how do you organize your beads! i am in need of some help. i started by organizing my beads with stuff from the container store but i've outgrown it![:D] my 1 good tip is

i keep my bigger beads, or center beads as i call them, in weekly pill cases. i have one that has 5 compartments for each day. you can buy these at drugstores or raid your parents/grandparents stash (just make sure they don't need them anymore[:)]

I have a craft mate--its this square bag that holds 6 containers--they're square and each have two rows of 7 compartments. They're so cool, they have a lock on the side so they can't just pop open. It got a little out of control though because I was buying so many crystals and I refused to mix them in their containers. So i bought this thing at home depot thats for a workbench i'm guessing, to hold nails and bits and stuff. It's got big drawers where I keep all my different wire and then little ones where I keep all my crystals in bags. Each drawer is labeled (yay for label makers!) by color of the crystals, and wire. It's lots of fun, and doesn't take up much space on my desk. Plus, I like using a label maker...

Hi there,
I'm like Phylfish - I have one of those sets of drawers from the hardware store that is supposed to hold screws and nuts and bolts, but instead holds my beads! I like the fact that it sits upright and has clear drawers, so even if I don't have my drawers labeled, I can see the contents inside. You can purchase separate ones for your different bead types. I use a compartmentalized plastic box (the name escapes me right now . . .) for my findings, clasps, spacers and such. It's like a tackle box, I guess.
~windee~

Hello and welcome to the forum. There are many friendly people here![:)]

I have been crafting for many years so have had plenty of time to accumulate a lot of Stuff. It is great that you are trying to be so organized! It was something I didn't do for quite some time and as my hobby grew, my "pile" got out of hand. Originally, I kept my materials in plastic shoe boxes, being see-through was good, but they were too big and packages of items got lost in them. I used to try and keep all my beads in their original packages.

I now organize as such: Mostly drawer chests and floss boxes. Why these? Because I discovered that I like things to be right at my fingertips. I don't like having to get up and go to a cabinet or a box across the room when I need something. It may seem cramped, but it is efficient in that way.

The drawer chests are from the hardware store, and I bought them many years ago! I like the different-sized drawers in them, although some I have the drawers are all the same size. They are usually used to keep tiny parts or screws in.
I used to keep beads in an assortment of compartment boxes, but they didn't stack well, and I had to keep transferring things from box to box to fit the different sized compartments. I began buying floss boxes instead. This was a great improvement! Then i found better floss boxes. These floss boxes are hinged so that the lids are removable. I passed the other ones on until I had all the same kind. I got them at Wal-Mart. This way I can place several of them together on a table without the lids in the way. Basically I purchased two or three every week until I had enough to organize. I found the 3"w x4"long zipperlock bags at a dollar store. Folded, they fit perfectly into the drawers. The 2" w x 3" long bags folded in half fit intothe floss compartments.
Cabochons and very large beads are in floss boxes. Seed beads are in zipperlock bags in floss boxes by color, size or finish. Sterling silver findings are in two floss boxes with tarnish preventative. Other findings are in a drawer chest.
Spools and other stringing materials; leather, twine etc. are in a drawer chest. Stone chips and beads are also in a drawer chest (actually- four of them.) Pearls are in three floss boxes. Assorted adhesives (bottles and tubes) are in a plastic basket tray. Acrylic paint bottles also.
Tools are in two blastic basket trays on top of the stacks of floss boxes. These are stacked right next to my work chair so I can easily reach and shift them as needed. In each compartment I have placed a sticky post note with identity, manufacturer, price paid, date purchased, and code number if known for future reference. (when possible -which isn't always!)
My beading board (one of those grey flocked trays) is at the moment full of bits; spilled Bead Soup, stray head pins, flotsam. I have several ceramic dishes in which the projects I'm working on at one time (usually at least three) are stacked on the table, with the drawer chests.
Most of my work takes place in a space about 15 inches wide and four inches deep.
Since I have carpeting in that room (old shag, no less) Bead Soup is whatever I manage to recover from the carpet every week or so. I have that in a drawer in one of the chests. Too time consuming to try and put the beads back into their places. I figured if they jumped from the project they wanted to meet new friends anyway! It is handy to look through when I need a stop bead or filler beads for a project.
Eventually I want to get a better place for my tools, perhaps a rack where they can fit vertically. But for now, the trays work well enough.
Your organization will help you enjoy this hobby with less frustration, keep it up! [#welcome]

i sat down the other day with my little boy and we carefully organised all of my suplies -tools ,seed beeds ,lampwork ,gemstones ,i colour coded ,sorted by size the works.i was so proud!then i sat down to design - no inspiration came -i looked from pot to pot then eventually laid them all out on the table again- as i always tell my boss at work a messy desk is the sign of a creative mind!so for me organisation doesnt work - but thats just me!!!

Do an advanced search for "organize beads" and "organise beads" and you'll get tons of topics (especially if you set the "from" year to 2001)!

Ok, I am so not organized with my beads. I "organize" by keeping my beads in everything! - I have the chest of drawers from the hardware store, fishing tackle boxes, tupperware, baby food jars, film canisters, mini drawers, tubes, bags, tins, cigar boxes, lots and lots of plasitc bead storage containers, daily pill containers, stackable containers, hat box, sewing box, lots of ice-cube trays, and baggies. And I'm just sure I forgot something.[:I] I know it's A LOT!

I REALLY need to organize it better. So last week I attempted to organize and got a huge cork board, tacks, and mini baggies to put even more beads in. Especially my SS beads and findings! Just put them in the bag and tack it on the board and everything is in plain view. But now I need ANOTHER board![;)] I'll get this done some day - I hope. But I do like the board idea cuz I can see exactly what I have. Otherwise I'm always opening container after container to find what I know I have SOMEWHERE! [:D]

thanx for the great advice everyone! and i too love my label maker!

What are floss boxes?

QUOTE: Originally posted by Oscar What are floss boxes?

Floss boxes were originally made to hold cards of floss thread used for embroidery and cross stitch. They are fairly standard in size approximately
10 3/4" x 7 5/8" and 1 3/4"deep. They have 16 compartments roughly 2" x 2 1/2" and one compartment 2" x 4 3/4". The ones I found the most to my liking are from Wal-mart for less than $2 each. Wal-mart calls them a "Craft Box"; find them in the bead/floss/jewelry kit aisle. They have lids that are hinged in such a way as you can remove them to put out without the lids getting in the way. One disadvantage to using floss boxes for bead storage is that if you just put the beads in (especially small beads) without having them in a zipper bag first, they are hard to get out of the compartment (because of the corners) and if the box is tilted or upended, that can mix and make a mess. ( Mega Bead Soup!! Yikes!)
But they are inexpensive, they stack nicely and are fine for cabochons, larger beads, findings, whatnot. You can label them on the outside, (I use blank adhesive address labels) I also use them for DearSon's minerals, sewing notions and my personal small jewelry.
I think the secret to any sceme of organization is to get containers that are not more than two types. Having a mix of containers was my problem before I did the reorg about three years ago.
When I travel with my beads, which isn't very often, I can take out what I need in the little bags and assemble a floss box or 2 to go. These I carry in a Plano Fishing tackle bag which can fit four boxes and a magazine or thin book on top of them. (Plano makes great containers, too.)

Have fun organizing; it's not too bad once you start! [8D]