There comes a time in every relationship, where the decision needs to be made. Can you continue on with things the way they stand, or is it time to think about breaking up? I think I’ve reached this point. It’s time to reconsider how attached I am to my stamp sets. Should I keep them together, or should I start breaking them up?
I’ve been using this basket, since I first made this pegboard, to hold my stamps. From memory, I picked it up at Bunnings, where they tried to claim it was a spice rack, even though it is clearly a stamp basket. It works, true. And at times, it looks much neater than this, after I sort it all out and turn things the right way and put like sizes together. But in the interests of transparency, this is how it looks right now, and truth be told, how it looks 95% of the time.
Increasingly, I am finding myself reaching for the same sets over and over, to use the same one or two stamps. There are a few sets – particularly the Christmas ones – that I keep thinking I should declutter, but there are a couple of stamps in the set that I could easily use for non-Christmas projects. Except, of course, when the time comes to actually create something, be it a card or a scrapbook layout or some bible journaling or some mixed media, I forget that I wanted to use those elements and instead reach for my old faithfuls.
This past couple of weeks have been about hard core cleaning and decluttering, as we prepare to list our home for sale. I have done multiple loads to our storage shed, with more tubs than I care to admit to coming out of my craft room and into storage. I’ve probably removed a good 60% of my crafty stash from the room – a small amount I decluttered, the rest I stored. The last remaining section I keep eyeing off is my pegboard, and more specifically, the stamps.
One idea I had this week, was what if I was to break up the sets? Instead of storing them as “Sept ’15 PL Kit 3×4 set”, what if I stored them as “small textural elements”, “medium geometric”, “seasonal words”, “other words”… store them how they are used, rather then how they were sold. Is that totally crazy? It feels both weird as heck, but also totally logical. And I can see how it would help me to use the stamps I have more often, which is kind of the goal of owning these things, isn’t it?
I’d love to know your thoughts, as I continue to overthink this potential break-up. Does it make sense to split sets? Or does it make you want to rock in the corner to even consider defiling complete sets in this way?
Complete sets as in multiple per sheet or are we talking taking ones off a sheet and adding them to other sheets to make new “sets”
If it helps I have all mine in boxes. Because Ants love the silicone. Loosely based into Journaling / Lettering / Favourite calendar types
Yeah so they are all currently on the sheets they came on. I’m thinking of removing them from “sold-as” sets and storing them by style/size/etc etc.
do the by-use thing, then you’ll actually use them… I’m thinking of doing the same with some of my elements, because when I need them, that’s how I think of them. Actually makes sense to my brain that way, and that’s always the best way to create.
That’s what I’m thinking. As “matching set” oriented as I am, what’s the point of neat sets, if I’m not actually using them??
I think breaking them up makes total sense! Just because something is sold a certain way, doesn’t mean it has to be stored in the same way!
I say, Go For It! See how that works out.
Another thing you could do is put your stamps in one place, and as you use them, put them in another container. After a year, the ones still in the original container, you know you can get rid of, because you haven’t used them for a whole year! I have started doing that with my hanging clothes (turn the hanger around the opposite way), so I know which clothes I can legitimately get rid of.
Thank you for your input!! I also like the idea of two separate containers to see what I actually use. I’m starting to get sick of having a heap of stuff I’m keeping for “just in case”, and that’s a good way to know if just in case is a valid idea or I’m just reluctant to let go!
There is an idea I read in a caravanning magazine for decluttering your van, where you put a red dot on everything in your van and when you use it take the red dot off, at the end of a year anything with a red dot is not needed. This could apply to anything crafty stuff as well.
That’s definitely something I should try – though I know straight up that that would remove half my stash 🤣 possibly a hint that I have too much!