#436

As an example of art imitating life, here is a picture of my ribbon box from a few days ago. I love ribbon, but it’s always hard to find the right one when your organisation system is simulating the nearest landfill. I saw an idea online for a storage solution, which I adapted to my own situation, and have been sorting out my ribbon collection. Unfortunately, my past attempts at sorting this pile included pins. This lead to a few puncture wounds from diving into the box, in search for that one ribbon at the bottom, that would be perfect for a project. Enter:the cardboard.

Now, I’ve tried cardboard before, in the form of embroidery thread holders, and disliked the results, as it made fold lines in the ribbon. I have now decided this would be preferable to a stabby, messy pile of unraveling threads. Making it both easier to see, and safer. As you can see in the image, I used a hexagon punch to cut half shapes out of the sides of a piece of card stock. I doubled over the card for added stability, and wound the ribbons, securing each with a paperclip. I originally tried miniature pegs, as they were cute and the right size, but they kept falling off as I wound the following ribbon, and I gave up on it. Paper clips are also cheaper and easier to get at the local shop when I figure out I have much more ribbon than I thought.

The process is taking some time, but is working out nicely so far. I still have a whole bag of elastic, lace and ribbons still on their spools, too long to fit on the cards, or are unopened, to sort and find a storage solution. I have a bag of ribbons too short to bother putting on the cards. These will be good for making tiny bows, or if I want to buy more of something as a swatch.

Looking at my ribbon collection has made me see all the pretty ribbons that I have… But also makes me feel like buying more

It takes all SORTS…

#408

DRAGGANBORN!

So, lately, my arting sessions have consisted of me sitting on my couch watching Netflix, ever wary of a mountain of supplies that were carefully balanced on the cushion next to me, like a game of jenga. Any movement would cause a landslide, and cause any number of things to fall onto me or onto the floor. This clearly was not a valid storage solution. I decided that I needed a trolley. Something that would hold all my most used tools and items along with some current projects that I could move between rooms without causing any more back pain (I’m not supposed to move furniture -doctors orders.) I needed it to be mobile, as I often work in three different areas, depending on the situation and day, and using a trolley for the tools will clear up my workspace, while keeping all my tools in easy access.
Enter, the Draggan. I found this cart on the IKEA website, and found it was just right with a reasonable cost. I found this in the bathroom storage section, but I also looked at tea trolleys and salon drawer units. I knew I had a lot of tins and cups for brushes and pens so, I wanted something with shelves instead of drawers, preferably. All depends on your needs. You can easily put boxes, tins, magazine holders or dividers to suit your supplies.
Now that I have this one, I may need one with drawers for my sewing supplies. Maybe when I get around to being in the mood to sew. I’m in a drawing/nail art kick at the moment, with some stuff in the mail for that. Whoever thought it was a good idea to let me online shop… Was amazing. It’s so cool.

#226

Lookie what I got! Actually there’s two of them, but I couldn’t put it up yet. My parents bought them for me. They must have gotten sick of me saying I’ll get them one day. I have to get some cube boxes to put in it, but we only have a couple of days until inspection and my craft room looks like an explosion happened in a craft and box factory.
In other news, we got a printer today, which includes a scanner and copier. This will be very useful for drawings, scanning them for digital use, or copying for colouring trials and printing to colour. I also have some 3d paper modelling projects that I want to make, but I can’t go into that yet. The printer is wireless and I found it can print lined or grid paper at any time, which is pretty awesome. I also would like to make an inspiration wall, which the printer will become handy for and I can keep all my drawings safe on a hard drive.
So many uses so little time.
Now that I think- I’m glad we bought extra ink cartridges!

#220

Today I made a copic holder with paracetamol boxes that I had saved. This would work with toothpaste boxes or various sized boxes. Because each compartment is fairly small and I used a lot of packing tape, it’s quite sturdy. I can add on more later if needed, and when it’s finished, I can cover it with paper.
Copics are meant to be stored sideways, because it allows the ink to run evenly to both ends, so I might have to figure out a method of keeping the box upright when I’m not using them.

