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Oh my, what a thread! I totally understand how hard it is to break apart sets! And then the whole unmounting wooden stamps. Yikes! I have unmounted several (especially my large background stamps), but I have a lot of CTMH stamps. I shudder to think of unmounting those. Silly, isn't it? Boy, would it save a lot of space in my room, tho. I may have to rethink this...
I am starting to become more ruthless as I work. Pruning, breaking sets, it's snowballing...
I am also finding I have a lot of stupid stamps that I don't why I have. What did I think I was going to do with these stamps when I bought them?
And a lot of the stamps I bought when I first started out are now so totally useless to me. Those little SU hostess sets. Those PTI backgrounds where you have to take a strip and stamp it over and over. Before I discovered BG stamps that were 6X6 and didn't require aligning and re-stamping.
Luckily I'm rediscovering many stamps that I had forgotten about, so that's nice.
__________________ I have come to the conclusion that buying craft supplies and actually using them are two separate hobbies. RachelRose Designs by Robin... GALLERY
The more I read about you all organizing your stamps, the more I think about my own organization system. Right now, my system works very well for me. But . . .
As my collection grows, I can see how it can become unmanageable.
I definitely have an aversion to ripping my stamps off their wood mounts, but maybe I'll feel differently when I run out of storage space. Currently, my collection takes up two Iris style carts plus one drawer in my third cart. Once that cart is full, there is no more room unless I go to a different system.
I like the idea of trays filled with stamps neatly tucked in their Avery Elle envies, but that would mean a huge (for me) outlay of cash for the bins and envelopes. It would also require me to rearrange my craft room to make room on shelves for the bins. And then I'd either have stamps stored in two places or I'd be forced to unmount to keep them all together.
(anyone else notice that I'm frozen with fear, like a deer in the headlights of an oncoming Peterbuilt?)
As far as separating sets, the more I think about it, the more I feel that would be doable, especially with sentiments. But in looking at my older Stampin Up sets, the ones from the 1990s, I've noticed that style and compatibility would dictate they go together even if I choose to break them apart. It is the newer stamps and non-SU brands that seem to throw in a bunch of "something for everyone" in the sets.
For me to break my stamps into categories, I'd have to designate ONE category for each stamp. Currently, I have a binder index and some stamps are in multiple places. For instance, a tree might be in Trees & Christmas or a truck might be in Transportation & Vintage. So, I would need to give the categories a good think before I get started and overwhelm myself (which is super easy for me to do!)
Waffling, waffling. Straddling the fence. Decisions, decisions.
Then I do what I normally do. I run, stick my head in the sand and ignore the whole idea!
Edited to add:
Yesterday I counted each and every stamp, right down to the individual twig arms for my buildable snowman, every individual alphabet, even the tiniest little leaf and swirl in my collection and it totaled more than 800 stamps. So, I"m probably going to have to pull my head out of my . . . sand pile . . . and figure out what I'm gonna do in the future.
__________________ Melissa59 ♥
Last edited by melissa59; 02-12-2016 at 11:21 AM..
Edited to add:
Yesterday I counted each and every stamp, right down to the individual twig arms for my buildable snowman, every individual alphabet, even the tiniest little leaf and swirl in my collection and it totaled more than 800 stamps. So, I"m probably going to have to pull my head out of my . . . sand pile . . . and figure out what I'm gonna do in the future.
(Shhh...don't tell...I have more than 900 SETS of stamps, plus about 150 solo stamps... I HAD to categorize and index just to keep track!)
It does get to be too much when the collection grows. I can remember when I knew every set by heart, and where it lived in my room, etc. I think that my (epic fail) experiment was trying to move me back to that, but it's just not gonna happen. I do get rid of stamps that I know I'll never use, so my sets aren't all complete, but there are still so many that I LOVE and want to use, plus more that I want to acquire, so there it is... I can divest myself of dies and embossing folders and papers without a lot of pain, but leave my stamps alone! And I still love my punches, too (but that's a whole 'nother topic)...
