Do you have all your supplies inventoried?

[Former_Member]

I admit I've been slow and reluctant to organize mine but in order to save money it had/has to be done.
I finally have about half my yarn organized and counted along with a list on my phone by brand, of each color and amount I have of each.
One more brand to go. Then I need to work on my buttons and hooks.

So do you have your supplies organized & how did ot are you doing it?

[Linnypigs]

Not at all... I wish I had some better storage than just one drawer so that I could organise it better :S

It's a real pain...

[Former_Member]

Goodness, I have SO much from several years of scrapbooking and card making before I opened my shop, it would take me an age :)
I thought I was being organised yesterday doing an inventory of my listed items!

[Plektra]

Not really. I have all supplies in one area so I can see everything. Admitedly, that area needs to be organised in a different way. However, I do remember what I have, especially my yarn.

[Former_Member]

I keep all of my fabric cataloged, which is a pain, but that way if it is popular I know where the best price was and when I am looking at pricing I can refer to the costs- sometimes I don't make something until months and months later so it is helpful. I am worse with the ribbon and thread and "the basics" and I need to do it because it adds up and it is always one of those items that I find I don't have enough on hand of when I go to start something.

[Former_Member]

I have some of it inventoried. Some of the yarn I use is often out of stock due to popularity. So I buy it when I find it not when I need it. I have that inventoried.

But mostly, I know what I have. I don't keep a ton of yarn on hand. Since I use mostly cotton yarn, it comes in small skeins so easy to keep track of.

[krochetlady]

Natasha... keeping a list of yarns by brand on your phone is a fantastic idea!

I buy yarn every time I run across a good deal, so I have a lot duplicate colors/ brand because I can never remember what I have already!

Thanks for the tip!

[Former_Member]

I've had my supplies inventoried since the first time I went to the shops to purchase a specific yarn only to find that I already had plenty of that yarn in my stash. That was many many years ago.

Ever since then I've kept an inventory spreadsheet of my 'stash' yarns that lists each yarn brand, then colour and the number of balls of each.

For my shop I keep a separate spreadsheet simply because there is no way I can run a yarn shop without it. If I didn't have an online supply inventory list it would take me ages to track what needed to be ordered every week.

[WilliamsGiftshop]

I am pretty organized, so I know what I have and I know where I stashed it, but that being said, I am not keeping track of it on my pc or on paper.

[EnchantedCircle1234]

Oh dear, I am laughing at myself.....no not organized...a bag with jewelry parts goes to work with me, to play at breaks etc....to shows so I can work while I am there....the bag is kinda, lol, organized....I am forever looking for something....today I spent 30 minutes looking for tiny dragonflys....not found yet...two years ago I bought boxes...there is stuff in there two....I gave up, I am a disorganized artist...did I say how heavy that bag is....

[MariasWorkshop]

I keep my supplies in labeled divided plastic boxes, by material and color. When I started, I thought I was doing great by putting my beads in unlabeled divided plastic boxes. Then the whole thing mushroomed and I was going crazy looking for a particular bead. That is when I decided to organize by type of item, material and color. Also, as soon as I order any item, I save a copy of the invoice in my computer. In the same sheet I prepare a table with the name of the supplier, description of the item and the cost per unit - including shipping charges. If the item was on sale or purchased wholesale, I made a note as well. I print the table and cut each strip containing the information and place it in the appropriate division in the plastic box. At least this way, when I am running short, or when I like the item very much and would like to have more of it, I know the name of the supplier, the item number and the price. This way I also have the price of the materials I may be using at my fingertips.

It is a lot of work, but I am finally getting used to doing it every time I order supplies. This system has also saved me from purchasing duplicate items.

I got tired just explaining the above. =)

[Former_Member]

I've realized it is totally necessary as some of my yarn has been discontinued and I certainly don't want to promise a customer a special order item and then not be able to produce the yarn for it. It's also made me more aware of what kind of yarns I can and will use for certain items allowing me to purchase the right things on sale at the right time. :)

[SelkieCrochet]

I'm not that organised but I have a pretty good rough idea of what I have in 'stock' or not.

