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We've all seen the beautiful craft rooms with matching furniture, custom drawers and specialized storage units. But most of us don't have hundreds, much less thousands of dollars to invest in our craft room remodel.
Except for a couple of plastic drawer units and a Clip-It-Up, my craft room is created from castoffs -- and I'm quite content with it. :cool:
My craft table is a solid wood door covered in contact paper and laid atop two two-drawer file cabinets (One to store important papers, the other empty because the drawers are blocked.)
To my right is a junky old dresser with nine drawers, perfect for my embossing powders, fountain pen supplies, paint, Thickers and other items that I don't use regularly.
On top of my dresser is a particle board cubby thing. Thirty years ago, it was part of my oldest son's loft bed (like a bunk bed, but with only one bed on top). It has seven cubbies that are perfect for my scrapbook albums, craft reference books, ink and other stuff.
There are a few other things, but you get the idea. Now, I want to hear from you. How have you recycled or repurposed castoffs to create your perfect (or almost perfect) craft room? Photos would be great if you'd like to share.
Location: along the bluffs of the Upper Mississippi River
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Next is an old printer's tray I displayed miniatures in about 20 years ago when that was popular. I saved it from my thrift store pile when I saw the idea for single stamp display!
__________________ All I want is the chance to prove money won't make me happy!
My favorite repurposed items are a vanity table that belonged to my mother. Atop that is a hutch unit that was part of my sister-in-law's childhood bedroom. My main crafting area is a ping-pong table from when my son was young and what is supposed to be my cutting table (surface usually covered with other stuff) is his foosball table.
I also have my mother-in-law's old kitchen table and a couple of square tables that came from my husband's work when they were dismantling before leaving the area.
I did pay for my absolute best find though -- $20 for a fabulous cherry library file.
Location: along the bluffs of the Upper Mississippi River
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My last up cycled items were these country shelves I stored in a garage of a rental house six years ago. I had never gotten around to donating them and realized two months ago I could use them! I'm going paint them. The closed cupboard has punches stored in it.
These are just a few of my vintage and up-cycled items. I craft on an antique drop leaf table that was my grandmother's. It was our kitchen table when I was a kid!
__________________ All I want is the chance to prove money won't make me happy!
Last edited by Allistamps123; 09-27-2015 at 11:32 AM..
OMG I agree with you!!! I have an, um, eclectic space My computer desk is - errrr - lame. It's framed by some fun upcycled items I love. The items I have that are purely stamping/crafting focused were Christmas gifts from my family. It's fun to work with what you have/find/repurpose and love and live in your space.
Lydia, I love your video. Aren't those Billy bookcases the greatest? Affordable, adjustable, sturdy and you can buy extra shelves. I have two in my bedroom, both for books. No room for one in my craft room.
I don't think I've ever seen so much ink in one place outside of a store! I love those storage containers that hold them and the reinkers. I'm so envious of all you ladies who have those library card catalogs. I could think of a bazillion uses for those long, little drawers.
Great thread ladies.. I will be scoping this out. I currently have my craft room in a very tiny room along with my office stuff (work from home). There is no place to sit and craft in there..so I pull everything out and craft on the dining room table.. :( I have an extra bedroom upstairs that holds nothing but a futon..and nobody ever sleeps there. I originally set it up for my grandbabies..but they wont sleep in there when they stay..they insist on sleeping in the living room. Sooooo.. I have decided to switch the two rooms out..the only reason I have not done this..is because I havent been sure I will want to sit upstairs and craft (I live alone). But I think if I hook up the tv up there..and set it up nice..it will be a nice get away. Thanks for the inspiration. I too will be using a mish mash of furniture etc..to set it up.. but that has never stopped me before! I just have to measure the futon to make sure it will fit in the smaller tiny room downstairs.
Now, I want to hear from you. How have you recycled or repurposed castoffs to create your perfect (or almost perfect) craft room?
Shoeboxes! Shoeboxes and more shoeboxes. Hundrets of shoeboxes.
Shoeboxes you can get for free!
They have perfect sizes.
