Day 5- All Done!

First I want to apologize for the delay in the post.  My whole family got sick then I got sick and still am recovering.  However, since I have been feeling better, I managed to complete my scrapbooking room organization.  So let me give you the tour. 
This the view from the door to my scrapbook room.  I will start with my closet area then work towards the desk...where the magic happens.

The left side of my closet stores my extra bags, memorabilia, a basket of my scraps (will clean it out monthly...least that's the plan), project containers, and albums & books on the shelves above.



The right side of the closet stores empty containers, color 8.5x11 paper, basket of card making supplies and containers for my eyelets and brads.

This is an closer view of how I labeled my containers.  I love my labeler! If you don't have one, go out and get one.  It will help you stay organized.

 

Then there is my crop bag in the corner. The brown drawers hold all my "other" craft supplies like paints, paint brushes, glue sticks, etc.  Don't we all do other crafts.  I have two kids so that's a given.

 

Then there are my stamps, which I went over in a previous post.  Below that is my Big Shot and a basket where I hold all my embossing envelopes and dies.  It is so important to keep like items together.

 

 

I did take all my metal dies, thinlits, etc put them all in a binder.  You can buy the magnet paper at Wal Mart, they are adhesive on one side.  You stick it to a piece of cardstock and place the dies on.  I put mine in see through envelopes that go in a binder for easy access.  I LOVE it!!!!

 

Here are all my ribbons and twine.  I love the clear jars but as you can see I have an over flow.  Ribbon is kind of my weakness.

In the top left shelve I have my Xyron machines and their refills, my laminating machine (unopened), and my Silhouette with cutting mats. 

 

In the top right shelve I have containers that hold my tags, bling, loose flowers and chipboard.  That shelf also holds my stamping binders that I went over in my previous posts.





Below that is my stamps that I went over in a  previous post and photo printer.





 



 



I use to have my washi tape in containers.  However, I found that I never used it so I placed them in this box on my counter with the hopes that I will remember to use them more often. 

I have a drawer for less used tools.  The ones I use most often are on my desk.







 

This is my stamping drawer that has all my inks, blocks and cleaner.

This is my adhesive drawer.  Didn't realize how much of this I really have.  I need to remember to shop my own stash first before running to the store.

 

This is a not to good view of my cutter that I keep on the counter right next to my Scrap Rack and garbage can.  It is one of those rotary cutters.  LOVE IT!!!!

 

I already went over my Scrap Rack in a previous post.  I would highly recommend it.  It's funny because I went shopping the other day and before I bought anything I thought "will this fit in my Scrap Rack".  It has stopped me from mindless spending and helped in preparing for my more recent crop. Below my Scrap Rack is my patterned paper that I organize by colors and my solid  12x12 papers on the other side.

Above my acrylic stamps are my clear containers of flowers labeled of course. Flowers use to be a passion of mine.  I use to be the flower queen.  Just about every layout I made HAD to have a flower on it or it wasn't complete.  I still use flowers just not as much.  Like my ribbon, I store my flowers in clear containers labeled with their color on them.  Because I don't use them as much, I got rid of about a jar full.  The less you have the less you have to look through- my new philosophy...LOL.

 

This is my work area.  My husband made the peg board and I painted it to match the wall.  The magnetic board is there if I am working on any dies.

Recently, a friend of mine introduced me to Copic markers...thanks Terri.  I instantly became a huge fan.  I found this storage unit at Wal Mart (on-line only) to store my markers.  It can be expanded going up and sideways.  The one shown below is a Spectrum Noir Marker storage unit, costs under $20. One set comes with 6 trays and holds 72 markers.  I filled my first tray without even trying so I went out and got another set.  They are expensive pens so for now, they hold my other markers.

 

I did find this cool color chart that helps you see what the color really looks like on paper.  Sometimes the cap can be decieving.  Copic even has a phone app that helps you keep track of what markers you have so you don't double buy or so you can see what markers you still need. 

 

Here is the view of my scrapbooking room now.  Looks kind of empty because I did get rid of a lot!  I gave some away and there's a lot that I will be selling on my Ebay store.  One thing I have discovered is that I am NOT a container person.  I want and need to be able to see what I have and easily put it away.  Thank you for taking a look into my organization. Writing this blog helped me stay on task and accountable.  I hope I inspired someone to tackle their area.

Day 4 All My Embellishments

On day 4 I tackled my major frustration- embellishments.  They were stored everywhere- stickers in a binder, the long one's in a pull out drawer, jars, baskets and my rub-ons where in a file cabinet.  When I needed something I had to look every where and wasted so much time...sound familiar.

This task actually took me about a week to complete.  Last Fall, I purchased a ScrapRack storage system after seeing one on You Tube. I even took it out of the box, just never had the time to fill the pages.  I decided that I was not going to include my ribbon, flowers or brads because I already store those in jars on my counter so I can easily see them and use them. 

So first thing I did, was gather all my embellishments (stickers, die cuts, rub-ons) and dumped them all on my counter...BIG MISTAKE.  I was so overwhelmed that I left the scrapbook room and didn't return until a day and half later.  I decided to put everything in baskets (no system) and just tackle one basket at a time.  But before I tackled my fist basket, I made a list of all the things I scrapbook about and then decided on my ten categories.  I only had ten categories because I only purchased 10 dividers.  My list included- weddings, school, family, vacation, fair, trips, swimming, birthdays, zoo, everyday, holidays.  Once I had my list, I grouped them into 10 categories- Alphabet letters, holidays, celebrations, seasons, nature, colors, school, vacation, Disney and other.  Then I tackled one basket at a time putting them into the sheets.  It was very time consuming but boy did I feel good every time I finished a basket. I also purged so much that I have been holding on to.  Now that I am done with my embellishments I feel great...now what to do with all those empty containers...LOL.  If you are interested in the scraprack you can learn more at
http://thescraprack.easystorecreator.com/
Below are a couple of photos of my finished product.  I will tell you that it is pricey but well worth it.