As far as cost and all, I use $1 photo albums that I cannibalize to make sleeves for my storage, and Diane (fionna51) has all of hers in drawers like you're already using, so it doesn't have to be a huge investment of $$, just time and patience. And you can use the same configuration you're using now, just label the drawers with what's in them, so you can find things - problem solved!
I am starting to become more ruthless as I work. Pruning, breaking sets, it's snowballing...
I am also finding I have a lot of stupid stamps that I don't why I have. What did I think I was going to do with these stamps when I bought them?
And a lot of the stamps I bought when I first started out are now so totally useless to me. Those little SU hostess sets. Those PTI backgrounds where you have to take a strip and stamp it over and over. Before I discovered BG stamps that were 6X6 and didn't require aligning and re-stamping.
Luckily I'm rediscovering many stamps that I had forgotten about, so that's nice.
I am both more impressed-you are pruning out too? Check you out multi-tasking! Go girl! and laughing...."lot of stupid stamps....". Been there, AM there, will be there again....
I only store by category if I end up with several of a theme, like bunny stamps or birthday sentiments. I tend to store by size instead. But it helps that I have reduced my stamp collection quite a bit over the past few years as I decided many went unused and were taking up valuable space. I kept what I truly liked and would continue to use for myself.
Cindy - what do you mean, store by size? Intriguing, the different ways our brains like to sort things.
I am pruning and buying at the same time, wavejumper, so I'm not sure congratulations are in order. As I see gaps, I am starting to fill them in. Nothing like a good excuse to buy, and not having enough of something is a good enough excuse for me.
I am surprised at some of the categories I have enough stamps for.
This one's for you, Lydia - we had a laugh about this some time ago: I took stock and now have a WHOLE STORAGE PANEL of hot air balloons! Why???? (I guess I need to start making steampunk cards.)
__________________ I have come to the conclusion that buying craft supplies and actually using them are two separate hobbies. RachelRose Designs by Robin... GALLERY
Rachel, most of my stamps are wood mounted and I store them in plastic storage boxes stacked in a cabinet. Some are pretty large so those go in a bigger box and some are quite small so those go in a container with trays. I have limited storage space so the stacked boxes work best for me and I don't have the room to have a separate box for each theme. But as I said, when I end up with several of the same theme, I try to put those together (just did that with Christmas stamps except for a very large snowflake stamp that wouldn't fit in the same box. That went with the other large ones.
Also, all my cling and unmounted stamps are in the same box regardless of the theme.
Okay, now I understand. Didn't realize you were talking about wood mount.
You know, I am finding that - despite my efforts to avoid it - I am buying wood mount stamps now and again because that's the only way a particular image comes. I find this surprising, since I think the trend is definitely away from wood mounts, yet everyone seems to still be offering them.
I have unmounted plenty of wood mounts, but I find it can be a bother. Yes, if the stamp peels right off, you're golden, but if it doesn't you have to go through the whole Citrasolve soaking nonsense until you've got a clean enough stamp to either use bare or put on cling. I like to put my stamps on cling, and that's more work. So I've been leaving them wood mounted and am running out of room to store them. Another thing to rethink.
I just stamp my wood mounts on the index for the panel the stamp "belongs" on and write "wood" underneath. So far that's been enough direction, since I only have twenty or so wood mounts. But for someone who has many, I don't know how you keep track of where each one is stored!
__________________ I have come to the conclusion that buying craft supplies and actually using them are two separate hobbies. RachelRose Designs by Robin... GALLERY
As you're discovering, Robin - rearranging your stamp storage is the PERFECT time to weed out the unloved/unused/unwanted stamps! My work as a professional organizer, although limited, showed me a common thread: piles of unsorted papers (junk mail, valid bills, magazines, etc.) and piles of laundry (clean, dirty, unfolded - what?) and all the rest of it. Things just got piled, because they couldn't be bothered to sort through anything. I'm a firm believer in touching something ONCE and dealing with it RIGHT NOW. I fold clothes as they come out of the dryer, open all the mail as soon as I pull it out of the mailbox and put it where it needs to be - trash, in the bill drawer (in chronological order, of course) - that sort of thing.