You can leave it the way they are, you can paint it.
I put on every single shoebox a noitce what's in there, I never have to look for something more than a half minute, no more searching - just take a look at the noticepapers on the front and here we are
I'm too cheap to pay for boxes. And if I buy, I have to be very carefully with it... but shoeboxes? I'll ask for new ones! (I use the same shoeboxes for years now, I guess I had to replace one or maximum two)
Shoeboxes and Amazon boxes. Just be sure to label everything. Also foam board. I followed the instructions on YouTube and made an ink rack and a paper rack from foam board. You can get it at the dollar store.
__________________ Debbie "Make it work, people." - Tim Gunn My Gallery
Wonderful thread. Why buy new when you can save a penny or 2 and have an interesting space?
Right now I am crafting in my dining room but a new space is going to made in an office space (separate from my house). I have rolling carts that store my paper. Microwave carts that house my electronic and manual cutters. And on the wall I have old wooden spice racks that hold stamps, Dylusions inks, Tim Holtz stains and some punches. On my worktable (aka dining room table) I have 2 Harbor Freight 4 tiered spinning bins that hold my border punches and a 2 tiered plastic turntable that has a kitchen utensil holder on top from Pampered Chef (that I found at a garage sale) that holds my pins, hole punches, scissors ...etc. I found a Cd holder that now houses my unmounted rubber stamps in cd cases. When my new space is made livable I will still use my old stuff.
I don't think I've ever seen so much ink in one place outside of a store! I love those storage containers that hold them and the reinkers. I'm so envious of all you ladies who have those library card catalogs. I could think of a bazillion uses for those long, little drawers.
I have two of them and they are my most prized posessions. One is a very large one in my living room - found on Craig's list - it had been sitting in storage and its owner - a former librarian - felt guilty and let it go for a song.
The one I painted blue came to me via a friend who does estate sales and gave me an early heads up .
It's AMAZING how much you can fit in those drawers.
I am lucky I was gifted a full office suite plus of furniture (4 desks, book case, huge drawers (as tall as the book case), 4 sets of drawers for under the desks,only downside is it is very dark reddish brown, I drool over all those white craft rooms. I am tempted to paint the drawer fronts to lift the colour a bit. Add to that plastic carts from Michael's and some Recollection storage and that is me.
Willowby - switch your rooms and go for it! Yes you will love having your own quiet separate craft space. If you want - Create a separate thread about your room with pictures and we can give you ideas and encouragement and discuss pros and cons . I love to organize ! In another life I would be a remodeler.
__________________ Creativity is intelligence having fun. - Albert Einstein
Willowby - switch your rooms and go for it! Yes you will love having your own quiet separate craft space. If you want - Create a separate thread about your room with pictures and we can give you ideas and encouragement and discuss pros and cons . I love to organize ! In another life I would be a remodeler.
Oh Geez please come over right now!!!!! I did switch the rooms..but had to leave the futon in there..but I am still going to have more room then I did before. I have a table set up that I can craft on. But..... still putting everything away and finding a spot for everything.. ugh..:( I am organized in most everything else..but this is daunting. There are so many things that I just cant seem to find the perfect place for.. what I do need is some shelving on the walls I think..because I have pretty much used the floor space already! (Cannot spend any money right now on anything craft related.. including storage) I will keep you updated on my progress..AND THANK YOU FOR THE ENCOURAGEMENT.. I NEEDED IT AFTER HAULING EVERYTHING UP THE STAIRS! LOL
I havent been sure I will want to sit upstairs and craft (I live alone). But I think if I hook up the tv up there..and set it up nice..it will be a nice get away.
My craft room is approximately 9 feet by 9.5 feet. In addition to the stuff I mentioned in my first post, I also have a good sized desk and a computer. It's a ton of stuff in a small space but it works, thanks to a little help from my (adult) kids.
