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My question first-- any advice as to how to organize a put back plan so the case is easy to find again.
My stamps are now 99 percent organized in dvd cases. I have kept most in sets, but do have some cases of like sentiments, i.e. Thank you, happy birthday, etc.
At the bottom of each case is a colored dot for a category. I started with holidays and seasons. Then went to themes, i.e words sentiments, birthday, flowers, leaves, trees, circles, frames nd so on. A dot chart at eye level reminds me of the code. Some have several dots.
Each case has a name either the name it came with or a created one.
On 3x5 index cards, i stamped every stamp i have (75% completed). On the back of the card is the set that stamp is in. Plus any notes i need for good stamping. The cards are filed by theme/ subject and have a subject label if there are three or more in that subject. I.e snowmen, daisies, pine trees, get well, thank you., it gets a subject division card. Almost 3000 fit in a double fridge biz bin.
All of this works like a charm. Saves time , clutter and frustration.
BUT-- my question. Easy case return to be found quickly?
Alphabetical by title seems logical, but with 20-30 titles starting with S its too time consuming. Any advice would be appreciated?
I wish i knew how to add pictures to this to be more clear.
I would number the cases. Then you don't have to worry about alphabetical order when you get new sets, just add the next number. The number can be written on your index guide too. It will even take up less space than the stamp name.
Numbering makes sense. I have my sentiments separate from my regular sets. I also have Christmas sets separate from the rest. Then all the rest of my sets I have in alphabetical order. I sometimes don't get them back in the exact order, but they are usually in the same stack as they should be.
I have everything photographed by set in Evernote. Then each stamp set notefile is tagged with theme and every sentiment. So if I really can't remember, I can just filter by tags. Or I can just look up the last few sets that are out to backtrack with my matching to put it all back. I'm so loving Evernote for all sorts of reasons now that I have a good portion of it done.
What works best for me is to break up the sets and have everything organized by theme - all the flowers together, all of the butterflies together, etc. The way I store my stamps is in 4" x 6" photo sleeves. The stamped index sheet is on one side of the sleeve, the laminated cardstock loaded with the stamps is on the other side. I just flip through the box with that theme to see which one I want to use, then leave that sleeve out until I'm done, then put it back where I got it. I do have a binder with images of the full sets for reference, but I rarely refer to it. I considered doing an index of each theme, but it's just as easy to flip through the sleeves as it is to look at an index and then go find it...
I have everything photographed by set in Evernote. Then each stamp set notefile is tagged with theme and every sentiment. So if I really can't remember, I can just filter by tags. Or I can just look up the last few sets that are out to backtrack with my matching to put it all back. I'm so loving Evernote for all sorts of reasons now that I have a good portion of it done.
Don'tcha just looooove Evernote? All my stamp sets are in Evernote and I have way more than I am wiling to admit. I have all my punches, dies, thinlits, framelits, DSP, EVERYTHING in there! I am pulling out sets I haven't touched in a couple of years because I forgot about them. When I search Evernote, it brings up all the images/sentiments related to my search and then I use stuff that was filed way past my mental capability to remember them. It was a big job to get everything in Evernote, but I did most of the indexing when I was off work with a broken arm. I couldn't stamp, but I could type one-handed, so I got the job done. All my stamp sets are filed alphabetically, so Evernote gets me to the right set and as long as I remember my ABCs I will be able to find what I want.
__________________ Sylvia D.
Melodious Mingler Grandma My Gallery
I am wondering which brand of photo sleeve you use. And just one layer of cardstock laminated ? Or 2 layers. ?
I cut apart cheapo photo albums from AC Moore, Walmart or the dollar store. I typically cut the cardstock in half and put it in the laminating pouch, then run it through the laminator. Since only half of the pouch had cardstock in it, the other half fuses to itself, so I have the laminated cardstock and a clear sheet to use as a cover to keep the stamps from sticking to the photo sleeve. I have more detailed directions and pictures HERE on my blog. It's toward the bottom of the post (which is long - sorry...).
What works best for me is to break up the sets and have everything organized by theme - all the flowers together, all of the butterflies together, etc. The way I store my stamps is in 4" x 6" photo sleeves. The stamped index sheet is on one side of the sleeve, the laminated cardstock loaded with the stamps is on the other side. I just flip through the box with that theme to see which one I want to use, then leave that sleeve out until I'm done, then put it back where I got it. I do have a binder with images of the full sets for reference, but I rarely refer to it. I considered doing an index of each theme, but it's just as easy to flip through the sleeves as it is to look at an index and then go find it...
If you break up your sets, do you not sell them when you are finished or have too many?
