or
Keepin' It Real
or
My Dirty Little Secret
It is a New Year. Usually I don't have New Year's Resolutions (as you will see from the photos below), my life is just lived a bit more haphazardly. Remember that girl up there in my header is me---skipping along, stuff falling out of the wagon and while I never want to let go of the shear bliss of creating, it is time to let in some organization.
I would love to open this up for a group project as I am always willing to receive help and take advice. However, I remember not too long ago when I asked for your best organizational tips many of you seemed as befuddled as me (hehe). I will put it out there again. What should I do? How do you do it?
I will post a new photo of my room the 1st day of each month this year. Hopefully this will document the progress I have made! Any companies out there that want to take me on as their personal project---don't hesitate to apply!
Turn away now if you are squeamish!
The Room
The Closet
A crazy shaped nook built into the wall where I stuff fabric
I have started reading Getting Things Done: The Art of Stress-Free Productivity
I realize by posting these photos Martha will never want to be my BFF! I do feel the need to explain the photos (my husband even said he was embarrassed for me)----it takes so much stuff to do all the projects here at Skip to my Lou, the room is too small, I don't have money to buy more organizational aides(and obviously don't know how to use what I do have), I have three kids, I am so busy, on and on.........but really!
Help!
Thanks for taking the time to visit me today!
My craft closet looks just like your room. I just wish I had a whole room. I say I would be much more organized if I had more room but we all no that’s a lie. I am working on simplifying in the year 2009. So hang in there. Love your blog and have found many projects here to keep me unorganized. Keep up the good work.
I really don’t know who’s craft room is organized! If anyone has an organized one they couldn’t possibly use it much. Every single year I am in the same boat though and find if I go through every little thing in my craft room I will find things I have not used since I collected it or things that just don’t appeal to me anymore. I box it all up and give it to the local community center. As I’m going though everything I am able to group things together better and find that once everything is in piles I have more inspiration and ideas on what to do with those piles with what I have. And yes, I set aside a couple of days and I force myself not to craft during those days!
Good luck!!
You are brave, see I won’t post mine until its clean…see you can see the carpet in yours whereas mmm…can not in mine! But I have a deadline to get it cleaned (when I go back to work/school next Monday) Best of luck in your quest!
Oh my!!
I think you need to start with a big white trash bag. You might feel better by just throwing stuff away – but not anything you might need :-}. Have you ever read “The Fly Lady”? Great stuff, easy to start and easy to pick up again once you have dropped the ball (aka holidays).
best of luck to you this year! That looks like a big job, but I’m sure you’ll do fine if you just keep at it! p.s., I used to have that same stack of #6 plastic containers for shrinky dinks that I never did make.
It really looks like you have a lot of great components for organization.
I guess I would say do it the Fly Lady way and just take 15 minutes a day…no more…and tackle it just nibbles at a time. AND then when it’s all done use that 15 minutes a day to keep it that way.
My sewing area is in my husband’s office so my motivation is constant…he always lets me know if it’s getting bad.
I feel your pain. I’m one of the most unorganized people on earth and my craft room shows it the most…ok well so does my bedroom, kitchen…nevermind! I thought I had it figured out with shelving and storage containers but that just seems to make it hard to find what I need.
I can’t wait to see what you come up with! If I think of anything I’ll pass it on. Good Luck and again I love your blog, your creativity is awesome!
Omigosh! I’m loving it!!! That is my room right down to the Dollar General sack hanging on the doorknob! I even have the Snow White gift bag hiding somewhere in mine. I cleaned my room up real good around Thanksgiving, and after all my Christmas crafting it’s a mess again. I guess I must like it that way………………
I forgot to say…………… I made the crayon rolls for my granddaughters and my daughter told me it was her favorite thing that the girls got from anyone. They turned out really cute.
Thanks for showing pictures! All I can say is label, label, label!
I see lots of treasures to be found! What a fun (if a little unruly) room! I see you’ve got a Pfaff! My parents (recently in the process of retiring) have had a sewing business for 40 years, and were Pfaff dealers!
I’ll look forward to your monthly photo updates!!
Cheers!
you know there are home organization shows on hgtv that come do a show about people like you, they completely make over rooms and make it more functional, and give you lots of advice. you should figure out how to apply and see what you can do that way. they might like to have someone like you.
I have your room’s twin in my house.
Love. this. post.
