Day 6: Best use of space
Today I'm looking at where to put things so they are of most use, easy to access and put in an order of necessity - eg: things I use most often are closest, things I use least in those pokey hard to reach places. To do this I needed to make a mental list (or paper if you prefer) of your space and it's most convenient and least convenient areas, plus the stuff you actually need to reach for multiple times when you are creating. By now you will already know where your annoying pokey spots are and you're likely sitting at your most convenient space. I'm going to list my 'spaces' in order of easiest & most convenient to least convenient. Then I'm going to have a long hard think about what I really need close at hand while I'm working.
- Desk Top: Prime real estate, things on it are within reach - should be used for most vital supplies
- Desk Drawers: Close to desk, nice and large
- Plastic Rolling Drawers: Currently too heavy, need to rethink what I keep in here
- Bookshelf 1: Closest to desk, well lit
- Skinny Bookshelf: Best for large heavy books
- Bookshelf 2: Not well lit, not as close to desk - less convenient
- Bookshelf 3: Hard to reach - best for items not often accessed
- Skinny Draw units: Perhaps need to move these into another area of the house - not able to use, not able to access easily
I've been pondering this for about a week now, well likely much longer - but in the last week I've really been thinking about actually organising and not just moving things about. Sadly I've concluded that as much as I want to - I do not now, nor will I in the foreseeable future have room on my desk for pretty things - by this I mean art (unless I want it sprayed a new colour), little tins, pretty little groupings if items, or large revolving towers, or standing paper holders (where the cat's can reach my papers) or anything not actually useful. My desk will need to remain practical, but I can play with all the rest of the room!
The items you use on every project are the supplies that should be closest to your work station - the things you NEED close by. The following is my list - yours will look different - we all find different things essential to our crafting.
Things I need close at hand are:
- Glossy accents
- Double sided tape
- Sparkly sprays (my Lindy's Stamp Gang Starbursts are on almost every project!)
- Card stock
- Journals
- Scissors
- Baby wipes
- Water spray bottle
- Paint brushes
- Tape - sticky, washi etc (though maybe not all of my tapes)
- Mini misters
- Ideas book (this is a book where I keep clippings for ideas and inspiration)
- Pens/pencils/markers
- Paper trimmer
- Craft mat/cutting mat
- Heat gun
- Favourite stamp pads (not all, just those used most often)
- Stencils
- Stamp blocks (when I find them all)
- I want to say my flowers but there's no way I can fit these
Things that need to be convenient:
- Paper Flowers
- Vagabond
- Punches
- Ribbon
- Embossing powder
- Pre-stamped images
- Dies
- Embossing Folders
- Chipboard embellishments
- Powder paint
- Card fronts ready to mount
- Card inserts
- Stickles
- Pan Pastels
- Craft iron
- Craft Hot Knife
- Ink blending tool
- Art mediums
- Art Paint (metallic, acrylics, watercolours)
- Envelopes
- Twinkling H20s
- Less used ink pads
- Water trays - great for spraying paper on)
- Letters/rubons/stickers/words/metal embellishments
- EZmount panels and mounting sheets
- Scanner
- Stamps (yes really - I get these for each project and put on desk to use then put away - or I will put them away at some point) but really they don't need to be 'right there on my desk' WOW - there's a revelation, because what's the thing taking up most of my desk - Stamps!
Things used the least:
- Re-inkers
- Calligraphy supplies (not the pens - just spare inks, nibs etc)
- Spare sponges
- Fimo and Primo Clay and clay tools
- Art wire
- Beads
- Mica powders
- Paper scraps - I know bad Kate, I should try to use these more.
- Craft Books
- Craft DVD's
- Marbling kit
- Gilding supplies
- Spare krylon pens
- Silk paints and gutta
- Spare post it notes
- Craft metal and tools
- Cards I've made and can't part with (in loads of little display folders)
- Cards other people have sent me that are inspiring (in loads of little display folders)
- Catalogues
- Watercolour tubes (to refill pan palette)
- Spare stationary
- Ideas folders
- Art folio
- Ephemera
- Printer
- Magazines (once read)
- Spray mediums - varnish etc
- Items to give away
As far as I can see, this means the stuff on my desk right now needs to be moved and be replaced by my most used items. The least used things need to move into my non-ideal storage areas, and the items left need to be on/in my shelving units. EEEEEEEKKKKK I need to move practically everything in my room, and come up some creative ideas for storing all those things on my desk.
Guess I know what I'm doing over the Easter break - beginning to cull before I move everything!
PS - BIG Hugs and massive thanks to VickiR who recommended I check out Crafty Storage (I'd already seen this, but the more you look the more there is!) and Natalie Nyistor who's comment 'As space is so limited for you, have you thought about getting a secondhand hutch style desk i.e. shelves above the desk? ' while sounding simple, this was a real light bulb moment and Natalie, while I can't buy a new desk, I am now seriously investigating a hutch!
