thanks to those of you who have been sharing your ideas about organizing. i want to answer a few questions i’ve read in your comments about my studio:
1.)lighting: the lighting in my studio is very bright, i have an 8ft. florescent fixture on the ceiling, lighting above each stamp rack, and 2 windows on opposite walls so there is plenty of lighting – i’m just not the best photographer, thanks for the explanation rach!
2.)table: yes, this is my main and only work space in my studio. it’s a 6ft. table and it works for me – less area to clutter up i think!
3.)wire: i store bigger things in the wire baskets and drawers so i don’t need to put any lining in them. if you’re trying to store smaller items in the wire system they might fall out – beware of this!
okay, so let’s go with day 2 – stamps & stuff! i have to admit it – I LOVE STAMPS! i am a wood mounted stamp guy, always have been, but i am starting to get hooked on ez-mount stamps now. i think stamps are works of art in themselves so i always get inspired just looking at them. now i’m aware that this is probably the most impractical thing to do having them all displayed, but it’s what i like and it’s important to stick with what YOU like. can you tell i like stamps?
i bought these 6 bookcases from home depot. the first section is 8ft. high and 6ft. across and made up of 4 cases stacked on top of each other. the second section is 6ft. high and cornered with another bookcase. because the shelves are 1ft. deep, i didn’t want to waste the space so i bought some styrofoam from home depot (they use it for insulation) and cut it into 6" strips to work as a riser for the back of each shelf. this way i can get 2 rows of stamps per shelf.
the stamps are displayed at a slight angle to fit more on the shelf as well. i can just look through them, and choose what i want. i have my stamps sorted by style and a shelf of binders that store my cling mounted stamps too!
next is my most favorite and useful thing in my studio. i don’t have a clue where you could find another one, but i’m sure they are out there. it’s this spinner rack. i got it when i was working at ben franklin crafts and they were throwing it out! it used to hold rubber stamps so it has tons of adjustable shelves. this is where i store my ranger ink pads, alcohol inks, embossing powders, re-inkers, paints, and just about every other medium i own. the entire rack spins so i have whatever i need at my fingertips. if you didn’t have space for something like this, you could take advantage of my storage tins from Cropper Hopper. i designed these to store inks, paints, embossing powders, etc. and they take up minimal space. i’ll be sharing some ways to customize these on a website demo next month!
i think it’s important to be able to see the products you have. one idea is to make yourself a color swatch of all the ink pads and other products you own. just stamp them or paint them on tags or a piece of paper and keep them in a binder. this way if you can’t display them you know what colors of what products you have to use on your projects (it also makes a great shopping list too!).
i have lots of various things in small packages that don’t really fit in my wire baskets. usually they are embellishments, findings, and other bits and pieces of opened packages. i use this shoe holder i bought at target. it’s clear, very durable, and can hang over a door so i’m not giving up any wall space – again i get to dig! this is a great way to see everything you have at once. you can also use this to store scissors, punches, and other tools you use the most. this door leads to the closet which stores all of my teaching supplies – and i have LOTS of teaching supplies. i’m on the road almost 20+ days a month, 10 months of the year teaching at trade shows, stores, and other educational events. staying organized and stocked up is very important to make sure everything runs smooth. i bought 4 more of the wire shelves from costco and lined them up on both sides of the closet.
i have many clear plastic storage bins that are labeled with various items i use in kits including game pieces, old keys, mica, misc. hardware, etc. i also have a paper rack against the back wall for all of my bazzill basics.
there you have it, day 2 of the "tour". hopefully you’ve found some ideas for storing all your stuff. tomorrow i’ll finish up with pictures of all of the fun things i have in my studio that make me happy and inspire me. keep sharing your ideas too…
-t!m
