If you are anything like me, you want to craft something beautiful without spending the entire day at it, so let’s Organize Your Crafting!
On May 13, 2017 we moved into our final retirement home. We’re downsized about 1,000 square feet from our previous homes. The model we built was originally 1,347 square feet, and we added an extended sunroom onto the back instead of a patio of any kind. SMART move! We call it The Greenhouse studio, or Greenhouse for short.
(picture of the house from the street coming soon as the flowers start blooming)
In addition to housing my crafting studio, The Greenhouse is a beautiful room right off the kitchen where we can enjoy the view, the backyard birds, and the sound of our little fountain.
The first thing I knew I was going to need in here was a four plug outlet for the heat gun and hot glue. Think about this as you build your studio, too. If you have time to think this out before your studio build, it saves electrical, drywall, and repainting work.
(picture of the quad plug)
My previous home had everything built in and can be cost prohibitive if you don’t have the skills to mount cabinets and build a custom countertop yourself. This time around, I knew I wanted my tools in shallow drawers with a long countertop at standing height. Where did I find that? In IKEA’s kitchen solutions! We assembled them to leave a nice opening here for my knees and that also made it possible for my paper storage units to roll right in.
Visual chaos really keeps me from being my most creative, so the Combo Ink holder and the Punch Storage units keep everything I need at my fingertips without causing problems.
As you can see, I use punches a lot for creating my “4 Cards in 30 Minutes” by the dozens. I have everything popped up on Kickstands that gives me some shallow space for storing a nifty drafting table brush for quick cleanup.
I mailed hundreds of cards each year, and have repurposed the Whale Tail Punch Storage unit for Card Storage. This unit, when turned on its side has the perfect sized slots for A2 cards and their envelopes. 12 slots for cards and 3 slots for envelopes and padding.
Then there was the issue of storing my cardstock away from the burning rays of sunshine. Â Having four windows and a glass door to the backyard is fabulous for my creativity, but it’s hard on the papers over time. Stamp-n-Storage to the rescue! I bought one of the Drawer Units and I can store all the Color Collections in individual drawers, plus a drawer for white and vanilla. Additional drawers hold vellum and watercolor paper.
(picture of the drawer units with the TV on top)
For my stamp sets, I bought an additional Drawer Unit for the retired sets, wood mounted on blocks (my favorite style!).
I assembled a mobile kitchen island, also from IKEA, for my cutting station. It holds my Big Shot, Simply Scored, and an industrial paper cutter on the top shelf. On the middle shelf I have 4 Wafer Die Storage Bins from Stamp-n-Storage for embossing folders, Framelits, Thinlits, and additional Magnetic Cards from Stamp-n-Storage.
The cutting island has two wheels at one end, so at the end of the day I can lift and push back into place allowing Toby all the floor space for his rolling and showing off 🙂 Right now I have boxes full of the ingredients of Easter Baskets for 12 grandkids! (Today is April 1, 2019)
Everything I have put into The Greenhouse has saved me time and space to dedicate to what really matters: making and sending cards. It really is true: Organize your craft and unleash your creativity!
Thank you for visiting, and I hope you have found inspiration and solutions to your crafting organization. Feel free to ask any questions you have. I love encouraging your crafting!
Small town attention to detail: While I have known Brett Haugen by phone for many years, the “Our Story” video says it all. Watch it here:
I had to pare down after moving into the smallest room of a new home. I love the fact that the Combo Holders come in widths!
