Storage options - cabinet vs enclosed boxes

 I am continuing my re-organization of my studio...

Storage options - cabinet vs enclosed boxes

First let me say that I use what I have as much as I can. I also try to make something work, but as I have said numerous times on this blog, its ok to re-evaluate your solutions.

One evaluation I had most recently was to decide that the metal and plastic cabinets have issues I was no longer willing to deal with. These were made for use in a garage environment so concern about dust was probably not considered at all. But for a crafter, dust is an enemy and to be avoided if possible. One way to deal with it I was already doing was just being selective in what I was storing in these cabinets. But when I evaluate what I was storing in them and how it was causing me to divide where I store things, so I was forgetting what I had; I felt I wanted to think of getting rid of them. Not because they don't work at all but just I can find other ways to store items. 

There were three metal tall cabinets and two shorter, wider ones. The tall ones I really used and the shorter ones I didn't. The main reason I didn't was because I couldn't get to them. Mostly I didn't use them because I didn't ever get around to finding just the right items to store in them because they were hard to get to.
Mounting them to the wall was an option but one I wasn't willing to do. These cabinets didn't fit too well in the black shelves and I wasn't prepared to move them to the white ones either. Once I decided to get rid of my desk and move the black shelves I also decided to get rid of the storage drawer cabinets.  But what to do with the items actually stored in these cabinets?

My solution was to purchase more photo boxes. In 2016, I decided that for my project boxes stored in shoe boxes I would replace with photo boxes. I planned that I would do this over time by buying only when they were on sale. I had done so, but used this as  time to buy more. There is nothing wrong with shoe boxes. But the photo boxes provide consistent sizes and that is what led me in that direction. 

I decided that I would also use the photo boxes for storing supplies as well. 

• Ribbon/Trim - keeping the bags I had in the big bin, the only change was to have them 'filed'. But it did take two photo boxes to store all of it. I love being able to quickly find the color I am looking for without having to dig in the big bin. Another thing I did was to give up on the case binder. I really loved the case binders I have but I don't have enough of the pocket pages to fill up. I re-purposed it to another task.
  
  
  
  
• Flower making - I'm not totally happy with this box, but for now the items from the storage cabinets are moved inot one photo box. I plan to get these 'filed' as well.
• Kits - rearranging things from my tall plastic drawer cart to the photo boxes, I split them into Furniture and Misc. and I 'filed' them using the dividers that came in the photo boxes.
  
• Electrical - got it's own photo box. I think I may use some smaller boxes inside to help organize this as it is a mass jumble. Another solution I may consider would be the plastic divided boxes.

Meanwhile...

I visited the thrift store and found 6 divided boxes - these are the plastic fishing tackle type things. I've used some for years for my swaps. 

For the swaps, I had significantly reduced what needed to be stored by making and furnishing my Swaps Mall. So my first step with the divided boxes was to consolidate swaps into fewer divided boxes. 

I even pulled other items like my resin rabbit collection into these. They were previously stored in the drawer cabinet so they needed a new home. Now they are altogether waiting for a new home in a mini project.

Another step was to use only the smaller fixed section boxes for swaps (I have gotten these used at thrift stores, but usually get them from the local craft dept store) and use the ones with flexible divided sections for supplies. 

• Wood strips and bits - all my wood except some wider pieces are now sorted into 3 divided boxes. Yes, 3 because I had them available and also because I had that many scraps in assorted places. I now have wood in 3 places, these boxes, a drawer for larger flat pieces and a large cardboard box for the remaining long pieces. 
  
• Pencils and pens - these were in the cabinets and needed a new home. A divided box worked and a second smaller box for my permanent markers.
• Glitter and sequins - spent a couple of evenings sorting my sequins by color. I know silly, but therapeutic for me. I just love color but prefer it to be organized. The sorting paid off later when I just needed silver and could go quickly to the silver section.
  
• Plastic bits - I previously had most of all this in a shoe box size cardboard drawer. But this way I can find things easier. Larger bits (that I am less likely to use for smaller scales) are still in the cardboard drawer.
  
• Screws and such - I previously had two drawers in the storage cabinet. Oh and various other spots around. So I consolidated it all into one single divided box. This one was an odd ball compared to the others.
  
• Previously, I had a divided box of doors and windows for 1:48 scale but added a second one for other building components. Mostly I spread out the stash into two boxes because I had them, but I also found some of these stored somewhere else so now everything is together.
  

Moving all this around I freed up some other boxes and wanted to find places for more things.

• Tape - it is in a plastic shoebox. (shown above)
• Clay - these was moved from the plastic shoe box I just mentioned into a 3 section snap together box. This way all the clay and tools are together.
  
• Kid art - I keep on hand some kid friendly art items like markers, scissors and glue. These all are in an additional snap together set box.
• Small boxes - literally little boxes. I keep these from when I unpack my swaps or other purchases. These then are used when I need to ship something or for the clear ones I will use for display.
  
• Stamps - I can't seem to part with these (or these pink boxes), a leftover from other crafts. These could easily go in a photo box instead.
• Punches - these needed to move from the cabinet drawers and have found a new home
• Glue and bulky paint - these, for now, are on the bottom two shelves of a black bookcase. I still need to decide if this will be their official home. Can also see the stuff stored in the corner. I left a gap between the book shelf and the wall just for the storage of large flat things.
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• Paint bottles - I have been collecting small mail boxes to use to separate by color. I like this better than the bigger bins I had, but I wish they were deeper to fit the depth of the shelf.
  
