February 26, 2014

Workspace Wednesday...journaling card storage for Project Life

Welcome back to Workspace Wednesday.  It's a day that I share something from my work room with you.  I recently purged and organized all of my 3 x 4 and 4 x 6 journaling cards for Project Life so I thought I'd share my storage system.  
This little area in my work room is where all the Project Life stuff happens.  Today I'm going to focus on the left area. 
This area is directly behind my work table where I stand.  These units all sit on top of an old table that I got at an old school auction made by the local Grangers.  
The organization that works best for me is having all of my supplies out in the open so that I can see them, rifle and dig through them and remember what I have.  For my Project Life cards, I store them standing upright in a vintage, wooden utensil drawer.  I use Large Manila Parcel Tags for dividers which have the manufacturer typed on the upper corner.  I keep my journaling cards sorted by manufacturer since the styles of the cards remain somewhat similar for each.  My rule for my Project Life cards is that I can only keep what fits in this unit.  If I find that the cards get too snug, it's time to sort through the cards and purge.  

The brands of cards that I use most are: Gossamer Blue (from kits and the blank journaling cards available at the Gossamer Blue store), Evalicious, Banana Fish Studio, Elle's Studio, Ali Words for Technique Tuesday, Studio Calico and some of my own handmade cards.  
 I took out my Gossamer Blue stamps that are stored in this empty space below so that you can idea of what wooden utensil drawers look like.  Usually there are 4 divided areas.  I find these old pieces so endearing...always wondering who used them, what that kitchen looked like, what the silverware looked like.  I'm nostalgic that way and these fine, hand crafted works of art always make it home with me.  Many are crafted with dove tail joints and great craftsmanship.  Usually they are painted and have a chippy appearance due to wear and age.  I am finding that the prices for these are sky rocketing so if you find one in good shape for under $20,  you're doing good.  If I remember, I'll snap some photos of my other utensil drawers and share here on the blog.
 For my Project Life brand journaling cards, I have sorted and purged and have a nice sized stash still available.  These all reside in some old wooden drawers that I've collected along the way. I still use these from time to time and have also found other uses for them...like for card fronts, attaching to packages as thank you notes, making little lists, etc.
 The three wooden units sit on top of this industrial looking file drawer.  I keep ink pads in the two drawers right now but am in the process of rearranging all of my inks....purging ones that I don't like, making room for the new ones, labeling, etc.  I'd like all of my inks to be grouped together so these drawers will most likely be repurposed for something else and the inks will find a new home.

7 comments:

Anonymous said...

Love the way you use the parcel tags to separate. Perfect!

gillybean said...

Thanks Michelle, I am new to Project Life this year and am always interested in storage and organisation. I am really enjoying the whole process.

pcake62 said...

I have been looking for an idea so thank you for sharing yours it is great. Pam

Sharon said...

Love viewing your posts with storages ideas. My New Year's resolution was to get my butt into gear this year and work on my PL project... March is upon us as I'm still procrastinating. Thanks for the inspiration though...maybe this weekend?? lol

Lynn said...

I'm just starting a 12x12 size Project Life binder. I called my sister and asked how she stores her cards..she said..check out Michelle's blog, she has great ideas..so here I am..and what do I find? The answer I've been looking for!! Thanks so much for sharing your tips and projects!

Melinda said...

Thanks so much, Michelle, for sharing your great ideas. Like you, I really love the idea of using older pieces, like the silverware trays for storage in my craft room! There are tons of ways to repurpose these lovely items from days gone by and it is so much better then tossing them in the trash heap! Great job!
Melinda

~ Jo ~ said...

I love the way you organize your PL cards and how you store your inks. Those storage drawers and wooden trays are pretty awesome!
Thanks so much for the inspiration!
Hugs,
Jo
xox

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