Sorting Out My Messy ALEX Watercolor Drawer Unit! IKEA Storage Solutions & Art Studio Organization
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- čas přidán 6. 09. 2024
- Oh what an absolute chaotic mess my watercolour drawers were in! I hadn't sorted through them in a long time and so this video is very much overdue. I needed to rearrange everything in the drawers and get all of my loose watercolor tubes under control. I found a very elegant solution from IKEA; some drawer inserts which fit perfectly into my ALEX drawer unit.
Here are these awesome MALAREN inserts: www.ikea.com/a...
The other one I mentioned but opted not to get is the KUGGIS drawer insert, which will fit into the wide ALEX drawers like the ones I have. They're pretty heavy though! Here it is: www.ikea.com/a...
It was quite an emotional process dealing with my watercolour hoard, but I have wrangled it mostly under control, and hopefully you will find inspiration from this video if you are looking for a way to organise your watercolour tubes and palettes too! Let me know what you think, and if there are any improvements I could make. I'm always open to your suggestions.
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I find watercolor collection videos very relaxing to watch, so I'd definitely be interested in seeing one. I started out keeping my paints organized by brand, but I've ended up just mixing them all up and keeping in small drawers by color. It encourages me to use them all, regardless of brand, but sometimes I still get such envy seeing collections like yours kept all prettily with the brands together.
I did consider organising by colour, but in the end I went with brand, more so I can find specific paints when I want them. But maybe I'll change my mind on this at some point, haha!
22:12 yes please I’d love to see all your colours!!
"Why am I holding the scissors so awkwardly?" that made me laugh so hard 😂
Omg ditto 😂
Yeah I agree
That and “I’m an emotional artiste!”
I hope this doesn’t sound terrible, but if there was one thing I was gonna take from your house, it would be this chest of drawers absolute heaven. Some people would tag jewelry, diamonds cash, things they could sell me. I just want the art supplies particular, the watercolours. If I could put this whole drawer on my wish list, I would thank you so much for sharing. I’d love you to go through all your pallets and even do a swatch out of them all again. I love watching what people think of each individual colour and what they used them for.
I'm too poor for jewellery, diamonds and cash, largely due to my habit of buying watercolours! 🤣
I have warned my children (adults) that a lot of my watercolor supplies are very expensive and when I die to be sure they don’t just get rid of everything or throw it away. 😂😂 I have granddaughters that will love to have it.
Lol
Such a fun video! What a dream seeing all those delicious watercolors. ♥️
So many artists have that drawer set - one of the problems with all Ikea unit drawers that I've found is that they don't fully open, so you're left with that bit at the back that you can't see or get to easily. I suppose they do that to force us to spend more money on things like those drawer inserts!
I so feel you on the collectormania - I'm actually quite comforted to see folk on here with collections even larger than mine... I totally share that feeling of being overwhelmed too. I was trying to find 'the right' watercolour sketchbook the other day and started to realise how ridiculous my stocks of watercolour paper are. Every time I want to paint something, I end up wasting painting time trying to decide whether to use a Baohong block over an Arches pad over one of my lovely Print Urchin sketchbooks (or Etchr, or Saunders Waterford or one of the several I've already started using...). Your final beautifully organised drawers are inspiring me!
My drawers were all initially opening at different lengths, so my husband went through and yanked them all so they came out as far as possible, which is most if not all the way. I'm sure it's a ploy to sell inserts, haha! I'm with you on the paper situation as well. 😂
Awww. One of my cats like to run round and round trying to catch her tail. Its so funny and cute at the same time.
Beautiful collection!!! Some day I would love to see Becky’s favorite blue, red, yellow, etc from various brands.
@@Saahrish They're such characters! 😂
....how did I miss this one?...What fun - your watercolor collection is awesome. When you and Nick return from Greece you'll have lots of organized choices for painting your memories
That's the plan! 😁
Hi Becky, I am watching your old videos to...need my Becky fix.
How satisfying😍 I don’t blame you, I would most likely cry if I was faced with this organization task as well, but the end result was so worthwhile! The paint tube collections are just so pretty to look at. I still haven’t tried others besides sennelier, and lately I’m tempted to pick out some more colors to add to my palette👀 I love Trixie😊
I felt a lot better once it was all done! 😊❤️
And guess who landed up with the cast off metal drawers. They have come in very handy.
They went to a good home! 😁❤️
Tubes fit upright in the bottom 3 drawers, which I find SO space effective. I organize them by colour and not brand though. Love your collection!
Great watercolor collection. :)
You are so brave to get all the tubes & palettes organized. Congratulations!😊
Thank you so much!❤
With my schmincke wooden box's I've written on the spine what one they are & stacked them on their sides like books.
That's a great idea!
