Wednesday, August 11, 2010

Cluttered, useless desk becomes functioning craft station


I had a piece of furniture that had become a complete dumping ground for everything. Bank statements, crafty supplies, letter-writing supplies, decorative items, old junk, etc. That piece of furniture was my desk.


It's a nice little roll top so let's open her up and see inside!

Oh. My. Gosh. What....what is....what the....huh?



Yes! Because these are so useful now!


My top drawer full of ... I don't even know. I see hair thingies. A box of buttons, ribbon, beads, my soldering tool.


My second drawer for ribbons and trims. Also apparently my Garfield ruler and dental floss (to be fair, I DID use that dental floss for a craft project.


These are all the trims and junk that were in the back of the drawer.


I also found these. I saved them because ... why?


The instructions for my very new up-to-date stereo! That I got new probably 15 years ago.



Let's try this again, shall we? How about we open it up.

Hey I can actually work here! And I have a chair! (albeit a chair that needs recovering).

I used some little glass snifters a neighbor gave me "because they knew I'd do something with them" - well you were right! They are holding my push pins, rubber bands and paper clips.


A $1.00 napkin holder holds notes or mail or papers I want to hang onto and not forget. These notes came in my package from the Crafty Tokyo Mama.


This little pirate ship was a gift from a student and is sitting on the notebook I use to keep track of business info.


A vintage Ball jar holds my paint brushes and a Goodwill find faux mercury glass candle-holder stores my decorated pens.

The divided spaces between holds my glues, my three most-used paint colors (black, white and burnt umber), some extra beads, etc.


I saved this fortune because with my shop being called "Molly the Pirate's" it just seemed fitting! :)


I saved this bottle cap because it makes me laugh.


This little slot perfectly holds my mailing envelopes for sending out packages.


Some empty food jars with a great shape and spray-painted lids make the perfect storage for my ribbon scraps and buttons.


One of the drawers holds my thank-you (and other assorted tags) which I use to hand-write little notes to buyers.


Another drawer holds my postal slips so I can have everything filled out and ready to go when I get to the post office.


The larger drawer makes a great spot for my jewelry tools. Do you not love my mini anvil? :)


My ribbon drawer (once I found the other dividers) is now MUCH more organized. I used cardboard scraps cut into rectangles to wrap loose ribbons around.

I've heard a clean desk is the sign of a disturbed mind (jokingly) but a messy desk can't help me get anything done!


In case you were wondering, what didn't get thrown away or donated was put into this crate, or this wire basket and slid under my bed.



8 comments:

Country Mouse said...

I love it! I need a desk like this!!! Great organization!!!:)

Megan said...

Few things soothe my soul as much as a clean and organized desk. It's funny that you did something about your desk this week, as I started working on mine last night...lol. Must be something in the air. Looks gorgeous!

Christine said...

What a great space...it's hard for us creative types to keep from being messy. Isn't it a part of the process? ;) Thanks for sharing it with us...!

Angie Holden said...

Wow what a difference!! Love that spray painted lid idea!

Anonymous said...

nice job organizing your stuff. I am currently trying to takeover my son's room and use it for a craft/guest room.

malia said...

you are good to go! i love getting organized... thanks for the inspiration!

cat said...

a) I would like one of those rolly-desk things myself. (My husband and I have always loved things like that.)

and

b) I would like you to come over and organize things for me. I think I need you desperately in my house.

Abbi said...

What is it about desks that makes them just seem to attract every random thing you own?!?
Yours looks so nice and organized now, it is very inspiring. If it weren't late at night I might get up and go get to work on mine. Hopefully I still feel inspired tomorrow!