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Studio Update: Cabinet Craft Storage

First, I have to take a moment and thank you all for the sweet comments, words of encouragement, stories and fantastic solutions for our home office/studio space.  The response to the "re-set" post was positively overwhelming; it is always so wonderful when you can connect with others in similar situations.  You definitely had some amazing ideas for the space, and quite a few I hadn't thought of or yet considered.  It is so fun to get different perspectives, so really, thank you again!

We made bits of progress this past weekend!  Sorry for the exclamation points beyond the normal obnoxious amount, but this is really exciting for me!


The first thing we did was sit down and take in your comments and evaluate the space from all perspectives.  We looked at it in person, and picked it apart in photos on the blog.  We made a list of what we loved and what was working.  We concluded that the built-in storage was working really well, while some of the smaller crafty items just needed to be purged and labeled.  We also decided that although part of the problem in the room may be that we have three walls with three workstations, we use each one of them so frequently that we just can't see ourselves without them.  We have the space to use as a family for work and play, why not take advantage of that?

That said, it doesn't mean that we are ultimately keeping the desks we do currently have.  I was basically given a budget for updating the lighting, adding a new rug and adding a few smaller touches, so for now any new workspace will come in the form of a build vs. a buy {which is totally cool with us}.

The walls in our lower level all connect and flow together.  The studio walls flow into our family room which flows into the playroom.  So something else we decided to keep for now, is the wall color.

Otherwise, the blank slate was just the perspective I needed.  After I posted Friday evening, I even removed the memo board and baskets on the wall.  Again, the photos really made me aware that they were also adding to the visual clutter of the space.  To start from scratch really meant starting with a 100% blank slate.

So, I focused on what I could this weekend, which meant organizing the items that I already had and wanted to keep in the empty cabinets.  Bryan added in some moulding to bridge the gap between the walls and the cabinets {because our walls are not square}, along with some shoe moulding around the base of the cabinets.  Once that was painted to match, I got to work filling up the shelves with items I needed first, and a few decorative objects second.

I am going to warn you, this is not a dramatic transformation or a completed and "styled" space yet.  It is essentially a functional nook at this point.  Oh!  And the Silhouette cart is coming back after the drawer fronts get a little update as well, so the empty space between the cabinets will be filled back up later on.


Now that all my crafts have a home, I thought I would give you a quick tour behind those doors and share how I use and organized the area.   Did I tell you I was excited about this project?  My boxes finally have labels people!  Oh, and for those new around here, I also store home decor, larger crafting supplies, frames and "in-process projects", under the stairs.

Let's start with the counter.  I wanted to keep this as open as possible to allow for ample work space.  If I want to sit down, I can bring in the stool from the counter in the laundry room {which is right off the studio}.  The counter didn't receive much of an update because it was already working so well for us previously, however, it was simplified a bit more.


I really love having my craft paints visible and simple to access since we do a lot of small painting projects around here.   The towel bar paired with S-hooks has been so wonderful in keeping daily tools right within reach.





The upper cabinets hold a few different functions.  The cabinet to the left contains the smaller supplies and tools all corralled within storage boxes I already had {a few are my favorite cheapy Kassett boxes from IKEA, the green drawers were from Container Store and the blue dot box is Paper Source}.


Most of the boxes came with label holders, but if they didn't, I slapped one on {you can read more about my love affair with label holders here}.  We all know I have basically considered labeling anything and everything, including the dogs and children, but here is really makes sense.  I can't see the contents inside of the boxes; so having each one labeled takes out any guess work.


Yes, I have a box filled with labeling tools.  Has anyone established a self-help group?

I tried to limit any stacking of the boxes to keep them simple to get at.  And because I know that you like to see what is inside, it really was just a matter of tossing "like" items into specific boxes.


Above you can see a box of punches, a box of glitters and special paints and a box for embossing items.  Below, is a box of adhesives.


The open area next to this cabinet was the perfect spot to mix in a few working accessories.


The jar originally had a less attractive red lid {similar jar found at Target here}, which I spray painted gold.  It now holds tubes of acrylic paints.  And the shoebox I recovered is still working out nicely for holding some smaller miscellaneous craft supplies.


Without judging me and my "issues" with collecting issues {couldn't resist}, the final cabinet is currently holding most of my magazine stash.  These are favorites from about the past 12 years of living in our home and the collection is getting a little out of control.  I would love to pair them down into inspiration binders someday soon.


The lower cabinets each have a drawer.  The drawer to the left has a few dividers and holds extra notebooks/notepads {because I am a note taker/list maker} along with miscellaneous office electronics and my laminator.


In the cabinet below the drawer, I have wall-to-wall scrapbook paper organizers {I found these years ago and can't recall where}.


Bryan also installed a small shelf in this cabinet to hold our photo printer and a few paper trays to separate out cardstock paper from printing paper.  The magazine file is the perfect size for holding paper to be recycled or reused right next to the printer.

And that completes the cabinet tour!


I am sure as we continue to tackle the rest of the space {a few extra purging sessions for the work areas and some aesthetic changes}, this area may be tweaked a little more as well.  However, the functionality is fantastic and I love how simple everything is.  And I still have my pops of color, but without the deep grey wall, artwork and wall baskets, it just isn't as "in-yo-face" as before.

I have gone ahead and ordered some curtain fabric {so excited to see how it looks in the space} along with a rug {which is always terrifying}.  Now to just bat my eyes at the hubby to gain his interest in building a new desk.  

What organizing project did you tackle this past weekend?