A prized organizational system in my studio is a collection of 8 vintage wooden cheese boxes that I found in the gutter of a dead end, hilly street. The boxes hold various paints, glues, gel mediums, and tools and are close at hand to my drafting table.

I was taking a long summertime walk in Silver Lake with my dog when I spied them. They were part of a largish pile of junk that had been dumped on the side of the road that included a mattress box spring, crates of old paint, and damaged books. We were pretty far from home and I couldn't carry them all back with me, but I wanted them desperately. So much so that I jogged the 2 miles back home, grabbed a back pack and hoofed it back to the hill where I had spied them, my heart racing the whole time in fear someone else would grab this treasure. I had a big grin on my sweaty face the whole way home.

Cheese in a box is a hilarious concept to me—I think of cheese as a natural food derived from milk not coming from a "process" and presented as a bright orange "brick." I may have had a total of 6 slices of American cheese in my entire life making the product doubly foreign. I have distinct memories of my childhood friends eating Kraft singles, but they were not at all part of my hippie childhood diet. I thought the bright orange slices were completely weird and more like Playdoh than food.

The graphic designer in me loves these boxes: the typography, placement of text, and branding are all spot on. There are actually two differently designed boxes in the group—some have a banner reminiscent of the American flag swashing across the side. I just love them.

And! The bonus is that for years my website was shes-krafty.com and this blog is still called Shes-Krafty Diary. My appropriation of the name is not from this funny brick of cheese, but rather the Beastie Boys song, but the word(s) craft/kraft are dear to my heart and the maker in me.

Krafty Day 35 #100DaysStudioObj