How to De-stash Without Filling a Landfill

My Art Desk is a HOT MESS.

When I had my shop, Ephemera Paducah, it was not unusual for customers who had amassed a large quantity of art or craft supplies to ask if they could unload on me — assuming we would use the supplies in the studio. 

The first time it happened was overwhelming. Mainly because of the sheer quantity of items but also because most items were unopened and some still had the Ephemera Paducah price tags on! This happened 2-3 times a year, most often when an artist had decided that a certain medium was no longer for her — dollmaking, paper crafts, quilting, etc.

After the first experience, I would accept donations but instead of increasing my stash, I would set up tables on the patio under the overhang to house them. My staff and I would cull through what we thought the studio “needed” or we wanted, after which I contacted a list of local public school art teachers letting them know they could take all that they desired. Miraculously all of the supplies found good homes that way.

I’m 62 and looking around my studio I have a lot of stuff. I am seeing de-stashes online from folks my age as we come to conclusions like: “I am never going to make jewelry so what am I going to do with all these beads?” Or “No, I am NEVER going to use that scrapbook paper.”

An Indoor Art supply Yard Sale hosted at Ephemera before closing

And, I still get enticed by new-to-me art supplies, as one does.

Not every small independent art store can handle a personal de-stash so I’ve researched some options for you if you are thinking about narrowing your focus or unloading supplies that do not bring you joy.

Although there is not one in my hometown of Paducah I know of two “Creative Reuse Centers” in Nashville, SMART and Turnip Green. I had a friend drive a carload of supplies from Murphy, NC to SMART and they were excited to see her walk in the door! Mary Beth recently posted about the St. Louis Teacher’s Recycle Center above her Studio! Lucky girl! The point is, there may be a Creative Reuse Center close to you to donate OR shop!

You know as well as I do that public school teachers use their funds to help stock their classrooms and studios. Get to know these awesome folks and see if they need any of your stash!

Create an event with your art buddies! I have a friend who is a masterful yard sale shopper/trader. She hosted an annual event that involved about 20 friends at a Swap Your Accessories Party. This could easily be tailored for arts & crafts supplies! Have each of your guests package up their unwanted or unloved supplies in bundles that would go for $10 at a garage sale. Here is a great outline to get started: Throw a Swap Party Send any leftovers to after-school programs, Creative Reuse Centers, or Teachers.

 
Ask the host of your next in-person class, crop, or regular art get-together if you could arrange a swap for specific items. Oh, I don’t know, let’s say you have stencils that you have never figured out how to integrate into your style. I’m sure everyone has a couple. See if the other members of your group would like to trade stencils before or after your class. If your event is at a store, please ask permission before showing up with free giveaways!

Are you in online art groups? Create an art supply swap where everyone mails certain items to another person in the group. 

You might also get really adventurous and host a huge consignment sale event for nothing but Art and Craft Supplies. The Consignment Connection has hosted one for 10 years in Murfreesboro, TN, right outside of Nashville. 

Finally, so many “institutions” use art supplies to help people. Nursing Homes, Assisted Living Facilities, Scout Troops, Rehab Facilities, Day Cares, Kid Sunday or Saturday School Classes, Women’s Shelters, Children’s Hospitals, Boy’s and Girls’s Clubs, Senior Citizen Centers, YMCAs — the list is almost endless. Just be polite and call before inundating them with supplies. 

Let me know ways to de-stash that I’ve missed or if you’ve had a great experience with someone’s discards!