Organization: An Ongoing Process
Since I observed in a recent entry that I seem to have become a technique scrapper without realizing it, I have had a problem on my hands. My storage was arranged for product-centered scrapbooking and could not accommodate all the new tools and supplies I have been acquiring. It also was not arranged for the most convenient use of those types of materials. So I looked around and decided it was time for some revamping of my work area to match my changing style!
The first area to be changed was the area that is directly to the right of me as I sit at my scrap table. It is here that I keep all of my most frequently used supplies, right within arm’s reach as I work. I replaced the hardware organizer that held my metal embellishments with plastic jars to hold my ribbon. The metal embellishments were put in fishing tackle organizers in the drawer in the large cart that the bags of ribbon had been in. I moved to the other side of the room (details below on their new storage) a lot of my pens, pencils and paints, which created room to spread out my expanding collection of inks. I also rearranged the contents of the bookshelf, moving the photo boxes and binders down a level. This allowed me to put drawer units on the tall middle shelf, two high instead of one high. I ended up with one additional large drawer unit and 5 additional small units after the rearranging. Some of that storage is for product like my rub-on alphabets, and some is for tools like my punches and Dymo labeler. And after all the organizing I was even left with a few empty drawers for future expansion!
Another area that I made a few changes to was my scrap table itself. I replaced the 8.5” x 11” drawer unit on top of the filing cabinet to my right with a 12” x 12” one. This allows me more storage space in it for tools and the photo enlargements that I am working on scrapping, including 8” x 12” enlargements. That unit now also holds our scanner, now that I have learned how to use it. Thanks to our wireless home network, I can sit at my scrap table with my laptop and plug the scanner in and do my scanning right in my work area, and then send items to the printer or send submissions via email to magazines. Another change in that area was the replacement of the plastic wall pockets with the dowels for ribbon spools. The result is much neater and more functional. There is still room on the wall for a third tier of dowel below the existing ones if I need it as well.
In the background of those pictures, another bookcase is visible. My albums have been moved from that bookcase to the third bookcase on the other side of the room. The magazines, which took up the bottom two shelves, have been thinned out and moved across the room as well. The top two shelves are still photo and negative storage. The middle shelf now contains drawer units containing all of my stamps. The bottom shelf is a to-be-organized stash of miscellaneous supplies and the bottom shelf contains plastic boxes of silk flowers, plastic bags, and other supplies.
The third bookcase saw some major changes. The albums were moved onto the middle shelf (the before picture was actually taken after that was done). Some non-scrapbooking books were moved from the bottom shelf to another room, and my scrapbook magazines were placed there. The photo boxes were moved to the closet and the top two shelves became the home of all my colorants: paints, pencils, pens, etc. The drawers contain all of the smaller items (pens, pencils, brushes) and then the baskets on the top shelf contain the spray cans and the bottles of acrylic paint. The basket of acrylic paints has a handle and can easily be moved to my desk for selection and color matching. The drawers pull all the way out if I want to take the whole drawer of pens over to my table to work with.
I have been very happy with how productive I have been since I made the effort to make my work area suit my work style again. Our scrapbook styles are constantly changing and evolving – has your work area kept up with your evolution?
