Sunday 16 November 2008

My Girl Shed - except it is inside, warm and dosent have spiders!

Ok, as promised here are some photos of my new room and some of the things and ideas I have used for storgae, I hope some of this will be helpful if you are thinking of creating your own space.

I opted for a green and brown colour scheme. It was no big surprise as I am a huge fan of green. The house is painted green, as is the shed, half the hall and the bedroom. (All different shades though!)

The main furniture came from Ikea - the Expedit cube systems, baskets, drawers and boxes and the butchers trolley. The rest of the room has been made from cupboards and worktops. Luckily my OH is a builder so we were able to make the room to my own specification and needs. Here are some photos.....












I used the top of the Ikea units for baskets and extra storage and also had a high bookshelf put up so I could keep all my reference stuff to hand. I had to get a little stool to keep in the room so I could reach stuff and found this fab one from Ikea for about £8 - a bargain!

Here are some of the little things I used, bought or made to store things in...




These paper shelves were extortionate in terms of price but do fit the space very well. I really like the look of them and have to say that horizontal storage is my favourite. I got mine from Arty Miss UK who had a sale on them - every little helps!



This print draw I bought from Ebay. I had to clean it and stain it to the colour I wanted. We then drilled out some of the smaller partitions so I could get in my larger stamps. I like to be able to see my stamps.



Buckets set on hooks and a rail from Ikea. Gotta love that store!



My chair is a stool! I had to get something that would be the right height for worktop. I sourced this online from Atlantic Shopping who have a great range and were quick too!



This is my most favourite thing in my room. The birdcage came from BHS (I got mine from Oxford Street)and it was in the sale. (I do like a good bargain!) It opens from the top and is just the perfect place to store all my paint.




These little wire shopping baskets came from a local pound shop.




The butchers trolley was handy as the shelves underneath mean yet more room for storage. This was less than £30 from Ikea and is really sturdy.




These print draws are really old and contain all the typefaces I have for my Letterpress.



These baskets are from Ikea. They are expensive for what they are but hold and hide masses of stuff.



These green boxes came from Ikea and I had to screw them together so they are very sturdy! All my embellishments are hiding in here, need to get one more next time I am passing.



My Hermes typewriter fits perfectly in the Expedit square and is watched over by Hooty!



I had a hole cut into the work top and a bin is underneath, all my rubbish now gets swept strait in so I can keep my main work space as tidy and clean as possible.



I used to use Cropper Hoppers for paper storage. You have to cut an inch off the top so they fit in. I managed to use scissors to do this but it was a bit tough.



This tiered cake stand came from Ebay. The pink ones from Argos had sold out when I bought it. BHS have some nice cream ones in at the moment as well.



I decorated this latte mug when I took Lola to All Fired Up in Ipswich, it houses some of my larger paint brushes and is a perfect prop for my bunny!



A little over sized tea cup in the perfect colour houses some H20's and my gaffer tape collection.



A simple bucket houses all my coloured pencils and pens.



I use this enamel housekeepers box to keep at hand all my basic equipment and glues.



This is my Letter press. (Lisa the answer is still no not yet!)



Finally no girl shed would be complete without a faithful mutt asleep on the floor.

Oh, one (slightly boring but very sensible) thing we did do and I would recommend is speak to an electrician about the electrics. We got a man round. I wanted extra plugs and to raise everything above the work surfaces. With all the paper in the room I was concerned about it being safe. I have to get a smoke alarm to finish it off now. x

9 comments:

Lisa said...

looking great miss cole , lovely colour!
lisa x

Unknown said...

Karen thank you so much for sharing your finished craft space with us, I have been looking forward to seeing it. All I can say is WOW...that room is amazing and I love the idea of the hole cut out for the bin, there is nothing like a good swipe {and not a credit card this time LOL}
I know you will continue to produce some awaesome designs in there!
Enjoy
Jane x

Nicola said...

Right I'll just get my car keys .....

Debbie H said...

OMG it's gorgeous. Can I come for a sleep over!!

Anonymous said...

Wow, what a nice craft space. Love seeing all the wonderful pictures. Enjoy!!!

jenny said...

Looks fabulous Karen, great space x

Claire said...

look wonderful, any room for a small person in there? I'll bring choc :)

Kari said...

WOW!!! What a gorgeous room! So much storage!! I need you to come to my house and help me organize my craft room! You did such a fantastic job!!! I can't wait to see all the creativity that will come from your new room!!

Monica Gale said...

Karen your studio is just fabulous, happy creating in such an inspiring space. Hugs M xxx