Shoebox + pretty paper = ribbon storage!

So in the course of my growing crafting obsession, I managed to collect a lot of ribbon. I mean A LOT. And I just realized when I sat down to write this post that it probably would have been a good idea to take a before photo of my previous "storage solution," which consisted of a plastic Target bag inside of a small basket inside of a plastic storage tote in the crawl space under our stairs in the basement. Classy right?! Ha! You gotta do what you gotta do I guess, but the time has come for a change since I keep accumulating ribbon & I may even be getting even more if I start up an Etsy shop for my ribbon mobiles like I am seriously considering doing.

While beginning this quest to make a very crafty ribbon holder, I realized there were very few tutorials out there for the type of holder I had in mind, so I decided to write my own!

First, I collected up all my supplies:

• A shoe box (my hubby had plenty to choose from - he must have know I would need them for a project one day :o)
• Wrapping paper in your color/pattern choice (got mine from Target for a different project & then decided I didn't like it for that project, but that it would be perfect for this one!)
• Scissors
• Something to punch holes in your box (Note - I found that my normal hole punch was too short & the holes would be under the lid of the box, so I improvised (with the help of my hubby) & used an old wine bottle opener & a mechanical pencil - with the lead pushed in - to make the holes a little bigger. Hey, I was trying to do this project w/o spending any money!)
• Tape (I originally started out with Modge Podge on box #1, but quickly switched to tape - it's easier to correct mistakes like that).

Next, I got to taping - all sides & the top, but I left the bottom mostly uncovered since it won't be seen. :oD

So much prettier covered in wrapping paper, isn't she?!

After that, the hubbs helped me devise a plan to get the holes where I needed them, which is below where the cover hits on the front face of the box. He came up with the cheapo genius idea to use an old wine opener that we don't use much any more & then we used a pencil to make the holes a little bit bigger.

That's him poking the holes - he's my favorite tool. :)

Once we got the holes in the box, I arranged my ribbon by color & started threading it through the holes my hubby poked in the box for me. I had to make bigger holes for some of the ribbon as I went along.

I put some extra spools of duplicate ribbon in the back section of the box, along with some spare tissue paper I had laying around to stop the threaded ribbon from rolling around in the box whenever I move it.

In my second box, I put my oversize spools of wide ribbon & ribbon that was almost gone. I didn't see a real point in threading it through my box if it was almost gone.

And ta-da - a DIY ribbon storage solution & I have plenty of extra wrapping paper & an extra shoe box if my ribbon-collecting addiction continues & I need to make another. 

And the best part about it...it was my favorite price - FREE because I already had all of the supplies on hand! What do you think?! I love it & it's perfect for me & it'll go perfectly on the bookcase I plan to put down in my little corner of the basement since the babe's stuff is in my former office/crafting storage area. So what about you - do you have lots of ribbon or other crafting materials that you have organized in a thrifty & clever way? I'd love to see it - comment with a link to your blog post if you have one! If you have lots of ribbon & are looking for a way to organize it, then you should definitely try this solution out - it's quick, easy & pretty inexpensive (possibly free if you have everything on-hand, like I did). If you try it out, please let me know, I'd love to see how yours turns out. And now this pregnant mama is off to bed - 'till next time!