Metal Wafer Dies Organization Project

I don't know how many die sets I have, and I really don't care.  I just want more!  I mainly own Spellbinder dies, but I also own QuicKutz/Lifestyle crafts dies, Memory Box dies, and Sizzix dies.  Many Sizzix dies need a separate organization method (since they aren't really wafer dies), so this post ignores those.  I'll be concentrating on organizing my metal wafer dies.

All I want to do is organize them so a) I don't re-purchase a set I already have, and b) be able to easily find what I own in one place.  They are currently in individual zip bags with labels on them or still in their original clamshell packaging, but it is very difficult to see what I have, and they are ALL OVER the place in different containers.  The various sizes (I have Grand dies that are large) made it difficult to store in one place.  

After contemplating different organization methods (purchased or self-created), I developed my own.  I have way too many dies to purchase pre-made storage sets that it would cost too much because I'd have to purchase multiples, and would defeat the purpose of keeping them in one place.  Also, none of them satisfied my criteria.  I also saw some folks who organized their dies using zip bags, folders, etc.  None of them would work.  I have too many or it would cost too much.

So here's what I eventually came up with:  A file box with hanging folders, each holding 8.5"x11" page protector sheets filled with a magnetic sheet holding multiple sets of dies.  That was actually harder to write than just plain showing you what it looks like, so here it is:

File box with completed sheet protectors filled with dies

        

             Hutch playing "Vanna" with the file box :-)

 

Completed sheet protectors, front and back

On the front of the cardstock sheet, I adhered a picture of the die set that is stored.  On the back of the cardstock sheet, I adhered magnetic strips or a solid magnetic sheet (depending on the dies stored).  After putting the dies on the magnetic side, I slipped the cardstock into the protectors.  Voila!  A system that will store my dies, won't scatter them in case they get jarred, and easy to flip through.  I will describe the steps I took to create my system.

Firstly, I re-purposed the file box from previous bills organization projects (that are finally getting under control, too).  I believe I purchased the unit from The Container Store.  I also already owned the hanging file folders.  I can fit 4 into the box when they are fully opened (bottom lined with chipboard for sturdiness).   I also already owned the 8.5"x11" page protectors from the old days when scrapbooking was in it's infancy and 12"x12" sized sheets was not even a thought.  Yes, I've been paper crafting for THAT long *sigh*!  I also have a lot of 8.5"x11" sheets of cardstock of various colors that I used for backing. 

So the only purchase I needed to make for this storage project was the adhesive-backed magnetic sheets.  I did a lot of research on these:  I didn't want them to be very heavy and bulky, but I also needed them to be strong enough to sturdily hold the dies.  I found some 8.5"x11" sheets at Amazon.com.  A set of 10 sheets for $26, free shipping.  Unfortunately, the company is currently out of stock.  I will update this post with a link if they ever come back into stock because I really like the weight and strength of these magnetic sheets.  I purchased 20 sheets to start with, and unfortunately, will probably need more...  I'm hoping they come back in stock soon.  UPDATE:  They are now currently in stock (09/02/13) and here is the link to the item:
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B004SOV4NQ/ref=oh_details_o00_s00_i03?ie=UTF8&psc=1

 


 
In order to "stretch" the use of each magnetic sheet, I cut most sheets into four 2"x8.5" strips and two 1.5"x8.5" strips.  I kept a few full sheets in case I needed them for storing tiny dies.  I had the option of cutting them later.

Three 2" strips and two 1.5" strips laid out on the back of cardstock

      

After I had all of my strips cut, I took a sheet of cardstock and some strips.  Depending upon the dies I was storing, I used either four 2" strips and one 1.5" strip (closer together), or three 2" strips and two 1.5" strips (a little farther apart).  I then lay them out on the cardstock before adhering. 

Adhering the magnetic strips, and showing the overhang

When I had them laid out the way I wanted, I then adhered each strip to the cardstock.  I folded back the top of the backing, stuck that part down exactly where I wanted the entire strip to go, then removed the rest of the backing to adhere the whole strip down.  Repeat for each strip.  The size of the magnetic sheets were about 1/8" larger than the cardstock, so I left the overhang on one side of the cardstock to help hold down the pictures of the dies.

Arranging the dies to fit on the sheet

 

I roughly organized my dies by categories.  I then place the dies on the sheet.  I try to get as many sets on a sheet as possible by creatively arranging them, but being careful to not go over the edges.  I never break up a set.  I do have many sheets of some categories (Winter/Christmas, for example), and some sheets are not full, knowing I will be adding to my collection!

Here is the completed sheet of dies.  This was my flourish sheet set.  I do try to keep the dies in each set as close to each other as possible, but I'm not wedded to that notion.