I want to hug your full ikea drawers 🥰😍
I shall hug them for you! 😁
Ohhhhh… those beautiful paints ❤❤❤. What an amazing collection you have! I love videos like this SO much more than art haul videos. I like seeing someone’s collections and how they are organized, what items are most loved/used, what collections have grown the most because they are a favourite, etc. It’s interesting that your paints are organized by brand. When I organized my paints (much, much smaller amount as I’ve only been using watercolour for about a year and a half), I organized my paints by colour and the brands are all mixed together (unless they are a boxed set of tubes). My acrylic paints are the same, sorted by colour.
I hope you’ve had time to visit some art stores on your trip… looking forward to seeing what you’ve found!!
I did consider sorting by colour, but in the end, whole brands won out. I am much happier with how they look now! Oh yes, I found some art stores in Athens, and there's possibly one in Corfu as well, which I'll look for when we get there. I can't help but look. 😂
So satisfying!
Those schmincke wooden boxs would look lovely on the top of the drawers on show
If I ever get around to painting them all, I think I'll find somewhere to have them on display. 😁
Thanks Becky. I’m making my way thru your videos and enjoying your light voice easy on the ear. Yes I have subscribed to your CZcams channel
Thank you so much, and welcome! 😊
Aah so satisfying to organize your paint 😩💖I organized mine a while ago but ended up dumping all of my tube in one box because it was getting crowded 😅😅 and I didn't know about these organizers they will be perfect for my gouache espacially 🥰
I would love to see a video of all of your palettes 😍
I can totally relate to you re feeling emotional etc when dealing with organising as it gets so overwhelming but rest assured, you're not alone! I love all your videos but this one was super helpful as I have Alex drawers too. Thank you as always for your awesome videos ❤
Thank you, I appreciate your kind comments! 😊
Thank you for sharing your watercolor collection with us. I enjoyed seeing them! ❤
Beautiful collection! If you tend to use your palettes more often, I would put them in the top drawers. Love these types of video’s 😊and to and indept watercollection video!
Thank you! The lower drawers are deeper for stacking palettes, otherwise I'd have put the tubes down there. I need all the space I can get! 😂
Incredibly satisfying seeing the final outcome, amazing collection Becky. Totally understand the comment of changing your mind from a fellow Libran that does just that lol.
I'm glad someone understands! 😁
An Alex unit is what I aspire to! Not just for paints but for paper too. I just love all those hallow drawers and need somewhere usable and easy for finished work. I would find it very hard to have as many choices as you have, I already have far too many….. and I am not good with decisions. Those inserts are just the thing. I use various deep tunes, mostly silver coloured ones for tubes of paint, and don’t care about how they are laid out. The palettes themselves though I like to be able to see them. I know what you mean about WN’s. Maybe one day we can view them differently, and use them for what they are which is very nice paints. I bought some Rosa, because I wanted to show support, they are lovely too. Let’s hope it will resolve asap.
I long ago gave up thinking I will ever be able to use all my art supplies! I have daily good intentions to start to make a dent in them, but they do not get less! I recently discovered various kinds of markers as well as was given a huge set. Art materials seem to attract more and more. And the more often you use them the more things you need….
I will think of you opening those drawers and feeling really satisfied!
It is so satisfying opening them now! I found some Rosa paints here in Greece...there may well be some in my suitcase now. 😉
That's an impressive collection, Becky. And you rediscovered some buried treasures.
Fantastic collection 😊
Good job! So nice to see the paints😃
You have to be careful with the Alex cabinet. The bottom of the drawers is made of Masonite, which is too thin for such a large surface as in this cabinet. I learned this the hard way, it came out of its groove and rounded furiously under the weight of my colour boxes which were no more numerous than what I see here. I put the bottom of the drawer back in its slot and lightened its contents by putting the boxes on either side but not in the centre, but it still tends to round out again. Apart from that, you have a great collection, well done!
Ah yes, they can get a bit iffy with the drawer bases. This one seems to be holding up well though, thankfully!
Geeze Louise, you have more watercolor paints than what Dick Blick and Jerry's Artarama have combined, lol! That's quite an impressive stash of watercolors! You did an amazing job at organizing your watercolor paints Becky, it looks great.
Haha thank you! I shall have to set up shop, I think! If I could bear to part with them.....ok maybe not. 😂
Happy holiday hope you are having fun xxxx in the sun xxxx I brought my 1st water color paint Mei Ling Water color .....
Oh! Congratulations! They are beautiful paints at a great price ! Have tons of fun with them!