I'm the same way in my stamp room organization - as soon as I get a new set of stamps the index card is stamped, the stamps are put into the sleeve, and they go wherever they are supposed to be in the system. If they are not already bare rubber, I turn them into that right then, too. If they're wood-mounted, the blocks get tossed or gifted. If they're cling mount, they get stripped down and 2-way glue put on the back and sit there until the glue is dry and I can put them away. My time is limited and precious (isn't everyone's?) and I don't like wasting it by dealing with ANYTHING multiple times!
I understand that everyone operates differently, and have different levels of comfort with different levels of clean/clutter. For me, personally, that adage "as the within, so the without" is definitely true. If my space is cluttered, so is my thought process and I can't be productive or creative AT ALL. It doesn't even have to be actual clutter. I have to have many of my supplies more or less hidden, because if I'm looking at all of it I'm unable to choose which things to use! I use 4" x 6" storage panels because 5 1/2" x 8 1/2" was too much information on a page for me to process. I know that I am weird that way (I often refer to myself as Odd Brain on my blog if/when I ever get around to posting), but since I'm aware of it I can operate around it.
We all have to do what works with our unique come-from, so there's more information than you ever wanted/needed about mine... My original idea was just to say "Hooray for you for purging while you organize!", but my train of thought derailed and there you go...
I would NEVER break up my sets............Oh the thought of it makes me hyper-ventilate!! My Mother does, but not me. I have a big 3 ring binder that has pictures of each stamp set, and you'd be surprised how fast I can rifle through that; and after all these years, I know where to find each stamp set in my storage....which is in a cabinet for my wood mounts and a bookshelf for my cling/polymer. To each their own
__________________ Mary ~~ QFTD #152, FS#514CC Guest Design Team 2012, 2013, 2017 & 2022 2014 CAS Spring Design Team MemberSC Guest Design Team 2015 & 2022 SU Consultant "Life's greatest adventure is finding your place in the Circle of Life" - Lion King
Yes, Mary - that is so true. And each of us has to be true to ourselves, and not feel we need to yield to the imagined pressure of "everyone else is…" It's so wonderful that we are all here, sharing our own systems and our own thought processes, and so wonderful how different we all are. You can take what you want and leave the rest alone. But how great to have so much to choose from.
As for me, I am now thinking that there are some places where I am going to insert a panel with die cuts.
For instance, I don't have a whole section for button stamps, but I have a panel of button stamps in my Misc. section. I also have quite a few button dies. I think I will do a cut of each, glue them down and slip that into a PP and file it after my button stamps.
Borders are another example. I have quite a few very pretty border die cuts. I am going to make a borders die-cut index and put in after the two panels that have my borders/flourishes.
I think I might also do this with the decorative leaf die cuts I have, and file it in the Flowers section. As I am working, I can see how useful it is to see all of a category at once, and die cuts are often part of that picture.
The old adage "out of sight, out of mind" has taken on a new meaning to me. In my case, it's very apt.
I have also blithely broken up two of the three brands of sets I thought I would not break up when I began. Really, I never used the components together. They will be more useful, I think, in their respective categories. I am labeling everything I index so putting things back together wouldn't be a problem if I decide to do that. Sue, I can't believe you did this and undid it several times. Amazing!
The third brand of stamps I think will stay as it is for now, because the pieces interact with each other across the various panels.
__________________ I have come to the conclusion that buying craft supplies and actually using them are two separate hobbies. RachelRose Designs by Robin... GALLERY
Thank you, Robin, for mentioning what you're doing with the diecuts - BRILLIANT! I do have a binder with samples of all of my dies, but putting samples in with stamps of the same category is so logical and useful! Now I know what my next "organization" project will be! And I agree with you on how vast the methods and the thought processes behind them are, thank goodness and hooray for us all!
