My Little Studio

I always wanted a little studio... somewhere that I could be close to my family but still get a lot done. It started in a spare bedroom with a $50.00 desk and a bookcase. Although that wasn't a bad space, it did use the spare bedroom, which we needed for when guests came to stay AND it kept me hidden way upstairs away from my family.

Everyday, for years, I have walked through my empty dining room and thought, "What should I do with this room?" Our kitchen has a table that seats eight and if we had a "formal dining room," it would sit empty except for two days a year. That's not the best use of space in my opinion.

So about six months ago, I decided to make the dining room my little studio. Right off the kitchen, it seemed like the perfect spot to be near all the action and free up the spare bedroom for guests.

After looking at Pottery Barn, (WAY out of my price range...) and Walmart, (I didn't think anything there was sturdy enough for all of my junk...stuff...) I decided to order the IKEA catalog.

The IKEA catalog and I were best friends for about three months. Each night, we would head to bed together for some bonding time.

Then, one spring day, I said to Rina, "Let's drive to Chicago and go to IKEA!" She said, "Sure! As long as I can get something too..." Ha! That's my girl. She loves to organize just like I do!

And so the shopping began. I spent a whopping $832.98 in furniture and about $60.00 in accessories and transformed my dining room in my dream space. (It may be small to some people, but it's just perfect for me.)

Rina helped me choose the pieces and the colors. I am so glad she decided on the blackish brown. My walls were already painted a dusty sage so all I had to do was build and fill.

So here it is... My Little Studio.

Here are some views from all around the room. The room measures about 10' X 11'.
You can click on each photo to enlarge it for more detail.

On this side of the room is the main workstation. All of my cutting and coloring tools that I use the most are hidden inside the large Expedit Unit from IKEA. The desk is also and Expedit item that you can add on for $50.00. The drawers and doors are add-ons as well.



Here is the view from behind the desk of the same area. My desktop has my laptop and Cameo and a turn style organizer for scissors, stamp-a-ma-jig, paper piercer, rulers and all of those other important tools that I can't go a day without!



Here is the view of the right side of the room. Many more frequently and not so frequently used items are in these two units. I turned the 2 X 4 Expedit Unit on it's side so I would have a counter top and I added the 1 X 4 Expedit Unit in the corner.

Here is a head on view of that area. I keep my wireless printer there since I don't use it as much as the Cameo. The Cameo is right on my desk.

Above this area are three thin shelves for my ribbons and embellishments and an IKEA Bar with hanging stuff for more tools and embellishments. I am not quite done organizing this area yet.

I keep my biggest jars full of the ribbon colors I use the most.

And my smaller jars for the specialty colors. Jars are by IKEA.

These little jars and the holder are also from IKEA in their wall storage area.

I am a mixer. I mix all the stuff together and grab one jar to find what I want. I tried the separate containers of individual colors. They didn't work with my crazy personality. One jar, one grab... easy. I plan on mixing ALL of my buttons in one big cookie jar. I just have to go find the jar I want...

Underneath this unit, I store all of my stamp sets in Binder Boxes. It makes it very easy to find what I need and nothing falls out, ever! I have a few to label still...

Also in this Unit, I keep embossing powders, in one of the drawers.

And Glitter, Perfect Pearls, Stickles, Liquid Pearls and other fun stuff in another drawer.

Next to my desk is my file rack of card stock. Each color has it's own fo
lder. I got it at Staples many years ago but I think they still have them.

Behind me is a little black desk I got at Walmart for $24.00. I had to put it together of course but it is the right size for my paper cutter and scraps.



On this desk sits my scrap basket...



And my 6X6 paper pack basket.



And inside the little drawer on this desk is my Scor-buddy, Mat and a couple of current magazines.



Back to the larger unit- in one drawer, I keep everything sticky, from Glues Dots to Pop Dots to my Xyron and my Mono-adhesive refills.

Right over that drawer is a drawer with all of my acrylic blocks.

Next to me, in an open cubby are all of my Memento Ink pads. I need a few more racks... The racks are from Hobby Lobby. My distress pads are right below this in an open cubby.



Up top are baskets and tins with my colored pencils, Bic markers and Sakura Glitter pens.

Inside some cubbies within reaching distance are coloring tools, more ink pads, ink refills, my stamp scrubber and Ultra Clean.

Copic Markers are also behind a cubby door but within very easy reach!



I like having these things easy to grab when I am sitting at the desk. My light is tucked away inside along with my foam applications and a little basket of quick grab items like tape, another paper piercer, etc...



Some of things I don't use very often are my paper punches, jewelry making supplies, and my clay and molds. So these items are tucked away in these boxes waiting to be labeled. I also have a couple more of these with older magazines and technique supplies like shaving cream, alcohol, marbles, rubber bands, etc...

But right by my feet are my Dies and my Cuttlebug...

And my Grand Calibur and Cuttlebug Folders. There are some frequently used loose dies in that taller basket. They are the dies that coordinate with our stamp designs. They are easy to grab all in one basket like that.

And of course, my Janome Sew Mini is tucked away on a shelf too but never too far away.

So there you have it! My Little Studio. Not too expensive but it's very practical. And it's a place that makes me feel very creative. That part I love...

Hugs,

Gina K