Forgive the first person reporting today but I'm coming clean with all of you...I work for AT:LA and I'm a slobaholic in my office. I have the most disgusting, gross, misorganized office I've ever seen [hanging my head in clutter shame]. Every time I walk into my office I curl my lip in disgust. Time and lack of effort have kept me from ripping it all apart and starting over. I know it will be a huge weekend project [I know ...shaming head hang again... I should be working M's 12 step program over there with The Cure].
The impetus for all of this is not personal drive for organization it's revolving around the fact that I can't stand for one more second the nasty stained rug my landlord forced me into having for noise control on the second floor. I don't think I can afford to replace it with something more colorful and fun but it does need to be cleaned, and the landlord says it must be removed and taken outside to be cleaned due to the hardwoods [don't ask...I know it can be done inside but I don't want the fight]. So there it is...I have to dismantel the whole room as if I'm moving to get it done and so while I'm at it I'm putting some effort into my crazy insane mess while I'm at it.
What I'm dreaming of is this little cubby-love of a desk from Pottery Barn. A little drawer for everything. I have art supplies coming out of my you-know-what and since they are not going away I've got to find away for us all to live in peace. So the plan is to come up with some ikea'd versions of this. I'm currently scheming and plotting. There I said it...I feel so much better getting it off my chest. Please don't judge...the rest of my place is really cute.
Here are the stipulations:
I can't paint the walls.
I have to have a carpet for noise [it's currently a lovely shade of stained beige]
My budget is probably going to be $200-250 range if I can stand to stick to it.
It revolves around the carpet cleaning date TBD.
I share the office with my housemate as well so his furniture is not going to be doing anything different.
I promise to report back when it gets under way.
I'll can send some pictures of my solution for this tonight, but I "built" out of IKEA office furniture a comparable desk solution, and you could easily add more cabinets to what I've done.
Essentially, I took two three-drawer EFFECTIV filing cabinets, swapped out the handles and added CAPITA legs from the kitchen line to the bottom of each for added height. I then took a large GALANT desk-top (sans frame) and placed that over the two filing cabinets with a rubberized mat on top of each cabinet to minimize any shifting or sliding.
I also made a small "hutch" out of a STOLMEN shelf and some more kitchen legs to set my computer equipment off the desktop.
They have GALANT tops designed for corners, so that could be used to achieve the effect above.
view graphxgrrl's profile
we would love to see it...especially me!!
view richie rich's profile
the timing issue makes it tough. but cute cubbiness is possible with old library card files and wooden office files. expensive in good condition but often cheap when in bad cosmetic shape. paint white, and you'd be good to go. i got a big 12-drawer tiger oak wood unit at a market for $40. all the drawers are stained slightly differently. i also got a small four-drawer card file unit (also in tiger oak) off eBay for $25ish.
view optimuscrime's profile
I don't have any budget conscious design friendly suggestions, but I wanted to take a moment to say: what a relief! I think it's great that AT editors don't have fabulously decorated homes with really nice designer pieces through and through. I really enjoy your site and appreciate the benefits of beautiful smart design, but just can't afford it.
And Richele? I have more than a few corners of my home that are less-than-cute. And I'm a graphic designer so I feel extra pressure to have a cute place. Whew! It's not just me!
view jamjaree's profile
Here we are! I finally manage to dig this off my camera this evening. Tidying up my desk area is a project for this weekend, so I might be able to manage pictures of how I actually use the space then.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/graphxgrrl/1254602131/
I understand your love of the Pottery Barn line though, I keep trying to figure out how I might make the Bedford project table work in my office nook. I suspect the answer is getting rid of stuff. ;)
view graphxgrrl's profile