Organization is the key to a great crafter.

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I had a couple different ideas for tonight’s craft project but the night turned out much differently than I had planned. I took down the Christmas Tree and decorations and I was so excited to find I had much more room to store things than I did last year. I hadn’t even touched the small boxes I usually put the garland and snowman in. I was a bit puzzled but still stoked that I had it all in one nice neat red container to store for next year. That is until I turned and started to pick up the branches and place them in the box from which they came earlier in November. I looked around and could not find the box….I looked to my husband. He asked me what I was looking for and I told him I needed the box, the long white box that we store the tree in. I was sure he had moved it. He had a very awkward look on his face as if he was afraid to answer. I asked again. He tried to answer without laughing…..”you put everything in the tree box.” WHAT??? I kept my cool… “What do you mean I used the box, this is a red container not a long white box?!?!?”

“That tree came in a white box he replied as he pointed to the tree in the corner that was already put away….that one (pointing to the one on the floor) was stored in that red box.”

UGGH! Then came my brilliant idea. I needed to get out my craft supplies anyways and I knew there was a large box in the closet that contained many of my supplies. I thought maybe I could reorganize that box into smaller boxes and use the larger container to store the tree. IT WOULD BE A WIN WIN – I would get the tree put away and would see all my options for tonight’s craft. It was a great idea UNTIL I opened that box. WHAT WAS I THINKING! A huge tub full of ribbon to the brim mixed with other craft supplies and a huge bottle of gold glitter. I could have walked away and believe me I thought about it but I then I remembered one of my New Years Resolutions – To organize and minimize. I started in. About 2 1/2 hours later I finally had all the ribbon separated and organized by color. I also had a living room full of glitter and thread! I will be wearing glitter for days.

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Therefore my crafting tips for this Thursday are as follows:

• DON’T EVER PURCHASE GLITTER but if you do put it in a zip lock baggie, wrapped it in a Walmart bag and then finally store it in a separate container away from everything else. LOL
• It is not better to use a large container for every option. If you just throw things haphazardly into a box one day you will have to go through it.
• Mark and Label everything…it makes finding it when you want it so much easier.
• The better organized you are the less money you will spend. Going through my ribbon I realized I had several of the same pattern. Know what you have on hand before going to the store, especially if you are making the craft to turn a profit. This will save you time and money.

HAPPY CRAFTING