Get The TechniqueBelow is a really simple idea... Like many of us, I have a really hard time letting go of / getting rid of things, out of some vague sense that somewhere down the line I'll make excellent use of them... or really because I just like the way they look (which is apparently ok with Mr. William Morris, by the way)... But I recently realized that I have a habit here at work that is actually truly useful and helpful. I keep a large nice looking box on my desk and add bits of ephemera and paper scraps to it all the time. Anything that I like for whatever reason goes in, and it ends up being a nice archive of past projects, and a resource of threads for possible ideas for future ones. Its kind of a nifty way to be orgainzed with out actually being organized. Also very helpful for making cards etc.!
1
2 Gwen Frostic things... Courtesy of Laura Normandin! and yellow doily...
3 lace printed stickers, cool lithographed basketweave paper
4 stickers and wallpaper fragments, stencil cutting scraps
5 various patterned papers
6 lace printed note
7 very nice cat picture! vintage cards
From: Malinda Lloyd | 1/28/10 at 12:13 pm
I want everything in that box!!
From: elyse | 1/28/10 at 3:35 pm
i am beginning to have too many of these odds and ends boxes. soon i will need an odds and ends cabinet. LOL
xo
elyse
From: Elyse | 1/28/10 at 8:57 pm
I have a basket mounted on the wall of my kitchen but when it fills up, I go through everything and put it in binders (crafts, parties, cakes, etc.). It gives me the opportunity to weed through everything and throw out the things that I wonder why i clipped in the first place and I get to enjoy browsing through all of the old projects in the binders as I organize the new stuff.
From: Mieko | 1/28/10 at 10:34 pm
I have several shoe boxes covered with beautiful fabric in my home office and each box has a special purpose. I have a box for things from my wedding (like napkin, ring pillow, ribbon from bouquet, etc). I have a box for things my Japanese family have given me, like the scuba diving license my dad got when he was 18 years old (which was 52 years ago!), a tiny little teddy bear my sister gave me when I left Japan to study in Boston in 1992, my mom's beaded wallet which she bought with her first salary when she was 17 years old, etc. This way, my special things are right there, but do not clutter my space. I can open each of them and remember those special people and things in my life.
From: Liza Wheeler | 1/29/10 at 10:45 am
What a good idea, and a nice looking box, too.
From: craft lovely » Blog Archive » Inspiration Box | 2/1/10 at 6:26 am
[...] recent post over at Martha’s Crafts Dept. stopped me in my designer tracks. I’m quite the fan of creating inspirational boards and [...]
From: Emily | 2/9/10 at 6:22 pm
Yes...
My paper recycling bin in the craft room morphed into this same idea. Couldn't bear to throw away little scraps.