Stay@Home Follow-Up Update

We had been Sheltering at Home for about a month when I came up with a plan to do some deep purging/organizing in my Play Room, so on April 12th I launched my weekly Stay @ Home Updates here on my blog. I continued those for 23 weeks, concluding on September 13th, when I divulged that I had worked through everything in my Play Room as well as every box/bin labeled Crafts in the garage, and would therefore no longer posting the weekly updates on my blog.

My plan was to continue to work on my index sheets for my stamp sets - for more information on that, take a look at THIS blog post. Well... let's just say I've had a bit of a slow go with that. I did not realize that we have a monthly limit of pages we can print on our printer without having to upgrade to a more expensive plan. Even though these pages only have 4 short lines of print on them, they still count as a page. UGH! I am literally only about 1/3 of the way through my project and may not be able to get it finished for months.

So, why this blog post??? Good question. I'm thought I'd share some other things that have happened in my Play Room organization since September 13th. I've mostly worked on six things (in addition to the stamp index sheets).

One

My 2-drawer lateral file was old and the drawers were not opening fully, which made it challenging to get the cardstock out without damaging it. I thought I wanted to switch to a pair of identical 2-drawer file cabinets instead but wasn't sure so kept hesitating to buy any. I happened upon a pair of used ones (CHEAP - but they do look pretty ugly with some scratches and a ding on one of the drawers). I purchased them thinking if I didn't like the new set up I wasn't out a lot of money. I actually LOVE them! Good decision! (These sit to the right of my stamping desk and the top is where I have my die-cutting system and dies.)

Two

You might remember that I shared how I'd put scraps with each paper pad that I have - in ticket holders. Here's a picture from that post...

Well, that wasn't very successful. First, it's not the way I find/use my scraps. I have them organized by categories in the drawer unit directly behind my stamping desk and I always look there first when creating a card. BUT I also discovered that the ticket holders make it very difficult to pull the paper pads off the shelf and put them back. So... I now have a huge stack on unused ticket folders and I put the scraps from those paper pads in with my other paper scraps where they will more likely be used.

Three

I have been storing my loose sheets of 12 x 12 paper in the plastic 3-drawer units. I've done that for years, but it never worked well. Invariably the piece I wanted was buried deep in the drawer and difficult to get to... and truthfully, a lot of times, I didn't even know what was in the bottom of those drawers. I couldn't figure out what I wanted - I would have loved hanging files, but 12 x 12 (especially when you have a lot of it) doesn't have good options for hanging files. I asked my trusted friend Barb how she stores her vast supply of DP and she shared pictures with me. I decided to do a similar method.

I purchased several Totally Tiffany Paper Handlers and moved my paper to them. Of course they are stored by theme, and labeled. I don't necessarily like the look (a bit too disheveled for my liking) but I am loving how much easier it is to find and retrieve the piece I want to use.

The top shelf in this picture shows paper pads without the ticket holders. ;)

Four

I've stored a lot of our photos (organized by theme/person) in file boxes on a shelf in the closet off of my Play Room. (Have I ever mentioned I have an amazing room!??! It even has a walk-in closet.) The shelf is deep and holds a lot but it's not always easy to get to things that are on the shelves. 

When I purged 8 x 12 papers (cheap cardstock, colored copy paper, etc.) and donated it earlier to my preschool teacher friend earlier this year, it freed up nearly 2 full drawers in my 4-drawer file cabinet. I decided to move our photos from the file boxes on that shelf into the file cabinet where they can easily be located.

Five

I have a lot of Illustrated Faith Bible Journaling Kits... and found I don't really do my Bible Journaling that way. They have a devotional, stamp set, washi tape, cut outs, and more in them. They really are very nice - for people who like that sort of thing. I like the stamp sets and the washi tape but not much else. LOL! So, I took them apart. EEK!

I now have the stamp sets stored separate from the other items where I can find them easily to use in my own Bible Journaling. I put the washi tape with my other washi tape. I might package up the devotionals, cut outs and stuff and use them as prizes at a Bible Journaling breakout I'll be leading next year.

Six (I may have saved my favorite for last)

I've wanted a locker for my Play Room for a long time! I've searched and searched the FB Marketplace for one nearby. I actually almost purchased one this summer - but she ended up backing out. Patience paid off. I found one! My husband and Brock went to pick it up for me and it's now proudly sitting in my Play Room!!!

What's in it? For now, I'm using it to organize items that I purged and am going to try to sell online - stamp sets, dies, ink pads, and more. Once I've completed all of that process, which may take me years as I have so much to sell, I'll use it to store some of my supplies.

It's been a productive few weeks since my last update. I hope you enjoyed seeing what I've been doing!

Thanks for stopping by my blog today!