As you're discovering, Robin - rearranging your stamp storage is the PERFECT time to weed out the unloved/unused/unwanted stamps!
After following this thread all along, I've decided to weed through all my drawers and pull stuff OUT! Yea!
Quote:
Originally Posted by gregzgurl
My work as a professional organizer, although limited, showed me a common thread: piles of unsorted papers (junk mail, valid bills, magazines, etc.) and piles of laundry (clean, dirty, unfolded - what?) and all the rest of it. Things just got piled, because they couldn't be bothered to sort through anything.
Yes, some of that amazes me, too. But I struggle with the paper stuff sometimes. That's where Marie Kondo (Konmari method of "tidying up") would have a heyday with me! That and books. But the books DO NOT go!!!
Quote:
Originally Posted by gregzgurl
I use 4" x 6" storage panels because 5 1/2" x 8 1/2" was too much information on a page for me to process. I know that I am weird that way (I often refer to myself as Odd Brain on my blog if/when I ever get around to posting), but since I'm aware of it I can operate around it.
I would consider other sizes and shapes of storage panels, but the half-sheet size is definitely the best for my drawers. Do what works!
I'm afraid to count mine. I'm probably in the same ballpark.
Yes, even after the major purge and move. This is what collecting for nearly two decades does, ya know... This is testament to two things:
Going unmounted saves TONS of space! I could fit my ENTIRE stamp collection in TWO banker's file boxes for the move (that includes a few that were in binders and a couple of peg alphabet sets).
Getting rid of the unwanted/unloved/unused stamps from sets regains real estate for you AND clears the way for you to see and use the ones you hang onto...
My collection is not so big (yet). This system will be more challenging to keep up as it grows (no more just sticking the stamp set on a panel, labeling it and putting it in alphabetical order), so I hope I love it once it's up and running! So far, I can't see any downside. But Sue, you did, and put your sets back together. What was the reason, if I can ask?
__________________ I have come to the conclusion that buying craft supplies and actually using them are two separate hobbies. RachelRose Designs by Robin... GALLERY
I am beyond ridiculous at anything/everything in the organization realm
Now that I have that out if the way, let me try to answer your question... When I first went unmounted I left the sets together. Then I read about Diane's method of putting like with like and it made sense to me (as most/all of her organizational stuff does), so I did that.
When I purged before my move I was doing this in a big hurry and so, when we got to our new home and unpacked everything, things were in a bit of disarray and I wasn't sure what I had left of each set. I put them together again to take stock and see what was what and get it back to organized.
After taking stock, I split everything up again. I truly did use things more when they were split out into categories. However, I started noticing that I was spending time wondering what went with whatever stamp I had in my hand, and I'd go looking for other pieces/parts of the set. So I put them back together again.
My system now (still a work in progress) is sort of a hybrid. If a set is images that I will likely use together, then I store them that way. If it's images that mix and match freely, then they are in categories like flowers or children or Christmas critters or whatever. The "sets" are also in categories, but there's obviously some crossover. If there are elements in the set that would go in another category, I stamp a card and it goes with the other category. Sentiments are all separated out from images but, again, if it would likely be used with a particular set because of the font or whatever, then I stamp it on the card with the images, and store the actual stamp with the other sentiments in that category. Clear as mud?
I'm also implementing another experiment: I have pulled out "favorites" from the general sentiment stash - four or five favorite "Thank You" stamps, a handful of "Thinking of You", etc., and put them in a binder. I'm going to see if operating out of that binder is sufficient and I can let the other sentiments go, or if I find myself looking for other stamps. Answering a question in Odd Brain, if you will... This does NOT include sentiments that are quotes or poems or whatever - just the more-or-less generic phrases.
