random.on purpose.: Organized Chaos

As with many of my fellow crafters, I find the need to revamp the storage system for all of my supplies from time to time to better suit whatever my needs - or the abundance of "stuff" - have morphed into. Such was the case recently, and the impending visit from my sister and her husband (which was brief but wonderful) made it a bit more imperative.

I'll show you pics of what I've changed and explain what you're looking at as we go along...

The sliver of doorway you see on the left in this picture is the doorway coming into the room from the landing at the top of the stairs. My studio is the finished side of our attic. This snippet of wall houses my papers and inks, and the beginnings of the stamp storage revamp. I've cut all of my older patterned papers down to 8 1/2" x 11" so that they can be put into a regular old filing cabinet, which - obviously - is what I have. It seemed to work well with my Stampin'Up! cardstock to only have that size, so I figured what the hey? Said SU! cardstock is in there, as well. I cut 3" squares of all of the papers and wrote the manufacturer on the back of the square and punched a hole in the corner of each and put them all on rings, organized by color/pattern (just like in the folders), like this:

The three-drawer plastic unit houses cardstock scraps: top drawer is warm colors, middle drawer is cool colors, bottom drawer is neutrals. The one-drawer unit has doilies, labels, pre-made cards, specialty paper-y things, etc. The cart they're sitting on (intended for a television) has Cropper Hopper holders with Stampin'Up! paper packs, 12" paper stacks, and 12" papers from the ones I cut up that were a pattern that made no sense if it was cut (like a scene or border or something). 8" pads and mat stacks are on a shelf above the plastic units, and there is a wooden CD crate next to them that contains envelopes and such. Two CD cases turned on their sides and a repurposed cassette tape holder house my ink pads. My acrylic blocks are in a wooden pencil case and a teacup on the shelf, as well. The large plastic pin (designed for files) is going to house all of my stamps eventually, but it's a work in progress right now. I'll post what I'm doing there when I get it wrapped up.

This is the wall adjacent to the one we just viewed. It is a knee wall (my ceilings are slanted - attic, remember?), so it's only about four feet high. The two thin metal shelving units at each end were intended for DVDs, and they hold the DVD-style cases from Stampin'Up! that contain many of my stamps. Many of them have already been integrated into the new system, as well. I have four of the JetMax cubes (or something similar - totally not sure) between them that contain 12" cardstock from DCWV and Close to My Heart. I plan to chop them up if/when I get another filing cabinet.

The other drawers have hand-held punches and decorative-edge scissors and various other small tools and adhesives and such-like. The stacks of small drawer units are "color drawers". I know that I mentioned in a previous post that I loathed drawers, and that remains true for deep drawers. I bought small drawer units on purpose so that I cold see the entire contents at a glance. They are organized ROYGBIV-style on the two ends, and neutrals and metallics across the two center sections. Here's what the drawers contain:

The first drawer for each color contains ribbons and twine. I take them off of their spools and roll them like this to save space. A bit of freezer tape keeps the end in place so they don't unroll.

The next drawer for that color has small embellishments separated by type and corralled in small boxes and/or ziplock bags.

The last drawer for each color contains buttons. If there are quite a few that are all the same, I put them together in a small ziploc bag before putting them into the drawer (just in case I need to make some matchy-matchy stuff for a swap or something).

The two drawer units in the very center contain all of my thread except the spools that are too large (jumbo Gutermann spools and upholstery threads). They're organized by color, too...

This is a shot of what's in the little baskets sitting on top of the drawer units - glitter, embossing powder and flocking, again organized by color.

The two mugs contain Stickles and other glitter glues and Liquid Pearls. The small white three-drawer unit has specialty pens and the book rings of papers and the purple thing on top of it is a magnetic pin holder. The wooden sewing box was my mother's and has sewing, crocheting and other similar-type tools. The small basket has a variety of scissors in it - sewing and other - and Betty Boop is there just because she needs to keep me company. Along the shelf (which still needs painting) are a box containing wire and fishing line and other similar things, and my Stampotique loverlies (which will remain mounted on wood and stay there to make me smile every day). At the other end are paintbrushes and markers and colored pencils and such, and in between are these:

My sister-in-law gave me the little traveling case, and it houses various tags. The little metal lunch pail is where I keep my BowEasy, my mat pack (for piercing and such), and some distressing tools from CTMH. The hibiscus-print item is an eyeglass case and contains - yup, my reading glasses ('cuz I'm old(er) and require them for close work). The other things are sentimental, and here's a better look:

The cherry tin was my mother's - and maybe her mother's before her, the spur was my grandmother's (yes, really - she lived in Indian territory for a good long time, and rode for real). The cartridge is from the 21-gun salute from my father's memorial service, the elephant is from my mother's extensive collection, and the pansy thimble was a gift I gave her once upon a time. Pansies were her favorite flower and the symbol of her sorority in college (she attended what has since become UTEP - University of Texas El Paso). The other two tins are reproductions that I love.

Moving around the room, I have a small desk in the corner where the television sits, with a storage footstool that my grandfather made underneath it, which holds the DVD player and contains alterable items. It's not picture-worthy, so I didn't take one. The next wall is this:

The only window in the room (which still needs a curtain). The sewing table is flanked by bookcases (duh!) where I put books (obviously), some select magazines, and notebooks containing alphabet stamps and stencils and other similar stuff. I also keep the Cuttlebug and the embossing folders and dies here, as well as a few sentimental stuffed friends and my flowers:

That little bear came with me when I closed up a gift shop I used to own. The flowers are - again, sorted by color - in clamshell cases (courtesy of Stampin'Up!), and stacked up here. Underneath the sewing table are my pink toolbox (with real tools like hammers, a hacksaw, measuring tapes, screwdrivers, drill bits, etc.), my sewing machine, and various sewing tools and notions (a roll of zipper chain, a drawer unit with snaps and hooks and buttons-to-cover and all the rest of it).

And that pretty much covers what's been done to date! I still have the dresser-turned-shelves unit in the closet with all of the punches and such, and there's a stack of plastic drawers in there with stickers and chipboard and other things like that. The built-in drawers have been cleaned and organized and have bulky items like paper trimmers and rolls of freezer paper, contact paper, tissue paper, etc.

The wall that previously had the punch storage and all is now BARE! I butt my table up to it when I'm not cutting out fabric, and pull it out to the center of the room when I am (so I can walk all the way around, and so I can more easily unroll the large bolts I deal with).

Next up is improving the lighting and making curtains for the closet and the window, and other "prettifying" stuff! I'll be sure to share when that happens, as well as when I finish the stamp storage re-do! Thanks for stopping by, and have a great week!