In this final installment of Marker Madness, I want to talk about storing all those markers I talked about.
If you remember from the previous articles, almost all pens and markers should be stored horizontally. This is particularly important for double-ended markers to insure a good flow of ink to both nibs.
The first option that is sometimes available is to store the markers in the container they came in. I store my Crayola Super Tips that way. The box they came in is very sturdy. I keep it on it‘s side on a shelf (to keep the markers horizontal) when I‘m not using them.
It is possible to open the box and grab one if needed.
The only problem is, when you remove one in the row, the rest slide down and fill in the spot it came out of.
Another alternative is to use sets of plastic drawers. I store my extra markers, and those I don‘t use often this way.
Each drawer is labeled on the front for the type of marker that is in that particular drawer.
This type of storage keeps the markers horizontal and it‘s fairly easy to grab the one I want.
These plastic drawers are normally stackable and come in various sizes. I happen to have two different sizes in my work area. I store my Crayola PipSqueek markers in a drawer in a smaller set.
All of them fit in a single drawer.
I can even pull out the drawer entirely an put it on my work area and then put it back when I am done. But in this case, the drawer is very crowded, making it harder to find the color I want.
I found some very nice racks on Amazon that I like for storing markers that I use very often.
I have many sets of the Spectrum Noir verson . I got them from Amazon for under $17 for 6-pack. The arrived packed in a sturdy cardboard box.
I was a bit worried about having something made from rigid plastic shipped, but every set I‘ve ordered has arrived in perfect condition.
When you unpack the trays, you will notice that there are little “nubs” near the bottom corners of each tray.
These fit into notches on the tops of the trays.
There are two different assembled configurations for the trays. For the first style, the trays are stacked exactly on top of each other. In this configuration the stack of 6 trays is 9-1/2″ wide x 5-1/2″ deep x 5-3/8″ high. The fronts are cut at a slight angle if viewed from the side.
But the slots are effectively directly on top of each other.
The other way of assembling, you would line up the fronts of the tray so they slant towards the back.
This leaves the back staggered and will add 1-3/8″ to the depth.
In this staggered arrangement, each row of pens is also staggered.
I don‘t find that it makes that big of a difference when trying to grab a particular marker, so I keep mine stacked in the completely vertical configuration.
Each tray has twelve divisions. Depending on the size of your markers, you could put more than one in a section. However, I don‘t recommend it because it makes pulling out a specific marker awkward.
In theory, each stack of trays will attach to the one next to it. I was unable to make that happen, though, because so many of the trays had extra, untrimmed flanges of plastic blocking the stacking mechanism.
These imperfections make it pretty much impossible for me to attach the stacks of trays together. But I find that isn‘t really a problem. I just keep them right next to each other.
For me, this is a good storage system. It keeps the markers I use the most close at hand. It‘s easy to grab a specific maker and to return it to where I got it from when I‘m done.
Crafter‘s Companion offers a 6-pack of clear marker storage racks . They are the same shape and size, but they are about $10 more than the Spectrum Noir version. I would have preferred the clear, but I needed so many of them it would have cost too much more than the black that it wasn‘t worth the extra price. I‘d rather use my money for the actual art supplies.
However you store your markers, you want to think about making it easy to use them. You have invested in something to help you create beautiful art. If they‘re hard to get out and use and put away when you‘re finished, you won‘t use them and they‘ve not been worth their while.