Let me reiterate that I KNOW that I am ridiculous! If I spent as much time creating as I do organizing I'd be buried under a mountain of cards and mini albums and all the rest of it! I think this is my unique brand of OCD (or CDO - please put them in alphabetical order...), and I truly can't NOT test out a method if it sounds more efficient than the one I'm already using... I enjoy the process, and find it immensely rewarding to produce order out of chaos.
I also soothe my psyche by telling myself that I'm saving all of YOU the trouble of testing out methods to see what works and what doesn't. The (obvious) flaw in that theory is that what works for one person may/may not work for someone else.
SOOOO - aren't you glad you asked? I'm done with my book now, and I am going to try really hard not to add to this thread any more...
1) You are not a thread hog. A thread is by nature infinite (well, probably not really, but there are some that have been ongoing virtually for years), so you can't say you have taken more than your share, since there's nothing to divide into shares.
2) When I post a thread, it is with the hope that people who have done a lot of thinking about/have a lot of experience in what I have posted will respond. Along with anyone else with anything at all to say on the subject. ;)
I totally get what you are saying. There are system rules, and then there are places where the rules have to be bent or the system becomes unhelpful. I was standing in my studio a moment ago and looking at my not-very-large collection of car, train, plane, bicycle and boat stamps. What to do? It seemed like giving each category a panel would be alphabetically satisfying but also a waste of space and panels, and I don't really see myself collecting a lot more of any of the above categories. Of course, that might change, but then I could break out a new category and put all the cars, for instance, in one place. But what to call my mixed panel? Yes, I was that brain-fried. Mr. Wonderful came in and looked at my panel and said "Oh, that looks cool all together like that." I wailed "Yes, but what do I call it? Cars-Trains-Planes-Bicycles-Boats?" He said "How about Transportation?" Oh, right. Duh. Done.
HOWEVER, not totally done. See, I have this single anchor stamp. Should I put it next to one of the ships? I'm going to have to have a "Misc. Things" category of some sort, so maybe there. But I can't see myself ever using the anchor without the boat. So, I'm going to put it next to the boat it came with. A little system tweak that makes sense.
Your sentiments experiment sounds like an interesting thing to try. I suspect it is not going to be enough, that you will find yourself searching out other sentiments, but totally worth a go.
In any case, post away at will. I'm not getting tired of hearing from you. (Or any of the other people who are willing to type up in so much detail their organizational systems!)
__________________ I have come to the conclusion that buying craft supplies and actually using them are two separate hobbies. RachelRose Designs by Robin... GALLERY
Last edited by Rachelrose; 02-14-2016 at 09:00 AM..
I agree with Rachelrose, Sue. You are NOT a thread hog. I find your organization thought and implementation processes to be fascinating. And I am greatly impressed that you are able to find the time and energy to test your organizational theories.
Like RR, one of the things I struggle with is categories. But for me, it's not just about what to name a category as much as what goes in it. For instance, if I have an image that fits into multiple categories, how do I decide which one it goes into?
I'm going to start another thread about categories because I think it will be fun and enlightening to see how others are doing it.
I am really learning a lot from all these threads. Over the years I have wanted to do what so many of you have done but I have digressed. I have especially debated separating sets and removed rubber from mounts.
Last year we moved from a 2000 ft. home to a retirement community and a home with a tiny bit over 1000 ft. Luckily it has 2 bedrooms so I still have my stamp room. Smaller but all mine. At my last home every wall had shelves. From the floor to as high as I could reach them. DH made them for me. I had a lot of my stamps in sight. I say a lot because I have way more than anyone should have.
I used to work for a paper company called Papers by Catherine. Some of you long time stampers may remember their products. Cathy received free stamps from companies like Hero, etc. We would make samples using our papers and their stamps to be used in stamp stores. Lucky for me we couldn't use "old" stamps so when new ones came the old ones were given to me and my friend who also worked there. I have probably several thousand if you add what I bought through the 20 something years I have been stamping.