I am doing a few minutes everyday to sort and organize. I am giving myself months to get it in order. Less stress than a certain date or month. I will work on it….albeit slowly.
You are so brave to post this, I am not sure I could post mine. (On second thought, your readers have seen it already if they read this post.)
I second, or third the flylady comments! Check her out at http://www.flylady.net I think you actually have a great space there and once you dig into it, it won’t be as bad as you think.
My room is also less than perfect. My goal in general for 2009 is to organize my life and my house – including my sewing room. And I have a large space so my excuse is my kids keep making it a mess.
Storage. I want nice storage that won’t cost me an arm and a leg.
I’m looking forward to your progress during the year, Beth
I love that you kept it real…my “space” looks just like yours! Thanks for sharing and making me feel normal. I pick at the mess here and there and sometimes can make it look somewhat presentable. But when I’m creating and in the moment, the last thing I can think about is organization!
I love the turquoise blue furniture and accessories! You’ve had some pretty good advice already. The only thing that I would add is that you shouldn’t be afraid to throw things out. Be realistic with yourself and get rid of the things that you are not going to ever need or even half finished projects that you are not going to finish.
This is way easier to say than to do…
I hear if you label where things go, that you are more likely to put them back in their spot. Haven’t tried it…
Oh dear, I can’t tell you how relieved I am to find out I am not the only one whose sewing area got into trouble just so she could finish Christmas projects. Actually, that’s not true. My sewing place is always in a mess. All year. Also I never have enough storage place because I have no discipline when I go shopping. I tried to tidy it up the past few days when the husband was home to co-babysit but ended up sewing donuts instead and adding to the chaos. But a few times a year that area is actually organized and I will tell you my secret: it’s when the in-laws are visiting. Very motivational.
Thank you for your wonderful blog – it’s one of my very favorites because your creativity is so multifaceted and your projects so diverse and fun to do. More in 2009! More! Have a great new year!
I’m glad that I’m not the only one with a hovel. My office is such a mess and has been for so long, that I’ve ceased to be embarrassed by it. Sad, but true. I do want to clean it up in the New Year though. It’s even starting to bother me. It’s really hard to be motivated to clean a room where I can shut the door and pretend it doesn’t exist when guests arrive. I really like the idea of posting a picture of the room at the beginning of every month. I’m not sure if I have the chutzpah to post a picture on my blog though, but maybe I’ll at least take one.
That acutally just made me feel better. What’s sad is I took over the middle childs room because he was sharing with the older anyway and now he wants his own room again, well just his own bed. He’s 3! So, I’ve got figure out where to put all my stuff or remodel!
ooh, i love you even more now!!! i too have longed for a “martha” craft room. when i finally got a room– it has been anything but “martha” especially since the busy christmas season. i’ve been having my creative itch again, but have no desire to walk into that messy room. i’m just going to have to break down. i can’t wait to see pics of your progress. hopefully they’ll inspire me.
How about “trading spaces” — my attic for your craft room? It’s much easier to throw away the other person’s stuff! Actually, that’s not a fair trade — 1/4 my attic for your room would be more like it! Does that make you feel better? We all have our secrets!! In spite of that room, you still inspire us all to make things more beautiful, tastier and more creative, while raising 3 of the best kids ever! Keep up the good work! love you!
Ahhh, a craft room….how I wish I had one! And I wish I could show you my husband’s home office – it would make you feel really good. (and he would have a fit if i organized it for him, sigh..) Anyway- first thing I’d do is go through with a trash bag and clear away anything I’m not gonna use. Be brutal!! The next thing that jumps out at me is the pile of shrinky dink plastic- cut off the bottom/top part that you’ll actually want to use and throw the rest away. That would give you a much smaller and more manageable pile. That’s the first thing that jumps out at me, anyway.
Oh my. I know you can do it, and I also know how EASILY a craft room becomes messy, so I don’t judge.
However, the one thing I have noticed is that I am much more productive with a clutter free room….so I wish you luck and I know you can do it!!
Cheers!
The only way I have found to do it is by stripping away what I DON’T need to make nice, tidy room for what I DO need. Maybe this sounds too simplistic and like I’m stating the obvious root of the problem — but here’s a little example.
If you were to take those #6 containers and slice away the un-usable, rippled sides, you’d be left with just some flat sheets of plastic. Those could be placed in a container or even a manila folder or envelope to await projects. Then, the rest could be tossed. Bulky packaging, plastic bags, and the like will only lead to frustration. Consolidate to only what you’ll need.
