Ooo Shiny Things - Day 9 of 31 Days of Organizing

Shiny Things such as Metal and wire

There are many materials to use in miniatures and metal is something good to have in the stash.  I don't use metal often, but I now have two designated places to store them. This excludes metal findings and electrical items that I will discuss another day.  The metal I am referring to today is flat metal and wire.  
My wire is stored in a long box so the wire doesn't get tangled up.  Most all the other metal is stored in one drawer.  This is due to a recent organizing spree.  I realized that my metal was stored all over my studio and when I needed to try different ones for a project, I had to find them all.  Once I found the one type of metal that worked best, I decided to combine them all into one drawer. I also made sure that all my non-electrical wire was in the same long box.  
I do have one other type of metal - wire mesh.  This type of wire mesh is used for sculpture support but I use it mostly for window grid.  I have this mesh stored with my other materials that can be used for window grid. I could just as easily store this with the flat metal instead. This is an example of making a storage location work for you.  I am choosing to store based on in the most likely use for it. 
When it comes to metals there are a couple of considerations.  Some metals can oxidize, so these need to be protected from the air.  Plastic zip bags would be good.  There are also plastic boxes that have a special chemical in them to help avoid oxidizing.  Metal can be sharp, so protect yourself when handling. 

Come back tomorrow for another organizing idea during my 31 days of organizing.

Happy Miniature Organizing!

Preble