Edumicate Me Thursdays - Punch and Stamp Storage

So, in my quest to have some regular features on this blog I'm going to devote Thursdays to all things "educational" including hints, tips, solutions, tutorials and techniques.

I'm always on the look out for storage solutions for my constantly increasing amount of "stuff" in my craft room. I have a good deal of floor space but not a lot of wall space due to some fixed items in the room. When I came across this multimedia storage unit in Walmart I thought it would be perfect to store a few things that had been accumulating without a proper home.

First of all, I have to say that its really important when you are organizing your stuff to know what your personal "storage style" is. There are a lot of great ideas out there - some of them look really, really cool...but the reality is that what works for someone else may not work for you. In fact, it might drive you crazy.

I am, first and foremost, a visual person. Some people can't stand having their stuff out in the open. Not me, if I can't see it, I won't use it and I'll probably forget that I own it. I've been known to buy the same item twice for this very reason. The best present I ever got from my husband was an electronic label maker. What I can't store in the open I label so I know exactly where all my stuff is with a quick glance around my craft space. If you are the kind of person who likes things neatly tucked away in pretty boxes or behind closed doors, my style will not work for you.
I love this little storage unit because of its versatility. It works great for my large punches which I was really having a hard time storing. Their handles rest nicely on the back dowel and I can easily see them. The rest of the shelves are taken up by some of my SU stamp sets. These are stored aphabetically for easy retrieval. The unit was $35 dollars CAD and was pretty easy to set up.

When I purchase a stamp set it gets logged immediately into a large binder with sheets to stamp all my images. I record the stamp company, the name of the stamp (or set), its purchase date and the location of it in my craft room. The images are organized by categories (such as Christmas, thank you sentiments, flowers, food) and are kept inside sheet protectors in the binder. I also keep samples of all my ink colours, glitters and embossing powders in this binder so I know what I have on hand when I start a project. Stamps are generally stored in three locations - Sterlite clear drawers for wood mounted, storage binders for EZ Mounted stamps (such as my Bella collection) and CD cases for my clear stamps.

If anyone is interested in these binder sheets let me know and I'll post them in my download section. I also cross reference stamps, especially SU stamps, which come in sets. A single set might have a flower stamp, a background image, a sentiment, etc. They are logged under each section that is relevant. This system works great for me because when I'm making a thank you card (for example), I can quickly flip to the thank you section and see immediately which stamp would fit best with my card design. I can also find the right ink to go with my paper selections.

That's it for today's "Edumicate Me Thursday". I hope some of you found this helpful and thanks for stopping by!

P.S. for those knitters/sewers out there in the Fraser Valley there are two upcoming shows that you can't miss. Check out http://www.fibrefestinternational.com/ on March 7th and 8th and the Sewing and Crafts Show on April 4th and 5th. There are some amazing workshops/seminars and you know the shopping will be great.