Scrap Storage

All of us struggle with this -- what to do with those small bits of still usable paper and cardstock? I've tried lots of solutions -- storing the cardstock in hanging files in a drawer and then putting scraps in the folders, putting the scraps in a big box, putting the scraps in separate folders in a box...

I had the same problem with all of the systems -- it was difficult and messy to find the color that I needed when I needed it. But I've finally found a system that works for me!!

I sorted all of my scraps by color family -- are you noticing a theme here? Then I put each color family into a separate drawer in a plastic storage unit. The drawers come out of the unit so when I'm working I can take out a particular drawer and dig through it to find the size and color of scrap that I need. I actually find myself using the scraps now!

Cardstock and Paper Oh My!

Here's how I have my 12x12 cardstock stored. It is in vertical storage boxes that I bought from Oriental Trading Company. They are very sturdy and hold LOTS of cardstock. I was having a problem with trying to find my different patterned cardstocks from TAC. So I made separators from a piece of plain 12x12 cardstock. Then I added a strip of white folded in half to make a tab. On that tab, I put a label listing the paper's name and then all pieces of that paper go behind that tab. It has made it much easier for me to find a particular pattern.

Also, you can't see it very well in this picture, but I sorted my 12x12 plain cardstock in rainbow order. All reds together, all oranges, all yellows, etc.

Here's the 8 1/2 x 11 cardstock. I used a similar idea of vertical storage and sorting by ROYGBIV order with this cardstock. The containers are plastic magazine holders from Walmart. I turned them on their side so that the opening was facing the front of the shelf on which they are sitting. The cardstock is then sorted by color with a separate holder for all my neutral colors. I had a hard time seeing when I was running low of a certain color so I took a piece of 12x12 white cardstock and trimmed it down to use as a divider between each color -- now it's very easy to see which colors are running out.

Finally, here's my 8x8 patterned paper pads. I have ALOT of these. They are all sitting in a plastic tub that I got from Walmart that I decorated. I can easily flip through and find the pattern that I want this way.

My Room

Right before Christmas, we removed all remaining carpet in our house and replaced it with laminate that matched the existing laminate in the living room. One of the main rooms that I wanted to do this in was my stamp room. The carpeting was awful with stains from dropped ink pads, spilled paint, and other messes. Not to mention the messes made by our four cats and two kids. It is so much easier now to retrieve that dropped brad or eyelet. And let's not even consider if I spill a container of embossing powder (which has happened before!).

This is the view of the room now from the door. You go up a flight of stairs from our main entrance to get to this room and you have to turn at the top of the stairs to get into the room. Almost everyone gasps the first time they visit and see the view into the room. I don't know if it is because of the amount of stuff in the room or just out of jealousy that I have this room. It's the fourth bedroom in our home and the only room on the second story. It has it's own bath right off the room, which is super convenient for washing out paint brushes or for customers attending classes. My husband picked this house because he got tired of people having to trail all through our last house to get to the space in the basement that I used for classes. I love this room -- it is my home office, my classroom, my kids' craft space, my get away and more.

In this picture you can see the table where I teach classes -- it's our old dining room table that we bought at a second hand store when we were first married. It easily sits 8 and we can squeeze in 10.

Check back later for more pictures and storage ideas.