Bedroom / craft studio progress report

Yikes!  It’s been OVER a year since I last posted about THIS PROJECT.    Finally got back to it last week when I brought home a shelf from Stars to use, and pretty much had to rearrange EVERYTHING on the ‘studio side’ of the room.

The big white shelf on top of the dresser is the new addition; replacing a smaller shelf that was there before.  The dresser drawers are all full of craft supplies, as are the little suitcases and picnic basket on the dresser; and ALL the other boxes and containers you see!

Just added all this ‘wall decor’ above the work table.  Those bulletin boards won’t be empty for long!

Did you notice the super cool string and scissor holder on top of that little shelf?!?!  That was a Christmas gift from one of my best friends, and I soooooooooooooo  love it!  (Thanks B!!!)

I cut out pictures that I like from magazines and glue them into notebooks and journals to save for inspiration.  Two of them you see hanging from the big key rack.  The big keys hanging with them and the ones on the bulletin board will be used for projects.  Just enjoying the ‘look of them’  on display for now.

Little shelf that sits on the work table.  I love having my supplies ‘on display’.  It reminds me of what I have and INSPIRES me to use the stuff. Of course I can’t artfully display EVERYTHING; so I select a few things and change them out every so often.  To the left of the shelf is a big old can covered with sheet music for me to toss paper scraps in for recycling.  (at least the scraps that are too small to save and re-use. )  My paper cutter sits just to the left of it.

Close up of stuff on the shelf.

I TRIED putting my paper cutter away after using it.  And I really like having a ‘blank spot’ on the table when I put it away.  BUT I use that thing almost EVERY day, so now it stays out.

The shelf at the end of the work table and against the side wall was there before.  I just changed out what I had stored/displayed on it.  Most of those boxes are from a set of paper mache boxes, and store assorted supplies.

One of these days I’ll get around to making some labels for the boxes.  Jars of shells on the top to easily grab and use on projects.

To the left of the work table shelf is a crate that sits on end and holds all my pretty scrap book paper.  And a stack of file holders on top.

WHY do I have that much scrapbook paper when I don’t even DO scrapbooking?!?!

(I need to label THESE too!)  Instead of just putting stuff in the file holders and having them look messy, I discovered that the boxes you get from the copy place when you have a LOT of copies made, fit perfectly in the slots.  But they are kinds fugly looking.  So I covered mine with plain kraft paper.  And I can store ‘little things’ in there easier this way.  I used all my old ‘checks’ boxes as little dividers in the trays.  Nice and organized!

And back to the newly added shelf.  Nope, it doesn’t match and no, I don’t care.  It’s functional!!  And I can ‘display’ lots of supplies on it!

You can see a couple more of these covered boxes on the top shelf of this shelf.  I have several more stored ‘behind closed doors’ (in my big shutter cabinet) with all my rubber stamps and inks.  At one time I had all of these ‘on display’ as you can see in this old picture:

MORE supplies in a stack of suitcases that sit under the work table.

My skeleton key collection.

Faux display cakes that I made to use for photo props for etsy.

One of two vintage grubby old electric fans.  One more and it will officially be a ‘collection’!

You can baaaaaaaaaaarely see my little crown collection on top of the shutter cabinet.  (Michael built it for me)

And a crown hook hanging on the front.

That’s IT!  That’s as far as I’ve gotten.  But I’m content.

****EDITED TO ADD ****  THIS room is not my ONLY craft work area.  It is just my ‘paper craft’ supplies in that room.  I also have a ‘craft room’ (formerly the formal living room in the house) where most (and a LOT more!) of my craft supplies are.  Here’s an old post where I showed that craft room.  And that room is almost ALWAYS too messy to take pictures of.    Usually a dozen projects in the works at any given time!

SOMEDAY, I will have whiddled down my craft supplies to a manageable amount that I can ‘pretty up’ that craft room too.  Right now, it’s half supplies and half etsy product waiting to be sold.  AND I have some etsy product out in our trailer!

BUT, when we decided to re-do that bedroom and I decided to divvy up some of my supplies to store in there, I was DETERMINED that it would stay tidy enough to STILL be used as a guest bedroom.  And it’s the one room that Michael will tolerate being ‘girly’!

I really AM ‘on a mission’ to use up my excess craft supplies and get ‘my other craft room’  as organized and pretty as the bedroom.

Even if you only have a closet or a corner to use for your craft space, SO try to ‘pretty it up a bit’.  A pretty and tidy craft area truly IS more conducive to creativity!