5 Tips to Help You Get Your {Crafting} Act Together

The definition of menagerie:  A collection of wild animals kept in captivity for exhibition. If you saw my crafting area, you might describe it just like this. I'm not an organized person. When describing myself to others, I can list off a whole host a talents to offer. Organization is not one of them. This has always driven my mother nuts. And now that I'm married, my poor husband has somehow been designated the resident zookeeper. I have to say, he does a pretty awesome job of not letting loose on me when my stuff has been strewn from one room to the next.
The real kicker is I can't work if things aren't clean and organized. I get overwhelmed by not being able to find stuff, digging through stuff, setting stuff up and breaking it all down. My brain just flips to another channel and I can't focus to save my life. So over the past few months, I've been working a little at a time at getting my act together. It's worked so far, as long as others don't try to sabotage my efforts (more on that in tip 1). By working slowly to form these new and foreign habits, I've managed to keep them up for the most part. I've been more productive and able to get through projects a lot quicker.
So here's a short list that I've put into practice to boost my productivity. While I offer no guarantees, If you adapt them to your situation, you'll see improvement as well.

                     Set aside a dedicated workspace

This is a must! I cannot stress this enough. If you were working in an office, would you have kids toys, your bills, or other non related projects in that space? Of course not. It would slow down your work flow. Why should your craft area be any different? This is YOUR office. Get a space in your house that won't be a collection spot for the bills, the kids books and toys, your husbands keys, etc. I chose a spot out in the garage. I love working al fresco. It's a nice cool space that doesn't take away from anyone else's working area. Most of my stuff can be hung up on a wall or put into a wall hugging cabinet. The biggest thing in my space is my table. It's not big, but it's mine. And that leads to tip 2...

                              Claim your territory!

Let people know that THAT space is yours. This is not a dumping ground for everybody else's things. You have to follow this rule, too. This is only for your crafting stuff. When you bring things home from the store or a show, PUT IT AWAY! Don't let things pile up. You'll lose it and forget that you ever had it until you go to clean up some months later and find it AFTER the event you needed it for. Keeping your area this way also lets others know your expectations of your stuff. If you respect it, they most likely will, too. But if you don't, how do you expect others to?

                                  Get containers

In the next post, I'll be showcasing some of my dollar store finds that have helped me to organize my workspace. But for now, suffice it to say, you NEED some containers to get your stuff divided out into categories. You don't have to go all out on this. Dollar store storage will do. But getting your stamps separated out from your washi tape is a must. How much time do you waste just trying to find stuff? And when I have a spot where stuff goes, I've found that I'm much more likely to put it back. Having containers and a spot to put them will keep your workspace clean, your mind uncluttered, and your stuff organized for longer. And your things don't all have to be in a container. Have a bunch of magazine cuttings or pieces of paper with ideas on them? Create a bulletin board where you can pin them. Have a few out at a time for the month until you can get them done. The point is, everything needs it's own space. This is not the thing to pinch on.

Get a project box

A project is just what it's name says that it is. A box for your project. Put everything in it that you need to complete that particular project. Paper, stamps, ink, cutting utensils... whatever. This may sound counter intuitive to getting organized. However, how many times when working on a project have you had to stop, find the next thing you need, work for a few minutes, stop, get the next thing... etc. Then you have amassed several items that are scattered everywhere. If you have to stop in the middle of said project, are you going to take the time to put everything away? No. A project box allows you to have easy access to all need supplies as well as a place to dump everything when you have to stop in the middle of something. This will keep your area clean as well. And if you are compulsive multi-tasker, than having two or three of these will keep the chaos at bay.

Get into a routine

This is probably the hardest of all of these tips. But just do it. The more you do it, the more it will become second nature. Set up, do, clean up, repeat. Implement these steps one or two at a time. Slowly add to your routine. You know why resolutions and goals often fail? Too much at one time. But as you get one thing down, add another thing to the routine. Pretty soon, your work flow is going to be just that... flowing. More projects will get done and your creativity will just be oozing out of you. And don't move on to the next thing until you have your current routine down.


I hope these tips will help you boost your crafting and creativity. I know they have for me. Have you found something else that really helps you stay organized? Let me know in the comments below.