Awhile back I shared a bit about how I am currently storing my clear and cling stamps. (You can see posts on it HERE, HERE and HERE.) This system has evolved over the years… and I am finally at a place that I am 100% happy with. I have also recently discovered a few new things that I thought you all might like.

Avery Elle just came out with new stamp storage pockets that I think are pretty awesome. They fit clear and cling stamps perfectly – measuring approximately 7.25″x5.5″ – the same as the Office Depot CD sleeves I have been using. (More on that below.) Here are both…

But I just discovered these stamp storage pockets… after I finished reorganizing my stamps. (Perfect timing, eh?) So… all of my stamps are currently in THESE sleeves from Office Depot. (I just carefully cut down the center to make single pockets that are the same size at the Avery Elle pockets.) These have worked wonderfully for me. Wonderfully.

Both of these pockets are good options. The Office Depot sleeves I use are quite a bit thicker than the Avery Elle pockets and have a bigger flap on the back, making them perfect for me since this is my job and I am in and out of my stamps a lot. (I may eventually switch the the new Avery Elle pockets… but that is quite a big task since all of mine are already in the other.) On the other hand, the Avery Elle pockets are smooth and designed to hold stamps. The cost is pretty close, with Avery Elle being a bit lower in price.

How about a closer look at the options? Here is an Avery Elle stamp storage pocket. You can see it is clear, thin and has a small flap on the back that would be tucked in. So clean…

The Office Depot sleeves are thicker and have a bigger flap that doesn’t need tucking in….

The verdict? Both are good. But if you are just starting organizing your stamps, I would start with the Avery Elle pockets. I think they are great for normal use.

Awhile back I also shared one of the greatest finds of all time – the container I store my stamps in. And yes – this would hold either of the sleeve options perfectly. These containers are actually “Fridge Binz,” meant to hold soda cans. No soda in my house, but man are they perfect for stamps…

These also fit dies (Sizzix, etc.) perfectly. So durable and sturdy – not a wimpy plastic thing…

My clear and cling stamps are stored in pull-out drawers in cabinets in my new studio. (I promise to share more of my room when I get everything in there. I hope it is someday soon!)

And, yes, I am crazy and must have every stamp set labeled. I love the Brother Labeler. (There are ways to change the setting so it doesn’t waste tape – just google it.) This labeler is my best friend…

So there we have it – my current stamp storage that makes me so very happy. Very happy. Hoping maybe this system works for you!

If you follow me over on Instagram (I am HERE and love it there) or Twitter (I am HERE and love it there, too – not a Facebook fan), you may have seen that I am currently finishing up my new studio/craftroom/oasis/office. When we did our remodel last year, my husband and family convinced me to make a nice new room upstairs since this job/passion is important to me. (Yep. They rock.) I am neck-deep in transferring everything, but have found some pieces that I LOVE and thought you might too.

The first few are from The Land of Nod. I noticed they have free shipping today – 1/9/13 – the perfect time to check them out. (You can find out more HERE.) The Land of Nod is an amazing kids deco store, but I have also found amazing pieces for my office there.

First up, I adore THIS adorable container. It is hands-down my favorite. You can mount it on the wall or put it on your desktop. I have 6 of them. (Yes I am nuts.) I have one on my desk all the time… two in a drawer for additional tools… two in a cabinet for Distress Markers and such… and one for Colin’s markers. I love that it is tilted and can be hung if I wanted it to. Cute, eh? (For free shipping, head HERE.)

Here is mine on my desk. Forgive the bad iPhone photo, but you can get an idea of what I keep in it. All my necessities…

There are a couple other pieces I just got at The Land of Nod, too. THIS one is great – you can easily pick it up and take to your table. Mine holds pearls and gems as I reach for them often and want something I can bring to my work area. Would be good for Copics, too. (Free shipping HERE.)

And for all of you doing Project Life, I hear THIS piece is great for it. You can easily fit lots of photos and cards in it. I am ordering one for my unfinished cards. (I often do a card halfway and quit – will be a great place to keep them for future use.)

I am considering some of their bins and baskets, too. You can see all their fun storage HERE. I have been pleased with their quality and service. Makes me happy. (Remember – free shipping 1/9/13 only – head HERE.)

THIS next one is going to be attached to the inside cabinet door of my desk… to hold my paper trimmer. It is from The Container Store. The Fiskars SureCut Trimmer fits nicely in it and it is a great way to tuck it away. It is magnetic so I can also stick a few must-have dies on it too. Comes in white, too, but I got the stainless…

Here it is with the trimmer in it. I haven’t attached it in my cabinet yet so I am just holding it up…

THIS is another doo-dad I love in my office. It stays on my desk (I have 3 of them) and holds any stamp sets I want to remember to use or pieces that I have saved for something. A fun little guy…

And here is one of mine…

(ETA: You can see more about my stamp storage HERE.)