#218

Today I was watching YouTube videos while I attempted to recover from the heat, and was watching videos from the gorgeous BayleeCreations. In one video she mentioned that she super glued printed circles of the copic colour numbers on her copic ciao markers. I thought this was a good idea, especially since all but three of my markers are the ciao type. All other copic markers have the number printed on the lid, and since the lid isn’t always a good representation of the marker, it’s hard to tell, without picking it up. Each copic colour has a name, but the number system gives a better idea about the colour. It’s explained better elsewhere, but each colour has a family initial, (for example, R for reds, G for greens, BV for blue violets) after this is two numbers. The first is saturation. The higher this number the duller the colour. The second is brightness, and the lower the number, the brighter and lighter it is. This is why when you look at a copic colour chart they aren’t all in order, and you may find a 34 goes better with a 24 than a 33. This is meant to make it easier, but it takes a bit of getting used to. So I decided to label my markers. Instead of printing the numbers out, I punched a bunch of circles with a regular office punch, wrote each colour while holding the circle with my finger nails. It felt a bit like playing tiddlywinks, as they flew all over. I also had to make sure the fan wasn’t directly on me, either, as that would end in tears. Once written out, I glued them to the marker lids with glossy accents. I don’t have a good reputation with super glue, so I was avoiding using it.

If you’re interested in copic colouring videos, check out Sandy Allnock’s YouTube. She has amazing copic skills, and creates cards that focus on colouring to create awesome scenes. She also has a blog and does a load of things with the Simon Says Stamp company.

#184

Today I decided I needed to keep all my embellishments together, as I usually have them scattered around and usually end up on the floor or lost someplace and I can’t use them. Lucky I had a couple boxes empty from being in the middle of bead sorting. I just have to be careful not to bend some of the larger ones, or store them in the large box that I keep cutouts in. This way I can easily see what I have and set it out in a way that all I have to do is mix and match and glue. I’ve started cutting rectangles that fit on the card bases as a background and embossing, cutting and punching pieces that will be the building blocks of the cards. This would be great to do year round, making whipping up a card quickly much easier. You get the time saving craft, with personal embellishments that you made when you had more time.
A lot of people make cookie-cutter cards, making them all the same. This would be quicker, but I’ve never been one for repetition in crafts and if the recipients open them at the same party, they’ll all be special.
Now, all I have to do is put my ideas into practice. Easier said than done 😛

Day #110

So…incase you didn’t notice, my days happen every few days. This is mainly because I’m trying to focus on my game development course and usually only have to time to dabble or doodle that aren’t really worth writing about. Another reason is if I’m making something for someone.
Last night, as I was trying to sleep, I came up with an idea to organise my clear stamps. So today I put it into action. Well part of it. Apparently I have a lot of stamps. So, what I did was choose a theme, such as flowers, butterflies or birthdays, and stamp out all stamps in that genre onto printer paper. Then I laminated it, leaving a perfect surface for stamps to stick to. Of course they’re all backwards when they’re on there, but its easy enough to tell what’s what. The problem with laminating is that they’re too big to fit in the plastic sleeves of the folder I was going to put them in. I may have to trim the sides.
While going through my stamps, I discovered two more stamps. Possibly due to heat, but one was still gooey and stuck everywhere. I really have to sort them soon, so I don’t lose any more.

Day #37

After getting a good nights sleep (thanks to some drowsy antihistamines) I was able to get the energy to sort some crafty bits. Above is three sets of two draws, that I tried to velcro together with hot glue. I didn’t want it to be permanent incase I change later but the hot glue didnt stick too much. But it stays together alright, so I’m not bothered.

Another thing I bought in my storage frenzy was this jewellery hangar, and decided to put my small ribbon offcuts that I use in it. Im not sure where to put it yet, since the door is busy.
In case you didnt notice, I’m organising things by colours. Mainly because I’m the type of person who looks at something and knows what colour I want, even if I dont know what the object will be. If you don’t know what colour you want, you can put colours against the pockets or jars to see how they go.

Here’s one of the five drawer set I was saying about. I have four now. They’re really handy, especially compared to the boxes I have piled behind. The ones I bought yesterday have bigger drawers. All the better to keep bits in, my dear.

Ok. I think its sleepy time. ❤

Day #36

So, I went shopping today, on three hours of sleep which was probably not a good idea. Luckily I had enough brain power to decide that glass and I dont go well together, because I’ve seen a lot of nice storage ideas with buttons and bits in glass jars. So I brought $50 worth of plastic containers to carry home in three bags. Lucky it wasnt heavy, since I was already wobbly from the lack of sleep. So now I have containers galore, then went out and bought two five drawer units for more craft sorting. I should be set. Once I have some time and sleep.

I did a couple of run throughs of my big shot. Thought of making the bear into a top folding card. Might need a hat or bow to cover his flat head, though. I also cut two out of felt to make into a doll, except the eyes get cut out of the back of the head. I thought of making a reversible one, like girl on one side and boy on the other, but for now I just glued some felt on there.
I also tried embossing a card front, but discovered a few bits of the white core showed through. I tried covering it with gold, but it was tedious and not a great effect. Then I sanded it back a bit to bring out more of the white, and liked it even more 😀