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Maybe this has been discussed elsewhere, but here goes:I'm reorganizing my dies and would love examples of how folks are labeling their categories!
Thanks much!
I'm sure others get more involved than that, but I sort of group like with like within any given category (all of the ovals - regular, scalloped and stitched - are together in the "nested shapes" category, for example). I have a decent-sized collection, but not enough to require more categories to find what I need/want to use at any given time.
My dies are stored in stamp pockets lined with cardstock and a magnet sheet (so they stay put). The pockets sit in this box, so I can easily flip through them.
Here's how I've divided them: - Most used and New
This sits at the very front, and it's a small section of dies I use very often (ex. Mama Elephant Femme Frames) and new dies I've yet to use. If there's a particular die I want to remember to use in the near future, it goes in this section, too. They're sorted by new in the front, then by frequency of use. - Blueprints (MFT)
I have several blueprints die sets from My Favorite Things, and they're sorted by number. Blueprints have printable card layout sketches, so I've printed those out and stuck them in the pocket, behind the die. - Nested Shapes
These are sorted by frequency of use, with the shapes I reach for most often in the front. - Flowers and Flourishes
This has all flowers, leaves and other decorative elements that might be used for clustering (ex. swirls, arrows, tree branches, etc) - Shapes
This has non-nested shapes like stars, hearts, clouds, arrows etc. Majority of these dies are very small in size, so I have several sets in each pocket. - Objects
This section has elements for creating scenes (ex. lattice fence, streetlight) or interesting objects (ex. feathers, mixing bowls) that I might use on more complicated cards. - Words
This has all my word dies, separated by sentiment (ex. hello, thanks, love). I have multiple manufacturers in the same pocket, and they're sorted by type (all hello pockets are together, all thank you are together, etc). - Fall/Winter Holiday
This section has all my fall and winter dies - from snowflakes and leaves to greeting words. It's separated into fall and winter, but not sorted much beyond that. I only tend to venture into this section when making Thanksgiving or Christmas cards, so it doesn't need to be super organized. - Borders
My border dies are off to the side, in magnet books by Little B. I like the magnet books because it's a strong magnet and I can put 10-14 borders into one book. So, they're a great way to store thin borders.
And, wow, writing all this out makes it look like I have a ton more dies than I do... All my dies fit into one half of the InterDesign box along with a couple of my favorite punches - and plenty of room to grow. The second half holds my white and color cardstock panels (4.25x5.5") so I can easily grab them to die-cut shapes or panels when I need to.
My categories are:
Rectangles and Squares (with the stitched rectangle dies being one of my most used sets)
Circles and Ovals
Nature
Shapes-clouds and paw prints in this one
hearts and stars since I use these a lot and didn't want to dig through shapes
Banner and Tags
Borders
Backgrounds
Labels (mostly spellbinders but some MFT)
Alphabets, Number and Words-though thinking about making this 2 categories in future
Holiday-Christmas, Halloween, snowflakes, etc
my super long border dies are sticking out of back of my storage since I only have 2
CreativeCardsea-I like your most used and new category, may have to try that one out.
though that means I won't be digging around and will forget about a lot of my other ones I do have a lot and had to add another storage box.
I keep all my bigz dies and cutting plates etc in a drawer
I probably have 25 cats if I have one...but that is how I am with everything-my stamps, stencils, etc. Because that is how my mind works. Some days I wish I were more like Sue with very fundamental groups. I may get there yet
How are you organizing your stamps? Maybe that's your answer. I like/need consistency. So I have things like flowers, tree/leaves, baby, animal, romance, etc in all things.
Unique to dies: I have card creators (spellbinders) and specialty (placecards, etc).
Thanks all! Very helpful! Wave jumper - asking how I'm organizing my stamps was helpful, but stressful, too! Since the two go hand in hand, I have to think about that a little! Ouch . . . Thanks for everyone's ideas!!
The dies are filed alphabetically in envelopes, but samples (sometimes photocopies) go in looseleaf notebook theme guide:
Alphabets, Letters, and Numbers
Animals-Birds
Animals-Cats
Animals-Dogs
Animals-Fish
Animals-Insects
Animals-Miscellaneous
Architectural Elements
Asian Theme
Backgrounds
Botanicals-Flowers and Plants
Botanicals-Garden and Spring
Botanicals-Leaves, Fronds, Branches
Botanicals-Trees
Design Elements
Ephemera
Food
Frames, Borders, and Corners
Hearts
Landscape, Sky, and Weather Elements
Marine Theme
Native American Theme
Nesting Dies
Objects
People
Phrases and Words
Special Events-Birth
Special Events-Birthday
Special Events-Christmas
Special Events-Easter
Special Events-Get Well
Special Events-Halloween
Special Events-Miscellaneous
Special Events-Sympathy
Special Events-Thank You
Special Events-Thanksgiving and Fall
Special Events-Valentines
Special Events-Wedding
Sports
I store my dies with my stamps. So they are in the same category sections. Mostly like what's listed in post #5. They are stored in the clear bins, and I have multiple. I store my stamps on 5" x 7" cling panels. My dies are on 5" x 7" magnet sheets from Stamp-N-Storage. I also put my embossing folders in the same sections (in the proper categories, of course)
Thanks all! Very helpful! Wave jumper - asking how I'm organizing my stamps was helpful, but stressful, too! Since the two go hand in hand, I have to think about that a little! Ouch . . . Thanks for everyone's ideas!!
You might want to watch Jennifer McGuire's die storage video when exploring ways to organize. She uses pockets with a piece of CS, and puts them in Frig Binz (InterDesign). Most dies aren't on magnetic sheets - only sets with lots of dies or maybe those that could catch on each other. She sorts by company, not subject, but has said that makes sense for her since she does work for many different companies, but for others subjects could work better. It depends on how we think.
