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I'm in process of a reorganization of my craft room and cleaning my basement.
I am feeling like this hobby is so much work and not enough fun. My buying stuff is out of control. 500 stamps sets and I still feel like I can't make a card.
I have a ton of paper literally and never have the right color.
Whew! Just organized my beading stuff. More $$
Down the drain. Thanks for letting me vent
__________________ Bev
Organized People are just too lazy to hunt for things!!!
Sometimes too much of a good thing will overwhelm you. I recently purged my stashes and made a challenge for me to use all the old solid cardstock up so I can just go to buying CoreDinations cardstock only.
Don't be discouraged. So many of us have been at that place of being a "craft supply buyer" rather than an actual crafter. We buy so much stuff and we spend all our time organizing and reorganizing it hoping that if it's all "organized"....we will have a clear work space enabling the fabulous ideas to flow from us like water! Ha!
It's good that you are doing a clean-up. I got interested in beading a few years ago...after already having been a stamper ( and a SU demo ) for years before that. I made a few simple bracelets but quickly realized I did not have the budget, the space or the time for one more hobby. I made the choice to stick with stamping and stopped buying beading supplies. Much less guilt seeing even MORE supplies laying around un-used that way.
Perhaps choosing to limit yourself to ONE craft you really loved would help you feel less overwhelmed or guilty for spending money on supplies you won't use.
Even after limiting myself to stamping; purging out old stamps I don't use anymore, old, old embellishments ( what was I THINKING stuff )....I still have PLENTY to work with. So I use challenges as a stepping off point to use certain colors, or I make myself us some of the tons of Designer Paper I have been hoarding. It's slow, but I am back to enjoying the craft and not feeling guilty...good luck!!
I think this craft is more of a shopping addition than an real craft. There have been many posts on how to reorganize lately.
You should visit these threads as they give a lot of info on how to reorganize.
My first tip would be go through your stamps sets and pick what is your style. Put all the others in a box for charity or go to the buy/sell thread here on SCS and sell what you don't use.
And don't worry if these sets that you put in the sell box are new and unused. If the are not your style, you probable won't ever use them. I have been there and done that sorta thing. I only buy what is my style and not what is "cute" and the new "in" stamp sets.
I seriously think this is more of a addicted shopping and hording craft than anything else.;)
__________________ The quickest way for a parent to get a child's attention is to sit down and look comfortable. Practice safe eating always use condiments
I made myself a promise to use every Christmas stamp set I had this year and I did it! I agree part of the addiction is the shopping. Nothing more fun than bringing home new toys!
I've found that when I organized my stamps by what they were: baby stamps or wedding stamps or floral stamps or animals or birds or christmas or birthday...and soooooooo on...
Well, I could then see that I had stamps that would work in place of something else. I have close to the same number of sets as you, and yes, I buy something new but not if it's similar to what I have. I'm more selective.
And when I say that I organized the stamps, I mean just that. My sets are split up. I don't have to wonder where I put a wedding stamp that is in a set with spring and baby. ;)
As for paper. That's a quandry for some. I have a friend who buys whole reams of paper in a color she thinks is pretty...but then nothing really coordinates. And she has a huge amount of it! I made the choice to stay with the color palette of one company (I use SU, but there are others who do the same)...stamps, ink, accessories. That way it works together and looks great!
I also don't have the budget to buy indiscriminately.
I've found that when I organized my stamps by what they were: baby stamps or wedding stamps or floral stamps or animals or birds or christmas or birthday...and soooooooo on...
Well, I could then see that I had stamps that would work in place of something else. I have close to the same number of sets as you, and yes, I buy something new but not if it's similar to what I have. I'm more selective.
And when I say that I organized the stamps, I mean just that. My sets are split up. I don't have to wonder where I put a wedding stamp that is in a set with spring and baby. ;)
As for paper. That's a quandry for some. I have a friend who buys whole reams of paper in a color she thinks is pretty...but then nothing really coordinates. And she has a huge amount of it! I made the choice to stay with the color palette of one company (I use SU, but there are others who do the same)...stamps, ink, accessories. That way it works together and looks great!
I also don't have the budget to buy indiscriminately.
I so agree with this. Putting your stamps into type rather than sets gives you more of an idea of what you have. Also look at what stamps you really like and type their name into google image or pinterest or here and see what cards there are that have used the stamp and get some ideas going.
