Organizing Ribbon & Trims

Whether you are a quilter, scrapbooker, cardmaker, or crafter of any kind, chances are good that you have a stash of ribbons and trims tucked away with your supplies. I don’t know about you, but I feel like I’m always searching for a better way to organize my collection. I’ve tried everything from installing lengths of gutter pipe on my walls to hold rolls of ribbon to sorting it by color in pretty glass jars. My most recent method – and favorite so far – is having my ribbons sorted by color and stored in a drawer unit from the Best Craft Organizer company. I like that I can pull out a drawer and easily find what I need. They aren’t as pretty as the glass jars I used to use, but it is so much easier to get the ribbon I want and they don’t get all tangled like they did in the jars… plus some of my ribbons didn’t fit in the jars to begin with.

But the one issue I haven’t been able to solve (until now!) is how to keep the ends of the ribbon from coming undone. I’ve tried tape – which didn’t work too well as sometimes it would pull out threads and start to fray the ends of the ribbon. I’ve tried pins – which didn’t cause fraying, but did leave little holes in certain types of ribbon… plus I can’t tell you how many times I’ve stabbed myself with one. I even tried our regular Zots, but they were just too strong and difficult to remove. However, now Therm O Web has come up with the perfect solution to my problem – Removable Zots!

These are just the thing to hold the ends of ribbon or trim in place – easy to remove and no holes. I love that they come on individual sheets as it makes them really easy to apply. They are also just thick enough that you can peel them off with your fingers and put them back on again.

I’ve used these on lots of different types of ribbon. Some I have wound on doll clothespins…

Keeps it nice and secure without the need for a pin!

I’ve used them on sheer ribbon and they didn’t cause any damage to the ribbon (unlike tape).

I’ve decided that although my dollpins look cute, I don’t really need them and they do take up a lot of extra room. The current method I’m using is to roll the ribbon on the end of a paintbrush and add a Removable Zot to the end.

I like using a paintbrush because the ends are tapered and the ribbon roll just slides right off.

Rolling up lengths of ribbon doesn’t take much time – perfect to do while watching your favorite show – and then they are all ready to go when you are searching for that special finishing touch to your next project.

Happy Crafting!