There you have it – just some fun storage shares for ya.

Some folks have asked if I will show my completed office here. I likely will, but with the speed I am going, it will be awhile.

Happy weekend!

A few years ago, I started down the Copic Markers road. When I did, I found out about a great storage system – the Color Cubbies from Studio 3 Solutions. Since then I have continued to use this system and also store other tools in them. My storage solutions change over time, but this has not. They are perfect.

The slots are slanted back so things don’t fall out. I love putting my other markers in them, along with Stickles, scissors and more.

For awhile, these cubbies weren’t available… but now they are again HERE! What is even better is that the price is really good and it turns out the folks who make them are super kind, too. Perfect.

How would you like a Color Cubbie to hold all your gorgeous markers and such? Just leave a comment here by Friday at 11:59pmEST for your chance to win one. Good luck!

Oh – and winners! Here are some lucky folks. I emailed you:

• The winner of a spot in May Flaum’s class is Pam N.
• The winner of a spot in Julie Campbell’s class is Andrea Garland.
• The winner of two Simon Says Stamp and two Memory Box dies is Tania.
• The winners of spots in Clean and Simple 2 are Rachel K, Dot and Jennifer M.

I get a lot of questions about storage and organization. I am currently in the middle of a big remodel… which includes moving my studio from a large re-done basement area to a not-as-large first floor location. I am incredibly happy to be up in the daylight with big windows and family around. And I am happy to go slightly smaller. I think big areas can be overwhelming – you end up collecting way too much that it can be intimidating.

So, as I get ready for this move, I am redoing a lot of my storage. First? My clear stamps.

For a long time now I have been using plastic sleeves to hold them, along with cling stamps. I first kept them in binders and I then moved them to a clip-it-up system. (You can see videos on these systems HERE.)

Now? They will still be in the same sleeves. (I love these sleeves so very much – I won’t be getting rid of them!) But I will have them in pull-out drawers in big cabinets, with areas where I can flip through them to find what I need.

So to read more about this storage for my clear and cling stamps, go HERE to Paper Crafts. I share all the details and links.

And a big cheers to Kay. Not only did she do the blog takeover last week, but she also put all my stamps in these sleeves (some had yet to be done) and labeled them. Yes, she rocks. (And now she is in a mission trip with our church youth group. You go girl! So proud.)

Hope this helps. I will share photos once I am moved into the new studio in September. But first? I need my kitchen back! Ha! Just a few more weeks…

See you soon.

When I started my new blog, I mentioned that I would be doing some sponsorships. However, these sponsors are very unique as they are by invitation only. By doing this, you can feel confident knowing that if I have invited a sponsor it is because I have respect for them and their products. I only want to promote products I truly love and would select to use myself. I am sure you will recognize these companies and their products as I have been using them here for ages. Having sponsors makes it possible for me to do more giveaways and offer more upcoming perks to my readers. Please be sure to visit the websites of these generous sponsors. I know you will love them, too.

Today I would like to introduce you to one of my sponsors, Ellen Hutson. Ellen Hutson is an online store offering fabulous stamping and crafting products. I have been shopping there for quite some time now.  Why do I love the Ellen Hutson site? Well, here are 10 handy reasons…

(10.) Ellen Hutson has “the CLASSroom” – a blog focused on education and ideas. Ellen’s design team shares how-to’s on some really great projects. Here are a few of my favorites: Faber-Castell post, cool Copic technique post, and Copic coloring post.

(9.) Ellen Hutson brought Copics to the crafting world. Yes – she is to blame for that addiction! Her site is definitely a must-see and go-to for anything Copic. (To learn about Copics and which colors I like, click HERE.)

(8.) Ellen sells Neenah paper, my favorite white cardstock and the only one I use. You find it HERE and it is a great deal.

(7.) Ellen also has a blog where she shares lots of step photos for very interesting techniques HERE.

(6.) The Ellen Hutson design team has some truly amazing artists.

(5.) Ellen Hutson sells a lot of stamps. A lot. Including Hero Arts.

(4.) Who doesn’t love a free goodie now and then in their order?

(3.) Ellen often has guest designers that are fabulous. I loved when Tami Hartley was a guest HERE.

(2.) I really enjoy the products in the “Essentials from Ellen” line – fun products only Ellen Hutson carries. More on this below…

(1.) Ellen Hutson herself is a class act and is known for taking care of people in the industry. I love that.

Now you see why I love Ellen Hutson so much. I hope you will consider visiting her site as a thank you for supporting this blog.

How about a quick organization tip? I am constantly trying out new ways to store my craft goodies in a way that is “put away” but also “quickly available” to use. And I LOVE this next system.

