1. The problem for me is files. I’ve got a bunch of crappy old big ones, lots of little ones, cheap ones for steel and other utility service, some rasps for wood and plastics, nicer files for copper and brass, and the very pristine ones for precious metals. They get everywhere, and I don’t like to waste time switching over to my close-reading glasses to figure out which file cuts what when I am in the middle of working. But keeping them all sorted and separate in folders, envelopes, and drawers is too time-consuming.

2. I decided on a system a few years ago to instantly ID which file cut is which by using the primary colors. Yellow for #2, red for #4, and blue for #6 seems to work both for me and in my classroom, too. In the past, I used heat-shrink wire insulation, a plastic product available from the hardware store, to identify them.

3. Just slide the tube over the file tang and heat it with a heat gun or hair dryer to shrink it to about half its diameter.

4. This solution was fabulous for the larger files, because the tubing fits tightly over the tang once it’s shrunk, shielding those sharp edges and protecting my hard-working hands.

5. But the needle files have been a problem. Typically, the wire insulation is too large to shrink tightly around the tang of a needle file. When I noticed that gel polish came in bright primary colors, I realized that it solved my needle file problem. A few coats of gel polish did the trick—I was able to see immediately which files were which by color.

6. I have since switched over to using the gel polish to color code, and I purchased a bottle of each of the base colors for the tangs of all my files. I added a bottle of white for the #0 cuts, too. Two coats seem to work best, and the paint doesn’t obscure the manufacturing inscriptions on the file.

7. Now, my benchtop file block keeps the needle files neat and at the ready. I labeled the front of the block with the file profiles and the top side with the file cuts so I don’t have to switch glasses to see them. I might be incapable of keeping a pristine manicure, but my files are just perfect!