Craft Room Makeover, Part One- Ribbon Tree (And upcoming giveaway!!!!)

My craft room is an utter disaster. I am too embarrassed to reveal the full extent of the destruction that has become hurricane Courtney's Crafts, so I am going to slowly add my remedies one by one, until the project is complete later this spring (or summer). I am going to post details on an awesome giveaway very soon that will be tied into this organizational series. To be entered, sign up to follow and then comment on this blog or my facebook page (more comments, more chances to win!) with some of your favorite organizational tips.

I'm going to start with one of the smallest problems, but one that annoys me more than anything: unruly ribbons. I have two plastic tubs full of ribbons, and countless extra odd cuts of ribbon floating around all over. I was thinking of buying a ribbon organizer, or making one in my plastic rolling drawers, but I really wanted a way to display them so I don't forget about them- and I wanted something free or under $2. I first thought of putting nails in a board and hanging ribbon spools up high, but it just looked tacky. While not the most refined idea ever, I thought a ribbon tree might be more fun and appropriate. It's vertical, so it doesn't take up much precious desk space, and it gets all of my ribbons organized and visible. It also used up some of my scrap cardstock :).

Items you will need for a ribbon tree:
Dowel (if you have over 30", I'd suggest no smaller than a 5/17" width for sturdiness)
Cardstock scraps
Mod Podge
Wood Glue

First, arrange your ribbon on the dowel by sliding the dowel through the hole in the middle of the ribbon. I did a basic ROYGBIV, going from thickest to thinnest per color, but how you organize your ribbon is up to you!

Next, drill a hole through or almost all the way through the wood block, and check to be sure it fits. Don't glue the dowel in yet, as you will still be decoupaging the block. **Sidenote: I do NOT want my child anywhere near my ribbons, so I have this placed all the way against the wall of my craft table and have mounted it to the wall. See below for instructions on how to do this. This ribbon tree is not meant to be a toy or ribbon storage for a child- it could tip, and dowels are- in my opinion- not strong enough to be suitable for a child and present stabbing/hitting/poking danger. If you are looking for a fun, safe way to display ribbons, barrettes, etc in your child's room, please check out my beautiful custom ribbon boards here.

After you know the dowel will fit in the hole you drilled, move it and the ribbons aside. Pick out cardstock scraps you like, and cut them into various square and rectangle shapes, much like a wonky quilt. Glue them to the board using mod podge, until you have the top, front and sides covered. Cover with a thin coat of mod podge to seal the project.

Once mod podge is dry, place wood glue in hole of board, and affix dowel inside.

For loose ribbons I have hanging around (extra bit I didn't use, or ribbon lengths that were already cut and then discarded), I tie them loosley at the top to 1) cover the fact I was lazy and didn't pre-paint my dowel, and 2) so I can quickly see what ribbon I have already cut and access it without rummaging through piles.

There you go, a fun and unique way to store and display your ribbons without spending any (or much) money!


*** To affix to wall:
Place ribbon tree on sturdy table as close to wall as possible. Take some rope, ribbon, or strong cord (even a shoelace would work) and place it around the middle of the tree. Pull ends taut to wall, and staple using small staple gun. Pull lightly on tree, it should not move (or not move very far). To make this extra secure, repeat this step at the top of tree as well. To move around, you can pull one side of string out from the staple, and then move tree. When ready to re-mount, tie a tight knot to still stapled side of string.

If you wont move this around ever, you can also screw it into your workspace.