Corralling a Collection!

I didn't start out planning a cookie cutter/decorating supplies collection.  Little by little, as I explored sugar cookie decorating, I'd buy a cutter, decorative sprinkles, piping supplies.  Soon those items outgrew my spot in the kitchen so I put them in the garage cabinets.  After a while my collection outgrew that spot and I put the excess in a box (that usually sat on the garage floor, much to my Hubber's chagrin). When it came time to make sugar cookies I would spend a lot of time searching for the cookie cutter I wanted or I would forget I had a certain cutter and buy a duplicate (does a person really need 4 bee cookie cutters?) I either had multiple bottles of certain color sprinkles or sanding sugar or, worst yet, none; usually discovered when I was knee-deep in a project. For someone who is pretty organized this was becoming a problem, something had to be done, the collection was getting out of control!

I procrastinated for a while because part of my organization involved eliminating one of my cabinets of cookbooks.  With so many recipes and ideas available online these days I find I don't use my cookbooks like I used to.  I finally went through them and eliminated three boxes full of cookbooks, keeping only the ones I use on a regular basis or sentimental ones. With an empty cabinet at my disposal I got to work.  All the sprinkles, candies, sugars are arranged by color. Now I can easily determine if I have the necessary supplies when I plan a sugar cookie project.  I bought plastic filing cabinets and now all the piping bags and tips are in one spot, the ones I have the most of, and use more often, are in small jars.  Sticks for cake pops, decorative straws, decorative toppers all have their own space now.

My cookie cutter collection remains in the garage but they are now organized.  Each box is numbered and has a corresponding Excel spreadsheet telling me what is in the box. I tried to organize each box so that similar type cutters were inside, for example, one box contains holiday cookie cutters. Now when I want to know where a certain cookie cutter is I just go to my spreadsheets (the inner accountant comes out in me with the use of spreadsheets!)

 

My Hubbers arrives home from his two week biking adventure tomorrow.  He's going to be so thrilled to see there are no longer boxes of "stuff" in front of the cabinets!