Supplies and Organization

It's actually a December heat wave here right now with temperatures expected to hit the mid- to upper-40's F (7.2-9.5 C). DH will be spending the day working in the garage, taking advantage of the warmer temps. Unfortunately, the garage will be cold because it faces north and doesn't get any direct sunlight to warm it up. He's building shelving and storage units for our craft room and the laundry room so that I can re-organize my crafting and artwork materials and (hopefully) get organized and take up less of his space with my stuff. Considering the fact that I'm into so many different media, that's a hard task.

I was very tempted to add another piece of equipment to my craft supplies
this morning. Several of my suppliers are featuring the Heidi Swapp MINC
Collection foil lamination machine at really good prices. It's a new product
that uses heat and pressure to apply foil laminate to pre-printed items
(laser printing is necessary, ink jet won't work). It looks pretty good.
I decided against it right now, though. I don't need another piece of equipment. 

I'm taking the new shelving as my holiday gift, and if I get things organized after Christmas and during the New Year holiday, it will be his Christmas and birthday gift. We've been stumbling over my supplies for a few years now and they need to be corralled and organized.

One of the things that take up a lot of space right now are my
wooden cigar boxes. I have almost 100 of them in various sizes
and shapes. I actually have projects in mind for several of them, just
need some time to actually do them. I'll probably end up selling the
finished boxes, although I'm not sure what venue I want yet. Still -
100 wooden cigar boxes need storage ... 

(Don't tell him ... I'm actually looking forward to getting my things into order so that I can label and find things with greater ease.)

Today's work brings me back to my workhorse - my
Big Kick Sizzix embossing machine. The amounts of
pressure this little hand-cranked machine can apply to things
amazes me and I'm constantly finding new ways to use it.
This one was a good buy and it's getting a workout for
this year's holiday cards. 

Today, however, is Tuesday and it's back to work on my holiday cards. I've received lovely cards from kaishin and Samtyr as well as an old friend from my High School days in Denver. It's nice to have some cards come in. Time to start posting them around my entryway where they will look festive for the holiday season.

I love having my holiday cards out on display, but again, don't want to clutter.
Years ago I started hanging them around the entryway arch and it's
a great area with lots of space. I often get 30-40 cards, so space is
necessary. I love each and every one, though, and look at them often
during this festive time of the year. 

Do you have a special place where you place or display your holiday cards? Do you have any traditions that make your house seem more festive at this time of the year? Everyone celebrates differently, so please share. Have a wonderful Tuesday!