I pretty much give them away when I'm done. It's too much trouble to list everything and what have you (in my opinion), and there's always someone somewhere who would be thrilled to have them. Many of the sets are incomplete now, anyway, because I already gave away the stamps from them that I knew I would never use. Sometimes I end up only keeping one stamp out of an entire set, and most people are all-or-nothing, so I couldn't sell them anyway... As I'm sure you can tell, I don't really have an attachment to most of them. I have a handful that you will have to pry out of my cold, dead hands, but it truly is only a handful.
I scan all my sets into a photo manager and tag them with categories, descriptions, stamp companies, and other stuff so I can easily find the type of stamp I want. Most are stored in DVD cases alphabetically on those IKEA shelving units. So easy to find whatever I need. I plan to scan in tools and embellishments too.
The organizing Im doing has me never looking in more than three places to find what I want to use.
The three categories are. Calendar: for holidays and special use only.
Themes : birthdays, sentiments, flowers, trees, etc.
Color: for markers, ink, paper, bling, powder, glitter, etc.
These three are sub titled by amount of stuff I have in that catagory.
Example: christmas tree embossing folder or die with trimings- labeled in christmas
Untrimmed pine tree- labeled in theme trees
This is working for eveything. Embossing folders, stamps, dies, punches, inks, markers, paper, pastes, glitter, powders, stencils, and bling.
Thanks for asking.
I love it and i can make more cards in a clearer work area.
I use bindersheets with velcro tabs to hold contents and file in bins. Cut my storage space down by more than 60 percent.
I'm with Sue. I break up sets and group images together, which are stored in categorized binders. There is virtually no market for used crafts so I don't worry about reselling them.
__________________ Debbie "Make it work, people." - Tim Gunn My Gallery
I pretty much give them away when I'm done. It's too much trouble to list everything and what have you (in my opinion), and there's always someone somewhere who would be thrilled to have them. Many of the sets are incomplete now, anyway, because I already gave away the stamps from them that I knew I would never use. Sometimes I end up only keeping one stamp out of an entire set, and most people are all-or-nothing, so I couldn't sell them anyway... As I'm sure you can tell, I don't really have an attachment to most of them. I have a handful that you will have to pry out of my cold, dead hands, but it truly is only a handful.
Totally agree as I do the same. I'm not going to keep something I'll never use. :p
I have several categories all based on how I use the stamp. For some I probably have way to many categories, but it really makes it easy for me to find a stamp.
I am leaning toward organizing, at least, to start themes and greetings. In separate storage holders; probably SU boxes; as the closing is secure, for sure. I would keep an index sheet inside that box that shows what set that stamp belongs to next to a stamped image; for resale or tax donating in future; to return to original stamp set.
Binder indexing with image is not that convenient for me either.
__________________ Carolyn
my avatar: (such desparation), Dear God, if you can't make me thin; make my
friends fat"
I use a double fridge bin and 3x5 index cards to stamp and file stamped images of my stamps. Holds thousands of cards. They are filed by holidays and themes. the card also contains info of which set the image is in. Makes it easy to find which of the many happy birthday or thank you, etc i want to use.
I can believe how organized I was for xmas and valentines day. Easter was a snap also and i found I used stamps Ive forgotten about.
I have plenty f space for notes on the back. I.e stamping hints or who i already used that image for.
[QUOTE=estamps;20946796]My question first-- any advice as to how to organize a put back plan so the case is easy to find again.
My stamps are now 99 percent organized in dvd cases. I have kept most in sets, but do have some cases of like sentiments, i.e. Thank you, happy birthday, etc.
At the bottom of each case is a colored dot for a category. I started with holidays and seasons. Then went to themes, i.e words sentiments, birthday, flowers, leaves, trees, circles, frames nd so on. A dot chart at eye level reminds me of the code. Some have several dots.
Each case has a name either the name it came with or a created one.
On 3x5 index cards, i stamped every stamp i have (75% completed). On the back of the card is the set that stamp is in. Plus any notes i need for good stamping. The cards are filed by theme/ subject and have a subject label if there are three or more in that subject. I.e snowmen, daisies, pine trees, get well, thank you., it gets a subject division card. Almost 3000 fit in a double fridge biz bin.
All of this works like a charm. Saves time , clutter and frustration.
BUT-- my question. Easy case return to be found quickly?
Alphabetical by title seems logical, but with 20-30 titles starting with S its too time consuming. Any advice would be appreciated?
I wish i knew how to add pictures to this to be more clear.
This is such a good question and something I need to do!