I think for keeping things tidy in tube drawers, keep one empty box and put all the recently used tubes there. and from time to time just unload it, this way you can also get to know your colour preferences :)
That's a great suggestion, thank you! 😊❤️
I love your drawers Becky. I don't think we have an Ikea store here in New Zealand. I wish we did. My daughter and I have taken over the dining room as an art and crafts space but we really need to invest in some storage units. Everything is out in view and I find the mess a bit overwhelming. My daughter needs to see her things to use them so she's okay with the mess but I still think we could store away the things she's not using in her current projects. We're trialing using a small metal 3 shelf trolley each for holding our current projects and that's working well. I think I'd prefer drawers to cupboards for storage. It's just so much easier to see everything at a glance when you open a drawer. With a cupboard the thing you want always seems to be at the bottom at the back where you can't see it when you need it 😂
Haha I hear that! I'm always torn between wanting to see everything on display but then it gets so messy and then I want to hide it all away in cupboards and drawers, but then I can't find anything so it all comes out...and the cycle continues. 😂 Also, NZ needs to get IKEA! My mum is there and wants it too. ❤️
@@BeckyTregear I just spotted in the news yesterday that Ikea is building a shop in Sylvia Park in Auckland. Expecting it to open in 2025. Yay!
@@zenlife1200 Oh yay, it's about time they opened a store in NZ! ❤️
It looks so much better!!!! Good job organizing! I have tons of Daniel Smith tubes also and am buying as many more as I can before my husband retires in September. I’ve been buying some of the sticks too.
Ooh a good reason to stock up! I have a few sticks too....somewhere in that hoard. 😂
Holy paint tubes!!! I've only seen that much paint in a shop :D lovely satisfying video!! Always love a good organising, I hope your holiday is going great and your having the bestest of times making memories! :D
Reading through the comments, some mention using these for storing paper. There's a problem with that - it's the open front. Our papers aren't protected from dust, humidity, high temperatures, or the wee beasties which just love warm, dark places and drop their little poos regardless of the fact that they mark our precious art supplies... Proper plan drawers (of which these are a poor-man's-copy) have closed fronts for exactly this reason.
Obviously, we can't all afford metal plan drawers, so if you do use these for your paper, they should be protected in plastic wrappers and use those little silicone bags we find in eg handbags, for protection against humidity (these days we can actually buy these on Amazon! 😮)
PS: I can't afford the Alex drawers, so definitely not a set of metal plan drawers, not even 'second hand'!!! But I got lucky, because there was a small place not far from where i lived who made bespoke furniture and the price he quoted to make my drawers was incredibly good - and these drawers, being wood (not MDF or equivalent) stained and varnished, not only look good, but store the majority of my art supplies and keep them clean and safe.
I'm not against flat-pack - where would most of us less-well-off mortals be without them??? 'Ive looked with a certain degree of envy (understatement!!!) at the neat, tidy Ikea set-ups so popular here on YT, but my art and craft studio (aka dining room) looks what it is, warm, workable and comfortable, and I know exactly where everything is. And this set-up has lasted a lot longer than Ikea-type drawers and wardrobes we've had / I have...😄
Plan drawers cost the earth....I can attest to that after having those red ones made. Love 'em to bits though. Alex drawers cost a lot too...I have accumulated a few over the years. I have another unit in my office which I use to store printer paper and stationery. One time a huge cockroach came scurrying out, so you're right about the open bit letting bugs in!! I'm still traumatised, lol 😱.
@@BeckyTregear Cockroaches - eek!!!
Yes, Ikea isn't exactly cheap! When I was moving here, as I was losing my huge built-in art and craft cupboard, I looked into an Ikea set-up, and ... well, after two years of looking at options, and other, non-Ikea possibilities, I accepted defeat!
An odd thing... I posted a separate reply, to you, when I posted this general comment about the drawers, and it's gone! I commented on your stamina and patience for finishing that huge project, and asked how long it actually took you.
Meanwhile, whereabouts in Greece are you now? I hope you're both still enjoying more of all Greece has to offer. How many art stores / second-use type stores have you found / browsed around so far? 😄
Yes! 🤩 I love a good organizational video. And your drawers of wonders (behave!) make for delightful browsing.
Hi Becky, how is the trip going? I love your alex drawer and watercolor paints. But, you are also a very talented artist and so it is only fitting that you have such wonderful supplies.
I would watch you share and use your palettes.
Thank you, I hope to get into all of my palettes when I get home. Watching this video today....ahh I'm quite homesick! I missing the cats a lot too. But otherwise we are well, and the trip is mostly good (aside from a few mishaps like Nick breaking his glasses but thankfully he was able to get new frames today). I'd forgotten how tiring travelling is!
Open them up!
Lots of work! Looks great! My paints are in a plastic rolling drawer thing, and I might have to consider this for them...I also feel a bit astonished when I look at how many I have....yiks...
I think that one Schmincke box needs its own painting, too 😻
I hope you’re having a blast on holiday! Great job reorganizing! I get emotional as well trying to organize so everything is easily accessible and pleasing to look at. It can be overwhelming! I have bought so many different little organizing trays over time trying to find the “perfect” organization set up!🤦♀️🤷♀️😂
The perfect system is always just out of reach, haha! 😂 I am happy with this new set up though!
