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HELP, I really need some storage ideas/ solutions!
We have moved and sadly, I no longer have a stamp/ craft room... I really really need some creative ideas on how to store my semi-massive collection of stamps and related stuff in plain site while not creating an eyesore. I can not spend a ton of money doing it and I do want to keep it fairly handy... Any and all ideas are welcome - pictures too if you have them! Thanks for any help you can throw my direction. I haven't stamped in months because I just haven't found a place for my "stuff". It is seriously becoming adepressing situation... I am to the point of just selling it all if I can not figure this out, and I hardly want to do that... please HELP!!!!!
Amy
Hi,
I store my considerable stamp set collection on inexpensive (but matching) six foot bookcases from Wal-Mart. They are sorted by size of the case. (At one time I considered making a little curtain to hide some of the messier things...using a small tension rod on the inside of the bookcase...all my stuff used to be in my bedroom.) I have a friend who stores hers by size in Rubbermaid/Sterilite tubs in the guest bedroom closet. She marks the tubs' contents on the end. I have another friend who put shorter bookcases along the bottom of a closet. And still another friend who uses an old armoire. And finally, my demonstrator stores hers on shallow (maybe six inches deep) shelves in her laundry room. Hope something here might be helpful.
I have two shelves on my desk that are about 36" high by 13" wide. I store things I need close at hand on those shelves in boxes I covered with packing paper (which I hope to stamp some day). The photo does not have the boxes on the shelves because they are new.
I also store my reinkers in a cookie tray.
Check my gallery because I can't seem to get the link to work.
__________________ I got a Nikon camera. I love to take photographs, so momma don't take my kodachrome away."
Paul Simon
Last edited by craftygirl04; 11-30-2007 at 04:28 AM..
Location: prolly in my 'rubber room'... in the mid-west
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Originally Posted by craftygirl04
I have two shelves on my desk that are about 36" high by 13" wide. I store things I need close at hand on those shelves in boxes I covered with packing paper (which I hope to stamp some day). The photo does not have the boxes on the shelves because they are new.
I also store my reinkers in a cookie tray.
Check my gallery because I can't seem to get the link to work.
maybe it is just me...
but these links aren't working for me.
maybe i'll check back later for a peek!
seems while i was typing you discovered they weren't working... off to your gallery.
If you have a dining room that is used infrequently, consider getting an inexpensive armoire (at Ikea, Home Depot or Office Depot or the like) and putting it in your dining room. The bookshelf idea above would work, too, but an armoire would have doors to shut everything away--and you'll actually USE the dining room more than once or twice a year.
If there's a bedroom that has extra space, do the same there, but add a small table to work on.
I finally decided that my beautifully decorated guest room was such a waste--no one ever came to visit us! So I got rid of the bed and made it my craft room. Now, when people come, they get one of the boys' bedrooms instead. And now that "guest" room gets used every day!
I'm right there with you, I moved into a tiny house. Lost my craft/hobby room too. Here's what I did, I bought clear storage bins that would fit underneath our futon. They are filled to the brim with all my stamps and some accessories. I can fit 4 off them under the futon. My paper and ink is in a wooden craft center that is sitting in the front room. The craft center has three drawers and then one big door on the bottom. It just blends into the living room, so that's good.
When I stamp I go thru the storage bins and find the stamps I want to use, then I just get out my paper and ink and spread out all over the kitcen table.
I do exactly what Late Blossom suggested. I have taken over our dining room hutch and filled it with my stamp sets on the bottom and little baskets with my tools, embellishments on the top shelves. I use my dining room table to work and then just turn around to grab stuff out of my hutch when I need it. It works fine for me.
the only thing lacking is craft space. I finally realized that the reality it that I am not going to have everything at my fingertips any more. I have a kitchen
desk (built in). I put a lot of my everyday stuff on the shelves there. I've got 2 mini sets of iris drawers (3 drawers in each). I put quite a bit into inexpensive photo storage boxes (often 2 for 3.00 at Joann's, and they have a book plate on the end for labeling). I also have the ink caddy so all my su inks are in it on the shelves. My desk drawers hold my tools.
