drawers. I like drawers for this sort of stuff. easier to get out, easier to sort, easier to store. Open draaer, stash stuff, close drawer. Get those Sterilite 3-drawer sets (or an Iris-brand cart w/ the shallow drawers, if you want), and put in dividers. iris makes a nice one for this that I use in my Sunday School classroom--it has two shallow drawers on top and a deeper on one the bottom; I got it at Office Depot. I put the scissors, glue sticks, etc., in the upper drawers, and the paint and playdough in the bottom deep drawer. I used those "score and snap" drawer dividers from the Container Store (actually got mine at Target, though) to divide the drawers so stuff doesn't slide around everywhere. At home I have those little drawer organizing containers from Rubbermaid, which work almost as well, but not quite. For markers, the secret is to have a drawer that's EXACTLY as wide (well, OK, an extra inch is OK, but NO MORE) as the marker is TALL. Then, the markers can't end up at an angle. I was lucky to find a little skinny 3-drawer set exactly wide enough, but I can't find them anymore. Though maybe the small Sterilite ones would work. And Rubbermaid makes a small one--not sure if it's skinny around side-to-side If all else fails, put some sort of divider inside a larger drawer, to keep the markers from sliding end-to-end, and ending up tipped at an angle. I just cut cardboard into strips and taped in place w/ packing tape in one of my drawers. I do find that I keep too much. Right now I've used drawers and other containers to fill a shelf intheir room, but most of it just never gets used. I need to weed out. I have actually thrown away, in the past, and entire shoebox full of crayons. Here is a link that might be useful: Sterilite's three-drawer chests--other companies make similar ones

In a similar situation, went to an art store in the mall, not the place that sells only high end originals, but one that sell reproductions in nice frames. The first place wasn't so helpful, but the women at the second place knew her art and had a ton of books we looked through to find it. Good luck.

Thanks Rosie. That painting is a pleasure for me on so many levels - the crazy coloring, the "art" labeling, the primitiveness... I am way too constrained to create that freely. And then there is the personal - knowing all DH was going through at the time and his very surprising decision to try painting for respite. It inspires me. For the OP, reflect on what is appealing to you about those museum pieces you like. Crystalize that as best you can. Any gallery would be happy to help you discover works you love, for a price. If that price is prohibitive, try 'lesser' galleries, student art shows, resale shops, art fairs - just look and trust yourself to respond. Let yourself make a mistake or two, it's the only way to learn what you really love. And yes, framing can make all the difference.

My husband wanted to put up this ugly reproduction of a horse race painting that he found at a garage sale, I told him "give me a week, I'll find something better online!" I wanted a modern look, some realisitc photography, but I didn't want black and white because we have so many b&w prints in the house already. I finally bought a color print of a park scene (some park in NYC, I'm not sure which) at a web site called Brooklyn Prints. Every mantle is different, of course; I had just enough space to put up a 16x20 print in a wood frame. Our fireplace is for decoration only, so we didn't have to worry about heat damage to the frame or the print, but it is something to think about too. Here is a link that might be useful: Brooklyn Prints