I decided to try and do the post I missed for Monday since I had a cleaning project today that was small, but significant.

I am really excited about my current crafting project, and I want to make it into something financially worthwhile (relatively) despite Newell reminding me that I always get excited at the beginning of a project, and then it tapers off to disinterest.

I’ve put way too much into this one to let that happen this time, but I had one problem–what do do with my tools to get them all in one place, accessible, and portable. I needed a tackle-box (my preferred tool box) but I’ve already spent more than I should getting supplies…

So…

I decided to re-purpose one that I already had. After all, it had been sitting in the bottom of the linen closet for seventeen years, and not really utilized much before that… Every now and then I would open it for a peek inside, sigh heavily, and close it up again. It was originally my make-up box from my years in community theater, but I haven’t set foot on stage in at least a quarter century, so it was time to let go.

For one thing, theatrical make-up doesn’t keep any better than the commercial stuff, so it was unlikely that any of it was hygienically safe to use. There was, however, a lot of it. Much of which had melted into the box.

The first order of business was to throw everything out that was unusable. In this case, it was everything except some brushes and some application instructions.

I don’t know why I had one plastic ear…

After everything was emptied out, it was easier to see just how daunting a clean-up it would be.

Those brightly colored sections were melted greasepaint. Not easy to remove. (Unexpected Pro Tip…lubricant can help dissolve stuff like that…)

After several episodes of an Orange is the New Black binge, and half a roll of paper towels, not to mention several wash cloths…

…I had this result:

There are still a few streaks in the grooves here and there, but I am calling it done. After all, they add a nostalgic whiff of greasepaint and bring up fond memories.

It looks like I should have plenty of room for my tools. At least for now.

I feel really good about this project for a lot of reasons. Now to get back to setting it up.