All of my stamp sets are stowed in a closet. However, I am considering taking over a kitchen cabinet. One of mine has my china in it. I use it less than my stamping stuff. I haven't decided though, because I am so short, so it would recquire going up and down a step ladder frequently lol! Good luck with whatever you decide. It will take adjusting to, I know. I had to decide if stamping and scrapping were worth the adjustment....for me it was lol!
hugs
tracyg
My stamps and bigger things are now stored in the bottom of my hutch in the dining room. I have some stuff that I don't use much upstairs in our bedroom. I also have a 3 drawer rubbermaid cart that hold all of my cardstock and such.
My TAC demo has limited space in her house so she has 4 of the large flat stor age containers that has all of her stuff that store right under her bed.
we used to live in a tiny (800 sq foot house) when i started stamping so space as you can imagine with no closets was at a premium...
I bought some stationary boxes with metal rivets on the corners in a pattern that would blend with my living room and stacked these under an open sofa table behind the love seat and the boxes were in plain view. then stamped on the kitchen counter...
I had my DH remove the dividers of the insides of clear Martha Stewart school boxes from Kmart and trim all the excess wood off sides of my stamps ( I tend to mount them on the bottom edge) and then put them in these boxes like doing puzzles. and then put those boxes on their sides inside the pretty boxes.
it took some time to find what i wanted to play with but, it also hid the mess too.
I'll try to recreate it later after work and take a photo for you, I still have all that stuff..
I'm moving into another home, and using one of the old bedrooms, I'll be using the closet to store some stuff to save some space- adding shelves into the closet will help me store a BUNCH of stuff
Well, I just came up with this idea and it made me feel like a freakin genius!:mrgreen:
Im sure Im not the first to do this, but it is UNREAL the difference it made in my craft messiness (which I hate!).
I used to have my scraps/smaller pieces in big ziplocks or in a drawer,gift bags - some I even had in an aluminum roasting pan! So, today I got out some 12x12 page protectors and put all the scraps of the same color/designer series in each sleeve, then one for Halloween, Christmas, etc. Clip them in an cheapo 12x12 binder and all your scraps are organized and at your fingertips! Then you also have a place to put new scraps when you're done with a project.
I am loving it!
If space is truly at a premium, you need to seriously consider unmounting your stamps. I have about 100 sets (ridiculous, I know but I am sure you understand and I know I will have more!) and I went from 5 big plastic bins, total space 2' x 1.5' x 2.5', to two cd racks, 1' x1' x1.5'. I really love having all of my sets at my finger tips... I mounted my stamps on EZMount (lots of threads on here that I used to learn how to do it) and use an acyrlic block.
I have enough room now, but will be moving into a smaller home in a few years and will be joining the flock of snowbirds traveling to Florida for the winters. (Can't Wait!) and I now can get 50 sets into a rolling suitcase without all the weight of the wood.
I turned my hallway linen closet into my stamping space. My husband took out the bottom 2 shelves and put a piece of finished wood (he bought at Lowes) for my desk top. I then took a wooden shoe holder to store all my ink pads and accesories that fits under the desk top. I used the upper shelves for my stamps , which are in bins that I bought at Lowes
I'm hooked on the organizer cubes from Mikes. I have 4 of them and they really help keep the clutter off my table and things I use frequently close at hand. They're 14" square and in Canada they sell for $39.99. $24. with the 40% coupon. I also do not have much space at the moment so I need afforable solutions that work.
As for my stamps, I use binder sized floppy disc sheets to keep them in. I find it very easy to just flip through my book to find the stamps I need. Although, I don't have that many stamps yet.
You can see pictures of how I've organized my space here:
For unmounted stamps I agree, you can store them in acrylic CD cases, label the spine and put them in a CD holder and it takes up little room and is very attractive. I have just about filled my 24 slot CD holder and will be looking for another one.
For my wood mounted stamps I buy 11 x 14 acrylic picture/document boxes. They are just deep enough to store a single layer of stamps. I make labels on my Brother P Touch label maker and store these on a shelf. My SU sets are also stored on bookshelves and I don't think they look messy that way.
For ink pad storage do you have space for one spinning caddy somewhere? It's the best solution I've found for keeping all my ink handy and there's a tray on the top for holding cleaning solutions, glue, etc. The company I purchased from makes several different types of caddies. I don't know what your budget is but even though it may seem pricey, they are built very well and swivel beautifully. I've seen some less expensive caddies that don't spin well. Here's the link to the store where I bought mine. I have the Elite, which is made for SU ink pads but stores other brands as well. In fact, I have more ink from other companies than SU and I store them here.
HELP, I really need some storage ideas/ solutions!
Great Ideas