I also scrutinize everything to decide if it is a tool or a supply. That is, is this something I’ll use more than once? Or is it a consumable like fabric or wood? Then, I store tools for like-projects together, and supplies together. Label, label, label.
My other tip is to use clear, see-through organization supplies as often as possible (with, yes, tons of labels). So, I use clear zipper bags, clear plastic bins, etc. I also tend to organize things by color rather than type, since I’m much more likely to be searching for just the right PINK ribbon than just the right 1/4″ ribbon. So, in a bin labeled “ribbon” I’ll have a zipper bag full of pink ribbons, red ribbons, etc. That’s just the way I work, but it makes the clear bins look really pretty.
The clear bins help me because I am such a visual person. It helps me feel surrounded by my projects, rather than cut off from them. It helps me monitor when things are empty. It helps me not be so reliant on labels (but still use them!). Anyway, just some preliminary thoughts.
Love your blog. First-time commenter.
My craft area is a corner of my bedroom and sadly my entire room looks just like yours! Thanks for this post, I don’t feel like the only messy crafter anymore, YEA!!
Oh, and could you do a blog post (or simply contact me) about this #6 container for Shrinky Dinks??? I always thought shrinky dinks came in a kit that you buy, didn’t ever know you could do them yourself. I’ve always wanted to do them with my girls but have never found the kits (always forget to look when I make it to a craft store).
I put a link to your site on my blog post today about the snowman doughnuts…here’s the link if you are interested
http://sarah-momof2girls.blogspot.com/2009/01/stuff-we-made-this-year.html
I don’t have any advice. My craft cupboard and shelves look a lot like that! Then there is the floor by my bed – so embarassing!
Thanks for “keeping it real.”
Hi – first of all you need to have a shrinky-dink making party/playdate, call up some like minded friends/kids and craft away. You will feel accomplished because you used something in your stash and it will be a fun kick-off. do it next week, don’t delay!
A few things that jumped out at me for easy fixes…
Get a gift wrapping organizer/station, it doesn’t have to be purchased, but there are great ones for sale this time of year. – add a shoe box inside for bows, tape, scissors. Everything will be in one place when you need it. I actually keep my wrapping stuff under the bed in the guest room- not in the craft room – in a long box with wheels, the large rolls fit there plus tissue, bags, adornments, etc. Next to that is another long box with small stock up gifts – hostess, kids party, etc. When a craft is done ready to give, put it there.
Get a big cardboard box for anything in your room that is recyclable, I’m not saying you are going to get rid of it, it is a craft supply category. or you could call it the kids craft box. This is the box in my craft room that my kids know they can use anything in it, interesting shaped boxes, egg cartons, yogurt containers with lids, tin boxes, foil, soda bottles, etc. Mine also has things I’ve decided I’m not going to use, paper I no longer like, pieces of string, feathers, scraps of fabric, their construction paper. They love digging through and finding treasures to make.
There’s a couple to start.. Best wishes, you can definitely do this, you have a great set up, good bones, so to speak, shelves, containers, it’s just about re-arranging. And don’t feel like you should throw anything away, I’m sure you might have some interested readers for supply give-aways or trades.
You just made me feel so much better about wreckage from my holiday sewing! Thanks for keeping it real! Last time I cleaned my craft area it was out of sheer necessity…I had made such a mess that I couldn’t find my tools for my project! I stopped crafting right then and there and cleaned until I found my tools I needed. If you need to get rid of anything send it my way!
Hi twinsister,
Actually I only have one kid and I could use one entire room just for crafting (if I could find the table underneath all the paper from last years schoolprojects….) but still have a messy workspace and bedroom,…
I am a teacher and supposed to teach other people’s kids how to get organized, but my dark secret is that I coudn’t even bring back my library book in time ONCE.
So I went over to the FLY Lady just 2 minutes ago to register myself. You have been my inspiration for doing this.
Maybe we can get organized together?
Best wishes, have to clean my sink now
and thanks for all the wonderfull things on your VERY WELL ORGANIZED HOMEPAGE (Yes, you can!)
Love, Steffi
from Germany
Love this post – your best ever!!! I for one am not offering to help – but you’re right: You need some help!!! Pity my whole house is like this – all behind closet doors of course!
I can’t wait to watch the monthly pictures!
