Very well, yesterday I got to the (recurring) conclusion that I needed to organize my craft supplies. And I didn't avoid the task, even not believing it could turn out good.
Months ago, I bought a desk, three drawer thingie and a book shelf, to boost my home office. The shelf was strategically chosen because of its two doors on the lower part, which I decided right at the store (mentally, with no comments to the poor husband) it would be where I'd keep my craft stuff. The rest of the shelf was for my books, of course.
(The shelf right above is the home of my craft books and magazines: did you notice the little lamb? It's the one I got at the patchwork fair! So cute!)
So there was the problem that needed to be solved TODAY! Look at the situation before:
Starting with the upper shelf, from left to right, we have:
- box for cross stitch and embroidery
- the tote I bought at Paris, with fabric to make "fur" toys, like the little lamb
- the plastic package with the gray knitting inside is a pullover that a friend of mine asked me to add some buttons - so it doesn't count in my mess, I jsut need her or myself to buy the said buttons
- below the package, a ball of yarn
- on the next pile, the yarn I'll give my friend as a gift, the yarn she gave me as a gift, plus two more balls of yarn
- next to it, packages of... well, yarn
- below all that, the kits of candlewicking embroidery I bought (yes!) a long time ago (months, I think)
- you can't see it, but behind that wall, there's a bunch of other yarn packages
- the numbered box above all has - guess what! - yarn
- a box of buttons to cover
- my "gather-all" box, which I got as a gift from my friend S., full of varied things - needles, threads...
- my machine to cover buttons (it's also for other things, but that's the function I'm most attracted to)
- two metal buckets, which I got when I bought paint for the apartment (in the remodeling a while ago - last year, I think). They were free if you got that brand of paint, and when I saw them I logically thought of them filled with craft stuff - too bad I just got two of them, there were four colors (do you like having all things from a collection? I'm obsessed with that kind of thing.)
- a lost yarn, which I used for some tests
- a magazine holder, with many things beside magazines inside
- and again you can't see it, but my sewing machine is behind all that, and also a couple of little bags with thousand things in them
In the lower part, the sewing machine couldn't move anywhere either. What I did was take all the sewing supplies and organize them inside the "gather-all" - it has three pockets in the front, where I put the sewing pencils and the fabric scissors. Ok, I also put crochet hooks, the double pointed knitting needles and a pack of elastic. And I also put there the pincushions and the buttons. And the buttons to cover. And the matrix to cover buttons. Please don't judge me.
I have a problem (well, another one!): I can't throw away sewing remains. Threads too big that were left behind, strips of fabric... that's what the bucket below had. I decided to discard everything, except for a big scrap of fabric that remained from a bag I made. It was empty! Who knew... In the other bucket, were my paper punches (I only have two, I still can't get the hang of scrapbooking, but I love the punches), velcro, a big piece of string and strips of fabric that I didn't want to analyze at the time. I already managed to throw away a bunch, I left the rest for some other time. Or not. It's that idea that you might need something right after you decide to throw it away. I'm getting better.
Look how it turned out:
I know that looking at it like that it seems like I didn't organize anything, but believe me, it's MUCH better. Now I can see everything it's there! The embroidery box is still there, with the little bag of origami paper right behind it, then all the yarn, with some UFOs and WIPs on top of them - now it's easy to see what needs to be done. In the front, I left the embroidery kits I bought from Lee Albretch (they're small, I think I can make them quickly, so I wanted to leave them in sight). I also left things that I bought because I thought they were so cool but until today (oh the shame...) I haven't tried them out yet: kits to make yo-yos and fabric flowers.
On the lower shelf, now with much more room and tidier: the "gather-all" with the sewing stuff and other small things (all together, at least), the machine to cover buttons with the fabrics for toys in front of it, and back to their places, the sewing machine, with the buckets and the magazine holder. This one now holds many things that are not magazines, but it's easier to find everything now.