• Scissors - the fancy kind and my handle hole punches - these all fit in the top of the medium rack tool box (see below)
• Tools - the extra tools I had stored in the drawer cabinets needed a new home. I finally succumbed and purchased the medium size tool rack system. I decided on the medium size because I felt the larger one was too big, especially since I had the smaller one to hold most of my regular use tools already. I got this one from Michael's with a coupon. I choose to elevate the small one to fill room on the shelf. I do tend to leave my tools out and so the two bins below make for quick clean up. The little shelf was a thrift store find. I also added a piece of foam-board under the toolbox so support the front cover that is sticking out. This is so a divided box has something to sit on. The medium rack box has the front cover removed. These are easy to remove or take off. The shelf above was left that far up to allow the top portion lid to be opened. All my tools including a small hammer (except rulers) are in these two boxes.
  

That's all for now.

Punching Pretty - Day 26 of 31 Days of Organizing

Let's talk about that punch - well punches - for making flowers and other things in minis

I have a small collection of punches - both the block punches and the hand held ones.
I have these in three drawers in my drawer cabinets

 Note the bottom drawer above has extra labels on it.  These 'labels' are paper that I punched the shape from.  I need to do this again so that the upper drawer has them again as well.  The drawer shown below also needs them.

This drawer in addition to the hand held punches also holds my fancy scissors.  
Another way these types punches and scissors could be stored is by hanging them from pegs on a wall.
Another miniaturist shared with NAME that she uses the closet door holders like for shoes or other accessories to hold her many punches.  Divided boxes that allow one to adjust the dividers would also be a good option.
The punched pieces need a place to be stored as well especially if one borrows a punch or buys some pre-punched. I started with a tray that had pockets in it but no lid.  It was something my sis-in-law had given me from her work at a dental office.  I made a lid of sorts from cardboard.  
Later I was to be a part of a group buy of a bunch of pre-punched petals.  These came to me in little zip bags.  I liked the bags.  The bags I had gotten before were not the zip bags, but had the cardboard folded over the top.
One day I decided to sort these by color and using the idea I had seen used at shows to display other items, I taped each bag to a plastic sheet protector for a three ring binder. The sheet protector just has a sheet of paper in it. The plastic is what the little bags are taped to.  I also had plastic tab sheets and I added those to make the sheets stiffer.  alternatively I could have just used the tabs to tape to or I could use stiffer paper.  The tabs do help to separate the sheets.   The tabs and sheets all go in a three ring binder. This binder is called a case binder.  It is more like a plastic box than a typical binder that is open on three sides.

This particular style also has a plastic sleeve over the outside which allows to add a cover to be inserted.  I took pictures of each page inside, reduce their size and combined that all together on one page.

Here's an actual page inside.
I sub-grouped by shade or tint, and then arranged smaller to largest of the same shape.
The same friend that uses the over the door holder, houses her punched punches in a divided box.  She labels them based on the shape and adds a number to her punches.  So if she has same shape but three sizes, she would have #1, #2, #3.  The box gets labeled that was as well so that if that bin is empty she knows which punch to use to refill.
An alternative I might consider for storing the punched punches would be a pocket page type photo album.  Again I would sort by color.
For whatever solution I used for the punches themselves, I think the more punches one has the more that I would group them by shape and label the exterior unless I could easily see their sizes.  

Sharpening a punch?
I have read that punching with wax paper or aluminum foil sharpen them.  My experience is that is not the case.  The wax might help temporarily, and the foil well to me it is just another media the punch is going through.  I don't think it really hurts to try these methods, just that it won't do much in my experience.
To truly sharpen, I think they would need to be taken apart and that is just something I am not going to do, nor am I going to have done.  I only have one punch that is really even a problem for me.  I used it to punch butterflies from cooper and I got to point of using a hammer and wood block to get them all cut.  
Granted none of my punches are the expensive - $30 ones and if they were, I might consider having them professionally sharpened.

Using punched pieces
I think that punches can be an excellent source of shapes especially if using them for a swap.  
When it comes to making flowers, I personally feel that the punches need to be enhanced with both shaping and with color.  For example, a double ball stylus can be used either wet or dry to shape and markers or paint can be used to accent the shapes to look more life-like with color variations.
Of course punches can also be used for things like frames, clocks, signs and more.

Sequins
Sequins are pre-punched things that can also be used particularly for mirrors, plates, vinyl records - all depending on the color, shape and size.  Don't throw away those sequin holes as I use those as well for buttons and such.
Storing these is super simple in my studio - a plastic bag in a drawer.  I have bought mixed colors and so far haven't taken time to sort them out.  When I use them, I dump them on a paper plastic sort to find what I want, then re-bag using the plate as a funnel of sorts.
I have even used my sequins and punches together - taking a shape that is one thing to another shape with the punch.  I have purposefully bought larger round ones so that I could punch them into other shapes.

Come back tomorrow for another idea on organizing for my 31 days of Organizing in January.

Happy Miniature Organizing!
Preble