I then carefully flip the sheet with the dies over and adhere the pictures from the packaging to the front of the sheet.  As much as possible, I retain the upc code, the item number and title of the set.  If they are part of a special collection or by a designer, I add that information as well.  However, the most important part is the picture.

 
Using my old Dymo Letra Tag maker, I created identifying tabs for the top of the page protector (actually, the side with the holes).  I made tabs with the names of every set, and also noted what type of Spellbinder they were (Grand, Shapeabilities, Nestabilities, Borderabilities, etc.).  These then get adhered to the top (white portion) of the sheet protector.

Completed sheet, in the sheet protector, front side with identification tabs

Magnet side, filled with dies

These completed sheets are then filed in the file box, by categories.

I have some old plastic dividers from 14"x14" ArtBin Super Storage Satchels that I never used.  I cut those down to size to subdivide each hanging folder and create stability for the magnetic sheet sets.  I used sticky notes labels (green) to easily identify sheets that still have room to add more dies.




That's it!  It takes about 45 minutes to complete each sheet, but the time it takes now is well worth it when I am able to find the die I need.  I currently have completed over 20 sheets, but I still have most of my Nestabilities Labels dies to organize, as well as a few more Shapeabilities dies.  I haven't even gotten to the other brands dies yet!  So this project will take many more days to complete, but I'm excited by what I have so far.  It really looks great!  Btw, the file box is already quite heavy with the 20+ sheets of dies.  I'm hoping it will be strong enough to hold many more.

Eventually, I also plan to scan each completed picture sheet, print them, and put them in a slim folder in the front of the file box so I can quickly view my dies.  I will also take the scanned pics and put them in an online folder so I can access them with my phone on the road.  Hopefully, I'll be able to see at a glance what I own when I shop for more dies :-D  No more duplicates!

If you've made it this far, good on ye, mate!  I hope that means you understand my crazy organizational system...  and may want to duplicate it.  Or make it better!  If you have any suggestions, I'm all ears.  I'm still fussing with this.  If I make any changes, I'll be sure to post a follow-up.

G'night for now...
-Dayle

The dirty "O" word.... organization

I have a confession to make...  I'm a crafty shopaholic.  There is no cure for my addiction.  

Unfortunately, that also means I have to ORGANIZE everything I have, or there is no finding them later, or knowing what I have.  You would think that daunting task would stop me from buying new stuff, but no...  I just find empty spaces on the floor until I have no where to step, at which point, it's time to do a little organizing.  I'm always looking for new organizing products...  my favorite stores, not surprisingly, are Ikea and the Container Store. They *love* me, too, with how much I contribute to their bottom lines :-D

Small part of my paper collection

Ever since I moved into our new home last summer, I have been organizing my craft room.  I'm amazed how much crap, er, craft, stuff I have.  I finally have a handle on all of my paper (my collection would put most scrapbook stores to shame), a project that took almost a month to finish.  I even have room to add more paper (a scary thought). 

My acrylic stamps are beginning to get under control.   My Silhouette items are also starting to find homes. My ribbons are finally organized and unraveled.

But right now, I am in the middle of two huge organization projects, one that will take a very long time, and one that hopefully will be done soon.  The first will organize my stamp pads (another post in the future once I get fully into the project), and the other, organize my ever growing wafer die collection, mainly Spellbinder dies (see next post for actual step by step method).

Another reason for organizing, and my ultimate goal...  keeping my workspace clear so I CAN work whenever I want.  My workspace is now a bloody mess.  I push stuff away so I can work, but it never clears.  I'm ashamed to do it, but here's a picture of my workspace, right now (in the middle of three projects and breakfast):

Ugh...  don't look.

And it never really gets cleared.  I think it's been clear 3 times: when I first set it up, just before I started the paper organization project, and when I had a scrap party. 

I realize organizing my craft room will take a lifetime.  Or two.  But if I can just reach a point that when I add stuff, it doesn't blow up, I'll be happy.  In the next post, I'll discuss my current project, organizing my wafer dies.
Hoping you find space in life, too,
Dayle

NATCH Charlie

My instructor, Janemarie, and her border collie, Charlie (Charlotte Sophia, or more affectionately known as "Chuck"), earned their NATCH (NADAC Agility Trial Champion) at a Funraiser trial in Bend, Oregon.  Here's a link to their NATCH run, a 20 point bonus line Jumpers run!  It was great it was for her NATCH (which Janemarie didn't realize until she returned home), but it was a great bonus line run to boot!

We celebrated when they returned home at the latest local trial, the Palomar Agility Club's August 24-25, 2013 trial.  I baked a yummy coffee cake (recipe) by the King Arthur Flour company because it needed to withstand the heat and we were celebrating in the early morning.  However, it needed to be decorated.  Icing was out of the question (too hot, and besides, who wants icing on their crumb topping?).  So instead, I made a chopstick "banner" and mini award ribbon using my Silhouette Cameo.

