The Office Challenge
In the midst of all the sick germs floating around our home I decided it was time to figure out a new office/craft solution for myself. Since the weather changed I've been working out of our dining room. I painted a couple of pieces before Christmas in the living room as well, but that wasn't working. This created too much dust, mess and there wasn't enough room to move around. The dining room is one of the darkest rooms in the house so that wasn't working that well for doing any type of project. Not to mention the dining room is off the kitchen/eating area and I was tired of seeing my mess all the time.
While we were away on vacation I talked to the Hubby about an idea I'd been mulling over in my brain. As every Wife knows you have to talk about things a bit before the man in the relationship gets on board. My idea was to take our seldom used guest bedroom and put my office in there. The Hubby finally agreed, but he didn't really want to do all that needed to be done (moving furniture!). In this home we are always moving something around. I get bored and think..."Hmmm what if we moved this here?" I don't just do this in my home, but my friend's homes too! It's a sickness really, but it's something I've done since I was a child. I was gung-ho about moving the furniture....that was until we had to actually start moving the furniture.
Now one thing I forgot to add was my challenge. The challenge....I wasn't allowed to spend any money on this change. No new curtains, rug, pillows, pictures....you name it. I knew I could do it, but I wasn't happy about it! So I took the challenge and after a couple of weeks the office is now ready to unveil.
Here is the before picture.
Yes, I know what you're thinking, but this is the only picture I have of the guest bedroom! I can't believe it myself.
Here is the 'finished for now' space
This is the view from the doorway. One of my favorite things is the mirror on the window. The Hubby said, "No you're not going to hang a mirror on the window." Ummmm yes, yes I am and I love it! Doesn't take the best picture, but trust me in person it's stunning.
The chair in the room was in my family room. I kinda cheated on my challenge. I did buy something new, but not for the office. I found an unbelievable deal at Goodwill on a brand new slipper chair for $65 in a fabric I loved. I put it in the family room and voila I had an extra chair for the office!
Everything in this picture I already owned. The dresser has been moved around a bit in the house and it's finally found it's home. I plan on putting some craft and office supplies in the drawers.
My favorite part of this part of the room is the old crib box spring on the wall. I found this one day on the side of the road in a pile of junk someone was getting rid of. I made the Hubby stop and turn around so I could pick it up. My Hubby and Hunter both thought I was nuts. It sat in the garage for a few months until I found a place for it. I'm going to add some more pictures to it and to the bulletin board.
This is where the bed used to sit. The bed is now in the basement storage area. I had two of these chaise lounges in the basement storage area. It's so comfortable and a great place to read a book or magazine.
The chalkboard is a transformed project. I had originally put a Paris map on this after the mirror inside the frame broke and hung it above my mantel in the living room. When I got back from vacation the map was coming off the board and I found another mirror for the mantel. Then I decided to make it into a chalkboard. I love it!! This is my favorite quote from George Eliot. It's something I need to be reminded of as my birthday approaches. It really isn't too late to for me to be what I might have been!
I'm actually really happy with my office/craft space. I still have a few things I want to do, like paint the base of the desk cream. I've wanted to do that since I bought the desk 7 years ago! I'm happy and thankful to have a space to call my own. I'm also proud of myself for using what I already had in the house. It's a bright room where I can go and feel inspired to create. Now if the weather would just warm up to say 63 degrees or so I can go back to painting in the garage!
Thank you for reading and have a wonderful day!
Melody