Craft Closet Organization

We’re continuing the Organization for the Insane series today with Ann Marie, from white house black shutters. I LOVE her built in craft closet and I think you will agree that her tray solution for craft supplies makes so much sense!

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Hi everyone, I’m Ann Marie from the blog white house black shutters, where I talk about our daily life with three little ones in a 75 year old home. We’ve done the renovation ourselves, spent very little money, and decorated our home with second hand finds. I believe you should only decorate with the things you love and that have a purpose and am on a journey to simplify our lives.

Currently I’m working on a little challenge called “40 Bags in 40 Days” where I tackle a spot a day for the forty days of Lent and try to rid myself and home of clutter.

One of my favorite spots in our home is this built-in hallway closet. While I love the spot, it can be the source of a lot of clutter (hello – big drawers!). Our home is small, so I have to get sneaky with my storage. You’d never know when walking through this hallway that a craft treasure chest is nearby.

There are three big drawers in the built-in. Prior to tackling this hot mess, all three drawers looked pretty similar. Unorganized. I set to work organizing the drawers and cleared out a lot of crap! I needed to tackle this insanity and give each drawer a purpose.

I lined the first drawer with a favorite batik fabric and filled it with my crafting supplies.

I have three little ones under three, so crafting time is limited. Organization can be tough when your projects get completed in spurts (during naptime), and have to be cleaned up very quickly when everyone wakes up.

I organized everything into individual trays so they could quickly be put away at a moments notice. They’re craft specific so I can just grab the tray, craft it up, then put it back in its spot when I’m finished! Much better than digging to find stuff and shoving to put it away. 😉

The second drawer is lined with a white polka dot fabric and filled with kids’ crafting supplies. My little ones are 3, 2, and 2 months and just starting to get into crafts. These drawers are heavy and hard to pull out, so I don’t need to worry about them sneaking in here, stealing finger paint, and practicing their letters all over the walls.

The third drawer holds all of my fabric. They’re organized by use: batting and Wonder Under, fabric scraps and felt in the bin, colorful/whimsical in one row, and blues, grays, and neutrals in the other. Looking at this drawer is like looking at a drawer of unfinished projects, I’ve bought most of it with a project in mind. Hopefully now that I have all of my fabric neatly organized and glaring at me, I can finish some projects and clear out this stash!

Like I said, I have to get sneaky with my storage so bigger items like my sewing machine, cardstock, and bolts of fabric are stored in shelving in my basement. I keep other DIY supplies where I use them: a shelving unit in the basement holds latex paint and tools, and my spray paints are in the garage in a storage crate .

Thanks for having me, Kendra!

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Ann Marie blogs at white house black shutters, where she talks about daily life with three little ones in a 75 year old home. They’ve done the renovation, spent very little money, and decorated with second hand finds.  You can find Ann Marie on facebook, twitter, or Pinterest (her favorite).