You love scrapbooking, but you do not like having to clean up the mess that is made during the process. Often tired after working on your albums, you just shove all of your supplies in a drawer or box. However, this only makes the problem worse, because the next time you decide to scrapbook you often have to sort through everything to find what you need. You need some advice about organizing your supplies.

The first step towards organizing your scrapbooking supplies is to spread all of your scrapbook materials out on your work table and sort them into piles. For example, you might have a group for embellishments, another group for pens, another group for paper, and another group for ribbons.

Once you have sorted your different supplies into groups, the next step in organizing your materials is to find something to put them in, like storage containers and boxes. Now, this all has to do with how big your scrapbooking supply stash is. For example, if you are an avid scrapbooker and have a significant amount of paper and embellishments, you should get a large plastic shelving unit with several shelves. This can be easily purchased for a reasonable price at your local department store. You might even consider a large armoire that is specifically made for storing scrapbooking and craft supplies.

Another option is for you to get separate bins for each group of materials, and place them in a stacking fashion in the corner of whatever room you have designated specifically for crafts. However, if you do not have such a room in your home, you can purchase bins that also look very much like furniture.

The key to organizing hobby supplies is making sure they are easy to find when it comes time to work on a project. Also, it is important to put everything away neatly. For example, if you like using ribbons in your scrapbooking projects, you should make sure they do not just all get thrown in together, because that can result in them becoming tangled.

It is also important to remember that you can buy as many storage and organization tools as you want, but it really all comes down to how organized you are as a person. In fact, if money is no object, it is a good idea to hire a professional organizer to handle everything for you!

If you would like more information on supply organization and storage, search the internet, especially on forums where people who share your love of scrapbooking share advice on how to keep everything organized. There are even entire books on organizing scrapbooking materials. Check your local craft store for these books and scrapbooking magazines with articles on craft room design and supply storage.

Christine Perry is an avid scrapbooker and has over 10 years of scrapbooking experience. Her favorite photography and scrapbooking subjects are her reluctant teenagers. She invites you to her website, http://www.intoscrapbooking.com for more scrapbooking ideas and circle journal themes.

Author: Christine Perry
Article Source: EzineArticles.com
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I am the first to admit that I feel most at home and relaxed when everything is put in its place in a perfectly organized manner. In fact, I am almost overly organized to a fault. But there is something so satisfying knowing that everything has a place and it is sitting there comfortably until I need to use it. So I am going to share the plethora of knowledge I have of organizing. Of course, we will focus on scrapbooking! I have tried to summarize my favorite and best things to do to organize your scrapbooking supplies (keep in mind that I am branching out from the traditional ways to store things):

1. Embellishments Spice Rack: Use a spice rack to organize your embellishments. Many stores sell racks that are perfect for wall-mounting or you can get one to rest on a desk like a lazy susan. Either way, the containers are the perfect size for flowers, tacks, staples, tiles, brads, eyelets, etc. Make sure to get clear ones so you can see the embellishments. Check out the bathroom and kitchen section on your local stores (like Target, Wal-mart etc.). You would be surprised what types of storage solutions you can come up with for your scrapbooking embellishments.

2. Hanging Jars: You can adapt the above idea and make is really cheap too. You can make hanging jars by affixing old canning jars, baby food jars, or other jars with screwing lids to a shelf. All you have to do is drill a hole through the lid and the shelf and then screw the jar to it. If you dont want to permanently have holes in your shelf, just use double-sided sticky Velcro and attach it to the top of the lid and then under the shelf. This would work the best with the baby food jars or lighter plastic jars.

3. Traveling Scrapbookers: If you are a nomadic scrapbooker, there are many things you can use to store all those little embellishments. I have a tackle box that works really well for storage. Probably the best thing that I have seen besides the traditional storage totes, is the Caboodle (it was a plastic makeup container). I used to have one when I was a teenager. It works great with all those compartments. Find one at a garage sale (or in your own garage . . .) or check out your local stores for something similar in the cosmetics aisle.

4. Paper storage: We all know that you can buy lots of fun shelves, boxes, and trays for your paper. But while we are all trying to save up for those somewhat expensive items, what are some other ways to store your paper? I like the idea of using a dish drain (I am not kidding I actually tried it and love how accessible the paper is!). Find this idea and other “kitchen” organizing tools at: http://scrapbooking.about.com/library/weekly/blsstips5.htm

5. Hanging Paper Storage: Ok, this one is a little more traditional for storing your papers, but I think it is so unique that I had to talk about it. I love the idea of being able to use closet space to store your papers and other scrapbooking supplies.

Still having trouble organizing? Try a book organization ideas for scrapbookers. You too can become an organized scrapper!

Robin M. King is a photographer and long-time scrapbooker. She is a contributer to ScrapbookFinds.com, a comparison shopping tool for scrapbooking supplies. Read her blog and Ask Robin questions.

Author: Robin Michelle King
Article Source: EzineArticles.com
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With thousands of scrapbooking tools, papers, and embellishments to choose from, it is easy to quickly see yourself buried under a pile of scrapbooking supplies, especially if you’re living in a home that does not have a lot of extra space that can be dedicated to scrapbooking exclusively. The good news is that it is definitely possible to keep your scrapbooking area tidy even if you are a scrapbooking addict with tons of supplies. It just takes a little planning and organizational know-how.

The most important part is getting your scrapbooking paper out of the way and organized. Not just so you can keep it tidy when you’re not scrapbooking, but also so you don’t have to make a mess when you are working on a project. What you can do is buy a paper saver, which is available by several different scrapbooking brands. These file systems can help you categorize hundreds of different papers and tag them as you see fit for easy access without searching through them all in a frenzy.

If you do not want to spend money on a filing system built specifically for scrapbooking supplies, you can always use a regular office filing cabinet. You may even be able to pick one up that suits your needs for $5 or $10 at a garage sale or on Craigslist.

The extra drawers you will need for your tools and embellishments. Ultimately, you will be better off with compartments as well to separate the different types of accessories like stamps, stickers, and even into themes like Christmas, birthdays, etc. if you have the space. If you only have a couple drawers, what you can do is buy drawer inserts that have smaller spacing inside (similar to something like the one in your kitchen utensil drawer).

The basic idea is to have one spot to have all your scrapbooking supplies stored and neatly organized. Having something tall with several drawers and compartments will serve you best in a small space. You will also enjoy your scrapbooking time more if there’s less chaos and clean up is easy!