The work continues in our little office and I’m starting to see the finish line. Although there are still many OFFICE posts to come and lots left to do… here’s some record keeping.
Over the weekend I decided to focus in on some little things that required some creativity. Most of it I come up with around midnight when I’m trying to settle my brain down and get to sleep. It rarely works because that’s usually the time I go crazy with thoughts regarding my next insane TIME SUCKING project.
So after many late night ideas this week I woke up Saturday morning and made a trip to the hardware store to purchase a dowel and I was ready to cut some new knobs for the office cabinet sliders. It’s a cheap alternative and it’s home made! Some chicks bake cookies… I make knobs. And some other crazy things…
After cutting off 10 knobs I sanded each one, drilled holes in one end, and attached them to a piece of left over paneling so I could spray on a coat of polyurethane. A satin finish will be perfect. Not shiny, but still protective.
As they dried overnight …. it was at least 1:00 a.m when I got the idea to add a silver washer to the knobs to give them a little bling. The next morning I purchased a few and installed the knobs to the peg board sliders. There’s lots of silver or metal finishes around so I thought it couldn’t hurt. BAM, only $6.00 for ten knobs.
I definitely wanted a bulletin board somewhere in the office because I’m constantly posting little ideas, pictures, inspiration.. and of course “Richie, don’t forget this… and don’t forget that”.. notes. I also knew that I didn’t want something you could run to an office supply store and pick up. It needed to be something a little more unique and not too big. I think this one came to me before midnight so I’m not sure if it really counts. HA HA! CIRCLES! YES, painted cork board circles. I knew I could cut some or maybe use some trivets you find in the kitchen aisles at Target. THEN IT HIT ME! Home Depot garden center sells cork board plant mats in all different sizes. And they have masonite backs!
A quick trip down the aisle that has picture hanging hardware and I ended up hammering a saw tooth hanger into the back of each mat. Ready for hanging. But first I painted them. A little color is always more fun.
Two black and one gold. I know they’ll get used a lot. Simple and easy and the great thing is these come in so many different sizes. A hint below at something I’m purchasing! Decisions, Decisions.
In a previous post I mentioned that I was painting the entire desk because I felt the wood was just not that great. This has also haunted me into the wee hours simply because I DID NOT want to paint the edge of the desk, as edges get abused and paint is usually not a good choice for areas like that. I had already painted one side but stopped because of anxiety. The next morning I woke up, sanded off the paint, gave it all a good wipe-down with some lacquer thinner, and picked a pretty dark stain in hopes that it would hide any of the imperfections left after sanding. It’s not perfect… but it worked out SUPER good. Here’s some in progress…
And here’s the final outcome. I actually like the dark against the white. It pops!!!
My final midnight fantasy (I’m starting to sound like a trashy romance novel) … was to find a way to make the two large drawers on the side of the desk something usable. They’re really big drawers but I was not making good use of them just throwing stuff in and everything getting lost and unorganized. What I really needed was hanging files for the huge box of files I had been storing but hadn’t done anything with because I refused to buy a filing cabinet. I’m trying to have the “less is more” attitude. So why not just convert those drawers? YES!
Using a hanging folder I measured the width and height as they would hang in the drawer and marked each side of the drawer front and back, then drilled a hole, making sure NOT to go all the way through in the front. I purchased a metal rod at Home Depot and Richie cut it to size for me. I slid the rod through the back and inserted it into the front hole. WAH LAH! It’s super strong. Works like a charm!
This also gave me a chance to go through all those files and start a box for shredding. I had so much old “stuff” it was disgusting. ( like statements from 2008) Shame on me! Where does the time go? And what the hell have I been doing? Oh yeah.
I have to admit, this thrilled me to no end! And lots of room still.
(Please ignore the floor. We’ll get to that eventually)
Next up was Richie’s thing. He loves painting all the vent covers so he removed the old cover, sanded and painted with his trusty can of “real steel”. We special order several cans of it just to have around. We also used it on our steel bed frame and hair pin legs in the bedroom. It’s good stuff!
Isn’t the air prettier when it blows now? (laughing) It’s the little things, isn’t it!
Okay, Okay…. I’ll stop there. This is what I did last weekend but there’s plenty more to share on the overall project. I’ll save a little for later. Meanwhile Richie is still hard at work making the outside look beautiful but battling the afternoon thunderstorms. It’s touch and go… but I’ll update the progress on his work later in the week.
ohhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh. you’re purchasing an eames/herman miller desk chairrrrrrrr. i hope in that lovely green you’ve selected there.
very cool pushpin boards (with currently the best of “reminders” pinned to them). i love the circles and your dowel knobs are very clever and sleek.
i think you made a good decision by going with your gut to take off the paint on the edge of the desk. it’s really looking great, not to mention has some great functional options now that you can hang your folder files!
well done! that was a lot of work for one post. dang, girl.
EEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE… and that’s all I can say about that!!
Just kidding there’s more. :-) YES, TAMARA, YES. It’s only been on my list for 18 years so I think it’s about time I remedy this situation. Yes, I love that green and it’s Richie’s pick. I still have two more samples coming in the next day or so and they’re various shades of orange. So I’ll be deciding in the next week. I’ll mark you down for the green. I’m beyond excited… like pee in my pants excited.
Thanks for the sweet words. I’m having fun with it all.
Stacey, if I bought you a first-class ticket to Seattle so you could apply your energy to my house projects, it would be a bargain!!! Nice job, once again! :)
HA HA HA! First class! Wow, I’m in!
You’re so cool, D’Arcy. Thanks for the enthusiasm. The thing is I have lots of energy for house projects but the laundry is piling up, the garbage is overflowing, the dishes are all dirty and every floor in this house is covered in dirt because I get so darn crazy to finish I neglect everything else. But that’s all part of the fun, right? One day I’ll have nothing but laundry to do and then I’ll be sad. :-)
Love the knobs and the cork circles. That desk is looking killer, and I’m so glad you stained the edge. I’m glad someone else has the best ideas at midnight…or later. :)
HA HA! Are you saying that you’re sound asleep at midnight… all tucked away in your modern nest? Sounds heavenly! I do have trouble turning it all off, Dana… but I am having FUN.
Thanks for the nice words. My house is definitely NOT SLICK or high end … but home made… and I can’t imagine it any other way.
Its so awesome Stacey. Love the little knobs. And the cork boards. And the pegboard doors. You clever people. Dying for a wide shot.
Thanks Sandy! Don’t you just love finding creative ways to get what you want without spending a lot of money? I’m a sucker for it.
I can’t wait for the wide shot, too. Still lots to do if I can get my husband to stop painting outside and help me finish. The weatherman is predicting rain
all this week. My evil plan is paying off! (and the rain dance worked, too). :-)
They say the devil is in the details . . . maybe that’s why he only comes out after midnight. Seriously though, love the dowel knobs – great idea. And for sleep I recommend the app Evernote — when tossing and turning with an idea, I grab my phone, add it to the list and fall blissfully back asleep (maybe sometimes). Cheers – CT
Evernote! What a great idea. Of course in my case that might mean that I’ll be up forEVER making NOTES. HA HA! What’s worse, however, is having an idea and then not remembering your brilliance the next day. Maybe I should just drink more wine before bed, CT. :-) Thanks dear, you’re the best!
Stacey… these are all awesome! I kept reading through the post linking “That’s so cool, no… THAT’S so cool, NO… THAT’S SO COOL!” You came up with some really unique solutions that are perfect for the space.
I’m so glad you keep the dark stained wood. It looks amazing against the white and it’s a nice nod to what was once there. Can’t wait for the final reveal!
It’s funny how these tiny little things made me so freakin’ happy! Especially that stupid hanging file. You have no idea the panic I was experiencing in regard to all those files I had — not knowing where the heck I was going to put them. Yep, that stupid edge drove me crazy. I had to stain it and I’m cool with it. Better than paint any day. Since we’re both girls who love to stain wood we’re on the same page! (wink!)
You are a very clever girl. I have to say my favorite idea was the circle bulletin boards. I am IN! I shall copy and post. Luv it. On the file story. GAWD I hate the paper monster in the office. I cannot keep up with it. I no longer keep much paper. Bank statements etc. go straight to shredder if they are not e already. I do accumulate a lot of blog paper. House articles, tour brochures, magazines, blah. I have zero system to save all this and it is eating me alive. But the old paper files. I have two big drawers and one little drawer. Cleaning at the office in general is such a waste (even though I once bragged in a post after I did it)… because in two weeks, you never know that you did anything. Right now a cat sleeps in my “inbox” on my “important” to be filed papers. Your weekend looked really progressful.
HA HA! PAPER MONSTER! Love that term, it’s perfect. My monster must have been eating some serious junk food because he had grown to a size that was out of control!
It’s amazing how much you accumulate. I was cleaning it all out thinking… what a waste of trees. All this paper just thrown out and shredded. And you have to shred it with all that personal info. UGH!
I’m hoping this will keep me more organized but I’m afraid you are SO RIGHT… it’s only a matter of time before it all goes down the tubes and my monster returns. Oh well, at least I’m not alone.
Thanks for the company!
That desk is rocking! Love the stain against the white, I totally would steal that for our home. We have a dark wood desk and to this day we regret buying it. Everytime I see it it’s like a dust collection. I think you’re inspiring me to change up what our office space needs to be.
Great idea on the filing cabinet too – everything actually (Love the washers and the dowels). It’s so funny how when you think outside of the box for cost and design, you wind up going more to the hardware store to get it all done than the home decor store and it’s less expensive to boot!