Saturday, August 9, 2008

Findings Organizer from Heaven

No, I'm not talking about an actual person (wish I was -- my studio has reached critical mass). Today I was at Thomason Stone Supply and noticed these cute little, inexpensive, tres compact organizers from Beadsmith (a wholesaler, you'll have to find this item retail somewhere). I just spent 20 minutes googling them to no avail so I don't know if it's a new product or if most jewelry vendors stock other organizers that are more geared more toward bead storage. Well, I bought 2 today and haven't opened the second one, so heres' a scan:




It's very compact -- only 10" x 8" and 1-7/8" deep, but it has a whopping 52 removable boxes, mostly 1-1/2" x 1-1/2", which are big enough to hold my biggest, long kidney earring wires. They had one open on the counter so I spent a good 5 minutes clicking the plastic boxes open and shut, open and shut, taking them out and putting them back in, to make sure my fingers would fit, LOL.

I'm absolutely done with storage containers that are hard to snap or don't snap securely. Or the hard plastic kind that crack when you drop them, or the screw top kinds that crack when you screw them on too tightly. Grrr! I intend to transfer all my findings from my old grandpa-style nuts and bolts drawers (that have cracked over the years, and allow dust to seep in from the backs), into these tidy little mini-briefcases.

So far, I'm almost done with one set of grandpa-drawers and I've put my earring wires, earring posts, clutch backs, smaller clasps, cones, crimps and crimp covers into one new case, with several boxes to spare. (What did I learn about my findings collection? That I have too many different kinds!)

My longer headpins are too long for the basic boxes, but there are two larger boxes they'll nestle into just fine. Oh! Plus, this package comes with a scooper spoon in one of the larger boxes, and a pair of tweezers in the other.

Don't know the price range around the country (and beyond) on this item, but at Thomason I only paid $12.50 each, well a bit less w/my discount. I think this is a great deal! My only slight complaint is that when you stand the case up, the hinge causes it to tilt slightly to one side. No I'm not OCD ;-) I just worry it will fall over up on my shelf when it's all full of schtuff.

7 comments:

  1. I think they are actually old. The were for sale a few perhaps even several years ago in Walmart here in Canada, then they dissappeared off the shelves and I've never seen them since! They are great! I only got one and a friend of mine got two.
    Cheers, Denise

    ReplyDelete
  2. OH noooo! I want like five more! Dang, I shouldn't have said where I got them...although they only had one left that was unopened, so maybe they'd actually had them forever and I got the last two? (I bought one opened).

    BUMMER!

    ReplyDelete
  3. Yeah, when I saw that picture, I thought "Oh!!! Lucky You!!" I tried to go back for more, but they were gone and weren't in any other walmarts.
    Now I use flippies and embroidery floss boxes, because they are made of a plastic that isn't brittle. I have used my dremel to take some of the walls of the embroidery box away so that the larger flippies fit in there - it's worth the work!
    Cheers, Denise

    ReplyDelete
  4. Hey that's creative.

    P.S. I'm waiting for Thomason to open so I can call and see if they have more.

    I CALL DIBS! (that was for any Burque gals lurking...) ;-)

    ReplyDelete
  5. DENISE! I can't figure out how to email you...could you contact me at mizmaryt@gmail.com if you read this? Tnx, Mary

    ReplyDelete
  6. The Darice company makes some of these. My buddy Audrey gifted me with one a couple of years ago. The little containers opened up after a while, but as long as I wasn't toting this around, it was okay.

    The Craft Kit Company (google that or Lady Bug Beads) has a great system similar to these. I love them. They are VERY pricey, but I think they are worth it.

    ReplyDelete
  7. Thanks you bad bad Liz. ;-) I have not chatted w/you OR Audrey in forever.

    I called the local shop and they are ordering more, so apparently they're still available.

    P.S. I keep thinking if I buy enough organizers I'll be organized. I keep forgetting, I have to take the time to actually put stuff in them!

    ReplyDelete

Thanks for your comment! It will be reviewed and posted ASAP.