Thursday, June 14, 2012

My crafting corner




Hi Everyone!
At Lawnscaping we've been doing a series of Friday posts where we designers have been sharing our carfty spaces and today it is my turn. At first I hesitated because as you can see my space is very tiny (this is also where I sew and paint ) and not fancy at all but then I thought - why not???   I'm probably not the only one with very limited space -so this could perhaps be a post where we could give eachother some compact crafting ideas.

We have a three-room- apartment in the center of Gothenburg and we LOVE  it here but of course I wouldn't mind an extra room or two! This room used to be our office till we had Ted 4 years ago. It is now his room but I've kept my crafty desk in one corner and I guess I'll find out how long he'll let me keep it there (-:

My crafting budget isn't very large so I have no specially designed furniture for my tools and supplies but have made use of things we already had at home; winebottle crates,  shoeboxes, cd-boxes, old bathroom cupboards and drawers. I like that I have everything within reach when I sit at my desk - just wish I was a more tidy and organized crafter, because unfortunately my desk turns into a bombshell disater withing minutes after starting a project and then the quickest solution is often to move  down on the floor and suddenly things aren't that easy to reach anymore (-; 

I have a pin board where I keep some of my favorite embellishments so I don't forget to use them! The stamps I use the most are also always within reach and so are my 6x6 paper pads. I have an IKEA box under my desk, next to my sewing machine, where I keep my 12x12 papers and cardstock.


 
I've printed pictures of all the stamps and stampsets I have and put into a photo album so I can easily  flip through that to find the perfect image or sentiment I for a card I'm working on. It is also great for when I'm Writing my blogposts and need to know the name of a certain set.
 
 
I keep my dies like this in a cd sleeve book. It is easy to find the dies and it doesn't take up a lot of space.
 

 Other ideas for compact crafting:
 
1. As soon as you know your not going to use an old product or tool any more,  give it away or sell it on ebay.
2. Before you rush to buy a new cool product or tool make sure you don't already have something very similar or have a product that can be used in different way with the same result.
3. Label all your boxes, files and folders carefully so you know exactly where to find what - searching for things have a strange way of eating up a lot of space!!!
4. Organize your desk so that the tools and supplies you use the most are closest to you - biggest chance of putting them right back after you've used them - I use my inkblenders and distress inks (-; and 6x6 patterned papers on almost all my projects!
5. I sort my markers by  putting a rubberband around colors that have the same tone, that way I don't need one box for greens and one box for blues etc.
 
 
It would be awesome if you would continue this list and share your ideas for compact/budget storage and crafting in the comments section below!

Have a great day!, Hugs Karin

10 comments:

Kara Lynne said...

Thank you so much for sharing your space and ideas! I have a small desk in the kitchen and a cabinet as my "craft room". This is so inspiring to see that not everyone has a studio, but still can produce gorgeous cards!

Miriam Prantner said...

Love it! Nice and compact and lots of light!

Wida said...

wow you packed in a lot of stuff in that "corner"!!

Lisa Elton said...

It might be a small space but the lighting is happy and bright!! TFS Karin ;)

Rachel said...

i loved seeing your space, karin. it reminds me a lot of my own space, and it's nice to see i'm not alone! Three room apartments UNITE!
the storage system of printing our your stamp images is so smart. i wanna try that out!
-Rachel w k
rwkrafts.com

Unknown said...

Thank you for sharing your crafty space, Karin! I don't have a lot of space either, so it's great to see how you've used yours. Thanks for sharing your tips too!

Kara said...

love the peek at your space!! looks jam packed full of fun stuff!!

Renee said...

I think your space is absolutely fantastic!
You make the most of it and have proven that you don't need an entire room and every gadget known to man to make incredibly gorgeous things! :)

Petti said...

You are so organized. This is a neat space!

Christina said...

I love seeing how people make use of what space they have, and you've got some great tips! I have meant to print out photos of all of my stamp sets forever but have yet to do it, but you've inspired me to make it a priority!