I struggled for a long time on how to store my thin dies… and my collection is growing fast. (My favorite thin dies? My Favorite Things and PaperTrey Ink. Oh, and this works great for Spellbinders dies, too.) I had the idea to tape sheets of magnetic paper on the inside of my stamp cabinet doors. Just stick the dies on it and close the door. And it works beautifully and they do stay put…

I used Essentials by Ellen Art Magnetic Masking Material… which is basically very thin sheets of magnetic paper. Since it is lightweight, I just used a few mini glue dots to hold it to my doors. Perfection! If you don’t have doors to do this, you can also put them on a wall or in a notebook with page protectors. I just love how easily you can get to them and see them all. And, the price for the magnetic paper HERE is really good to other places I found.

Off to rest. Have a great night!

I have been promising to show my Ink Blending Tool Spinner Rack.  I am in love…

Sorry for the bad photos…

You can get a spinner rack HERE (they aren't easy to find) and the inking tools HERE.  I have four of them on top of each other and adore it – they just piece together with no trouble.  Even Tim says this is kinda nutso, but I love having one inking tool per ink.  I created my own labels for them, but you can download a pdf HERE to print.

Just a quick post for tonight.  Although today was PERFECT as far as temperature and weather, my allergies are getting the best of me.  So, good night!

Many people are emailing me asking about my Copic storage.  I took a new photo that is slightly better so you can see how it works in my workspace.  Now that it is part of my room, I am even more thrilled with it.

Even if you aren't into Copics (yet – ha), you can store pencils, other markers, etc in these.  I am likely going to get two more for that purpose.  I am in love with these – they work so well.  If you are interested in this storage, click HERE.  (Nope, I am not being paid – just like them.

I remember when I was young, I looked at the colors of the world in DMC color numbers.  Then it was Bazzill names.  Then ink names.  Now – Copic numbers.  Delightful.

One more thing – you gotta check this out.  My sweet friend Kristina is giving out the most adorable set of word art for free on her blog.  I plan to print this on white for quick Valentines for teachers, etc.  Click HERE to get your free goodies.

Off to snuggle with the pup.  Night!

I am really excited about today’s post.  A few weeks ago, Ali Edwards asked me to be the first special guest in a new series she is doing.  I love my Ali, so I was happy to play along.  (Note: Before you continue reading, go read her post first HERE, in case you haven’t already.  Then continue reading this post, as it contains added information.)

I told Ali about how I scrapbook.  I actually have two ways of scrapbooking: the “practical way” and the “playful way.”  First up?  The “practical…”

Yep, this is how I scrapbook my events and basic memories.  Here is my “practical” process:

• At the end of the month, I edit/crop my photos to 5×7 (mostly) and/or 4×6.  I order doubles online at Costco.  I prefer larger photos and never crop these smaller than 4×6.  Why?  Because when I look at my mom’s awesome scrapbooks from when she was little, the photos are so tiny.  I want to make sure people can really enjoy these in the days to come.
• I adhere photos on 12×12 black cardstock. I then type up my journaling on the computer and print it on white cardstock.  This is the only other thing added to the pages.  No title.  No embellishing.  Fast and easy, and the kids can help.  And the focus is 100% on the photos and the memories. 
• I store these pages in order in 12×12, 3-ring binders.  All the family members pages are mixed together.  Afterall, we are family.
• I keep the doubles of the photos.  I use favorite ones for my “playful scrapbooking” and send the extras to family or friends.  Sometimes I give some to Colin to play with.  He loves to carry them around and show the whole world.

Easy, fast and no pressure.  And that is exactly why I started doing this.  My memories are recorded, checking off a big to-do on my life’s list.  This frees my mind and heart to have some fun with my hobby. 

This brings us to my “playful” side of scrapbooking.  Ah, yes, this is my favorite.  This is where I focus having fun and enjoying the hobby.  For me, this means:

• I use my favorite photos, often enlarged.  I often will throw in extra photos, sometimes even tiny ones.
• I love love love to play with new techniques.  That is where almost all of my joy lies.  On almost every page, I include at least one technique, often with stamping.
• I also like to use up product in creative ways.  For me, product is a big part of the fun of scrapbooking.

So, on Ali’s site, I shared an example of some pages from a “playful” album I recently started.  It features favorite quotes from my son – which he is known for.   This is the perfect example of “playful” scrapbooking for me.  Since I am not really good at design, I decided to keep the basic design the same on all the pages.  And since I am not great at writing, I kept the journaling simple.  But since I love techniques, I made sure that there is at least one area on each page where I can try something new.

Here are my example pages and video.  (For a closer look, just click on them.  For supplies, visit Ali’s blog.)

