons from the newspaper…and not only because of the demise of the newspaper.

Then I thought about birth and marriage certificates, passports and other essential documents that are as meaningful to us as individuals as something like the Declaration of Independence is to us as a nation. While holograms and RFID chips are being added to passports, and municipal governments store vital documents digitally, there does not yet seem to be an alternative to paper versions of these legal records.

In imagining the future of paper, I keep coming back to the concept I’ve shared with you multiple times. While paper will not always be the practical choice, human beings are not automatons and will not always choose what is practical. No text will ever replace a love note. I’ve saved decades of cartoon self-portraits of PaperMommy (which she includes in envelopes sent via U.S. Mail, laden with coupons, and occasionally checks). And sometimes, paper proves the passion with which we approach our lives. I’m still both appalled and charmed by the blog post from Anonymous Lawyer, where he states:

And a lot of what we do is electronic — I certainly don’t print out every e-mail I get — but you can’t mark up a document on the computer, you can’t carry it down the hall and wave it in someone’s face and ask them what they were thinking when they left out the comma on page 17.

I never thought about it before, but I can’t imagine ever getting to a point where there wasn’t all this paper. You just can’t walk into an associate’s office, slam your laptop on his desk, and scroll down to the place where he made a mistake. You need to have that brief printed out, you need to be able to tear those pages right in front of eyes, to scatter them wildly across the room, to fill the sheet with red lines and crosses and corrections, to crumple those papers up, toss them in the trash can, light them on fire, and watch them burn. Sure, we could probably afford to destroy a couple dozen laptops a day just to make a point that we demand perfection — but paper just works so much better for that.

Finally, though we may call it up on the web at a moment’s notice, tourists from all over the world still stand in line at the National Archives in Washington, DC, and file reverently past the display of the Declaration of Independence.

I think paper’s future is secure for a while longer. To me, at least, that’s a truth that is self-evident.

Almost a year and a half ago, Paper Doll told you about the benefits of the Credit Card Accountability and Disclosure Act of 2009, a honking-big name for an omnibus set of protections for consumers. Some provisions went into effect in late 2009, while most rolled out between February and August, 2010. As a reminder, those protections included the following:

BILLING IMPROVED:

Credit card statements must be mailed to consumers 21 days before the payment is due. All those variable pay-by time limits also went away, so no matter what credit card you pay, you’re on time if your payment arrives by 5 p.m. on the due date. If you tend to be poky, know that late fees have been capped a $25 for a first offense and $35 for a second late payment within a six-month period. And a late fee can’t exceed the amount owed, so if you’re late paying at bill of $10, your late fee is curtailed at $10.

Monthly credit card statements now indicate how long it will take to pay off a balance (including all that pesky interest) if you make only minimum payments. Previously, credit card issuers were like the man behind the curtain, showing you only the minimum payment and hiding the true (scary) picture of your increasing debt. Bills also now include toll-free numbers to find out more about credit counseling.

INTEREST RATE MODIFICATIONS REGULATED:

Credit card companies must provide 45 days’ advanced notice regarding changes to interest rates and fees.

Credit card issuers can’t increase rates on existing balances unless one or more of the following is true:

• Your payments have been more than 60 days late
• The teaser (i.e., introductory) rate on your card has expired
• Your card has a variable interest rate tied to a financial index that has increased

Credit card issuers can’t increase the rate on new purchases in the first year you hold a credit card, not counting the expiration of an introductory teaser rate.

Teaser rates must stay in effect for at least six months.

Any payments over the minimum amount due must be applied to balances with the highest interest rate. Thus, if you have a balance at a low promotional rate and another at your higher, regular rate, that high balance (and the interest on it) won’t keep growing.

UNFAIR LENDING PRACTICES CURTAILED:

Universal default was eliminated. That was where a credit card company could raise your rates if you defaulted on some other credit card, even one operated by an unrelated company.

Two-cycle billing was eliminated. That was where card issuers were averaging your daily balances from the previous billing cycle, so that you were basically getting billed on charges for which you’d already paid.

Credit card issuers can’t market on college campuses or at events sponsored by colleges, or entice them with nifty gifties, like T-shirts, mugs, and gadgets.

Applicants under 21 have to have an adult co-sign for their credit cards unless they can provide proof of an ample regular income. 

