Thursday, June 26, 2014

Stampy Storage Solutions

I have struggled for years to find the best way to store my stamp collection. Yes, I am old school like that and still have wooden block rubber stamps.
My collection
I could never decide or find the right bin or box to keep them in - until now!! I honestly can't remember where I saw this idea (Becky perhaps?) or in what application it was used but this little thing is my new BFF!
From Home Depot
I put some thought in to the fact that I didn't want a repeat of a previous problem - that if I can't see them I don't know what I have. So first I grouped similar stamps together to see what I was working with. Then I started dividing them in to drawers to make sure I maximized space and made sure the bigger stamps had a home. Then I did something that took forever.....ok, like 3 days but still....
Prints
I once bought out an entire Michael's bin of these chipboard albums. At ten cents each you would have done it too and you know it, so don't judge. Because I have so many of them, they were perfect. So I stamped. 
And I stamped.......
It took me several of these little albums to stamp them all but I finally got there. The images on a single page correspond to a single drawer in the little "dresser". And the cute tape? Identifies which drawer to go to!
Almost there..
So now I have these handy little flip books of images to peruse when I am looking for a stamp. And since they are grouped, deciding which "Happy Birthday" one to use is a snap! Then to make sure that the books were kept within quick reach I grabbed some Command Hooks. 

Ummm.....yes that would be the dresser full and my clear stamps waiting their turn to make reference books. You know what that means! Back to Home Depot (thanks Adam!) 
Fabulous!! I even had some of the smaller drawers still empty at the top so I added a few stickers to the front. 
Star Brads
The stickers help me remember which type of fun tidbit I have tucked in there. And finally, Adam the Amazing hung my organizers on the wall next to my book shelf. 
All Hung
Now I can find my stamps and inks quick! I love this new wall system! The rest of my craft room is under reorganization too, so who knows what else I might come up with! How do you organize your crafty corner?


Mother's Day Totes

My mom, the avid Pinterest and Facebook user, decided to "hint" at what she wanted for Mother's Day by posting the Pin on my Wall. Subtle, right? It worked. She got what she wanted, although it was a couple of weeks late because on the first try, my daughter was unhappy with the results. (Not too unhappy since she kept it for herself) So, handy (ha ha!) tote bags it was.

Dad

Mom
Part one of this process was that Adam and I had to stamp our hands on the totes. After that came the kiddo and a couple of details. Sadly I didn't get a finished picture of them, but I used yellow fabric paint to make a swirl in the center, and green to do the outline of a leaf in the corner of each.
Drying
When I mailed them I was a little nervous about the paint sticking to itself in the envelope (it's over 100 degrees here) so I made sure to fold them design out and they made it to their respective locations just fine.