Trying to fit mixed media art into our everyday activities can be challenging – there will always be other things vying for our attention.. but when we do finally get that scrap of time together – or even find ourselves with a few unexpected hours ahead of us – how do we use that time effectively? This series of articles will look at tips to help you hit the ground running when you have that crafting time.

Part 1 – Keeping your craft table clean
As simple as it sounds, not having your crafting area clean and ready to go is enough to lose any motivation that may have been there and it will certainly use up any time you have scrounged. If this is a problem for you then it is time for a cleanup.

I always find this a little daunting – there seems to be stuff everywhere and barely any space to put another thing.

Get started by putting things away that have a home. Stamps left out to dry back into their drawers, folders or boxes and back onto the shelf. Paints and dry brushes back into their box. Putting things that have a home is the easiest way to get started.

If it is unfinished projects or extra stamped or painted backgrounds that clutter your workspace, you may need a UFO (un finished objects) box to get the things out of the way that you want to keep but aren’t going to use right now. Small piece of paper can go into their colour boxes [we talked about these here]

Once the bigger items are away, it is time for the hard questions for the item remaining in your craft space – do I need to keep this? Will I use it? There may have to be some sacrifices for our art. And that may have to be a few small pieces of paper or the odd item that we may use “some day” but it is preventing us for getting started TODAY because it is in the way.

Now we have an areas that is clean enough to get started crafting for today. You never know – you may have even been inspired by some of this bits and pieces you unearthed during your clean up!

I hope these few tips will help you use your crafting time well.

Happy creating.

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