My oldest son gave me his widescreen monitor when he bought a bigger one. Then my youngest son hooked up both (my new-to-me widescreen and my ancient small screen) monitors to the computer, one on my desk and the other on my craft table. Now I can watch movies and TV shows on Netflix while spreading glue on paper. :cool:
My craft room is approximately 9 feet by 9.5 feet. In addition to the stuff I mentioned in my first post, I also have a good sized desk and a computer. It's a ton of stuff in a small space but it works, thanks to a little help from my (adult) kids.
My oldest son gave me his widescreen monitor when he bought a bigger one. Then my youngest son hooked up both (my new-to-me widescreen and my ancient small screen) monitors to the computer, one on my desk and the other on my craft table. Now I can watch movies and TV shows on Netflix while spreading glue on paper. :cool:
(Cannot spend any money right now on anything craft related.. including storage)
I'll bet there's a Freecycle group near you (just google "freecycle" and the nearest city or your zip code). Sign up and post what you need, i.e. shelving. Be sure to read the rules. Lots of people would rather give stuff away to an individual rather than donate it. Especially because the recipient comes and takes the stuff they don't want away. I've used this many times for larger items that are too big to fit in my trunk for donation. Or, if someone requests something I haven't used in years, but haven't gotten around to disposing of it, I'll respond to a "wanted' post.
__________________ Debbie "Make it work, people." - Tim Gunn My Gallery
I'll bet there's a Freecycle group near you (just google "freecycle" and the nearest city or your zip code). Sign up and post what you need, i.e. shelving. Be sure to read the rules. Lots of people would rather give stuff away to an individual rather than donate it. Especially because the recipient comes and takes the stuff they don't want away. I've used this many times for larger items that are too big to fit in my trunk for donation. Or, if someone requests something I haven't used in years, but haven't gotten around to disposing of it, I'll respond to a "wanted' post.
I'll bet there's a Freecycle group near you (just google "freecycle" and the nearest city or your zip code). Sign up and post what you need, i.e. shelving. Be sure to read the rules. Lots of people would rather give stuff away to an individual rather than donate it. Especially because the recipient comes and takes the stuff they don't want away. I've used this many times for larger items that are too big to fit in my trunk for donation. Or, if someone requests something I haven't used in years, but haven't gotten around to disposing of it, I'll respond to a "wanted' post.
Excellent idea! As they say, "One man's trash is another man's treasure." And I have found this to be so very true--both from the giving and receiving end.
You could also keep any eye out for unwanted treasures on garbage night - we have put things out knowing that 99% of the time it is gone before the collection as someone wanted it or saw potential in it.
Thank you ladies for the ideas and encouragement. There is a year round "garage sale" here that is open every Friday and Saturday..owned by husband and wife..they go to different estate sales..etc and buy and re-stock their sale every week..but anyway.. I was there last weekend and bought three wall shelves (all different) for my craft room.. will try and take pictures later today .. since I finally have some time to do that. I will be painting two of them before hanging.. But that will give me some much needed "off the floor" storage..
First I used an old drawer and Mod Podged some scrapbook paper on the insided then hung it on the wall. Other 2 on wall are old boxes 1 a coke bottle box and the other some sort of spice box. The table is actually an old (unused now) buffet. the baskets on the left hold embossing folders in 1 and acrylic stamp blocks in the other. I also use emptied Jars (like from peanut butter, or mayo) for storage.
This here is an old CD holder I saw someone throwing out and I grabbed it before garbage man did. It hangs with those orver the door hooks on my closet door. No need to ruin door with nails!!
LOL Why is it I always feel like I have a TON of stuff until I see other people's craft space??
I have exactly:
2 small clear boxes of stamps (my acrylic blocks also fit in here),
3 stacking clear boxes (about the size of company envelope boxes) of misc (i.e. inkpads, stickles, punches, dies, embossing folders, markers),
another clear box about that same size (embellishments like flowers, brads),
8 dvd cases of acrylic stamps,
a shoebox of ribbons and
2 of those 3-drawer cabinets (the drawers are 12x12 and about 3-4" deep) for my paper, glue, and some stickers and such.
Oh, and a hand-caddy for my glue dots, colored pencils, heat gun, etc.
