Sunday, December 15, 2013

How do Those House Makeover Shows Do It?

Over my Thanksgiving break, I used the time to turn my second bedroom into a functional craft room.  It had turned into a gigantic walk-in closet of crap, and I wasn't able to use it for anything.  It's not a huge room, but it's ample and should be room enough to get some use out of it.  One corner is Sadie's crate and pen, but the rest was up for a change.

Before: I have nothing to say about this.  It was just a mess, although the panoramic view makes it look worse.







After:  Much improved!









Click to make big enough to see the numbers...

1:  The bookshelf that used to be back by the window.  Now it blocks off Sadie's space from the rest of the room, and creates a little nook where I can put the spinning wheel when I want to spin.

2: Ott floor lamp.  Hoorah for good lighting!  Very important in a craft room.

3: A few things behind the new Ikea bookshelf, the carrying bag for the spinning wheel and an extra large ball-winder.

4: yarn, yarn, and more yarn.  There's more under the bed.

4*: sweater quantities of yarn in bins on top of the bookshelf.

5:  Crates that have been modified with solid bottoms and casters that nest.  These were made by Paul for Janet (per Janet's instructions.)  They're filled with fiber, as they were when they were in Janet's studio.

6:  Janet's spinning wheel.

7: This is, I think, a microwave cart.  It's eligible for upgrade in the future, but does a fine job right now of holding spinning and weaving equipment.

8:  Another item that's subject to upgrade, but is working for now.  It's home to general craft supplies and sewing stuff.

9:  This is a table from Ikea that is sold as a dining table, but is a perfect craft table.  I put felt pads on the feet so it can move around easily, without the added height of casters.  It has six drawers and two gateleg leaves.  When both sides are up it is big enough for cutting out fabric, or blocking sweaters.

10: And the best part of the whole thing -- Grandma's sewing machine has a home that isn't the basement.  Or the floor in the dining room.

The desk is cleaned off enough to use, but I didn't include it in the picture.  It's not perfect, but I think "usable" is a valid goal, which I achieved.

I still have a few pieces in the dining room that need to get moved, but for the most part, the dining room is no longer the craft room.  Next steps: organize/straighten up the dining room and make it look less like another storage closet.

Another thing I'd like to note: the Ikea bookshelf actually has leveling feet, which is important in an off-kilter house like mine.  I'm so glad.

1 comments:

Lori Jacobson said...

I'm a long-time lurker finally stopping to say how much I enjoy your blog, and how happy I was to see a new post from you. I love what you've done in your craft room. I currently have a crap room that I need to convert; your cleanup will be great inspiration for me!