CONSUMER CONTROL INCREASED

Over-limit fees are now opt-in only. That means that if you don’t have enough left on your credit limit to buy that weird floofy thing in the fancy boutique, your card issuer can’t just let the purchase go through and charge you a ridiculous over-limit fee unless you’ve previously agreed to it. (And why would you?) You get to decide whether you’d rather have the snooty girl behind the counter tell you the purchase has been declined or whether you’d rather sink further into debt, beyond your limit, and pay a huge fee on top of it.

(Paper Doll would like you remind you that you need not ever see the snooty salesgirl again; you can’t say the same about your money woes.)

Consumers who get dinged for paying late can reclaim their prior (lower) interest rates if they pay on time for six consecutive months. Thus, significant (over 60+day) late payments can trigger penalty interest rates, but consumers can’t be stuck with higher rates in perpetuity.

DID IT WORK?

It’s been almost a year since the last of these regulations went into effect. Your credit card bills now nag you, warning that if you don’t pay off that expensive gadget right away, and only make minimum payments, you’ll eventually pay double (triple?) its cost in interest. This past year’s freshman college class isn’t already on its way to graduating with massive revolving consumer debt. And as we continue to slowly climb out of a recession, credit card companies aren’t mailing us letters telling us our credit lines are going down or our interest rates are going up tomorrow.

Before the passage of the CARD Act, naysayers (primarily those with a vested interest in keeping the prior status quo) predicted doom and gloom if the proposed provisions became law. However, a report entitled, Credit Card Clarity: CARD Act Reform Works put out by the Center for Responsible Lending found that:

“Contrary to credit card industry claims, the new rules have not caused prices to increase or access to credit to fall. Instead, they have benefited the public by making credit card pricing significantly more transparent. Price transparency is likely to lower costs long term by spurring competition and making it harder for issuers to manipulate or arbitrarily raise prices.”

The CRL noted in its key findings that:

• New rules have reduced the difference between stated rates and actual rates paid on credit cards, resulting in more transparent pricing. An estimated $12.1 billion in previously obscure yearly charges are now stated more clearly in credit card offers.
• Once the economic downturn is taken into account, the actual rate consumers have paid on credit card debt has remained level.
• Direct-mail offers have been extended at a volume and pace consistent with economic conditions.

Other studies agree that the legislation has improved the overall environment for credit card users. For example, a survey by Bankrate revealed that in 2011, 79% of cards had no over-limit fee, compared to 60% in 2010.

Thus, the CARD Act has led to improved disclosure and fairer lending practices. However, there remain some mixed reactions to some aspects of the new rules:

1) During the lag between when the CARD Act was passed and when the last provisions were put into place, many credit issuers hiked interest rates.

However, despite claims that interest rates would continue to rise, the Pew Charitable Trusts‘ new study, A New Equilibrium, found that interest rates have generally stabilized, and that requiring lenders to abide by fair practices has not had a detrimental impact on consumers. Further, many conclude that most rates that have risen are due more to issues related to the economic landscape, including unemployment and general individual creditworthiness.

For a comparative view, Pew has charts showing the year-to-year rate changes of credit card purchase rates and cash advance rates for 12 major credit card lenders and 12 credit unions, 2008 through 2011.

2) The CARD Act didn’t block new fees from being assessed. And assessed they were! Lenders started charging (or charging more) for everything from paper statements to annual fees, from cash advance fees to foreign currency transaction charges. Minimum finance charges and inactivity fees have also increased. However, there’s nothing to say lenders wouldn’t have started or increased such fees if they hadn’t been forced to scale back their predatory lending and lack of transparency.

3) Larger banks issued less consumer credit. However, during this same period, smaller banks and credit unions have become more competitive, loaning more (and to more consumers) than they had previously.

4) Credit card companies started issuing more variable-rate cards, allowing them to bypass the CARD Act regulations and increase rates even when a consumer isn’t delinquent. This, in particular, points out why it’s so important to comparison-shop for new credit cards and not accept the first offer that comes in the mail.

WARNING FOR BUSINESS OWNERS…and INDIVIDUALS

CARD Act regulations only apply to consumer credit card debt. If you hold a business credit card for your small business, or have opted for a business card marketed as a “professional card”, you are not guaranteed protection under any of the CARD Act stipulations.