To prove to myself that the organization was surprisingly a success:
I think knitting is what takes up the more space, isn't it? I'm holding myself not to buy any more yarn, no matter how many sale news get to my inbox!
Mission accomplished! Who knew...
But here goes the crazy part I talked about in the beginning: that is not the only place in the house where I have craft supplies. To the general despair of my husband, of course. But since he doesn't read this blog, I'll show it only to you the other places. Don't you feel so special now?
Here is where my stuff was before. Clearly all that yarn came after. This is the corner in the home office closet where we keep backpacks - and right away you see my Drift Scarf coming out of a tote! There is also part of the cross stitch nativity scene materials. Please don't mind the mess in the back.
Up in my wardrobe. The blue boxes are of sewing (filled of patchwork fabrics and acrylic blanket for filling) and embroidery (fabric, ribbons, many and many things!) supplies. The candy can I got as a gift (I think I already told this here...), filled with embroidery threads. The white box with a heart and the other colored one were gifts. Can you see that the area below needs some space? My clothes need ironing twice: before and after going to the closet.
Hmm I forgot to take a picture of the upper part... that's where I keep a bag full of stuffing. Oh, it's just a bag.
This is the chair in the TV room where I usually craft at night. My Tricoteiras tote is the one around now, with the cross stitch nativity scene and a knitting project inside. (If you want a bag of these too, you can get it here. I love this tote!)
Did you notice the patchwork cushion? It was the result of my first class of this technique! :)
On my way to photograph other places with lost, I mean, stuff put away, is my project for a scenario (that's how this wooden box with glass on the front is called over here). I wanted it to look like a corner with vases of flowers. I left it over the fridge, and every time I pass by I start thinking about what I could do to make it better... I haven't even glued the flowers in the little vases yet, so much lack of decision. The patina I made it myself, and in the background there's a decoupage napkin. I'm acception ideas!
My laundry room has a small room , where I put the old home office desk, which now supports the basket of clothes for ironing (fun for the weekend!) and the tote I made to go to the craft classes. That tote is awesome! Inside there are brushes, paint, and many other things. I got plans for all of them, but art is something you can't just force, you know? (HAHAHAHA so many excuses... but really, I mean to use everything I have - there's too much money spent, oops, invested in there).
There's a small closet to keep brooms and cleaning products next to that desk - and on top of it, more craft stuff! Ai ai... on the left, napkins for decoupage (including some with Christmas motifs!), a box in which I spent a LOT of time and products for cracking effects, and which cover turned out horrible - and on top of the skating boxes (I just went to one class with my friend S. months ago, and they have been bought YEARS ago - I also intend to learn and use them a lot - trust me!)... where was I? Ah, yes, up there you see a tray I'm painting slowly (I have to wait for the paint to dry out and I don't have patience for that) and a box I'm also painting and I wanted to use for the sewing stuff. Or embroidery, now that the sewing stuff got a home. Which proves that the painting materials are actually being used, just like I said I planned to do.
Need more proof? Look the brushes in the water (or what's left of it). They're being used alright!
Very well, I think that after all that you're not likely to come back here, are you? Muito bem, acho que depois de tudo isso você dificilmente vai voltar aqui, não é? I mean, if someone read this so far... anyway, I'm always excited to start project, but sometimes it's hard to finish them. But I'm determined to put to use everything I have here!
Feel free to push me! :)
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Ah, yes... yesterday I forgot to show the yarn I got for my friend! Here it is:
2 comments:
LOL you are not crazy -you're just like the rest of us! I have to just call mine "organized chaos" - I actually know where most of the stuff is, due to still good memory of which heap of yarn it's under. Throwing things away is agonizing, as even several years later, I regret some things I trashed.
Hi, there! Thanks for visiting! :) Some day I'll live in a house, with a big garden and a craft room just for me. (and a couple of dogs!) The problem is not so much the impulse craft-shopping, it's having to hear the husband complaining about all the room my stuff needs! :-D
Loved your blog!
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