I still have several shelves on the wall but not space for them all. I bought IKEA storage for the rest of the walls. Things are stored in all sorts of ways and most in the original sets. I do have a 10 drawer cabinet my DH made me when I first started. I holds all my Christmas stamps now.
After reading everything here I may have to unmount my "keeper" wood stamps and get rid of the rest and categorize. I have 4 or 5 boxes of stamps in storage now that I never see any more.
Robin - you are too kind, but I do feel (a little) better, so thank you...
The "tweaks that make sense" are the ones that make it work for the individual - mine will likely be different than yours, and both of ours will likely be different than someone else's.
I found that I reverted to broader categories because it worked better for me in most cases. Instead of "Flowers" and "Trees and Leaves" and "Other Nature" (mushrooms, cacti, etc.) I just have "Things that Grow", because there was too much crossover in my sets. Likewise, I have a Travel category that includes vehicles and images specific to a region (Eiffel Tower, Southwest imagery, etc.)
I make myself crazy enough without over-thinking categories. As long as I can find it, I'm good. If I can't find it, I tweak it so I can find it next time. And so it goes...
lol. I had the same thought about Sue and the 900 (sounds like the movie 300 minus the hot abs) I guess doing bare rubber does save a lot of space if you fit all that into two file boxes!
Doing this was easy when I was working on clear categories. When things get muddy, it's easy to start asking yourself if you're making a mistake. :0!
I have a number of stamps that are small collages, or collage-y images, or blocks of pattern that aren't big enough for BGs. Most would be either background design elements or used behind a focal point. For now, I'm calling them all PANELS. Not very specific but I'll know what I mean.
But as I break up sets, there is text that goes with some of the sets. Not sentiments per see, just text that could be used as, well, design elements. I'm going to keep those all together "Text - decorative". I think. Having to label all these small bits is annoying but I have a need to still know exactly where things came from.
Just a little turbulence. I'm fastening my seatbelt and putting up my tray table until it passes. ;)
__________________ I have come to the conclusion that buying craft supplies and actually using them are two separate hobbies. RachelRose Designs by Robin... GALLERY
Love this thread and ALL of the posts!
Hope to implement --
Have started, but it sure is a job.....
Thanks to all of you for your ideas. Love the way this group shares!
Yes, some of the most interesting conversations I have, I have on this website. ;)
__________________ I have come to the conclusion that buying craft supplies and actually using them are two separate hobbies. RachelRose Designs by Robin... GALLERY
When you stamp your indexes, really try to get the best possible image. You are going to be using these images for inspiration, not just to locate stamps, so they need to be as beautiful as possible. If I messed up an image, I re-stamped it on copy paper and glued it over the bad image. Over and over I was surprised at how differently I responded to an "okay" image as opposed to a crisply stamped version of the same stamp. I say this because I just literally re-stamped every stamp I own, all the panel indexes had to be redone, and it's kind of tiring and easy to get sloppy. Don't get sloppy. You can't see the true possibilities for an image unless it's a great image.
Expect both of the following to occur to you in a cyclical manner as you work:
1) Oh, I never realized how pretty my stamps were!
2) What IS all this stuff? Why in hell did I buy it?
Prune as you go, but be vigilant not to let pruning to become an excuse to save yourself work. Again, re-organizing is demanding and tiring, so you are going to have moments when you look at a stamp and say "I don't really LOVE this, so…" and the wastebasket is going to look very inviting. "Why not?" you will think, "I'll just toss it in there and then I won't have to ink it up, stamp it, clean it off, dry it, put it on the panel and label the index image with maker and name." Prune with restraint, or you'll lose things you should have kept.
Leave yourself room to not decide about some things. I still have three panels (sets) I have not taken apart, and I am just letting myself get used to the new system before I decide if I am going to separate them. I might not. It's up to me. Because it's my system, designed by me for me. It can be whatever I want.
__________________ I have come to the conclusion that buying craft supplies and actually using them are two separate hobbies. RachelRose Designs by Robin... GALLERY