We all become obsesed with set up of our room etc but sometimes you have to stop tidying and setting up and do some craft time to remind yourself why you got started in the first place.
Many of us have those huge numbers of unused itemswe have purchased and have started keeping them in a seperate pile. For me I use a hat box that holds the unused stamps dies etc and they cant be put away till I use them.
Dont get discouraged there are lots of us going through the same.
One thing I have done to stop myself buying for a while, I go to the shop of my choice, pick out the stamps and dies I want, go through the process as though I am going to buy then I empty the cart and go away. I have found this works in most instances and my shpping has cut right back and most timeswhen I look again I find I didnt want it so badly after all.
Also it can help not following the new releases as these are often what gets us wanting things.
Also it can help not following the new releases as these are often what gets us wanting things
Bingo! This is the real reason for so much overbuying...at least it is for me!
I think my brain gets taken over by tiny little neurons that travel through my bloodstream whispering "you gotta have it" til I'm vibrating and giddy with glee. I mean that has to be it, right? No sane, sensible person does this, right?! hahaha
Card making is not a business for me, but I do like making beautiful cards for family and special people in my life. Once I realized that I didn't need every new fad or set that came out, five different shades of every color, and every color of paper I could find, I found myself getting more creative in using what I had. I haven't spent more than $100 all year on supplies.....using what I have unless I absolutely need something specific for my design. If you know your style, it's even easier. I agree with everyone who has their stamps separated into Easter, thank you, birthday, etc. Good luck with the reorganization/purge.
I haven't split my stamp sets but I am organizing them on Evernote where I can put those categories in to get the pictures up to see what I want to use. I seem to do better keeping stamps by manufacturer as I like to do their challenges. I found Evernote less intimidating than physically changing the sets out.
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I split some sets....I'm mainly SU. It does help. I can't bear to split up lots of sets. Sets from broken homes unnerve me! Haha!
I put thank you, wedding and birthday in the same boxes. Of course if it's a birthday set, I leave them in their original set.
I haven't and don't plan to break up clear or clear mount. That would drive me nuts.
It helps me to buy only two or three new sets per year.
It helps me to use mainly SU. I almost always have the right dsp, card stock, ribbon and/or buttons. Here and there I don't have what I need. Usually I can make do.
I also LOVE to use up stuff! No hoarding here.
__________________ All I want is the chance to prove money won't make me happy!
Last edited by Allistamps123; 10-26-2014 at 05:35 PM..
Aw. Been there! ((hugs)) Right now my workdesk is so piled up with misc I cant use it. I keep promising myself to correct that but then something else comes up-I have to help someone else with something else. (Yes I have trouble making time for myself which is why there are piles of books waiting for read)
Try this: Pick a stamp set. Any stamp set. Make a card with it. Just one. You can do it! Dont worry about DP. Just pick one color to act as a layer and then put it on the card base. Maybe use a die! Have a friend come over and make with you. More fun!
Keep doing this at least once a week. Over a few months you will feel better about it.
If you really REALLY cant come up with a card from a set...rethink keeping it. Put it back, pick another set. Once you get used to making cards...look at that set again and see if you are not inspired then.
The idea above was great-look online. If a card has flowers on it-you DONT need that exact flower! Just make the card!
In the meantime...NO buying. Unless it's adhesive or something like that.
Women and buying: There was a play once called Defending the Caveman that explained this: Men shop like they are hunting: they zero in on a shirt, buy it, leave the store. Women however were gatherers...which meant we needed to know where everything was in case we needed it-the plant that healed, etc. So we will walk around a whole store, touching everything so we know where it is "in case". My addition is we may be more susceptible to hoarding for the same reason. "Honey do we have a 3 inch wood screw?" Sure dear-in the box of screws that's all divided by size and type.....that no one has touched in 3 years...
So it's genetic by 10s of thousands of years and not my fault! That's my story and I'm sticking to it!
This hobby with all the bits and pieces does lend itself to getting nutty!
Oh - I have seen Defending the Caveman. Hilarious and, oh so true! Women are gatherers - we tend to "gather" (or hoard, if you will...) and I never want to let anything go because I might need it someday... When I am struggling with card ideas, I like to look through the card galleries - it is so helpful. I especially love that you can look up Stampin up by the set. I also use the SU galleries to research before I buy a set. I like to see how others have used a set I am interested in before I buy it.