I think you’ve made a lot of people feel much better about the status of their craft/sewing/whatever room! I like using baskets and bins, or at least that’s my plan!
hold on. what? #6 plastic containers can be made into shrinky dinks??? when did this become common knowledge, and where was I? wow. I’ll be googling that today!
as for the organization… hm.
my craft room is also a mess, so I can’t offer words of “well, what I do is…” but my mother (of course) has a beautiful sewing room that is perfect. unless of course she is in the middle of 5 projects… but then right when she’s done with them her room is nice again.
basically she just bought these two huge cabinets from a local tool store (like Lowe’s, but not a large chain store). They were display models and she bought them uber cheap. then she went to the dollar tree (where everything actually IS a dollar, unlike other dollar chains) and bought a bunch of random plastic bins. She did not take the lids- left them right there at the store- when the lady asked she said “no, I don’t need them” the lady probably thought she was nuts! anyway, she folded up all her fabric and sorted it into colorways. now she’s got large amounts of purples stacked nicely on one shelf with a plastic bin holding smaller bits of purples. same thing for other colors. some have their own shelf, some share with a color friend- depending on how much she had of each.
I’ve found that using boxes without lids can be helpful, but hard to store if you want to stack. Of course, I do more than sew- I stamp and crochet and papercraft and bead and mess with polymer clay and, and, and. so my room looks more like yours! but the box system does help some. some things just seem to resist having a home- ya know?
good luck!
All you need is a dose of grace and mercy for yourself. Do you know how many of us have spots that look like that? If you weren’t busy and creative and productive it might not look like it does, but where’s the fun in that? It sounds like you have reached the I-can’t-live-with-it-any-longer stage and you will get it under control. Please don’t feel bad about it–you are in the company of many wonderful women.
I just remembered! Once upon a time I saw a great idea for craft rooms- you know those small, random items you have? like that one perfect feather, or a small batch of buttons (I know, I’ve got a million, but some crafters sadly only have a few). Well, they took and put up small nails all in a row on the wall, then hooked up some clippers to it. (like those metal things with the black plastic, you can flip up the metal and use it to open the plastic part, then clamp onto something? does that make sense?) anyway, they put their small random items into tiny zipper plastic bags, like the ones you get beads in, and then just clipped them with the clipper things and hung them on the nails.
I’m sure someone else could’ve made that make more sense- but hopefully you get what I mean. My main point was that if you put small items that can’t find a home into plastic bags, you can clip them onto the wall so you can see them easy. If you covered the wall area with random squares of scrap paper first, it would even look nice. Oh no, wait, that’s a new project! Sorry! (that’s my problem, I start cleaning my craft room and get distracted by new projects that would “make the room nicer” if only it were clean!)
Praise the Lord! My room isn’t the only one in this condition!!! You’re like the 4th person to post about that book… I might have to look into it. I have serious doubts that us creative types will ever truely be organized though… Happy New Year!
i am totally there and i totally understand!
you can do it…on my site i have a link to an organizing blog, and my post yesterday was about how to keep resolutions to organize…it is an article and i thought it was very good…it talks about the three things you need…education, motivation, and support…you are well on your way with the education part…take a look if you think it might help! GOOD LUCK! and you can do it! 
now for my rooms… 
I feel your pain. I have one suggestion that can help with your clutter and won’t cost a cent. Watch this video http://www.marilynbohn.com/media-center/organizing-fabric-tips.html by Marilyn Bohn and check out her other origanizational videos and tips on her site. I have one closet of fabrics folded as Marilyn suggests and it has made a big difference — takes less space to store my fabric, is so easy to find what I want, and pleases my eyes and soul.
When my corner starts to look like yours I start sorting and pitching and organizing and like you I don’t have a lot of money for new organizational equipment.I have a few ideas for you starting with the number 6 plastic. You could quickly cut out the sides that are not usable and just keep the flat pieces that would fit into a binder. Your room also seems to be a dumping ground for things that don’t have a home like the tv on the floor. Is there any way to donate those items or find more useful homes for them? My children are often guilty of adding odds and ends to my craft space so I keep a small basket for collecting their stuff. When it is full I have the put their things away in their own space. I hope that some of this has helped.
I an interested in the number 6 plastic for shrinking do you know of a good place for a tutorial?
I use a file draw and folders to organize my fabrics. Can i Email you a picture. Also I use the cubby bookcase from Ikea to seperate each function and keep them in polkodot boxes.