Now, I know this wouldn’t work for everyone.  But this is what is best for me.  Maybe this will inspire some of you to find a way to make scrapbooking 100% fun and 0% stressful.

Moving on…

I also thought I would mention that I have a HUGE class coming up at twopeasinabucket.com starting on June 15th called Thinking Inking.  It is 9 weeks long, with three projects and videos a week.  Yep - 27 videos in all.  I will be teaching countless techniques for stamping, inking and painting.  It will be such fun.  And, of course – lots of prizes.  If you are interested, be sure to keep a look out here for  links, or over at the 2peas education board.

Thanks for stopping by.  I will be back tomorrow with some more shares.  Have a good one.

[ETA: If you are interested in more of my videos, please click HERE.  This will give you links to the three places I create videos for: 2Peas, Hero Arts and JenniferMcGuireInk.  You can easily subscribe and be notified anytime a video is added.

Also, if you are interested in a Hero Arts giveaway, check out Jana's blog HERE.  Many of you know this is a favorite stamp of mine!  Good luck.]

Great tip on purging: "my tip would be to purge the old as you bring in the new… i held on to so much for so long – stuff i knew i would never use and it just took up too much space. i now remove some old and give to my daughters to use in their scrapbooks, give to friends who like the old, or donate to my daughters teachers – they love the paper! " - lisa d

I do the same – I purge often.  At least once a month and give a lot to schools, too.  Teachers do love it!

Great tip on clear stamp storage: "I'm not an organizing guru but…I also store my clear stamps in a binder just like yours. I can't afford to go out and buy page protectors that have different sized inner compartments. I made mine with the sewing machine. I sew a zizag stitch either splitting the plain old 8 1/2 X 11 page protector in 1/2 or in 1/4. Then I use a pair of sharp scissors to open up the lower compartments. It works great." – Jess

Great idea.  I originally did mine with staples to divide them up.  It worked!

Great tip on punch storage: "My favorite storage item is a shoe holder on the back of my door that holds all my punches. Easy to see them and keep them organized in an otherwise unused space." - Terry

This system is great.  Jana does this and it works well.  I would have done it, but I don't have a door.  (Although I have since figured I could have nailed it to the wall instead!)

Great tip on pencil storage: "My favorite organizational tip at the moment involves Prismacolor Pencil storage. I keep mine in an old-fashioned straw holder where you just pull the top and all the pencils come out in an organized way. This system works great for me! Thanks for the chance to win a treat! Have a great day." – Samantha Welch

How clever!  I am going to do this with the girls' pencils.

Great tip on planning:  "Mine would be to think long term needs not short term because otherwise you waste a lot of money and your husband will roll his eyes at you." – Tara Piper

This is the best tip of all.  I usually get one of something before I commit to getting lots.  That way you can make sure you like it.  (For example, I bought one paper shelf thing from Target.  Once I knew I liked it, I bought more.  Slowly.   And it does keep the husband happy. Hee…

Great tip for stamps: "Loved your room. My best tip is for stampers who keep their wood stamps in the 3 drawer units {mine are from Sterlite}. I stamp each stamp onto a sheet of copy paper and lay it in the top on the stamps in that drawer when they are two layers deep and I have more than one drawer of that category, like my sentiments. Then I just look in each drawer and check the sheet or sheets to see if it is in that drawer or another one." - Nan

This sounds like a great system for stamps!

THANK YOU for sharing these great ideas.  You all rock.

And… just a quick share before heading over to do some shopping on Amazon.  Christmas is coming so fast!

This is another example of adding color to stamped white images on transparency.  You can see a video on it HERE.  This didn't photograph well – sorry.  But this background is my new favorite. I use it so often.

Supplies:
Hero Arts stamps (background, greeting)
Hero Arts clear card, flowers, gems and pearls
White Staz-On ink
Permanent pens

Have a great night.

For details on the room, please go to THIS post.  Everything is there.  I will combine the two posts together and put it in the sidebar later this week.

After the video, I’ll have a GREAT giveaway!

So… a lot of you have mentioned that you like the vinyl wall art I have in my room from Once Upon A Design.  Well, the sweet girls there have given me one to give away to one of you.  I am so excited!  Please go check out their site HERE.  Email them if you have questions.  These are sweet girls with big hearts – I would love to see them get some more business. And they make great holiday gifts!  So, if you want to win a vinyl wall art, just leave a comment on this post by Wednesday at 11:59pmEDT telling me your best craft-space organization tip.  I will then pick a winner of a small version of the “do something creative everyday” quote… like the one I have here…

My tip? It doesn’t cost that much more to get the sturdy stuff for your craft space (thanks to Ikea and Target)… and it is worth every penny.  I used to have tons of plastic drawers, but they didn’t hold up.  Not a good investment. 

Have a great week.  I will actually be back with another giveaway tomorrow.