Because I needed to finish this project quickly, I used a banner file that I had purchased, and inserted the lettering to the file.  I fixed the lettering in the cutting file so that it would cut the purple banner part in one solid piece, instead of having little pieces from the letters A and R to attach separately (see below).  Then, I adjusted the sizing so that it would fit nicely over the 10"x15" pan.  I used a beige glitter background under the purple banner part.  The glitter cardstock was super thick, so I did something I rarely do:  cut using ALL of the blade exposed (#10), AND a double double-cut (4 overlapping cuts of the same design).  It STILL didn't quite cut all the way through, but it cut enough of it that we had a clean outline in the front, and most of it came off the mat.  But, it was worth it...  the banner was sturdy!

I cut two mirrored pieces of the glitter cardstock so that I could sandwich the chopstick between them, making a clean backing.  (I ended up using the cut out letters on the reverse side, just because I had them).  I attached all of the purple pieces to the backing, sandwiched the two glitter backgrounds, and glued the two pieces together with half a chopstick in the middle.  I use ZipDry adhesive for these types of projects, mainly because I need the strong hold and quick drying time of ZipDry.  It was essential to keep the bulky chopstick from shifting.

Next, I made the mini award ribbon from another purchased file.  I cut pieces out of gold glitter cardstock and purple cardstock.  After accordion folding the two strips, I attached each piece to each other to form a ring.  Holding the ring closed tightly, I ZipDry glued a purple backing piece to the accordion piece, and held it in place until the adhesive dried and held the shape.  I then glued gold center piece to the front of the ribbon.  I adhered the streamer pieces together, then glued those to the back of the ribbon circle.  I inserted and glued half of a chopstick to the ribbon, in between each streamer piece. 

All in all, the project took about 4 hours to complete.

Here's a photo of the finished project, as well as how it looked on the cake:

Janemarie loved her cake and decorations, and Charlie enjoyed smelling the cake  :-)

Mammoth Lakes Vacation Pt. 2 - ESAG Agility Trial

The real reason for traveling to the Eastern Sierras was to compete in my FAVORITE trial, the Eastern Sierra Agility Group (ESAG) agility trial!  I honestly think the dogs love it, too...  the trial is located on a large, enclosed baseball field, with lots of open space for the pups to romp off-leash, with lush, but well maintained green grass.  The club is very relaxed, but very organized, with wonderfully friendly members.  I particularly love just sitting and watching the clouds travel over the mountains between running, working and walk-thrus...  it is THE most beautiful place to have a trial.

 

On Friday, it was all EGC (Extreme Games Challenge), something both my boys love.  Alva in particular, thinks EGC is the bomb!  Once that boy gets his NATCH (if that day ever comes), he'll be entered in EGC only.  It is all flatwork: no jumps, no contacts, no weaves.  It is entirely pathwork, where the handler and dog must be in sync with each other.  It is also FAST!  Alva is not very fast, but he still loves the connection and running.  I love that HE loves it...  I can tell how much joy he feels by his endless "grrrrrr" ing on the course, something he does when he is very, very happy :-).

Alva and I earned some 10 pt. runs (which is fast for him) in Barrelers and Gaters, but mostly 5 pointers.  We didn't get anything in Chances (too hard), but we tried.  Hutch earned points in both Barrelers and Gaters, but no Chances.  He did send out to the gate, which was very good for him!  I haven't tried him in distance yet, but it gave me a little bit of hope that he might just do it someday.

Over the weekend, Alva only earned 3 Qs, in Jumpers, Regular, and his first Elite Touch n Go!  For some reason, he has reverted to avoiding the contact at the start of a discrimination again...  and badly, too.  We'll need more practice in class with those.  But for Touch n Go, the starting discrimination was the tunnel, so we lucked out.  He was so relieved and happy it was the tunnel that he ran decently fast, even though it was the second to last run of the weekend!  He was running most of the weekend, which proves to me the grass surface suits him.

Hutch earned 2 (TWO!!!) Novice Jumpers Qs, earning him his Novice Jumpers title!  I was ever so proud of him.  He had been spooked by the judge and cameramen outside the ring, and he still kept his focus long enough to run with me through the course.  And on Sunday, he even came in FIRST PLACE!  He was the only clean Novice dog in his group of 7 dogs :-)   He was spooked again in Touch n Go, but he regained his composure enough to continue running with me, only sidestepping the hoops near the cameraman and the judge.  It was a huge accomplishment for him!  I was very, very proud, and he even seemed very proud of himself as well :-D .  Others who had seen him the previous year also noticed the difference in him.  It was soooo good to hear that other people notice how much braver he has gotten.  It helps me know we are heading in the right direction.

