Figured out a way to store samples :)

My husband had a storage problem for his samples and didn't want to go the route of the industrial vial tray or lipstick tube holder. He didn't have a great many but they were all over the place on his dresser.

Today it occurred to me that there is a simple solution for someone who doesn't have vast numbers of samples (you with large numbers, read on below.) Maybe someone else has already thought of this, but anyway, here goes:

Take a box of any kind that isn't too deep and is a good size to house your samples. It could be as utilitarian as Tupperware, as cheap as an old tissue box with the top cut off, or as decorative as your imagination can come up with.

Edit 9/18/10:
I have settled on using rectangular bamboo boxes sold for storage of cutlery. Cheap, a good depth, fit in drawers neatly side by side.

Fill it 3/4 full with any granulated substance that won't scratch your vials: rice, bulgur wheat, cornmeal, salt, sugar, you name it. I used cracked barley, as I happened to have a lot on hand. You could use sand, of course, but it would scratch the glass vials. Grains are not as heavy as salt or sugar and easier to vacuum up if they spill. Small inexpensive plastic beads will do very nicely also.

Now just stick the vials upright into the box. The rice (or whatever filler you used) will support the vials. No need for precision drilled holes and the beauty of this is, no matter how big or small the vial, or whether you get rid of or add samples, the filler adapts.

Those with a lot of samples could still use this idea. Get a three-drawer Sterlite plastic storage unit -- the kind whose drawers are about 3-4" deep-- and partially fill the drawers with your rice (or whatever.) Then stick the vials into it.

Ta-dah!

(***EDIT: The container doesn't even have to be a box, really. You could use any favorite container. A flower pot even, LOL. As long as you fill it to within a short distance from the top with the filler of choice.
Also, for those who may not want to read the whole thread, it has been pointed out that some fillers may attract bugs and salt and sugar can dissolve.
My best recommendation at this point is poly pellets, or polypropylene pellets, which are the filler for beanie toys. Available in bulk on eBay and elsewhere where craft supplies are sold. Choke hazard for kids, though, so take precautions.





If 2,389 people have already come up with this idea, please ignore!

And if I posted this in the wrong section, someone please move the thread?

Woo-hoo! I actually came up with a new idea? Cool!

Thanks!

Perhaps if you want to use salt, the best choice might be coarse salt (like kosher salt.) Easier to sweep up if it spills. Or bath salts, epsom salt.

Other fillers:

• groats (oats, not oatmeal, available in bulk) (though these might get buggy)
• used coffee grounds, dried
• dried lavender flowers

Other ideas for fillers?

How about crushed walnut shells or seashells?

Peppercorns would work as well.

SirSlarty, that is a good point.

So having brainstormed further, I think the best material is polypropylene pellets such as are used in beanie type stuffed animals. These can be bought in bulk and are not costly. Odor free, non-absorbent and won't attract bugs. Lightweight and easy to sweep up, too. I think we have a winner!

Searching eBay using the search terms "poly* pellets" (which brings up listings for "poly pellets", as they are called, and "polypropylene pellets") I see listings for 13 oz.; 2 lb., 10 lb, 25 lb, 50 lb. and even (gasp) 1500 lb. bulk quantities!

Caution-- keep away from little kids; these are a choke hazard.

I thought I had some of these poly pellets in the basement and after hunting around a bit I found enough to take a photo showing them in use. That photo link has been moved to the original post.

They work GREAT! And they look cool-- like the samples are nestled in snow.

This photo shows the pellets in my hand:

So glad it's working! Don't you just love low-tech solutions?

They're on eBay if you search for "Poly* Pellets" but I also just checked Michaels (craft store) and found them:

http://www.michaels.com/art/online/d...ductNum=nw0201

The website has a store locator so you can buy them in your own area.

http://direct.where2getit.com/cwc/ap...tore%20Locator

I called our local store just now, and the Poly Pellets were in stock and the price was $6.99 for a 32 ounce bag.

If you are going to Michaels to get them, check the store flyers in your Sunday paper first-- this week there was a Michaels flyer with a coupon for 40% off any one regularly priced item. (They run the coupons every 2 weeks or so.)

*blush*

I'm inordinately pleased.

Time for some fun pictures for inspiration and amusement:

Well, we got our 32 ounce bag of Poly Pellets at Michaels and I just put them in a boring old cardboard box in my top dresser drawer! But it fit the space perfectly so it was just what I needed.

What I want to show in this photo is that it's easy to subdivide your box into sections using just a piece of paper or card. To demonstrate this I sectioned off my my Annick Goutal samples. Maybe I'll section off my L'Artisan ones next, or all the ones I want to test next. The beauty of this is that you can alter your sections at will.

I can also tell you from experience that the pellets are easy to sweep up-- no sooner did I get my husband's samples all set up when he knocked one of the boxes over!

Now he's got his samples in a drawer too.

A little fragrance garden, eh?

I rise to the occasion!

Very attractive! I especially like the idea of the list inside the lid-- you could also arrange the names on the paper to match the position of the corresponding sample-- like the little map inside the lid of a box of chocolates that shows you which chocolate is a caramel and which is a creme.

Oh! I love tureens-- would love to see a photo when you are done setting it up!

I put my 16 samples from Les Parfums de Rosine into a little planter

I wondered what that sample looked like! Thanks for posting the photos!

As I mentioned on another thread, these pellets are non-absorbent and lightweight. So if you ever spill them onto the floor (as I did), it is an easy thing to sweep them up and throw them in a bowl of soapy water. Pellets float, dirt sinks. Skim them off, put on paper towel to dry, reuse. Good as new.

By the way every time I attach photos, all I get in my post is a link, not the photo itself. I'm doing the same thing I do on other discussion boards that use this attachments system, but it doesn't seem to work for me here. Anyone know why?

Thanks for the explanation, an_oud_girl. Tomorrow I'll sit down and figure out what I want to do with my photos, check out whether I can make an album etc.

That is a beautiful sugar bowl-- what pattern is that? Have you checked out eBay and Replacements.com?

Ah, that is lovely also. You may want to set up a "saved search" on eBay for those -- you will get emails automatically if one is listed. Sooner or later, almost everything shows up on eBay....

Thank you SO MUCH for clueing me in about the images-- it was easy to change the links to photos appearing in my posts. Much better than making readers click on links!

Whoops-- the photos are indeed gone. I saw them there but now they are gone. Hang in there everyone, I'll upload them to Photobucket tomorrow; uploading from my computer doesn't seem to work so well.

*sigh*

I uploaded the images to Photobucket but when I tried to attach them with the image link I got a message that it was an "invalid file."

So the photo links are back. Best I can do, it seems.

Tang, you had it figured out! That is exactly what I was doing. The photos are up now-- thanks to everyone who helped me out!

I saw some good organizer containers at Marshall's yesterday. Intended for sox and such, but fine for frags.

Yeah, I thought of that, but it makes me happier to think that everyone can just do their own thing with the idea. It can't always be about money and profit, right?

I'm enjoying everyone's contribution of ideas to the thread....