IRIS Scrapbook Case and Craft Organizer Tray

I use these scrapbook cases for storing quite a bit of stuff in my craft room.  They are the perfect size to hold 12″ x 12″ paper and other scrapbooking materials that size.  They are roomy enough to hold a lot of stuff, but not so much stuff that it becomes hard to find things in the box.  I store my re-inkers in one, alcohol inks and supplies in another, heat embossing stuff in one, etc.  These scrapbook storage boxes are sold separately or with the storage unit (scrapbook chest).

I also really like the organizer tray that was designed to fit inside this box.

The organizer comes with 10 adjustable dividers which is nice because they hold items in place if you don’t have enough to fill the section of the tray completely.

One of the things I use the case and organizer tray for is my Tim Holtz Distress Ink Pads.

I have 44 ink pads and several foam applicator tools in mine.  (The right column is wider than the middle two; the left column is smaller and not as wide as a distress ink pad.  However, if you rotate the ink pad a quarter of the way around, you can fit a few more on the left.)  I have each of my ink pads in a 4″ x 6″ plastic bag.  I do this to keep a foam pad for the foam applicator with each ink pad and also to keep the ink from drying out.  (I’m not sure if that’s at all necessary, but I just feel better keeping them sealed well!)

HERE is a link for the bags I use for my ink pads.

I made my own labels for my ink pads since you can’t see the colors when they are stored in the box.  I recently found a pdf file here that contains labels for the distress pads on the ranger site:

Distress Ink Pads Labels

Distress Mini Ink Pad Labels

I like how they are colored and may need to re-label mine!

(There are a lot of good organizational goodies on their site which you can check out here: http://rangerink.com/organize-your-ranger-products/.)

I store this box (and one other that contains extra foam applicators, foam pads, mini misters, reinkers, etc.) in the storage unit.

A note about storing ink pads on their sides – I have heard some people say that ink pads are best stored upside down so the ink stays on the surface of the pad.  I have been storing my ink pads on their sides without a problem.  I did have a problem years ago when the few ink pads I owned were just tossed in a cardboard box, and they dried out.  I don’t know if the lids were not secure since they were bumped about in the box, or what, but that is why I now store them in the bags.  I also tend to ink up my stamps by keeping the stamp on the table facing up and tapping the ink pad down on the stamp.  As I work, I place the ink pad face down on its lid on my desk.  Maybe, the ink “moves” to the surface while it sits on my desk like that – who knows!!

For what it’s worth, I found this HERE on the ranger site :   “How should I store my Distress Ink Pads?   The molded plastic case is designed to create the proper fit needed for the ink formulation. While storing the pads flat with the bottom side up will neither help nor hurt, we usually store pads on their sides or flat with the right side up.”

Another thing I use the box and organizer for is ribbon storage.

I have to confess, I am not a lover of ribbon as some crafters are.  (I use a lot more jute, raffia, etc.)  I admire ribbon on others’ projects, but I often can’t seem to make it work on mine.  As a result, I probably own less than most, but what I do have was making me crazy because I didn’t know what to do with it!  Originally, I had all the spools thrown in a few plastic bins with lids.  I could never find the colors I needed, and the ribbon always unraveled and got tangled when I rooted around the bins. When I moved into my craft room, it all got placed in a drawer which quickly became an even bigger disaster than the original bins because it was bigger so there was more of a mess in there!  Then I discovered that the ribbon fits nicely in these scrapbook cases, and if you use the organizer trays in them, the ribbon all stays put!

The dividers that come with the tray hold the ribbon in place if there isn’t enough to fill a whole column, and when the lid is closed, the ribbon does not move around at all!  Again, one of the columns is wider than the middle two and one is more narrow.  The small spools of ribbon that I bought in packs at the craft store fit perfectly in the thinner one.  I have two of these boxes filled and they sit stacked in the drawer.  (There were a few spools that were larger than most that didn’t fit in the case so I put those in a box to the side.  Since there are so few, it’s easy to keep them in order.  I also have loose pieces of ribbon in a bag stored with the larger spools.)

I put my twine, jute, string, yarn, raffia, etc. in the bins I was using before since they are too big for these boxes.  This system is working out much better for me!

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