Before we began the trip to Hesperia for the night, we tore down our set up and packed the car as quickly as we could to beat the rain.  Some mighty ominous clouds began to accumulate over the mountains, bringing lightning and thunder with them.  Here's a picture of the gathering gloom:

We drove to the La Quinta in Hesperia in a light rain and lightning most of the trip.  It wasn't a dangerous drive, but it was interesting!  When we finally left the confines of the Sierras, we also left the rain behind, heading towards a boring drive in the desert.  4+ hours later, we finally arrived at the La Quinta.  We were upgraded to a King Suite (NICE!) which was sooooo welcome after a very long day.  Sleeping in never felt so luxurious :-)  All in all, it was a wonderful vacation.  It was really tough coming home to reality, but in many ways, it was nice to be home, too.

Hope you all have great vacation stories to tell as well.
-Dayle

Mammoth Lakes Vacation, August 14-18, 2013 Pt. 1-Convict Lake Resort

The family (Tom, the furkids, and I) traveled to Convict Lake Resort for 5 days for the Eastern Sierra Agility Group's (ESAG) agility trial.  It was a lovely vacation for all of us, especially the furkids!  Convict Lake Resort is located 10-15 minutes from the town of Mammoth Lakes, CA, but only 5 minutes to the trial site, so it was a great place to relax and enjoy the scenery.  This is a photo I took of Convict Lake and Mt. Morrison, taken in the morning of Aug. 15, 2013.

We arrived early to acclimate to the altitude (Convict Lake is about 7600 ft elevation).  It was important for me to get both myself and the dogs ready for the trial by taking walks at altitude.  I still felt winded on the first day of the trial, but not as much as we would have been if we hadn't come early.

On our first walk around the lake, I took lots of pictures of the dogs.  Here are some silly NOSE shots :-)

                                       
                  Alva                                        Hutch                                                      Tesla


And a family shot:

Believe me, getting three silly dogs to A) sit still, B) look at me, and C) do A and B AT THE SAME TIME is a time-consuming and frustrating activity!  After MANY outtakes, the above photo was the best we could manage.  It probably will end up being our Xmas photo because I don't want to go through THAT again!

At the edge of the lake, I took some close ups of the kids.  Here are the best ones:

We stayed in one of the smaller cabins at the resort (Shasta).  It was comfortable for a 1930s cabin, upgraded with a bathroom and kitchenette.  

       

We were visited by the local wildlife, including many birds, deer, and ground squirrels.  No bears on this trip (thank goodness!).   Here is one of the local deer that has become quite a beggar in the resort:

We also saw many fish in the crystal clear lake.  Convict Lake is a popular hotspot for fishermen, so much so that it is restocked weekly by local hatcheries during fishing season.  I was afraid of the dogs disturbing the fishermen, but they seemed used to crazy animals traipsing the trails :-D

We all had such a wonderful, relaxing time at Convict Lake.  We'd go back in a heartbeat.  Here's a photo from the outside of our cabin at sunset, with the rising moon:

In part two, I'll discuss how Hutch and Alva did at the trial.  Not as many photos, but there will be a few :-)
-dayle

Hutch's successful mini-trial

Hutch returned to trialing on Tuesday night (8/6/2013).  He has been on hiatus as we continue to work on our relationship and trust, and his confidence on course.  I thought the smaller, quieter atmosphere would be good for him to wet his feet again, and that was a good idea.  It was mini-NADAC trial, with two rounds of Touch 'n Go.  In the first round, he seemed fine at the start, but the judge stood near the A-frame, where the dogs had to pass by 5 times (three times through tunnels, and twice on the A-frame).  He managed to get through the round, but by the 5th pass, he was DONE managing his fear of the "scary judge" and jumped off the A-frame.  We wouldn't have Q'd anyways (overtime), but he certainly didn't Touch the contact, either, missed it by a yard!  But that's okay... he FINISHED the course, which is a very, very BIG DEAL for him!

On the second round, we only had to pass by the judge ONCE (at the end), so he actually did quite well through the round until we got to the scary A-frame part again...  the judge this time stepped back and away from the A-frame (thanks, Ric!), so that Hutch felt a little better.  He still stopped at the top to survey his surrounds, and barely managed to touch a toe nail on the contact, but he did it!  AND, he made time (by 2 seconds!) to earn his FIRST Touch 'n Go Q !!!!  Whooo hooo to that brave young man! 

Alva didn't fair so well...  he blew his first contact in months!  He was having a very good time!!!  He was very fast, and really enjoying himself, so I didn't bother to fix it.  He did blow his discrimination in the first round, but I think that was my fault, too...  I hope he's better this weekend.