Tips for organizing adhesives

They’re one of the most often-used, maybe the most often-used items in your craft stash, but they’re probably the last thing you think about when it comes to organization. Adhesives are used on nearly every type or project, from scrapbook pages to mixed media.

For something that is used so regularly, we still find dried-up bottles or tubes in the bottom of a drawer or tote.  Pop dot or glue dot packages get opened and the sheets of dots get tossed into a pile where they come “unstuck” from their sheet and stuck onto something else.

Try thinking about your adhesives in the same way you think about other supplies.  Where you use them, when you use them, how you travel with them…they’ll be faster to find, less likely to dry out, and easier to travel with.

Here are a few tips for getting your adhesives organized.

Keep it front & center

Consider storing your adhesives in something that will keep them right out in front.  I loaded a Stadium Arranger with small tape runners, a variety of glue sticks, liquid glue, dots, photo corners and even a bottle of Un-Du.  The 3 levels of the Stadium Arranger push each row of items up a little higher than the previous.  All 3 rows are easy to see and easy to access.  This is a great solution if you generally craft at home, usually in the same location. If you have a little more space, the larger 4 Level Stadium Arranger can hold adhesives and other things, too.

Hot glue guns and large tape runners should be front and center too. Consider putting a Hot Glue Gun Holder on your work space.  When using a large tape runner like the ATG or Xyron Mega, resting the  runner in the cradle prevents it from getting buried and sticking to something unintentional.

Traveling to an event or just to your dining room

The distance may be short or long, but when you arrive at your destination you want to be able to access your adhesives easily.  Returning adhesives to their “home” when you return home should be easy too.

The Dawn Buddy Bag has 3 interior trays – this makes her ideal for carrying adhesives in a variety of shapes and sizes.

Small tape runners, small glue bottles, and even glue sticks will store comfortably in the Dawn Buddy Bag. The small interior trays keep small things right where you want them. Two strips of hook and loop on the front of the bag allow you to adjust the height of the top of Dawn.

All runners, all the time

If you use the smaller tape runners, you’ve probably got a variety of brands and types – permanent, repositionable, dot pattern, full tape, vellum…etc.  If this sounds like your collection consider corralling all of them in a Gail Buddy Bag.  Gail will hold 10-12 runners.  Open the bag on your work space for easy access.  Close it up for travel.  Other benefits to Gail, like our other Buddy Bags, she’s lightweight, clear, and inexpensive.  The Edna Buddy Bag also, handles tape runners well.

Good options for organizing “sheet” adhesives

If you like pop dots, glue dots or other sheet style adhesives, “filing” them can be perfect solution.  If you always work at home, having them filed in an “open” box is easiest.  If you travel with your supplies, something that closes up is ideal.  In either case, use label tabs to divide each type of adhesive by size, shape, thickness, etc.

I use our Die, Stamp, and Supply Organizer (DSSO) on my shelf in my studio. One section is dedicated to “sheet” adhesives.  When I travel to an event, I grab the whole section and put it into a 4×6 Fab File.  A Karen Buddy Bag works well for this, too.  Either the 4×6 Fab File or the Karen Buddy Bag can be used to store your adhesive sheets if you’re not using something like the DSSO.

One more tip about “sheet” adhesives – keeping them in their packages will help to keep them looking good as well as keeping them from sticking to something else.  If you packaging rips, tears, or gets lost, try using one of our Die, Stamp & Stencil pockets.  I’ve found that most of these types of adhesives fit well in the medium-sized pocket.  These also work well if you have multiple sheets of the same or similar adhesives.

Are you using “Cube” style shelving?

IKEA Expedit or Kallax, and cubes from the large craft retailers make excellent craft room shelving.  Maximizing those shelves – filling them from back to front, left to right, and top to bottom – can be difficult.  If you’ve got cube space, try using our 5 Drawer Stash and Store Box.  You’ll be able to fit 10-13 tape runners in just one drawer.  The drawers pull all the way out of the box.  Pull your adhesive drawer out and put it on your workspace when you’re crafting. When it’s time to clean up, simply slide the drawer back into the box.

Did you know we have a page on our website titled “How to organize your…”?  This page focuses on types of products and how to store them.  If you’re challenged by inks, embellishments, paper, or some other supply, you’re sure to find a storage solution on that page.

Thanks for stopping by today.

Happy crafting!