Right now I have some stamps in carts and some on shelves in large plastic containers, not the best storage. But what I have done and it helps somewhat is the stamps with only sayings are in one container, other containers and drawers are labelled, flowers, characters, stamps for punches, Christmas, throughout the year, masculine, etc However I have kind of outgrown this. I really like your idea of the colourerd dot coding
What I am thinking of doing, and considering some things that have been mentioned in this thread is to put a letter and number on each stamp set. The letter would stand for the cart or container the stamp set is in and the number which drawer it is in, everything would be in a general area.
I have all my stamps on the Evernote program (in your case you could use your cards) and would indicate the filing letter and number on there for easy retrieval.
I really like the idea of just numbering the stamps as you get them, and filing in number order, sounds so easy. I would need a different storage system, I think just basically narrow shelves would be wonderful for that. Again have the number on the stamp set and on the Evernote ( or index card) File to make it easy to find.
Sue. I know you posted this a while ago but I would be interested to see which stamps are your faves that you can't part with. I am new to this and want to collect some "tried and true". There are many sets I have biught and then when received - I think "now what do I do with this?"
__________________ Creativity is intelligence having fun. - Albert Einstein
evernote is free for basic use: https://evernote.com/contact/support...ticle/23258452
as shown here; for the average crafter it should be enough. I have copied and paste the url of digital image from website, to a notebook category. Just highlight, copy and paste into notebook for digital items and add a tag of category. you could try that.
__________________ Carolyn
my avatar: (such desparation), Dear God, if you can't make me thin; make my
friends fat"
Sue. I know you posted this a while ago but I would be interested to see which stamps are your faves that you can't part with. I am new to this and want to collect some "tried and true". There are many sets I have biught and then when received - I think "now what do I do with this?"
I know it's been awhile since you posted this (sorry!), but I sent you a PM... In case anyone else was wanting to know, I don't really have "tried and true" that I'm attached to, just some quirky favorites - a few Stampotique stamps and the retired SU! set Knobbly Gnomes - that I refuse to pass along. The other stuff rotates in and out of favor based on my mood, current style, the challenge or occasion, etc...
I am also thinking of breaking up my stamp set; at least for sentiments. I would make a copy index sheet of the stamps within the SU box, then list where I stored that stamp sentiment or whatever; so I could return it to SU box for resale or to complete that set again. I especially need something to find sentiments quickly; and would like to have sentiments in one location to go to quickly.
__________________ Carolyn
my avatar: (such desparation), Dear God, if you can't make me thin; make my
friends fat"
Evernote free isn't big enough for me, I have over 2GB of data now. But I like the idea. I will have to look around for something else.
I like the idea of breaking up my stamp sets for ease of finding stuff especially for sentiments, but then my OCD takes over and I just can't do it. LOL! I do have a notebook that I stamp all the sentiments in by type and list where I can find them, but I forget to update it when I get new sets in.
I just hate finding something after I was looking for it.
A green dot on my cases tells me there are good sentiments in that case. Also the index card is filed as a sentiment in the theme. Happy BD, Get Well, etc. i not only can check all sentiments in that theme, but also the size, font, etc quickly.
Ok i goofed. This is the stamp index file sideways for some reason. I'll try once more.
I wish I could figure out hoew to attach my gallery to the posts.
You can add tags to notes, and many notes can share tags (like birthday). So when you search for birthday in Evernote - anything with that tag will show up. Searches may pull up words within notes, but I don't believe it can "see" within an image (I could be totally wrong though)!!
Gosh, I haven't posted to a forum in forever! And I feel like a total Luddite... "What is this Evernote of which the youth of today speak?" (hee) Y'all have me intrigued. Feeling like I might need this! Thanks for the tip.
Gosh, I haven't posted to a forum in forever! And I feel like a total Luddite... "What is this Evernote of which the youth of today speak?" (hee) Y'all have me intrigued. Feeling like I might need this! Thanks for the tip.
Here you go. I don't use this, but here's their website which explains it a little:
A green dot on my cases tells me there are good sentiments in that case. Also the index card is filed as a sentiment in the theme. Happy BD, Get Well, etc. i not only can check all sentiments in that theme, but also the size, font, etc quickly.
So, do you just have one image on each index card? Or do you stamp say as many "Thank You" stamps as you can get on each one? This sounds like something I may do...
__________________ Sally Taylor, Fun Stampers Journey Coach #1118
One image on a card except for a few flowers that "build" on top of each other and are not used alone. Sometimes i stamped the image/words on more than one card if filing theme was an issue and it fit more than one category to be filed in.
On the back of the card is the title of the set it is in.
When I want "thank you" for instance. I go to the thank you divider. Grab the stack and quickly go through the too big or two small and pull out the samples that might work. I go to my punch sample ring or die and see what will fit. Select what I want, check set name and find that case. Put card back immediately. I have over 4000 cards. I also make notes when stamping or using that stamp. Like: " use versa fine on this one for clearer image or besure to ink center well" or used this twice already for Sue, etc. it makes like so easy.