I would like to give you a great big hug and say “thank you, thank you, thank you!” And then I would like to show my precious Hunky this post so he won’t think so ill of me. My space is very similar to this, but it is in my DINING ROOM. The only saving grace is that we host a supper club once a month, so I have to clear things off the table =)
I’ll tell you what,every room and nook and cranny is organized in my home except for my crafting area.I have cleaned it numerous times and by the end of a crafting day it looks like a cyclone has hit it…..again.I just tell people,a messy craft table reflects a creative mind lol.
shrinking with #6 plastic: http://www.curbly.com/Chrisjob/posts/2252-DIY-Shrinky-Dinks-
And every time I get rid of something in my craft room, I seem to bring 3 things in…. my room looks very much like yours!
Craft Spaces are very hard to organize. MY advice would be to start by sorting EVERYTHING…group like items together, fabrics, tools (glue guns, sewing machine, etc…) paints, ribbon…
Then Contain everything. I would get some clear plastic shoe boxes (which you can get for about $1 at Walmart. Use those for Ribbon, paint, glitter, buttons…..and LABEL..
For fabric, I’ve done this with mine and it is so worth it–go to a comic book shop and buy a pack of boards…(they are relatively inexpensive…I think a pack of 100 is less than $10…Fold your fabric in thirds the long way and wrap around the boards..they all stay the same size and stack neatly.
Put everything in those shelves…I bet it would all fit, once you organize it..
I know you don’t want to spend extra money but just in case…
I would, if possible extend those shelves to the end of the wall, I can’t tell from the picture but possibly hang another shelf above the top one(and use baskets to store and hide stuff) Also, I think a large work area instead of two smaller ones might work better in a small space. It would be simplify it a bit and open up more floor space so it feels a little more open in there…
If you were in FL I would so come do your craft room..
Good luck. I LOVE your tutorials–keep up the good work.
I love you for posting this. Thank you!!
Nothing like organizes chaos…..chances are you know exactaly where everything is…and how ironic that there is a bad from the Container Store in one of the pictures….ROFL
I don’t think I could ever give advise or make a sugestion I am in the process of giving my home and “enema” I got a 20 cubic yard dumpster and started in the attic and worked my way as far as the garage….dumpsters full so forget the basement….and what I didn’t throw out I freecycled( love that freecycle and you can find a ton of craft stuff through it!!!!!
If I come across any suggestions in the next few days I’ll let you know…I have a g/f that is a professional organizer and she told me that if I gut the junk out of the house she would organize me for free!!!!! FREE every crafters favorite word!!!
Do you know why your room looks like that?….Because you are creative. Creative people are messy. Keep in mind that Martha Stewart’s stuff only looks neat as a pin because she PAYS people to come up with the creative ideas, PAYS them to do all the prep work for a craft project and get it ready so that she can slam it together in 2 seconds flat on TV, and she PAYS someone to clean up her mess afterward, and she PAYS someone to organize her room with things donated by manufacturers for free publicity, and you don’t have a team of paid assistants helping you, so you can’t really compare yourself to her, because you aren’t comparing apples to apples. Does that make you feel better? I hope, because I have memorized the whole thing and recite it to myself each day to help me rationalize MY OWN mess, that, sorry to say, doesn’t stay confined to a single room – it spills out into every nook and cranny of my house. I’m just like you. If I have 30 extra minutes in the day, I’d rather scrapbook something, or make some sort of craft…cleaning and straightening up would rank right up there with root canal for how to spend that time. I have found that it helps to clear the room completely first so you can start from scratch, and you are not so overwhelmed by all the clutter that you can’t focus if it is all in the hallway or another room. Also, it gives you a deadline of sorts, because you certainly can’t go to bed tonight with the hallway full of your stuff. Also, after speaking with my doctor about how messy my house was and how difficult it was to concentrate on things and prioritize, I was diagnosed with Attention Deficit Disorder, and she gave me a prescription, and I have to tell you, my house has never been cleaner in nearly 20 years of marriage. Something to think about. And ADD’ers are known for being creative…..:)
Check out the book “Where Women Create” by Jo Packham. The entire book is dedicated to showing off the studios of women artists. Perhaps you’ll feel inspired by the darling photos!
I just found your blog recently while searching for crafts to do with my children…thank you for the great ideas!
Allison