You chose the perfect inserts! They are called "Malaren" which is most likely supposed to be "Målaren" ("å" isn't really understood internationally 🙈), which means "The painter". 😄
That is the perfect name then!! ❤️ I'd been watching the Grand Prix around the time of filming this, and I had McLaren on my brain, haha! 😂
@@BeckyTregear Haha, if you ask me McLaren sounds way cooler! ☺️🤷 But yes, it is the perfect name! ☺️
Oh my,you have so many tubes!😊me too,I don't judge.Aren't you afraid that at some point they will all dry out?I make full pans palette duplicates to have them at hand just in case.Paints are very expensive.
That was really interesting and worth it 😀👍
I wish I had so many different watercolors 😂
I've found some in Greece too...I hope I have enough room left to fit them in! 🤣
If I fits, I sits.
Trixie's great at doing that!
Becky, I am drooling over your collection, especially the first two drawers. 🤩🤤 I have this Alex unit plus a small one. Do you know if these boxes fit well in the drawers of the small unit as well? That’s where all my small messy supplies go.🫣
I just tried with my narrow unit, and they do fit! Well, the biggest box takes up pretty much the entire drawer with a little space down one side, but the skinnier ones would fit in side by side for sure, and the depth of the drawers is pretty much the same. 🙂
@@BeckyTregear That’s wonderful news! Thank you so much, Becky!
Well done looks fantastic im like you i need organization to find certain types of things..very proud of you..did you paint the schmicke top of wooden boxes?? You would be my dream paint friend id bring the wine and pizza ..and we could use one company's paint once a month....mikelle art mom👩🎨✍🎨🇨🇦🇺🇲
I did indeed paint those boxes, and I really need to get around to painting the rest of them....future project! 😁
I really like the Alex drawer sets but it annoys me so much that the drawers don’t pull all the way out.
The whole unit would tip- I have a knockoff that has drawers that pull all the way out and the whole unit tips because of it.
@@gingerblue you know that has to be because chests of drawers aren’t made as well as they used to be. Because when I was a kid, we would pull the drawers out and climb up them and none of the chests of drawers ever fell over. Now they even give you kits to attach the chest of drawers to the wall. Never an issue when I was young.
Just toooo many, I suggest unloading the ones you haven’t used in 18 months to free up real estate:)
I've filled up a couple of palettes for my dad in the meantime, with colours he found interesting. But yes, I am going to move some things on eventually! It's hard to let go, lol.
You could also fill up half pans/palettes and advertise/sell them as (pre-made)sets/palettes or individually for artists maybe? … I know I would have been chuffed to buy like that rather than the full price it costs for buying sooo many expensive watercolour supplies as tubes, iykwim 🤗
I wish some day i can buy more watercolours, for now i only have a set of white nights, lol but its ok!
What an earth would we do without the Alex drawers? Although admittedly, I do have a similar set with a very deep bottom drawer from Officeworks, which is also a ripper.
Officeworks has some great storage options too! The Alex just happened to fit the dimensions I needed. 😊
@@BeckyTregear the set from Officeworks has the same overall dimensions, it’s just instead of three shallow drawers at the bottom, it has one deep one. Handy for bigger things that won’t fit in the shallow drawers. So I have one of each type of drawers that sit side by side.
Perhaps Group them according to colour instead of brands? We are all watercolour hoarders...don't feel bad.
If I get the motivation to rearrange the tubes again, I might consider going by colour. 😊
1:33 hi Becky, Can I ask where that pink watercolour tin is from? What is it called? It looks bigger than the normal watercolour tin. I’d like to try and find one
I'm pretty sure it was from Meeden; I bought it from Amazon a few years ago now (2018 I think) and I'm not currently seeing the pink and blue ones on there. They are 48 tins, pretty much the same as the black versions, only the lids might be a bit flatter? I also removed that inner white flappy bit from them, because those are annoying, lol.
What's wrong with White Nights? I must have missed something
They're a Russian brand, and according to some folks out there, using or reviewing them means actively supporting that side in the w*r. Another 'Tuber just talked about doing a review, and he received a whole load of backlash; really nasty comments etc. I want to avoid that hornets nest! 😳
@@BeckyTregear Oh, that didn't even cross my mind. That's sooo stupid. Thanks for taking the time to reply.
Have you tried mission gold single pigments ?
I have two Mission Gold tubes which were samples, and that's it! I want to try them, not sure I can fully justify it now, lol.
Do you have the plastic sheets that are meant to prevent things from sliding around in drawers in Australia? Very handy for things like tubes tjat just slide all over the place!
I've seen ones like that somewhere!
It’s so sad when politics interferes with art.
F!