Out of the Closet Scrapbooking

In what part of the house is your scrap space located?

My scrap space is a closet located near the garage. There is a table that fits perfectly inside the closet, and a chair can be pulled up to it, although I don’t scrapbook at that table. I scrapbook while sitting on the couch or the floor. My Crop-in-Style XXL and magazines fit underneath the table when they are not in use, and the closet doors close to cover my mess. I originally bought the XXL to use when I went to crops, but it is now used for organization only. I pack a backpack with planned layouts for my crops and carry my tools and adhesives in a carry case.

Although my space looks messy, I’m actually very organized. I am a messy scrapper and feel more artistic when there is stuff everywhere.

How do you store the following items?

Cardstock & Patterned Paper - My papers are currently stored in color-coded folders. For example, the purple papers go in the purple folder. All of the folders rest in my XXL.

Stamps - I use mostly unmounted stamps. After I have trimmed the stamps from the rubber sheet, I store them in labeled CD cases or baggies. They go on the shelf labeled #1.

Punches - I only own a few punches, so I store them in the side pocket of my XXL.

Die cuts, Stickers & Rub-ons - These are very organized in my handmade file folder. I bought three-prong paper folders and put 8 ½” x 11” clear page protectors inside the prongs. In each page protector, I store all similarly-themed stickers and die cuts. I then put the paper folders inside a blue plastic Paper Keeper envelope to protect the paper folders from being bent and store the whole thing in the cover of my XXL.

Fibers - My fibers are stored by color in a fishing tackle box labeled # 2 in the photo.

Ribbon - I only buy ribbon that I plan to use right away, so I currently store unused ribbon in a ziplock bag, until it’s used. The bag is labeled #3 in the photo.

Charms - If the charms are small, I store them in a metal tin that contains additional mini-tins inside. If the charms are large, I store them in my embellishment container, which is a fishing tackle box exactly like the one where I store my fibers.

Tools - My tools are stored in a carry case with a handle.

Magazines/Idea Books - My magazines are organized by season and by year. I made my own magazine holders out of cereal boxes. To create them, I took some cereal boxes that are the same height and cut out the top and some of the side to make a "slant" shape much like the magazine holders you’d find in an office supply store. I then stapled the boxes together and reinforced everything with packing tape. To keep them sturdy, I placed the boxes in a tote with a top. My idea books are few, so I just put them with the same tote as the magazines. My magazines and idea books are labeled #4 in the photograph.

We are currently in the process of converting our garage into a scrapbooking room! I bought the metal 12”x15”-paper holder (labeled #5 in the photograph) at a yard sale for only a dollar! This will eventually hold my papers in my new room.