Pretend you're moving across the country and only keep what you'd be willing to pack and haul all that way. I did this for real last month and got rid of a TON of stuff! We sold everything except what fit in the car (mostly clothes and a few pots and pans, some of DH's tools and my crafty stuff - we did ship a few boxes of books and *ahem* a box of punches and a box of dies). I didn't have time to go through all of the stamp sets properly, so I'll probably do another purge of those, as well... Very freeing, to be sure!
Also, I'm another one who splits up most of my stamp sets (I keep things together like "flower builder" sets that have multiple interchangeable pieces/parts and other sets that make no sense when split up) and it's so much easier to keep track of where things are and to put things together that I previously might not have considered! Good luck with your dilemma...
I'm planning on moving next summer (destination unknown) and I've told everyone in the house that we are taking 25% of what's here. Even if we can get it down to 50% that would be a giant step for this family. Too much stuff.
Mary Beth
I am going through this right now on a smaller scale. I just finished reorganizing my space and found that several stamp sets needed to go. In doing my orginization, I have decided to stop working with one company I have been with for awhile now and move on to a different one. My tastes have changed since I started and this other company is more my style. At first it was hard to part with some sets but as I let them go, it got easier. I have plenty right now to keep me busy and who knows what will happen tomorrow.
__________________ "For the strength of the Pack is the Wolf, and the strength of the Wolf is the Pack" ~Rudyard Kipling my gallery
I was feeling like that for a long time, too! I never felt inspired to craft, and when I did I didn't feel like I had the "right" stamp set, ink color, paper, etc.
Now I try to use what I have, limit myself to a max of $25 a month on craft spending, and organize organize organize! If a stamp set is really hot or there is a trend out there I really like, I've been trying to remake it from what I already have on hand. And so far it's been working. Sure my creations may not look exactly like the top designers, but I still enjoy them.
It's easy to become overwhelmed at times. Almost 1 1/2 years ago we had to move out of our rental. We live in an area where the housing market is smoking hot and competition for any single property is high. We ended up living with a family member for 8 months and putting 95% of our stuff in storage. I HAD to be very selective in what stamping stuff I kept with me. while there were a couple of times i wished i had kept out something that i had put in storage for the most part i did great and i was amazed with what i was able to create having so few things. We decided to buy instead of rent again and ever since we moved in at the beginning of the year we have been working on creating a studio for me. My husband has been building the things I need but even with the large space I'm finding that I need to get rid of so much more. So bit by bit as i pout things up on the shelves I finding so much stuff to get rid of and I'm doing it gladly. My stamps now all fit on one relatively small shelving unit and a small drawer (I will keep all of my holiday themed stamps in the drawer once I'm done using them for the holiday) and the rest i have organized by type- Sentiments, Kids, Nature, Elements, etc... and then are alphabetized within those categories.
I'm considering combining some of my sentiment sets that I know i will never get rid of.
Now that my studio is becoming a neat and orderly space I'm looking forward to seeing just how much more productive I can be
__________________ Shellie G
Aspire to be a better person than you were yesterday
I so hear you and have been there. One thing that has really helped me start enjoying this craft again is to stop thinking that I had go buy stuff. I stopped. Yep. Cold turkey. I used to be one that had to run to the store to buy something - anything - because I had a coupon! Or if someone had something new - I wanted it too. I now have more paper than I can possibly use and more stamps that I really need. I also have embellishments that I just will never use. So I have started purging. And you know what? It's so refreshing! I now realize what I like and what I don't. I don't like washi tape. I don't like chipboard anything. And you know what? That's ok. I just learned last week that I don't like glimmer mist. Through this process I've learned that I'm truly a basic stamper. And again - that's ok. My best advise would be to give yourself the freedom to get rid of your stuff that you don't really like and don't really use. Scale down. It's so overwhelming when there are so many supplies. Some people can work like that - like they have a whole craft store in their craft room...but you sound so much like me where all the stuff is overwhelming. Donate stuff. Sell stuff. But get rid of what you don't absolutely LOVE. When you're done I think you'll find that you can not only create again...but that you have more fun doing it. And don't feel like you have to declutter and purge everything at once...cause that can get just as overwhelming.
