OH.... please come clean mine too, i can't find anything....LOL I stuffed everything in my spare room(dogs room)to get it out of the way for christmas. And what a mess in there.

I've got all of my yarn organized in it's own little bag. No more tangled yarn. One job down and a bazillion to go. I'm committed to getting this room clean and organized before I go back to work next Monday, but my aunt just called and invited me out to lunch with her at 11. The cleaning/organizing project has been put on hold for a little while. This could be a plus for me because now you have more time to post your craft organizing tips... I need them.

Hey, you can't fault me for accepting a lunch invitation now can you?

I promise myselfÂthis will be all pretty and neat by the end of the day...tomorrow!!!

Oh! I've got to get off of here...I have a lunch date I have to get ready for.

LOL!!! I too am going to organize my craft room. I have a full basement that I'm trying to make half into a craft room, but my kids keep bringing stuff to store!!!
I bought those plastic boxes with lids at the dollar store to put all my supplies in. I sew, paint and do woodworking, so I've got lots of craft stuff!!!

my sister got unused cardboard pizza boxes for flat things like patterns, labeled them by item or if there were more than one item label them as fall, Christmas, valentines, etc, She also used lots of large tins (from popcorn, cookies etc) and gets lots of seasonal items in those. She keeps all her Christmas jewlery in one, tree decorations,etc. She lines these up on a metal shelving unit and labels the outside. She's way too organized for me!! lol

Instead of zip loc bags,i think the plastic shoe boxes from big lots,$$ stores etc would work better as they wouldn't slide all over the place.They are see thru,but you could always cut a piece of yarn and tape it to the end.

I also like to use mens shoe boxes and i cover them with wall paper,contact paper etc and then make labels for them.Large empty and cleaned out mayonnaise jars for buttons,notions etc.
You're limited only by your imagination!!!
Kathi

when I was sewing a lot (Making my clothes for office wear etc) I would wind up two or three bobbins and then store them and the matching thread in a baggie. I always found my sewing went easier if my bobbin thread matched my top sewing thread.

I just reorganized all my fabrics and made up a huge box to give to a seamstress friend of mine, I won't miss that fabric at all, I feel like I'm drowning in it!

The pizza box idea is a most welcome one, I can use that to store all my interfacings and iron on material. Thanks, rosepetal2!

I have a 5 shelf metal unit that holds all my acrylic paints on the eye-level shelf and the others are where I keep the fabric. I have it all folded and stacked in 22" long pieces and scraps are in boxes on the bottom shelf. The entire unit is covered with fabric that coordinates with the room so it can always look nice. It's velcroed on at the top middle and the corners, and rips away easily when I need to root thru the fabrics. It opens down the middle. I sewed on covered buttons at each shelf, one on each side and attached a small cord so I can wrap the buttons and pull the middle tightly closed. The top shelf is covered with matching fabric and has a few decorative things up there. Now I can tidy up my craft room in just seconds. I also have a pie safe and 2 chests of drawers to hold stuff.

I have mine sort of organized in clear, stackable, plastic drawer units. Paints, beads, ribbons, floss, needles (knitting, crochet, sewing, weaving ...), buttons/sequins/snaps/hooks, "things that hold other things together" (tape, glue, paper clips, staples, nails ...), paper/plastic sheets, candle wax & molds, patterns, (can't think of the rest) each has its own labled container. Now, when I want to use things I have to remember where I put it when I last took it out of its nicely stacked and labled home. They look good all stacked and labeled though.

beverly

A friend of mine just sent me these ideas. Hope someone can use them.

* Instead of saving every magazine, cut out any articles that might be of interest later. Place them in plastic sheet protectors and sort them by theme in binders.
* Use ice cube trays for small thread spools and bobbins and store them in a metal mechanicÂs tool chest that has wheels. The ice cube trays are easy to carry to your workstation or you can roll the whole metal chest across your craft room.
* Large file cabinet drawers hold smaller crochet or fiber "works-in-progress." Place the project and pattern in a baggie and then put them in a hanging file folder.
* Purchase bus tubs from a restaurant supply shop and use them to sort larger craft supplies. TheyÂre not expensive, theyÂre of a consistent size and itÂs easy to build a cabinet to house them.
* For at-a-glance storage of awkward craft supplies, sort similar items into flat plastic baggies and put them in plastic tubs.
* Purchase old suitcases at auctions and use them to store books, yarn or other supplies. It makes attractive, stackable storage.
* Wind fabric around a piece of cardboard before placing it in a bin. Stand the fabric on end so you can easily see the color and pattern.
* Use empty film canisters to store beads. Glue a bead to the lid and stash the canisters in a shoebox. Photo labs will often give away empty canisters.
* Give your leftover yarn to a group that makes hats or scarves for the homeless. Better yet, make the hats and scarves yourself and donate them to a shelter.

* Instead of saving every magazine, cut out any articles that might be of interest later. Place them in plastic sheet protectors and sort them by theme in binders.

I did that for years too. I took a felt tip pen and gave each one a number and didn't worry about filing in any particular order. I made a listing in my computer as to what was for each number and then I sorted it by number and also by alpha. when I wanted to find something I'd just look t the alpha list and find what number it was.

I also put stuff in boxes the same way. A number for each box and a list of what was in that box You can get an idea from this photo. the big boxes on top of the bookcases have numbers on them.

Here is a link that might be useful: