If there’s one thing I hate more than varnishing it’s not having all the tools at hand to do the job right. Besides brushes, old cans of varnish, new cans of varnish and thinners, there is the sandpaper. I own every grit paper from 60 to 2,000 and used to keep it tucked in various nooks and crannies in tool lockers throughout the boat.
I finally got smart and went to an office-supply store, where I bought a plastic accordion file organizer with multiple pockets and a cover with an elastic closure. These are perfectly sized to hold full sheets of standard-size sandpaper. I bought one with a dozen pockets, but they come in a variety of pocket counts. I labeled each pocket with the grit count and in a matter of minutes had my entire inventory of sandpaper stored in one location.
I can easily check if I’ve got the right amount of the right grit for the next job and can also store small leftover scraps or portions of sheets so I don’t waste anything: no more hunting around in multiple locations to see what I’ve got. Since the organizer is plastic, it can even weather a little rain if left on deck in a moment of forgetfulness
