Ribbon Storage for the Ribbon Hoarder

While I love those big, clear, glass jars I've seen on magazines that display ribbon stash so colorfully, my collection is simply way (WAY) beyond the number of jars I can keep in my studio. Well, if you're a serious hoarder like me, and you know who you are, here is a storage solution that has worked for me. It saves space and it lets me see and access my yummy ribbons quite easily.

I use regular photo boxes, nothing fancy, just the types you can usually get on sale or clearance at local craft stores. I have three of these boxes: one for ribbons arranged by brand, one for ribbons arranged in ROYGBIV order, and one to hold fibers and super chunky ones. And in case you're wondering, ROYGBIV (say it like "Roy G. Biv") means red, orange, yellow, green, blue, indigo, and violet order. Why do I have a By Brand box? This box is for my favorites, the one I tote with me when going to crops.


To save space, I remove the ribbons from their spools and wind them around rectangular cardboards and secured with a sewing pin. To help keep it in place, it helps if the length of the cardboard is the same as the width of the inside of the box. The height of the cardboard should be about 1/2" less than the height of the inside of the box to leave room for the added height of the wound ribbons.


For my smaller ribbons like leftovers or the ones that come in kits, usually under 12", I use a floss caddy with the ribbons wound on plastic floss bobbins and again, secured with pins. This is usually the box I pull out when making cards, to make sure I use these up first.


This ribbon storage system has worked for me for a couple of years now. Come scrap time, I just put the boxes out with the lids off so I can easily scan for that perfect touch of ribbon or fiber. And when I'm done, lids go back on to protect from dust and then the boxes are stacked on a shelf.

PS - If you have A LOT of ribbons still in spools, do the winding on cardboard while you watch TV and you won't even notice how productive and more organized you're becoming. Happy winding :)