Do you have a special place that you allocate for craft supplies? Organizing craft supplies together in one dedicated space is a luxury many don’t have.
In this post, I will share a small walk-in closet makeover. What starts out as a game closet will end as a craft/gift wrap storage space. I will give tips on inexpensive, versatile products that can be used in organizing craft supplies in whatever sized space you have to work with.
The Problem
For many years I had these items under beds, drawers, and in the attic of my house. When I moved into a larger house with better storage space, I knew I wanted to have a better system in place.
If you read my game cabinet post, then you know I cleared out the closet that previously held all our board games to make better use of the space.
This closet is a mess of games. I need to use it in a more efficient way, so I plan to use it for organizing craft supplies as well as gift wrap. I also have tons of bows, tags, tissue paper, and other gift wrapping supplies that take up a lot of space.
Edit and Prep
The first step in any project is to clean out the space. This is one of the few projects where I don’t need to get rid of stuff. I just need to store and organize the items. After I clean the shelves, the closet gets two coats of fresh white paint. With my new, blank space, I’m excited to fill it with fun and function.
Organizing Craft Supplies
Craft supplies can take up a lot of space in your home so it’s important to keep them organized. You want to be able to find what you need when you need it.
When my kids were younger, I was quite the crafter. Moreover, the kids always needed pipe cleaners, buttons, feathers, and yarn for school projects. We did craft projects at home together, and I did scrapbooking on my own.
Now that we are all older, we tend to need much bigger project materials.
Even though I can’t sit still long enough to scrapbook anymore, I still keep some crafts on hand. All this to say that this closet has enough room to house other items in addition to craft supplies.
I knew I wanted the closet to be multi-purpose. Therefore, I made it a craft AND gift wrap closet. So, half the closet is craft supplies and the other half is for gift wrapping and party supplies. I will definitely use this space a lot because I have a huge family and it is ALWAYS someone’s birthday. Not to mention all the other holidays throughout the year.
Storage Solutions Used for Organizing Craft Supplies
The second and third shelves hold craft tools and craft papers (mostly construction paper). To organize these items, I used (left to right) 2 medium multi-purpose bins from The Container Store. I used an old, under bed storage container to hold the larger craft papers.
I used the extra-large bins to hold craft supplies such as modeling clay, floral foam, stamps, and stamp pads. Between the two bins, I used a 3-tier expandable shelf from Target to hold paint and paintbrushes. The little vases holding the paintbrushes are from Target’s Dollar Spot.
Storage Solutions Used for Organizing Gift Wrapping Supplies
The bottom two shelves hold gift wrapping and party supplies.
First, I used the clear stackable shoe drawer from The Container Store to hold all my bows and name tags.
I had these drawers in my old bathroom cabinets. They are a great product but they won’t fit in our new vanities. I had to find a new use for them. I mention this because I wouldn’t have spent the money on this product (they are a little pricey) to store bows.
The less expensive multi-purpose bins would have made more sense, but I had these on hand. I do love how they look! I was able to separate the bows by color. If I had stored them in bins, they would’ve all been just thrown together.
On the far right of this shelf (hidden by the wall unit) is a card organizer. Sometimes I buy cards far in advance because I find ones I really like.
The card organizer can be used for new cards or cards you’ve received and want to keep for sentimental reasons. It’s like an expandable file with a slot for each month or you can label it differently if you like (for example, assign each slot to a person instead of a month).
Storage Solutions used for Organizing Party Supplies
On the far left of the last shelf, I used the wide long tall, stacking plastic bin from the Container Store to hold party supplies. This product has dividers that you can remove or reposition.
This is a great storage solution because it is so versatile and you can use it all over your house. It comes in many dimensions to fit whatever your project requires. The larger sizes have wheels on them!
I have my supplies separated into four categories: balloons, favor bags, banners, and streamers. On the far right, I have placed two more multi-purpose bins to hold tissue paper and paper shred.
Extra Storage
This is a small walk-in closet, so there was plenty of space on the side walls to place extra storage. On the left wall, I have an Elfa wall & door gift wrap organizer holding my gift wrap.
On the right wall, I have another Elfa wall unit with two baskets. One is for large bags, and one is for small gift bags.
You can use these wall and door solutions in every room of the house. I’m sure they will be highlighted in a future post because I’d like to show you how versatile they are.
Yes, the wall and door rack block a few items on the shelves but I put things in that spot that I don’t use as often.
I left room on the top shelf and the floor in case I need to add other items in the future. I’m a shorty (5’1), and I hate when I can’t reach things. If I end up putting anything up there, it will be something I rarely need.
I can also use the back of the closet door if the need arises. Maybe I’ll start purchasing gifts ahead of time and keep extras on hand in this closet.
However, just because you have extra space doesn’t mean you have to fill it. It looks best when it isn’t stuffed full anyway.
Final Thoughts
One thing I’d like to mention is that I am blessed with closet space in this house. That wasn’t always the case in previous homes we’ve owned. We are lucky to have a whole closet in my husband’s office dedicated to all things Christmas.
I don’t keep my Christmas wrapping paper in this closet because we have that closet. Now THAT is a closet that needs to get organized. Hmmmm…. I see a Christmas closet post in my future.
Some people have whole rooms in their house dedicated to crafts or gift wrapping. I really don’t dream about having that. HOWEVER, I do dream of a closet big enough to have my tree set up on wheels and fully decorated so I can just pull it out every year and it’s done. Anyone else?
That’s my re-purposed closet. It used to be a messy game closet, and now it’s a super organized craft closet with the added benefit of gift wrap and party supplies. I know I’m very lucky to have such a spacious extra closet to dedicate to these items.
If you don’t have a whole closet to dedicate to these items, I’m sure some of my solutions can still work for you in a smaller space. You can implement many of these tips/products into a much smaller space, such as a cabinet.
How do you keep your gift and craft supplies organized? Do you have a space in your house that you can use for this purpose? Please share in the comments.
Thanks for reading!
