Tools -- teaching and organization

Remember the Certs commercials?  "Two, two, two mints in one?"  Well today's tool is two tools in one.

It's a teaching tool, and an organizational tool.

Well, ok, maybe I'm stretching the analogy, but this really is one of the most important-to-me tools for teaching, and for organizing in my studio.

Ready to go up to the studio and be
freshened up/restocked.

It's these boxes (no, not the bag on top, the clear boxes with the green lids).

They are the 13x13 ornament boxes in the Snap 'N Stack line by Snapware.  They're available on Amazon and we're coming into the time of year that they're available at lots of local stores -- Home Depot, Lowes, JoAnns'.

There are other sizes and styles available as well.  They are not inexpensive, but as the year winds down, you can probably find them on pretty deep discount.  I expect I'll be picking up another pair or two.

Each one has the kit materials for a class.  I try to keep them stocked (though I do need to go through them and clean them up) -- so when someone contacts me and says "hey can you teach at X event" I can easily say 'yes' if I'm free that weekend -- if I've been good about keeping them stocked, I usually just need to print documentation.  If I collect fees or donations for a given class, I keep that money in the box until I need to purchase materials for that class.

The boxes stack up, and snap together so if teaching more than one class, I can take the boxes for all in one stack.

Here you can see the locking mechanism.  Kind of hard to see in this photo, but on the bottom of each box there are clips just like the ones on the lid, that's how they stack together.

One of my plans is to set up a box of the tools that I always take when teaching -- scissors, needles, needle threaders, pens and pencils, among other items.

That's how they're a teaching tool.  They're also an organizational tool not just because they keep the teaching materials organized, but becuae they help me keep the studio organized -- they have their own spot (big enough for a couple more), so when they are returned to the studio, they go right in their place.

Two, two, two tools in one.