Tuesday, April 17, 2012

Craft Room/Office Reveal!

I have to start off with a HUGE 'Thank You' to my amazing hubby who worked so hard and so fast on this room for me. His skills are endless as is his patience with me. :) If you know me, you know that I am the world's WORST decision maker! Picking that grey color in the Basement just about killed me!
If we go back in time, you will remember this pre-school area. It served it's purpose and was very fun while we had it but it was TIME for a change. The kids did not go down there much and when they did, they just pulled stuff out and made a mess instead of utilizing it how it was meant to be utilized. So...mommy took the room back and set aside a small, organized, area for the children in the basement area. (more pics to come of that.)  
 So we went from THIS:

And this...

And started to evolve into this...




BEGINNING VIGNETTE

And finally turned into THIS:

AFTER!
The most exciting news is that it even made it onto TV! Studio 5 showed it as one of the finalist in the "Amazing Spaces" Contest. I didn't realize that I was a finalist until my friend texted me to tell me that she saw it on the show.  It was a very fun surprise. :) For some reason, they did not put the segment up on their website so unfortunately, I can't link you to it. :( Can we PLEASE just talk about the apothecary cubbies?! My husband went above and beyond with these and they turned out really BEAUTIFUL. I want to marry them. :) They are backed with beadboard and embellished with metal label holders that I searched the world over for. I finally found SUPER inexpensive metal label holders at the wonderful Hobby Lobby for $2.99 for a pack of 6. Bring in a 40% off coupon and they end up only being $1.50!
After they were all up and installed, I had the BEST time filling them with beautiful, sentimental items as well as functional items. And can I just say "THANK HEAVEN" for mason jars?! I think there are a couple dozen in these cubbies. :)So this is my "Pride & Prejudice" Ribbon Rack.  I was searching for a storage solution to my ribbon issue and low & behold, while on a Jane Austen binge, I let out a squeal when the Bennett girls met Wickham and entered the ribbon shoppe. (Kiera Knightly version) I immediately geeked out and called my husband to inform him of his next project. :)...a replica of the ribbon rack from the movie!
The beautiful yellow frame with the painting of the girl inside of it was done by my mother when she was about 13 years old. My aunt brought it to a family reunion this past summer and I claimed it as my own.

Now...onto the pillow and window bench seat cover... I got them along with the HAND-STITCHED camera pillow from the Jane Isa Etsy Shop but guess what... that's my sister, Heather! She is insanely talented. She stitched it all up and mailed me the most beautiful package. It was like Christmas! She's the BEST sister ever. :) Hop over to her shop and check out her sign language pillows. They are pretty much the raddest things ever.  After I received the window bench seat cover, I inserted the foam pad and made some black lace buttons to tuft it with. 
The black ribbon and bows that grace the lace balloon shade from Target was another stroke of genius from my sister, Heather. She helped me SO much through this whole process. In the two weeks that I had to get this finished, we must have logged hours on the phone. She encouraged me, inspired me and was just a constant supply of support.
"Where did you get that Chandi" you ask?? Oh, ya know...DI!...for $5.00! Yup. I pretty much love that place. :) The foot stool is another thrift store find with toole paper decoupaged on top.

Again...Jane Austen. I just love her. She provided a lot of inspiration for this room. Including the beautiful, stained elder wood that the desk and table were made out of. In the picture to the right, above my laptop, I simply placed a beautiful platter there and turned it into a magnet board. This magnet board is absolutely necessary. It holds my photo booth photos (I'm obsessed with photo booth photos) as well as a place to write myself reminders because I can't remember a dang thing anymore unless it's written right in front of my face.

The wooden "frame" that you see on the wall is actually a partition that I took out of the house that we recently flipped. I took out the ugly 70's glass and replaced it with some of the beautiful pictures that my other insanely talented sister took for us this past fall.
The frames that you see above the window hold some of my favorite quotes of all time. :)
This is Lizzy's craft corner. She loves all things artistic so it was only fitting that she had a space as well. My favorite thing in the world is to be sitting down at my desk while she is at hers and Alice is sitting on my window bench eating a snack or playing with her dolls. It's just heaven. :)
Everything in Lizzy's corner came out of her room that we are re-modeling soon. So it was all free! For her desk, I simply removed the mirrors in the vanity, painted the center with chalkboard paint and inserted cork board on the sides.


The top of this cabinet was actually just sitting on the side of the road with a lovely "Free" sign on it. I just about had a heart attack when I saw it. It was just what I had been searching for. We painted it white then Jake built the bottom shelves for it to sit on.
Found these bar stools at the DI for $10.00 each! What a steal! They were just perfect for the space.
I love to just sit down here and create. It's my favorite room in the house! Now to break it in with a huge craft night party... Wanna come?!