Day 3- All about stamps

For day 3 I tackled my rubber and acrylic stamps.  My husband made me this shelf about a year or so ago.  I love it because I can see all my stamps at one glance.  I put the large background stamps on the top, images in the middle and sentiments on the bottom so I can read them.  I also have a clear jar of tiny stamps.  My rubber letter stamps are stored below in a pull out storage.  I might end up getting rid of those since I hardly ever use them.

 

For organizational purposes, I have 3 types of acrylic stamps- Stampin' Up, Close to My Heart and Other.  My Stampin' Up and Close to My Heart stamps I have labeled with a number and placed in their own baskets.

The numbers are used for my resource binder.  I have a category for rubber stamps, acrylic stamps, punches, and die cuts.  I make photo copies of the stamps or use the sheet that came with the acrylic stamps to use as a reference for what stamps I have.  This way instead of searching, trying to remember or if I am away from my scrapbook room, I can just look at my resource binder to see what I have.  I take my Other acrylic stamps and place them on cling storage sheets and store them in a binder.  I got my cling sheets from scrapbook.com but I'm sure there are multiple places you can purchase them.  If a die came with a stamp, I place the die in a pouch in the front of the binder.  Each sheet is labeled with a number that corresponds with the cling sheet the stamp is stored on.  If this sounds confusing I added some photos to show you what I am talking about.

 

You can  stamp the image, use the image that came with the stamp or photo copy it. 

Corresponding cling sheet that the stamp is stored on.

 

Photo copies of my rubber stamps but stored on the shelf.

 

My paper punches.

Photo copies of my Stampin' Up stamps stored in a basket.

 

Photo copies of my Close to My Heart stamps stored in a basket.

Hope this gives you some ideas of how to store and organize your stamps.

Day Two- Scrapbook Organization: paper punches and ribbon.

Now for day two.  I will tell you that last night I took inventory of my area, how I work and what items I use most often.  This is a very important step in organizing your room because you want what you use most often to be closest to your work area and like items together so you are not looking different places for things that go together. 
Also you need to decide what type of scraper are you.  Do you need your stuff to be visual so you don't forget about them or need everything put away or are you a combination of the two?  I tend to be a combination.  I like to see my stash or I will forget what I have but I don't like too many things out or it's too stressful and over whelming for me. Therefore, see through jars/containers and shelves are perfect for me.  Also vital is a labeler.  If you have one...use it.  It will help you remember what goes where.
I recently purchased a ton of paper punches from a yard sale.  As I was going through them, I realized 1.) I don't need all of them (will sale or get rid of) and 2.) I needed more shelves.  You can purchase the shelves from a home improvement store for about $4-$10 each.  I love that the punches are visible and easy to grab and place back.  A couple of years ago my husband put up peg board on both sides of my scrapbook room and I painted them to blend into the room color.  It's important to build up and use your wall space.

 As I started bringing in the punches,  I brought back my glass jars of ribbon, labeled with their color.  That works for me and takes little effort when I use them.  I believe I got the glass jars from Wal Mart in the kitchen area. 

 Then I filled the rest of the baskets with like items- embossing, hand paper punches, stickles, etc.

 

Tomorrow I hope to get to my stamps.  Good luck with your organization.

New Year New Organization

So last year while trying to prepare my projects for the Big Fresno Fair competition, I realized that my scrapbook room was a disaster.  I spent more time looking for things then actually designing my pages.  I'm sure most of you can relate.  In speaking with some of my scrapbooking friends, I'm lucky to have a scrapbook room but it's only being used as a storage room if I avoid going in there because of the mess...it causes me stress and frustration to work in there.  It seems like as we grow in our hobby we grow in the amount of stuff we have.  As you can see from the photos below, I have tried some organization in the past that worked for me but obviously doesn't now.  I think I have come to the realization that organization is never done but in constant change as I adjust to fit my style, flow of work and growth as a scrapbooker.  If you find that your organizational system is not working for you anymore, it's time to change it or if you lack organization, now is the time to create a system that works for you. Join me in the next month or so as I redevelop my organization.

First let me show you my before pictures...can't believe I'm gonna show my mess. Last year, I repainted my room this camel color.  I love the color scheme- tan, black and white.  I also got some decorative items that have multiple uses like the wall hangings, they are both bulletin boards and a peg board.  I would suggest if you have time and the expense, change the color of your room and get excited about your room again. 

The first step for me was taking everything out of the room.  This will allowed me time to do a good cleaning, and take inventory of my space and what I have to work with.  As you take things out try to keep like items together and start making categories (ribbon, scraps, stamps, etc.).  Wow that was a lot of work.  Tomorrow I will start bringing in one category at a time.  Don't make the mistake of thinking this will only take you a couple of days or rush through it. Take your time, go at your own pace and don't forget to get rid of the things you are no longer using.  You should start two piles purge and donate/sale. See you tomorrow for some more organization.  I plan on working on my paper punches and stamps.