Your Crafty Comments – Craft Tips

This week’s installment of Your Crafty Comments is a special edition focused on readers’ favorite craft tips. We put out a call on Facebook and Twitter for tips, and received some great feedback. Here are some of our favorites.
Margaret Krueger writes:

Take your time to do it right and dont be afraid to ask for help. Never forget to read the directions as even the best of us forget that fact and we of course want ot do it right but get stubborn and of course forget our own advice.

Jacque Childress shares:

Don’t create for anyone else’s satisfaction except your own. That may be a no-brainer for some people, but for me, doing something to please other people hindered my creativity! Once I let go of that mind set, I’ve been more free.

Kathleen Marshall says:

Clear plastic boxes in different sizes, so you can see what’s in them. I switched out all my assorted cardboard boxes and tins years ago and wouldn’t go back! Larger boxes I put on a utility shelf, so I don’t have to unstack and restack the boxes.

Courtney Rose Calkins writes:

One favorite tip for parents is to always have on hand plenty of glue, foam stickers in varying shapes, construction paper, googly eyes and stamps with ink pads, in addition to markers and crayons. We made a kit with all these things and keep it at Grandma’s house and they have craft time when she sits for our son.

Dana Jones says:

When working with clay I keep a package of babywipes on my table it is the best thing to clean your hands and surface with, takes it right up.

A lot of folks mentioned using plastic zip-top bags for storage, and I especially like Ellen Cotter’s take on this tip:

I love using the ziplock vegetable bags for storing current projects in my purse to take with me. The tiny holes in the bag let the air out which makes it much easier to quickly stash in a bag, while the plastic still protects the project.

Zshanna Kristoff share this project storage tip:

I nab wine boxes from businesses and friends then I brainstorm and keep the tools for each project in a labeled wine box or old milk crate (which are great since you can see through the sides). Things tend to wander in my house… Missing once piece of a craft project will get it put off forever. This helps save me the hour I’d spend bringing it all together again.

Fantastic tips, everyone! Thanks so much for sharing them.