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I worked on my craft supplies storage issues yesterday when I really should have been chopping celery or something to get ready for Thanksgiving. In a way, though, I was getting ready for Thanksgiving because my supplies storage issues have been making my house a mess. And I don’t like a messy house on a holiday.
I can take it any other day, but I like things to look a little sparkly on a holiday.
I started out, after moving in here, thinking the office/craft room would be a great place to keep my supplies. I have my sewing machine in there and some shelving. Then the wood stove moved in, taking up some space, and then my crafting took off in some additional directions. I love to make candles and soap, and I’ve gotten back into making more various little crafts. All the little odds and ends need a place to live so I can find them, in some sort of organized fashion, when I want to make something. But where? I have my sewing and knit/crochet supplies in the office/craft room, but there’s just not room for other supplies.
Though, of course, I tried jamming this and that here and there. And then other supplies made their way into the pantry. And on top of the kitchen counters and dining room table and the floor and anywhere else I could stash it just to get it out of my way. Which wasn’t really out of my way.
Recently, we acquired (free) several old cabinets. I combined them with some plastic storage bins with drawers and (brainstorm!) made a craft supplies storage area on my back porch! Very handy, just outside the kitchen door. The back porch is a “service” area, not much for entertaining. My cheese cave fridge is back there, and the grill. It’s a cat hangout because I keep the gate on the steps shut all the time so the dogs can’t get into the cat food. I’d been wracking my brain trying to come up with a storage solution–and never thought to look outside the house for the answer.
I recently came into a candlemaking stash, by the way. Always let people know what you like to make–you never know when someone might decide they don’t want their craft stash anymore and they will think of you.
The candlemaking stash included a lot of wax.
Some of the wax is dirty so I’ll have to work with it, but when someone’s giving you $100 worth of candle wax, you can’t complain.
There was a big box of fragrance oils.
Some were old and had lost their scent. I sorted through them, choosing the ones to keep.
Candle dyes.
And a lot of jars, most with some candle wax still inside them.
The wax can be cleaned up and scraped out to recycle into new candles.
Some are still good (still have scent and are full jars)–I brought one inside and starting burning it! I can use dabs of wax from the jars to add color when making new candles even if I’m using new wax, too. If nothing else, with this wax-palooza of old candles, I’ll make firestarters.
There was even an extra electric burner. Now that I’ve got all this stored outside, it might be handy to just make candles out there. (When it’s not snowing…..)
There was another wax melting pot, too. I’ve been wishing for a second pot so I could do stripes more easily.
(Banged up but still serviceable.)
I’ve also got my soap mold and other soaping supplies in one of the big cabinet drawers and lots of other crafty notions and supplies for smaller projects. For the first time in a while, I feel like I know where everything is–and that’s a good feeling. When I get ready to make a craft project, I like to be able to put my hands on what I need when I need it, and I love not having it cluttering all over the house. Do you have a craft supplies storage room or closet or back porch? Are your supplies organized? Tell me your tips!
Posted by Suzanne McMinn on November 23, 2010
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Love free craft supplies!!!! That happens to me a lot also. Let people know what you are into at the moment and you will find someone who collected the whole lot and is tired of it and want rid of it. Usally involves getting rid of the old yucky stuff. lol.
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I want a place that I can go craft awhile, whether it be jewelry, candles, soap, sewing, or whatever, and when I’m done I put it in it’s space in the cabinet, (or leave it out until the next day), and turn out the light and go upstairs…
Right now, I have soap curing and supplies stored in spare rooms and on my kitchen table. Metalsmithing and beading stuff in another area, in tubs…yarn and crochet/knitting needles in my bedroom, my sewing machine sits in a spare room…calling my name….but I hate to get it out because I have to put all of it away when I’m done, and it makes working on a project not so much fun when you have that to look forward to…for me anyway….
This inspires me to get busy searching a little harder.
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As Patrice mentioned, watch out for storing things outside when it’s winter time. I’m storing my soap molds downstairs because my upstairs gets near freezing temps. I think soap molds might begin to crack due to temp fluctuations.
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Then I wondered, is your porch enclosed? I would have a couple concerns with storing some things…temps for one….either too hot or too cold for some of the oils/fragrances and things like that. Moisture would be the other. My covered porch is on the south side of my house and when it rains, it seems to blow in, so I can’t have anything out there if I don’t want it getting wet. Moisture = moldy and mildew…
Just sayin’…..would be a bummer to lose good supplies.
For me….rodents and bugs and moisture would be a concern…
Mice will seek out bedding material, and what better place than a craft storage area if it isn’t mouse proof…cabinets are probably safe from that if they are nice and tight and chew proof.
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