I use her system with subject headings, and can add/change/expand categories easily. Only nested dies and a couple sets with a tons of dies are on magnetic sheets, preferring less bulk, weight, and it's easier for me to just slip dies in a pocket. I've seen Therese Calvird (Lost in Paper) dump multiple dies out of a pocket in a couple of videos; nothing bad happens.
Organizing has so much to do with how we think, and also what we own. When I had fewer dies, there were no headings. Words were first, then animals, nature (leaves/trees/flowers), shapes, and then "objects" with a few oddballs in the very front or back. Whether you decide to bin your dies or do something else, you could make temporary subject labels out of Post-Its and live with them for a while to see what fits your dies and brain. : )
Funny, the day I posted the above post, a set of dies arrived. They were in a standard flat die package, loose in a little ziplock inside, not connected to each other. So if you shook the ziplock they jangled. They cut fine; dies are tough little critters. They have to be to endure being squashed in our machines.
I'm not saying magnetic sheets aren't a good idea - people use them for a variety of reasons that suit how they organize and how they like to see and select dies. Just if someone new is thinking it's important to put them in pockets solely to protect them, you really don't have to.
Besides, my rule is that my dies have to fit into the bin they're in. So eliminating all but a few magnetic sheets allows me to have many more dies. ; )
Not in this order, off the top of my head Fruit/Veggies Flowers Bugs/Snails Leaves/Trees Celestial Furry/Zoo Birds WordsWords Thinking/Well Words Hello Words Thanks Holiday Nautical/Fish Rectangles Circles/Hex/Oval Squares Borders Alphas Banners Tags/Bookmarks Scenes/Bldgs Odds
__________________ Mary
Last edited by maryalena; 08-03-2017 at 11:53 AM..
Reason: Mistake
I keep my dies on magnetic sheets, stored in plastic pockets in 8 A5 size ring binders (on the basis that an A5 ring binder full of dies is quite enough to lift up!). Some are grouped together in one binder if I only have a few of those dies, and categories are:
Alphabets and words
Nested plain
Nested geometric
Frames and labels
Backgrounds
Tags
Small labels and panels
Corners and matching motifs
Edges
Flourishes
Nested fancy frames and labels
Flowers
Misc objects (includes the odd bird and butterfly, stars, cogs etc)
I don't have many animal/bird dies, but they would need a separate category if I did, as would other collections, eg people, transport etc.
I have three Christmas binders:
Greenery
Snowflakes (I'm a snowflake-aholic)
Other
As soon as I get a new die, I cut it from scrap card (backs of used cards are good) and put it in an A5 binder, which is kept in the same categories as the dies. That way, if I need a flourish, or a flower, or an edge, I can look to see exactly which one will suit - and, in many cases, will fit - the project before I get out the die to use. It's also useful to have the cut motif, just in case you are using a piece of cardstock which is tight for space: if you can cover the die-cut completely, the cardstock is big enough.
I tend to keep the Memory Box and Poppystamps dies in their paper packet: these will slip into the plastic pocket behind a magnetic sheet.
I label very specifically (eg. holly, poinsettias, snowflakes, birds, circles, hexagons) and have them in one long alphabetical run in containers. The word dies are at the end and they are specific too (eg. Happy Birthday, Merry Christmas, Joy - I break sets up so that all Merry Christmas ones are together for example).
__________________ Susan
My SCS gallery is here should you care to look! Or please visit my blog, Cardmaker's Garret.
Wow, I read through these posts and look at my tiny box of dies and wonder if I need to go shopping ;) LOL! Mine are all stored on magnetic sheets in an ArtBin that I bought at HobbyLobby.
I have 9 of the magnetic sheets that fit in the box and they're about full. It's kind of a pain digging through them to find what I need but until I find something better, this is what I have. It's better than the paper envelopes I was using before
__________________ My biggest fear is that when I die, my husband will sell all my paper crafting supplies for what I told him they cost!
Oh wow, I need to step up my organization! I keep dies that match specific sets with those sets on a magnet sheet. I have three art bins full of others. But they are not organized and I spend too much time searching. I never thought of doing catagories for dies like I do for stamps. I need to take a deep breath and break up some of these die/framelit sets. Thanks for the ideas. Linda
I didn't mention how I store-I use plastic pockets with labels in cheap heavy plastic boxes. I cut up the thin plastic cutting boards into dividers and put the category label on that ie winter. (vs christmas) Then a pocket might be...snowflakes. Another might be clothes for mittens, sweaters, hats, etc.
I do use mag sheets that I cut down from vent covers. About 5 x 7. Because I will put multiple dies on the page...like a bunch of leaves from different companies. As many as I can fit on. Then I have a piece of cardboard for stability and I put the company paper piece that came with the die in the back. This reduces the number of total pockets I have-which is still too many. I am a die-aholic.
I do keep stamp/die sets together.
Brenda's system looks fantastic to me. Imagine....all of a thing in ONE place! Pretty cool!
During the Saturday sale at Michael's, I bought a bunch of card keeper bins for all my stamps and dies. I needed attaches lids since I have to move so often. Trying to find things in cardboard boxes is no longer working for me.
I hope to pull some of the ideas that everyone has mentioned into my next organizing feat.
Mine are in 2 of The Container Stores (Large) Multi-Purpose Bins (SKU 10051557) and sectioned by:
Card Shape
Holidays
Nesting
Shapes
Stamp/Die Combos
Triplits
Words
Examples of die storage categories
