Welcome back to day two of MFT's Storage and Organization week! Today we're looking at stamp set storage. For a full list of everyone participating in the day's post, see the MFT Blog. Stamp set storage has come a LONG way since I started paper crafting about fifteen years ago. Back then, every stamp set took up a LOT of space. Almost all sets were mounted on wood blocks, except for the occasional rubber set that came on gray foam cling padding. Remember those days?
Yes, I still have a few sets that I haven't quite decided to part with yet!
Okay, maybe more than a few! (By the way, that bin in the top left corner has my MFT background stamps in it, along with some current 6 x 6 paper pads.)
And then along came clear acrylic stamps. It took some of us us a while to get used to them, didn't it? (They've improved over the years, for sure!) My first acrylic stamp storage was the CD case storage, and I have a LOT of stamp sets still in CD cases. Then the sets got larger, and DVD cases supplanted CD cases as the more common storage system. (That size difference messed up my storage, I can tell you!)
Don't even ask. I didn't count. And remember that this really was for my job--not *just* a lack of self-control! When I ran out of room for DVD case furniture, I went to plastic Iris bins. (Iris bins are probably my second favorite storage option. I like those heavy plastic clear refrigerator bins the very best, but I like Iris bins quite a bit as well.)
Then I started hearing people talk about using clear, thick envelopes for stamp storage. I still wasn't convinced. . . until it was time to order DVD cases again and I had no idea where I would even store them! I saw some organization posts on Jennifer McGuire's blog--man, is Jennifer the guru of organization, or what? (Yes, she definitely is.) I tried clear envelopes, and I love them. I can store so many more stamp sets in less space. I don't need to order more DVD-holding furniture either! Above you see how my MFT clear stamps are stored. I create an image sheet from a screenshot, then put my stamp set behind the cover sheet and any coordinating dies behind that. SO simple!
Right now I have all of my current MFT stamps on the right side of this refrigerator bin, and several other companies that I've also transitioned to clear envelopes on the left side. But I can read the handwriting on the wall, and I'm guessing that in another month or so, I will need a second bin for my clear stamps. Still, the clear envelopes are much more space efficient than the CD and DVD cases are. I'm a happy camper. . .
I am sure that my system will have to evolve as I collect more stamp sets, but right now they are in order by release date. I'm considering order by topic (flowers, people, sentiments) eventually. I hope that you've found something helpful in today's stamp organization post! Be sure to visit the the MFT Blog for a list of everyone who is sharing stamp organization posts today. I promise that you'll see some amazing spaces and ideas! Thanks for visiting,
