If you’re an inveterate arts & crafts sort of person, then perhaps you have a Bucket List of projects that you dream about getting to some day.
I do.
I have a Project Bucket List. They’re not all embroidery projects, but a whole lot of ’em are!
But see, my Project Bucket List has one Mighty Big Flaw.
And this is the flaw:
There is no one bucket large enough to contain my list.
And so I often wonder if I will actually ever achieve anything on that list. Knowing myself, my life, and my circumstances, I often tell myself rather practically that it isn’t likely I’ll get to one of them, let alone all of my BLPs (which I pronounce “Blips”) – Bucket List Projects.
What kind of attitude is that? I argue with myself. As my Mom used to say, “Say you can, say you can’t – either way, you’re right.” In other words, it’s really up to me.
I’m here today to tell you that right now, at the end of January in 2025, I have taken One Step towards One BLP.
I hunted down and bought a Thing.
Specifically, it’s a printer’s tray, or a typesetter’s tray.
I know! I know! If you’re in the cross stitch world, you might perhaps be saying, “Oh, Mary, that’s so 2010!” And I would agree with you.
Back then – some 15 years ago – printer’s trays were a Thing in the cross stitch world. They afforded the stitcher a structure for stitching and displaying a Lot of little projects, in a kind of “broken sampler” format. You have but to look up “printer tray cross stitch” on Pinterest to come up with a gazillion examples.
They’ve always appealed to me, these old printer’s trays bedecked with small samplers of stitchery and other delights.
They’re the ideal shadowbox, of course. But I find them extra appealing when they’re loaded with small bits of stitchery and other stitch-related delights that draw the eye in to explore one right after the other.
Often, the drawers are a bit bulky and unattractive near the drawer-pull area. This particular sample that I found is in really, really good shape, with a simple drawer pull on the front (or top, if it is to be hung on a wall).
The back is in great shape, too.
In my quest for a decent tray of this caliber, I’ve come across innumerable samples that were ok on the front, but rotted through, split, water damaged and so forth on the back.
Being a Kansas gal, I like the fact that this one is from a business in Kansas City.
Printer’s trays come in big sizes and small. Mine is a medium size – about 22″ wide by about 17″ high, with 81 cavities.
Those cavities range of 1.25″ x 1.5″ (38 of those), 1.5″ x 2.75″ (26 of those), 2.75″ square (8 of those); 2.75″ x 1.5″ (9 of those).
That’s a lot of little projects!
I still have to clean up the tray a little bit, but I’m glad I took the leap and finally acquired one. I’m looking forward to exploring the possibilities for filling it up!
Incidentally, Anna and I both think it might be fun to stage some Eye-Spy puzzles (like the ones we do at Christmas – you can see one here) using printer trays. What do you think?
But do I really want to go on a quest for more printer’s trays?! It took me so many years to get a hold of this one! LOL!
I’ll keep you posted as I develop plans or projects for it. I’m not 100% committed yet, but I’m toying with ideas!
Do you have any pet project you’re nurturing on your Bucket List? Have you conquered any of your Bucket List projects? If you did, did you feel wholly satisfied and inordinately pleased when you finished it? I’d love to hear all about it! Feel free to join in the conversation below!
I did not know about printer’s boxes being used for cross stitch. Our family started a memorabilia box in the 1980’s. We filled it with all kind of ticket stubs, a pet rock, honors pins, tiny miniatures for trips, schools and life. I emptied it into a container a few years ago so I could clean it. It’s back on the wall and empty, waiting for something new. What does a great-grandmother fill it with?
I had a pet rock all my life, since I was a little kid. It was a misshapen, smooth, small piece of orangish rock, with one flat side. Most people would probably call it a pebble, come to think of it. I can’t remember where I found it, but I was probably between 5 – 7 years old. I kept it in my folks’ freezer through every move that we made (with my dad in the Navy, we moved many times). I don’t know why I kept it in the freezer. It was not until my parents’ last and final move (to Kansas) that it disappeared altogether. Funny. I haven’t thought about that rock in years! LOL!
I love the trays and apothecary cabinets. I have no idea what I would do with an apothecary cabinet but if I run across one in good shape I’ll have to figure it out!
I did something similar several years ago for some small projects but I used one of those picture frames with multiple spots in it. I filled it with 11 different pieces ranging from petite point cross stitch, Brazilian, stumpwork, needle painting, and hardanger. It was a good way to display several techniques.
Enjoy your printers tray!
Gaaah, Mary, why do you do this? Now I’ve added ANOTHER item to my bucket list! Those are so cute!
superbe idée (violette de France)
amicalement
I have 2 printers’ trays and I use them for my thimble collection; I have also put some antique needles, needle holders and other sewing items in them to help fill up the larger spaces. They hang in my sewing room. I love them.
I collected cross stitches at lighthouses we (my husband and I) visited here in Maine, where I live. I have 5 that are by the same designer and I thought I would put them into a quilt, along with stars or some other offset block. It was on my bucket list and I am working on it now. The problem is, that I am absolutely awful when it comes to working on something from scratch, out of my head — I call myself a technician, not a quilter, embroiderer, etc. That is the main reason it is still yet to be completed, still on my bucket list.
I think that your printer’s drawer is absolutely WONDERFUL! Beautiful, used and made of wood and NOT PLASTIC which is the most important thing. A great example of repurposing.
I know that what is modern today will become antique in years to come but other than beautiful, honest, artisanal pieces I don’t believe that much of the mass produced often plastic stuff of today will be treasured or indeed have a story to tell like your printer’s tray.
Trends come and go but your wonderful aquisition will always be a thing of beauty and purpose!
