ORGANIZING!!

Okay, I know I'm slipping here by not posting in over two weeks.  The truth is, I have been goofing off along with doing some long-needed cleaning in my house.  I actually have been stamping a lot and finishing some projects, but nothing you probably would want to see.  I stamped about 150 Christmas cards and mini projects since after Christmas (in between cleaning).  I told myself that I was not going to pack away my Christmas stamps and designer paper this year until I finished all the projects I started in the last 4 years (yep, you read it correctly -- FOUR YEARS!!).  A lot of it was already cut and prepped, but there was still a lot to complete.  As of this moment I am done!!!  The rest of my day (as soon as I finish this) will be spent cleaning my room and packing everything away.

Another thing I finished was putting together all my stamp sets from the new Occasions Mini Catalog.  So that was 20 stamp sets (including Sale-A-Bration sets).  While I was doing this I thought I would take pictures and show you how I put my clear mount stamp sets together and organize them when I am done.  I am a "little" finicky when I organize and have to make sure I don't switch my methods.  When you get my age, "organization" is the fix for loosing your memory (along with carrying a pad and pencil around with you all day to take notes so I can remember what I went upstairs to get; or better yet, what I was going to get when I went from one end of the room to the other).  So here is how I do it:

1.  Remove all the stamp images from the rubber sheet (I personally think it is easier if you push them out from the back).

2.  Remove all the white backing from the foam (you can stop here and just mount on clear acrylic blocks or add the label).

3.  I remove one backing at a time, then line up the stamp backing (foam side down) to the sticky label and press down to adhere and then pull up.  The stamp is now ready to adhere to your acrylic block.  Tip:  When mounting on the clear block press down and count to 10 -- you should be able to see bubbles on the label when it is mounted correctly so it does not fall off even when cleaning.

4.  I then cut off the label at the bottom of the label sheet.

5.  Remove the white backing from the front of the label.

6.  Stick the label on the bottom front of your DVD case.

7.  This is the front of one DVD case.  Notice I have written in the catalog and year at the bottom.  This saves me a lot of time when I am asked or need to know what catalog I purchased the stamp set.

8.  This is the back of my DVD case.  I have cut the picture of the set, along with the price and number of stamps, from the catalog.  This saves me time also if I decide to sell at a later date by knowing what was the original cost.

9.  Another picture of the bottom side.  I put the label here because my bookcase shelves are not tall enough for me to store like a book and to see the name when I pack in boxes to store after the set is discontinued.

10.  This is what the set looks like inside.  I always keep the original rubber sheet to put the stamps back in so they stay organized and I am able to see at a glance if a stamp is missing.

This is my shelf for CURRENT stamp sets with everything labeled and organized by theme.  Notice I have one section (middle shelf on right) just for the current mini catalog (no, I don't have "all" the Occasions stamp sets yet).

Close-up of my wood-mounted stamp sets with typed labels.  Besides the name of the set, I include the price, number of stamps, and brief description of stamps. (Enlarge the picture for more detail by selecting the picture and doing right-click to open in new tab).

This is overall view of all my current stamps that sit right in front of me at my stamping desk.

After all of that, I think you deserve a picture of something I created today.  This piece of white cardstock has been sitting on one of my work stations for months, I think it was left over from a class when I embossed it in the wrong direction.  So decided to put something on it for next year.  The good news is that all the product is still current!!

I hope you got some ideas about how to organize your stamps today, or maybe you could leave me a comment and give me some tips to use about how you do yours.  Yes, I probably overdue putting my stamps together -- but trust me, it saves me tons of time later.  Look for more tips in upcoming posts.

Until next time (hopefully sooner than this time),
Sandi

"And God saw everything that he had made, and, behold, it was very good. . . ."  -- Genesis 1:31
"Father, everything You make is good.  Let me look for the pattern of Your goodness in all the happenings of my life."  --  Pam Kidd