I Pretend that I died and my kids inherited everything....they will go thru my stuff and wonder why I needed so many paper cutters, markers, and die sets...5 electronic die cutters to make a few birthday cards over the years....great motivator and some what of a shock treatment for me, when I need it.
This motivated me...my work table is now clear. On to making holiday cards! tick tock!
If you are having trouble getting jump started...you could look at the sketches over at Operation Write Home (they have over 200 now)-they will give you the dimesions of the pieces. You can do it!
I'm at the last 20% of reorganizing my stuff and found the whole process not so much a revelation because I did know I had a so so much, but a definite confirmation that I don't NEED anything. I'm tallying everything just to come to black and white grips of what I'm not using. One inspiration was getting a bedroom back after my one-and-only left for college this year. And like iluv2color. I don't want to leave him with a house load of craft supplies to deal with when mom for whatever reason can no longer put ink to paper. Luckily too for me. the current trend of cutesy images doesn't much tempt me. I will admit that I pore through Tuesday Morning every week especially since they are bringing in so much discontinued Ranger stock. But that's more for the fun of the hunt and the rock-bottom prices. That's what I'm telling myself anyway. The only thing I've paid full price for in a while has been a couple of MISTIs and what a great investment those have been.
I think most of us are right there with you or have been there. That is exactly how I feel, sometimes. I am spending so much time accumulating and not enough time making the cards. I have stopped at least going to Michaels so much. It's the coupons that get us and we have 3 local papercrafting stores plus Micheals where I live, that keep offering the discounts, which is great if one actually NEEDS something, lol.....
This motivated me...my work table is now clear. On to making holiday cards! tick tock!
If you are having trouble getting jump started...you could look at the sketches over at Operation Write Home (they have over 200 now)-they will give you the dimesions of the pieces. You can do it!
Yes, I printed off their suggestive sketches and it really helps inspire me.
Aw. Been there! ((hugs)) Right now my workdesk is so piled up with misc I cant use it. I keep promising myself to correct that but then something else comes up-I have to help someone else with something else. (Yes I have trouble making time for myself which is why there are piles of books waiting for read)
Try this: Pick a stamp set. Any stamp set. Make a card with it. Just one. You can do it! Dont worry about DP. Just pick one color to act as a layer and then put it on the card base. Maybe use a die! Have a friend come over and make with you. More fun!
Keep doing this at least once a week. Over a few months you will feel better about it.
If you really REALLY cant come up with a card from a set...rethink keeping it. Put it back, pick another set. Once you get used to making cards...look at that set again and see if you are not inspired then.
The idea above was great-look online. If a card has flowers on it-you DONT need that exact flower! Just make the card!
In the meantime...NO buying. Unless it's adhesive or something like that.
Women and buying: There was a play once called Defending the Caveman that explained this: Men shop like they are hunting: they zero in on a shirt, buy it, leave the store. Women however were gatherers...which meant we needed to know where everything was in case we needed it-the plant that healed, etc. So we will walk around a whole store, touching everything so we know where it is "in case". My addition is we may be more susceptible to hoarding for the same reason. "Honey do we have a 3 inch wood screw?" Sure dear-in the box of screws that's all divided by size and type.....that no one has touched in 3 years...
So it's genetic by 10s of thousands of years and not my fault! That's my story and I'm sticking to it!
This hobby with all the bits and pieces does lend itself to getting nutty!
This is true for me in craft and stamp stores (spent HOURS in the Viva Las Vegas stamp store!!), but not in clothing stores. If forced to go shopping for clothes, I won't even zero in on the shirt like a guy; I go for a salesperson and describe what I want and buy the first item the person shows me and leave right away. All my shirts and jeans have holes in them because I hate shopping for clothes so deeply.
Back to the thread... I separated nearly all my "all-occasion" stamp sets and love it.
Thanks for all of your support!!! I am still trying to muddle through...I know I wont always feel this way... On a brighter note just bought some markers on sale... JUST WHAT I NEEDED!!! :-P
__________________ Bev
Organized People are just too lazy to hunt for things!!!
I also find it helps to put defintely seasonal stamps away in totes. If I work on just three months in advance; it really saves space in the room. I have spring/summer, fall and
winter in different totes.
__________________ Carolyn
my avatar: (such desparation), Dear God, if you can't make me thin; make my
friends fat"
So discouraged