I don’t have much of a bucket list because I know most of the list would never happen, like going to Ireland and Scotland. One thing that happened, my amazing son did for me ~ I love the MacLaren car and dreamed of really seeing and touching one, sitting in one ~ He took me to the Bay Area to a dealer and the one on the floor was the red one – perfect. I got to touch it and sit in it. Now only if Jay Lemo would take me for a ride in his, the total dream would come true – but what I got I am so happy to have done. It sounds crazy – but there you have it ~
I have one of those found in an antique shop that we hang on the wall in my husband’s office. My husband, a newspaper editor, was delighted to find it. I’m interested to see what purpose you come up with for these small niches.
A new “thing” in my bucket list!!!! How a wonderful idea!! Love it
I LOVE these trays. You go with your BLiPs! I am adopting that phrase now too.
BUCKET LIST…..On my bucket list I had always wanted to make a Giraffe. So far I have made a Giraffe wall hanging, a Giraffe out of yarn and 3 years ago I started a cement Giraffe. I thought I might never finish the cement Giraffe, but I now own an eight and a half foot, cement Giraffe. Her name is Lily, She weighs about 80 pounds…..and she lives in our living room. I had originally wanted to put her outside in one of my large flower gardens. However after going through months and months of building her, I decided I could not leave her outside to be rained on, or knocked over by the neighborhood black bear. She is now “checked off of my Bucket List”. I look at her everyday….I am so proud of her, and myself. Well worth all of the work I put in her. Janice in northern Minnesota, near the Canadian border.
If you’re stuck in 2010 Mary, then so am I! I still have a printer’s tray in my closet waiting to be cleaned up and of course I need to stitch all the bits and bobs that go into it. I just can’t decide if they should all be red & white or blue & white… decisions, decisions!
I like the idea of Bucket List Projects. I do keep a list (many lists LOL) of things to work on next, but I think I will rename the list of the ones I most want to finish. Maybe by being reminded of a Bucket List I will get motivation to start and finish some of them! In addition to the printer’s tray, I have three or four giant Heaven & Earth designs and the Marbek Nativity on the list! And all the gingerbread buildings from Victoria Sampler. And that’s just off the top of my head…
May we all have enough time to finish… something! XOXO
I was unfamiliar with the embroidery interest in printer’s trays and I typically love intersections between my hobby and my profession (rare books/history of the book). But the thought of trying to clean a printer’s tray enough to put use for stitching / embroidery in any way has me completely overwhelmed! Though I completely understand the appeal.
My bucket list in regards to stitching only contains two items so far:
1) make several samplers that are pretty enough to display but make extensive use of new stitches I want to learn (including some 3-d ones).
2) create a project that combines tapestry and other wool, perle cotton, and perhaps some felted areas – I’m thinking something abstract that I could turn into a pillow.
Design and color combination is NOT my strong suit, and I tend to hate most things I try to create without a photo. I’m working on being more accepting of my creations.
J’ai moi-même ce même type de tiroir que j’avais acquis (il y a une cinquantaine d’années) pour ma fille qui y rangeait des petites miniatures quand elle était enfant.
J’aimerai te suivre dans tes idées pour lui donner un nouveau look et une deuxième jeunesse.
Merci à toi
Liliane
I am reading this post from Australia. I was very excited to see the printers tray as I have one and am wondering how to fill it.
I will be very interested to see your ideas .
Best wishes Patricia.
I’ve had one of these trays for 45 years that displays part of my collection of antique sewing implements. I had a piece of plexiglass glass cut to fit that screws into the corners with tiny brass screws. There’s a sawtooth hanger on the back. It hangs in my seeing room, of course!
Sadly, printer’s trays are heavily contaminated with lead dust from years of having lead type pieces stored in them. The lead cannot effectively be cleaned off because it migrates into the wood over time. I’ve always loved the look of printer’s trays
(accidentally posted before I was finished with my comment!)
I’ve always loved the look of printer’s trays, but I would never have one in my home, and I wouldn’t let children touch anything that’s been stored in them.
Just mentioning this because I’m sure most people aren’t aware of this; I learned it after my child had an elevated blood lead level. I know nobody wants to put their children or grandchildren at risk. 🙂
Thanks for your input, Emily. Are you saying that your child’s elevated lead level resulted from handling this kind of drawer? Or objects displayed in this type of drawer? Was the source established?
I wonder if there is any scientific study that establishes that wood drawers that held objects made of lead, even when cleaned, have “soaked in” enough lead to cause lead poisoning? Or even to transfer lead to other objects stored in the drawers that, when touched, would lead to lead poisoning? Lead has to be ingested (via nose, lungs, stomach) in large amounts (or very regularly in small amounts) to be harmful. I’d like to see the science that establishes that touching the wood from these drawers that held lead type would lead to lead poisoning, or that touching items stored in clean drawers that held lead objects years ago could result in lead poisoning, before writing off the use of these drawers. I’ve handled many of them over the years and I’ve never had elevated levels of lead show up in lab results (and I have blood labs drawn regularly).
The nerd in me may play around with some lead tests and check out the drawers. It would be interesting to see. Lead tests are not expensive – anyone can buy one to test wood, ceramic, paint, dry wall, etc., for the presence of lead. I’d also want to know the level of any traces present, to see whether or not the lead is present in a large enough quantity to cause health problems.
My mother-in-law used these boxes to display all her thimbles she collected. Whenever she or family and friends traveled, we all brought back a thimble for her! She was a remarkable seamstress and stitcher for all sorts of projects. She even designed, painted and fired her own porcelain dolls. Such a beautiful, creative soul. She is missed!