This all shares dining room closet space with my sewing stuff, filing cabinet, etc. I need more space to repurpose a cabinet in the garage, a cd case and 2 bookcases that I've been hanging onto!
This here is an old CD holder I saw someone throwing out and I grabbed it before garbage man did. It hangs with those orver the door hooks on my closet door. No need to ruin door with nails!!
Love this! I have an old wood cd case I've been hanging onto that I know now what I'll use it for!
First I used an old drawer and Mod Podged some scrapbook paper on the insided then hung it on the wall. Other 2 on wall are old boxes 1 a coke bottle box and the other some sort of spice box.
I never would have thought of using a drawer on the wall, but that makes perfect sense--and it's stylish!
I love the drawer unit with the doors that are painted different colors and have different handles. It's so cheery and fun and creative. Perfect for a craft room!
I never would have thought of using a drawer on the wall, but that makes perfect sense--and it's stylish!
I love the drawer unit with the doors that are painted different colors and have different handles. It's so cheery and fun and creative. Perfect for a craft room!
First I used an old drawer and Mod Podged some scrapbook paper on the insided then hung it on the wall. Other 2 on wall are old boxes 1 a coke bottle box and the other some sort of spice box. The table is actually an old (unused now) buffet. the baskets on the left hold embossing folders in 1 and acrylic stamp blocks in the other. I also use emptied Jars (like from peanut butter, or mayo) for storage.
This here is an old CD holder I saw someone throwing out and I grabbed it before garbage man did. It hangs with those orver the door hooks on my closet door. No need to ruin door with nails!!
Oh My goodness .. so many great ideas! Thank you for sharing..
[QUOTE=willowby;21087987]Here are the two shelves I will be painting today.. I will give you an "after" photo when they are on the walls..
Great idea! White makes everything looks so clean and bright! Nearly all my other shelves in my room are white and make a great contrast for the giant dark desk and that old buffet I have in there. That's why I love the drawer unit with different fronts and knobs and I had also replaced knobs on buffet (once just wood in same color) with some antique glass door knobs. Have fun with your project and can't wait to see. Would love to see your final room too!:grin:
[QUOTE=UnderstandBlue;21079935]OMG I agree with you!!! I have an, um, eclectic space My computer desk is - errrr - lame. It's framed by some fun upcycled items I love. The items I have that are purely stamping/crafting focused were Christmas gifts from my family. It's fun to work with what you have/find/repurpose and love and live in your space.
Loved your video and the antique cabnets!! definately my style! Thanks for sharing!
Here are the two shelves I will be painting today.. I will give you an "after" photo when they are on the walls..
Great idea! White makes everything looks so clean and bright! Nearly all my other shelves in my room are white and make a great contrast for the giant dark desk and that old buffet I have in there. That's why I love the drawer unit with different fronts and knobs and I had also replaced knobs on buffet (once just wood in same color) with some antique glass door knobs. Have fun with your project and can't wait to see. Would love to see your final room too!:grin:
I just love your colorful drawer unit! My walls in that room are a dingy white color..and I cant paint it ..(physical reasons) So I am thinking of painting the shelves a color to offset that white.. just havent decided on the color! lol. I am heading over to that garage sale I mentioned before that happens every friday and saturday to see what new things he has.. if you get there early sometimes you can find some great finds! I will be looking for an over the door thingy like you have!
I search garage sales for usable craft storage. I have found a small wood chest that had 12 drawers for $10. very sturdy - it fits perfectly in the closet. I am try to condense my craft supplies to a very small area. (downsizing)
I also found a new (still had tags attached) jewelry holder for $1.00- it is a clothes hanger style that has zippered compartments on both sides. It hold lots of embellishments.
My latest find was at a retired school teacher's garage sale - it is black metal frame with 12 shallow wire baskets also for $10. (6 baskets in 2 rows) and it fits perfectly on the wood chest that I found earlier .
I am thinking of biting the bullet and buying one of the IKEA carts. I like crafting at my dining room table, but the cart would make clean up easier. I don't like crafting in my craft room - I feel secluded from the world.
Repurpose / Recycle craft room
