OK, here's the deal... because of my Scorpio sensibilities, I love to organize... but ABSOLUTELY cannot stay that way! What is wrong with me?? I hope I'm normal and am not the only creative soul out there that hinders their ability to create with their inability to organize. So I am sharing my shame with all of you! I hope this will not keep any of my customers from buying from me, now that they will be witness to my messy "studio" space.Now, to start with, I do not really have a studio space. Unlike some of you who are lucky enough to have a spare room in your house or REALLY lucky to have an off-site studio for your work, I have a 4' x 8' walk-in closet. Admittedly, to have this space in a house that is only around 750 square feet is, in many ways, a luxury. BUT this space houses not only my beadwork and jewelry supplies/equipment but also a lot of the items I have posted in my vintage shop on Etsy. "How do you do it??", you ask? My answer is "Not very well!", as the following photo collages will show you! Don't be too shocked - the mess you see is real. I did not give into the urge to pick-up before these shots were taken (that would be like cleaning the house before the cleaning lady gets there).
Photo 1: In this shot you will notice the the shoe organizer hanging on the wall. This is where I presently store my seed beads, separated by color and size families. It seems like this should be a great way to keep them but it is not. It never fails that the beads I want are at the bottom of the pocket and I have to dig every other tube and/or bag out to get the ones I want. So this has GOT to go!
Photo 2: This is a shot of the storage on the back wall. This I rather like - it works really well for me so it will most likely stay basically how it is. Yay!! One less thing to do! :) What you will notice is the complete mess when you get closer to the floor. The only answer to things like this: If you don't need it or can't find a place to put it you must sell it, donate it or pitch it!! Destashing is so hard but it has to be done!
Photo 2: This is a shot of the storage on the back wall. This I rather like - it works really well for me so it will most likely stay basically how it is. Yay!! One less thing to do! :) What you will notice is the complete mess when you get closer to the floor. The only answer to things like this: If you don't need it or can't find a place to put it you must sell it, donate it or pitch it!! Destashing is so hard but it has to be done!
Photo 3: Continuing to the right: I think these pine shelves work pretty well also. They fit in the space nicely and the bins and boxes are a really good fit. I also like that I can hang bags of beads from cup hooks which are screwed into the pine shelves. they are separated by color and are handy to grab when I need them. I wish I didn't have the wasted area above the shelves. I store my spare wooden hangers there along with some strands of specialty beads. This is not the best idea when you are short unless you have something to stand on the get to them. Hmmm... something to think about... 
Photo 4: Now here is a spot which has just never reached it's potential. I have tried a few different storage solutions here and have just NOT been happy with them. This entire wall area is going to be changed. I have purchased some sweet shelves to go here along with some little drawer units (much like the one already there) to attach to the wall. I will be able to move some of my knick knacks from the shelves above my work bench (next photo) to these shelves so I can enjoy looking at them more. And, again, too much crap gathers on the floor... eek!
Photo 5: My work bench is so cluttered with stuff that calling it a work bench is a misnomer! As you can see (or not see, maybe) are the items on the top shelf. These are things I have collected because they remind me of someplace I have visited, someone I love, a show I was in or they were just cool so I had to have them. But they sit up there on that dark top shelf where there is no light so I can't enjoy them very well. Now I will be able to move them to the shelving unit which will be attached to the wall to the left of the bench and see them and enjoy them.The top of the work bench is always cluttered and isn't set up very well. Some of this has to do with the way I create - I get out lots of things that go together and spread them all out and go. This makes for a bit of a mess and I don't like cleaning up when I'm in the middle of a project. BUT here's the kicker - I rarely work on only one project at a time so several start to overlap and bury each other and then I'm in the middle of a big mess!! So I bought another little storage unit thingy to put here which I think will help. Also, once I move the items from the top shelf, I can relocate some of the items from the middle shelf to the top shelf and open up some more working space. This is a "Let's see what happens if..." idea. As for my packing supplies, which are sort of haphazardly stored underneath, - something absolutely needs to be done with them! I like the location but not the organization. Something as simple as another large tub would probably do the trick. Those plastic tubs ain't sexy, but they work!!
So, here is my "little" project (among many). Wish me luck - I'll be sure to let you know how it goes! Any ideas would be welcomed and greatly appreciated!