Many solopreneurs and micro-business owners have opted for business credit cards in lieu of business loans in hope that doing so might improve the tax deductibility of their business expenses, unaware that the lack of protections are numerous. Further, credit card companies market a preponderance of such protection-devoid cards to individuals with less than a $50,000 annual income and who have no actual business dealings, inveigling them to apply for cards that lack the protections they’d otherwise have if they opted for consumer-oriented cards.

Some lenders, including Bank of America and Capital One, have voluntarily elected to abide by the some of the same regulations for their business credit cards, but none are required to do so and they may choose to reverse such policies at any time. Research by the Pew Charitable Trusts, in a new study entitled U.S. Households At Risk From Business Credit Cards found that:

—67% of business credit cards still include high penalty rates for late fees that exceed the regulated rates for consumer credit cards.

—80% of business (or “professional”) cards include an “any time” clause, allowing terms and conditions to change at any time, with any  (or no) amount of warning.

—84% of business cards apply (or reserve the right to apply) cardholder payments to lower rate balances before higher rate balances.

—Penalty fees are virtually unrestricted for late payments or other violations of the terms and conditions on business credit cards.

See Table 1 of the Pew report for a side by side comparison of protections (or lack thereof) between consumer and business credit cards.

Last week, four members of the U.S. Senate called for the Federal Reserve Board to require increased disclosure on business credit cards and to crack down on false marketing practices related to professional and business credit cards. And so, we wait.

Paper Doll is in no way recommending carrying revolving debt or spending beyond one’s means. However, whatever your financial choices, it’s important to be an educated consumer and know your rights.

Dear Readers, have you noticed what the CARD Act has meant for your personal clutter of debt, or the piles of credit card statements and offers in your mailboxes? Please share your thoughts in the comments section.

Last week, we explored the need to empty out our (literal and metaphorical) backpacks for summer. Periodically, it’s necessary to jettison the detritus of modern life (those magazines, the piled up junk mail, drawers of ill-fitting clothes, etc.) to keep everything running smoothly. As I noted in last week’s installment, just like there are test papers and homework that won’t be needed for next year’s classes, sometimes piles of blog-worthy snippets clutter Paper Doll‘s workspace. They don’t quite fit perfectly into any particular week’s blogging theme, or if they do, they fit a topic that’s already been covered.

This week, I’m emptying my blogging backpack of some captivating paper-related organizing products from beyond our shores. You may ooh and ahh as I have, but don’t fall in love with them, or you’ll be tempted to shell out the big bucks for shipping, or, in the case of one product, a transoceanic flight!

 
Book Pack — From a distance, it appeared to be a purse. Up closer inspection, the utility of its delightful variations became obvious. The Book Pack is a rugged book cover for those who want ease of transport, quirky styling and a bit of privacy.

The Book Pack cover is cut from one polypropylene layer, so there are no loose pieces to break off. Books slide in between the portfolio sides and the books’ covers are held in place by tabs cut from the polypropylene sheet. When folded closed, small extensions tabs cut from one side of the sheet interlock with small circles on the other side, flanking the handles and securing the book. When clicked into place, the user can hold the two handles together as if it were a small pocketbook, without fear that jaunty swinging of one’s arms might send the book flying from its cover.

(Think that kind of thing can’t happen? When I was in seventh grade, one of the popular boys in my middle school, surrounded by a bevy of sixth grade beauties, was holding court in the school cafeteria. As he spoke more and more animatedly about whatever 12 year-old-boys discuss with a throng of admirers, the Nutty Buddy in his hand dislodged from the conical paper wrapper and flew through the air, over tables and students, and smacked a young Paper Doll in the head. Trust me. These things happen.)

Anyone who has ever tried to carry a lunch bag, a bottle of water, and a book on a hot day without getting the condensation from the water bottle on the book or having to juggle various items can appreciate the ease of use of this little purse-like book cover, which, in a pinch, one can carry in the crook of one’s pinkie.

The Book Pack only comes in one size, and measures 170mm W (i.e., when the Book Pack is closed, carried purse-style) x 152mm H x 15mm D (approximately 6.69″ W x 5.98″ H by .59″ D). After measuring a few mass market fiction and non-fiction books, Paper Doll has realized that the Book Pack is designed primarily for standard Japanese paperbacks and would not be suitable for most North American texts. However, it would provide a whimsical solution for covering a variety of writing journals and small sketchbooks.

