maybe it's me being an artist, but I don't have my studio EVER so 'perfectly' organized. It's certainly organized- but my paint tubes are never lined up- they're all dumped in a drawer. I like things being slightly messy- makes me feel like i have a little more freedom. no idea why.

studios like these are pretty to look at though! :)

Wow - my initial reaction is that it doesn't have to be so expen$ive - some of my favorite low budget ideas that I've used so far in my own studio-in-progress:

* bought coffee cups w/o handles for 24 cents each at Chefs Warehouse in South San Francisco, lined them up on $20 IKEA shelves, and filled them with various art tools (brushes, palette knives, watercolor pencils, paint pens, glitter pens, etc). For just $6 these coffee cups en masse, lined up like soldiers, imply order where before it was chaos finding the right tool.

* re-purposed household items I'd grown up with as a child - like my childhood cookie jar that's missing its lid and a pot my mother loved but never planted in - to hold unruly larger items like decorative scissors.

* re-used, re-furbished, old household items (bookshelves, desk, barstools, tables) and all those cost were some sandpaper, paint, elbow grease.

* used spring-load curtain rods, $1 each at the dollar store, to hold wrapping paper & ribbons.

Look around, take your time, you really can do this on an extreme budget. My next step is unloading everything and laying a new floor - but - before I took even that step I wanted to make certain the space would work as a studio.

I have to agree CozyLittleCave. I actually just tidied my studio the other day, but if I'm making anything then it will be a bit messy.

That's the point of having a dedicated studio - so that you can spread out & don't have to constantly clear everything away off the dining table in the middle of projects.

Of course I'd love either the Craftroom Organizing Island and/or The Original Scrapbox & MiniBox if I had the spare cash!

those are some great organizing ideas! i am inspired to go clean my office now!

Great, this will be useful the next time I need to organize 3 dozen types of ribbon.

Yeah, those are ridiculously expensive.
I would much rather spend the money on supplies.

great org-porn, though.

I agree with Rucy.

These are pretty, but how really needs to own 200 spools of ribbon?

I find things around the home to use, but I might try to use some of the ideas.

Rucy - I'm with you! I organized my craft room barely spending any $$ last month. Vintage cups & glass tea light holders for storing beads, tin cans for tools, glass bottles for chains, glass yogurt container for buttons, old dresser now stores my larger craft supplies like yarn & fabric. I laid an old ikea CD tower on top of a dining table I've been using for a craft table for accessible nooks filled with supplies. Check it out: http://craftscafe.wordpress.com/2010/02/08/new-crafts-space/

I'm with Rucy and craftscafeonetsy. Honestly, as a sewer, I just grabbed a couple of the plastic four-drawer organizers. I used post-its on the inside of the clear drawers for labels, used old cardboard jewelry boxes and old checkbook boxes to organize the shallow drawers, and a small makeup drawer box to hold pens, pencils, and scissors. Then I added an Ikea sweater closet hanger to organize all those cuts of fabric that never seem to get used.

Organizing on the cheap also lets you think about how *you* use your tools. Organizing needs will all be different, depending on what you're organizing and how you work. Using one of these pre-made organizers would drive me nuts because I just am not wired that way.

But yes, it's nice inspiration.