I advise that you start with holidays first a month or two before you need the stuff, then go on to the next sets like sentiments and word sets. The other sets can be done as you find time. Some times you can work sets that have the same theme like flowers or kid sets, etc.
I put a box of work together, blocks,old ink pads to use up and get rid of , pen, cards, cleaner and several stamp sets. About an hours worth of work. Take to patio when I have a coffee or tea break. Leave time to Get next box ready for next session. Then when I want to do it, i dont waste time getting ready. Just grab next time mood hits. I have alot of stuff and it took several months to do this, but was worth it. Good luck.
One image on a card except for a few flowers that "build" on top of each other and are not used alone. Sometimes i stamped the image/words on more than one card if filing theme was an issue and it fit more than one category to be filed in.
On the back of the card is the title of the set it is in.
When I want "thank you" for instance. I go to the thank you divider. Grab the stack and quickly go through the too big or two small and pull out the samples that might work. I go to my punch sample ring or die and see what will fit. Select what I want, check set name and find that case. Put card back immediately. I have over 4000 cards. I also make notes when stamping or using that stamp. Like: " use versa fine on this one for clearer image or besure to ink center well" or used this twice already for Sue, etc. it makes like so easy.
I advise that you start with holidays first a month or two before you need the stuff, then go on to the next sets like sentiments and word sets. The other sets can be done as you find time. Some times you can work sets that have the same theme like flowers or kid sets, etc.
I put a box of work together, blocks,old ink pads to use up and get rid of , pen, cards, cleaner and several stamp sets. About an hours worth of work. Take to patio when I have a coffee or tea break. Leave time to Get next box ready for next session. Then when I want to do it, i dont waste time getting ready. Just grab next time mood hits. I have alot of stuff and it took several months to do this, but was worth it. Good luck.
Thanks. Definitely going to do this!
__________________ Sally Taylor, Fun Stampers Journey Coach #1118
I'm an out of sight, out of mind crafter. I needed an index that I can easily thumb through and choose what I stamp(s) want to use. My index looks like this one: A Vegas Girl at Heart: Stamp Index (BTW, this is NOT my index, despite her having the same name as me. She's much younger, much prettier and lives in a different southwest state.)
On the corner of each card, I've written a letter that coordinates with the drawer where that particular stamp can be found. If it is part of a set, the brand and set name is listed as well.
I don't have a lot of stamps so they are easily stores in the bins of two rolling carts similar to this one: http://www.joann.com/iris-scrapbooki...2Bcart&start=2 Except mine is Sterilite brand, has 7 bins and cost about $20 at Target 10 years ago. Each bin is labeled with a letter, making it easy to find exactly what I'm looking for.
I cannot bring myself to break up my sets. And I've not yet been able to talk myself into unmounting my stamps. So, while all my stamps are in these bins, the storage of each stamps takes on different forms. Some are in their original clamshell cases. Some are stored in zip-style baggies and others are just loose in the bins. Bare rubber stamps on EZ-Mount and placed on EZ-Mount storage boards in notebooks. Acrylic and polymer stamps are also on the storage boards in notebooks. (Notebooks: 1 EZ-Mount storage box; 1 zippered notebook; 2 traditional notebooks. Eventually, I hope to go 100% zippered so I don't loose any little pieces.)
As I add more stamps to my collection, I don't need to worry about storing them with similar or like-theme stamps. I just stamps new cards then toss the new stamps into a bin. Some images are stamped more than once if they fit into multiple categories in my binder. Though, if I get more stamps I'll probably need to start a second index binder as the one I have is already bulging with images. Stampers with large collections will likely end up with a library of index binders using this method.
Stampers with large collections will likely end up with a library of index binders using this method.
Which is exactly why I don't index the images - just the sentiments...
All of my sets are broken up (except some that have to stay together because the images only make sense with the other images - those I just remove the sentiments and leave the rest alone, but still have them in a category, like Christmas or flowers or what have you). All of my stamps are also unmounted, so I just flip through the storage panels until I find what I want. Sentiments are trickier, so I have those indexed AND in categories on panels. If I already know what I'm looking for, I go straight to the panels. If I want to "browse" for something, I go to the index.
I have come up with the definitive solution to your storage and organizational problems:
Buy fewer stamps.
Now, before you... Ouch! that tomato was rotten!
__________________ Linda E
Caution: You are entering an artistic zone. This is not clutter - this is creating. These are not pajamas - it's my work uniform.
Finding the stamp set you want to use quickly.
