Crafters Companion Spectrum Noir Universal Black Pen Trays - 6 Trays

Perfect size for Ohuhu pens, great storage solution for best way to store them. Very easy to assemble, slots right in to each other.

I have a fairly large collection of dual tip pens and brush pens that usually live in a jar or a box. This invariably means rooting around trying to find the colour I want. Ordinarily I presume this sort of rack would be used in a store to display pens, but I have found it invaluable in organising my pens and making them easy to get at and find the colour I want. The trays clip together via a small lug under each tray. There are two slots for connecting them, one allows you to stack the trays vertically, the second allows a slight incline so the rack face is angled. I guess the way these are stacked is a personal choice but I prefer the vertical mount. The trays are quite solid, and even so far the connecting lugs haven't snapped off even when moving this from the shelf to desktop for ease of access and back to the shelf again when done. You get six trays holding 60 pens, I have two of these, one for the square dual tip pens and one for my brush pens. I dare say with a little imagination these can be put to other uses as well.

For many years I have lived with the ongoing frustration of unsatisfactory inkpad storage - all my Distress Inks and Distress Oxides, and the few larger inkpads that I have, were kept in Really Useful Boxes on a shelf in my studio. This was a pain, hauling them out and rummaging to find what I wanted. I discovered this Spectrum Noir system on Amazon recently and knew this was the answer. I bought four sets, and glued the trays together in two vertical stacks, which I then glued back to back. I bought the revolving base from Amazon (https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B01N959WDQ/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o01_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1) and stuck the assembled unit onto this. I used Humbrol Poly Cement to glue everything - this worked perfectly. I labelled each slot with a one-inch square removable label (https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B0077809L8/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o00_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1) which I had inked with the respective colour and written its name. These can be moved if I add more trays and new colours. I labelled the front of each inkpad with free printables from Lou Collins' blog. A very neat feature of this storage unit is the raised ridge towards the back of each slot. Distress Inks butt up against this so that their edges are flush with the front of the unit. If you want to store rectangular inkpads, you just lay them on top of this ridge and their edges will be flush. This is the best storage system ever. I have been searching for this for years. People have made revolving tower units from foam board and other materials (really complicated|) but this has the great advantage of being modular so that you can add more trays as you acquire more inks. Please visit my blog (shoshiplatypus) for full details of how I constructed the unit. Highly recommended! One of the best purchases I have made for years.

Just to clarify, you get a box containing six trays. Each tray holds 12 markers horizontally, so you can stack the six trays on top of each other to create the 6 X 12 rack for 72 pens. So one purchase is 72 pens. We bought two, so have 12 trays = 144 pens. Unlike many fixed systems, these allow you to arrange the trays vertically, horizontally or in blocks side by side. They also allow you to stagger the trays creating a stepped arrangement, which is great, but does require a lot of desk space for that. I've knocked off one star, as I have found that they do come apart very easily, as they slot together vertically basically with gravity. So if you try to move them or carry them (as crafters often do) then they “will” come apart - with predictable results. For the wife, I may be tempted to apply some super glue around the edges and reassemble, (the trays, not the wife) for a more permanent solution. Personally I'd like to screw the rack to the wall, and thus avoid using previous shelf space. But unless I glue them all together this isn't possible. Nor is there any mounting holes or brackets. Not that anyone has claimed you can. But it would just be a great idea if you could. Incidentally we have them filled with Royal Sovereign twin tip magic markers, and also Letraset Tria markers. They both fit perfectly. Highly recommended, we bought two boxes.

Perfect for storing my markers! I originally bought one of these trays to try out, I was so pleased with it I bought another set. Although these trays are meant for storing Spectrum Noir markers, I'm using them to store my Winsor and Newton Pro & Brushmarkers and they fit perfectly. I love the way the trays can be stacked upwards, or attached at the sides. The trays fit together well and feel nice and sturdy, even when two sets have been stacked on top of each other. The set also looks sleek, professional and not cheap at all. Decent quality and at such a great price, I can't recommend these trays enough to anyone looking for an inexpensive way to store their markers!

I was told by an artist friend that if I wanted one of the best things to put your markers in these were the way to go and honestly I agree the idea of paying extra to potentially build a rack as big as you want both vertically or horizontally is a really good point these have compared to getting something fixed size and at 12 markers per tray you can hold a respectable amount with this set alone. Its not something that strongly stacks on each other but as long as you keep it safe on a side its certainly sturdy enough to not shake apart or anything (plus the weight of the markers tends to keep it in place once you fill it). The fact they can be stacked in a way that effectively makes steps so each row is easier to pull out is also an interesting option if you have the room to do so. I personally find them quite recommendable as of now and will definitely aim to acquire more once I get around to also increasing how many markers I own.

Bought this for my expanding Copic marker collection. As you can add individual tiers you can customize the height depending on the quantity of pens you have. The individual racks themselves are sturdy but as they just slot into each other when they stack. You just have to be mindful that they are not locked together if you have a need to move them from one location to another. I have them out on my desktop and they look attractive when stacked in the order of their color families against the black of the trays. I've bought a second set as my Copic collection has grown so can recommend if you are after an alcohol marker storage solution.

The Spectrum Noir Universal Pen Trays are not the best quality. I purchased these because there are not a great deal of options for storing pens and these seemed like the best solution for storing pens horizontally with easy access and the ability to see the colours. I use mine to keep my W&N ProMarkers in which fit well and stick out enough for easy access. Where is the problem? Well they are £16.50 for some cheap thin moulded plastic that probably cost about £50p to make in China. Will they do the job? Yes. Are they worth the money? No. As stated however there are not a whole lot of options. I've seen these sell on other sites for way more and to be honest you would want your head examined to pay the £25 plus I've seen these for on other sites. I have removed 1 point for the price and 1 for the quality as mine came with lots of flash off the moulding process which I have to snap or cut off. Not the best but I will begrudgingly use them.