The Book Pack comes in nine colors, with three colors associated with each bookmark pattern. The four-leaf clover bookmark Book Pack comes in green, ivory in pink, the anchor bookmark pattern is sold in white, grey and wine-red and the electric plug theme comes in blue, black and silver. The Book Pack sells for 1155, or about $14.39, as of this writing.

The Book Pack is one of many products from Japan’s MicroWorks design studio, created by Shunsuke Umiyama, whose motto is “No Humor, No Design!” While most of MicroWork’s designs, including furniture, accessories, and dcor items are sold through museums and Japanese “design stores”, if you simply must own a Book Pack, inquiries in English may be emailed to label@microworks.jp.

BrickBox is the brainchild of industrial designer Anxton Salvador and illustrator and graphic designer Roger Zanni. The Spanish design company has zoomed light years beyond the dorm room “milk crate” concept to create patented stackable elements that can be used for transport or to combine into modular bookcases of differing heights, widths and layouts. Remember the old Saturday Night Live faux commercials? “It’s a floor wax! It’s a dessert topping!” Well, BrickBox could create a commercial that announces: “Es una caja! Es un estante!” (Well, at least Google Translate tells me I’ve said, “It’s a crate! It’s a bookshelf!”)

The layers of BrickBoxes fit together with small nylon plugs that affix the upper portion of the lower BrickBoxes to the next layer above. BrickBox walls are packed flat and a Phillips-head screwdriver is necessary to put together each box, but no nails, screws, or tools are required for creating a safe, sturdy stackable bookcase from the modular boxes. Easy assembly and disassembly make this a perfect option for dorm-dwellers, apartment renters and anyone who likes to frequently change the shape or look of their dcor.

Creativity is a key BrickBox advantage, as one can modify more than the height and width of the shelving. Options include rectangular styling (with or without wheels), laddering and 90 angled layouts, but Paper Doll was particularly intrigued by the idea of reversing some bricks, such that the unit serves as a room divider with open shelving available in dual directions:

The patented BrickBox modules are manufactured in Spain out of 12mm birch plywood from certified forests and laminated with a white coating. Each BrickBox comes with a packet of screws for putting together the box, and nylon plugs for secure stacking.

Unfortunately for my North American readers, pricing is listed in Euros (from €39.95/Large, €32.95/Small), by country, with costs adjusted to include shipping to more distant locales. If you (likely) reside in nations other than those listed, contact BrickBox at info.brickbox@gmail.com for alternative solutions.

Karton, is a fascinating Australian furniture company that takes paper design to the next level. Previously, we’ve discussed paper furniture like the inflatable paper sofa, but Karton’s line of 100% recyclable, heavy-duty, truly attractive cardboard beds (with drawers!), tables and storage pieces are as functional as they are convenient and intriguing. As Karton’s website states,

“Discover the flexibility and convenience of a dining table you can carry across the room, a bed you can flatten when your guests head home and a kid’s table that relishes a lick of paint!”

While the bedroom, office and wall storage sets

are what originally caught my eye (especially that Paperpedic Bed with under-bed storage and a load capacity of 2000 pounds!), Karton’s delightful Barnyard Method line of shelves for keeping books, magazines, DVDs and CDs tidy keeps Paper Doll enchanted.

The Barnyard Line comes in three styles:

• The Ram is 64cm W x 74cm H x 102cm D (25.2″ W x 29.13″ H x 40.16″ D) in Kraft (traditional cardboard coloring) for AU$72 ($76.25).
• The more compact Ewe, at 76cm W x 56cm H x 50cm D (29.92″ W x 22.04″ H x 19.69″ D) comes in Kraft or White for AU$55 ($58.25).
• The Kraft-colored petite, desktop-size Lamb, at 13cm W x 18cm H x 14cm D (5.12″ W x 7.09″ H x 5.51″ D sells for AU$12 ($13.76).

All Karton products fold into place, requiring no tools or hardware of any sort, and are easily disassembled. If you like, Karton’s designs can be varnished or painted with water-based polyurethane finishes or paints to better match your home dcor.

Sadly, Karton’s very cool products are not yet available outside of Australia. However, if enough Paper Doll readers spread the word via Twitter and Facebook, Reddit and Digg (hint, hint: see the social networking links below each Paper Doll post), and perhaps plead with Karton directly at info@kartongroup.com.au, maybe they’ll soon find a North American distributor.