Organize Your Craft Room, step by step

Other than this age old post about creating a little wrapping paper station/craft table in our third bedroom, we truly have not chatted much about organizing oodles of items as of yet. So here is a rundown of our tried and true approach (this is written specifically with craft room verbiage, but the method will work for any organization project in the house- from your linen closet to your tool box and even your kitchen cabinets):

Step #1. Get Out & About- Take everything that you need to organize and lay it out on a table or bed or the floor so you can see what you are dealing with. You instinct will be to skip this step, but it is crucial to truly know what you have and find the ideal home for each item.

Step #2. Be Trashy- Select everything that you no longer want/need and toss it into a trash bag to bring to Goodwill. Do not look back. If you have not used those stickers/ribbons/stamps/decorative papers/fabrics for two years you likely never will. Pare down to the good stuff and you will in fact use it.

Step #3. Play Matchmaker- Take the remaining items and group them like with like in clusters on the floor or the bed (ex: painting supplies together, paper together, stationery together, scissors and hole punchers together).

Step #4. Take Note- When you stand back and look at all the little piles that you’ve created, it will instantly be clear what type of storage containers/folders/caddies you will need to keep everything organized. Grab a pen and paper and write down what you believe you need (big box for ribbons and bows, five folders for stationery, three clear plastic cubes that can be stacked with paint and supplies in them, etc).

Step #5. Stop And Shop- Check the rest of your house to see what type of storage containers you already have. For example, a too-big caddy under the sink could be swapped out for the bulging basket of ribbons that is no longer big sufficient. And these glass cereal jugs could also be used to corral ribbons or yarn:

Step #6. Go Get ‘Em- When you are through shopping and swapping things out in your own house, see which items still remain on your list and hit up Target, Ikea, The Container Store or even Staples to see what types of storage options they offer. Grab whatever fits the needs that you have already established on paper. Resist the urge to get anything that does not as you will be creating the quite clutter that you are trying to clean up at the moment.

Step #7. Keep It Common- When you are selecting containers, folders, boxes, and caddies, you might want to keep a common color or material theme in mind so everything looks cohesive when it is on display in the room. You could simply go for all white containers or all woven basket-type storage stuff or even with a color theme and pick up all green boxes, folders, caddies, tins, etc. You can even get creative with what you use as a trash can (for instance if you are going for a woven theme, a big woven basket as a garbage can would be fairly and you can slip a tin or plastic garbage can inside if you are nervous about the basket getting dirty). A wire basket might look strong with plenty of metal tins and wire baskets if that is the material you’ve selected to organize your supplies. Similarly, a large planter makes an excellent garbage can (Ikea sells ’em for around $8) or even a strong wrapping paper storage container like our wedding present planter below:

Step #8. Up And At ‘Em- Also remember that you can go vertical with your storage. Be creative and hang storage baskets or boxes (wire, woven, wood, bright plastic, etc) from the wall or add a big shelf (check out the Ikea’s Lack ones) to corral more supplies and truly take advantage of the whole space.

Step #9. Work The Room- After you place each group of items in its designated box, basket, bin or tin, try to arrange things in an appealing (and functional) way so you can see and access as much as possible. Stack a smaller box on top of a larger one, or display all of your folders in a wire organizer, basket, or fabric box (see the first picture above for an example).

Step #10. Polish It Off- And since you also wanna feel good in the space, add a few fully decorative touches to make it feel welcoming and personalized (a soft rug, a sculptural lamp, a vase of flowers, a framed picture, etc). Even the smallest (and cheapest!) details can make all the difference, so consider adding a fairly mug in your color scheme full of pencils & paint brushes or displaying your prettiest ribbons or stationery in an open box or basket for all to see.

It may sound like a big project, but the whole thing can truly be lively and especially rewarding. You will sleep better knowing that you’ve AT LAST organized items that you’ve been toting around for a decade, and you will in fact get a lot more use out of the things that you enjoy (which were buried among the not-so-strong things that piled up over time). There is truly nothing like a clean, functional crafting space, and once you get began you will be surprised how straightforward it is to get to the end of the makeover. Before you know it you will be sipping tea and writing a sweet letter to a long lost friend at your newly organized desk… and wondering why you did not organize your craft corner sooner!

To tour a truly remarkable craft room, check out Nicole’s studio from Making It Lovely