I don't tend to make things to order unless someone asks me to so I can just work away with whatever I like ;)

[Former_Member]

Ha...I wish...I have more than 500 jewelry items in my shop and stacks of storage cases filled with beading! I wouldn't know where to start! I do try to keep a running list of staple supplies that I need to purchase as I use them!
I pray for organizational skills! :D

[AuraRosesTreasures]

My philosophy about owning anything: If I don't know where it is, I should not have it.
That being said, no matter how well organized I am with drawers, boxes, labels, lists and notes, some things are getting away with me.
I feel the spring cleaning bug but no time to do it!
It will take awhile, but I will pass on to someone else the items that are just too much to hold on to.
I have a fine crafters group that I bring these things too.
We all give each other so much.
It's a great group.

[LovesYouCrafts]

Wow, that's a great idea I've never thought to do.

Having it all stored on my phone would help me when I'm shopping and trying to figure out what I should get next! I have been going through my supplies lately and getting ready for a huge push to increase my stock and once I do that and my supplies are low again, I will have to do this!

Thanks for the idea!

[Former_Member]

I know it's not applicable for everyone but for things like my yarn I can just go onto the suppliers website and copy/paste a list of colors & item numbers & then just put them into the have or have not category and quantity on-hand. If it is discontinued I put DC next to it so if I do happen to locate a color I use in a store I can snatch it up before its gone or delete the listing if the color truly cant be found anymore. :)

[SeaAirArts]

I'm trying to force myself to not only organize all my supplies but inventory them as well. I'm in the US and our tax time is just finished, my tax lady scolded me for not doing inventory because;
- You cannot deduct the cost of our supplies until you actually SELL them in a made product. Until then they are only a business asset.
- If I kept track of what was used in that SOLD product I could deduct the COGS (Cost of Goods Sold) from my income and save myself tax money.
I was trying to use a popular spread sheet program (widely available on Etsy) and it was pretty good but way more than I actually need (as in tracking marketing all all that jazz) and it made the spreadsheet too slow and cumbersome. I have since purchase BeadManager Pro. It was a bit more pricey but it's so much faster to use and adheres more to my sense of order. It's available for Mac and PC's. Wish me luck that next year my tax lady is happier with me ;o)

[TheNorthWayStudio]

Does a pile count as organization?

[TinyTiptoesBoutique]

Yes, I'm nearly done with the largest part of my inventory. It's all done on paper and includes yarn, flowers, headband elastic, tulle and chiffon, fabric, and everything else I use. I use a card file with index cards all organized by yarn, fabric, flowers, etc... and within each section is a card for each yarn I use which includes where I buy it and how much and what items it's used in. I'm realizing that with how big my shop has grown, supplies inventory is absolutely crucial!

[Former_Member]

Not even a little. No organization, though someday I'd like to be organized! Just not sure it's realistic to keep an inventory of what supplies I have available. Too many different supplies, too many different sized pieces of material, too many supplies from before I opened my shop.

[Former_Member]

Not at all but this is a good idea, I honestly never thought about doing this but it will definitely help me see where I'm spending money, where I can save and what is selling. Right now I have plastic bins full sorted by color, then a separate plastic box with little drawers for my buttons also sorted by color and a drawer for my knitting and crochet needles.

[ColiesCrochet]

Mine is a work in progress. :)
I have been crocheting for years but only thinking of Etsy since November and opened on February 1st. I basically started inventory with all of the supplies I had purchased for my opening listing items and have added all new supplies I've purchased since then. All of my old yarn/supplies are kept in a separate area and if I need to dig into my personal stash, I "buy" it from myself and add it into my business inventory. I've already decided that whatever is left in my personal stash at the end of the year, I will donate it.

[SelkieCrochet]

I just had to order some wool for a custom order and also decided to do a tiny stock up on some other stuff while I was at it -- and just realised that I've ordered stuff that I already have!

I'll use it up regardless but if I'd have twigged that I already had that shade I'd have ordered something else instead...sigh

[ashleynchl]

Nope. I'm not organized AT ALL. I wish I was. My craft room is a mess.