apartment therapy changing the world, one room at a time

rotate any desk 90 degrees to below your half wall. now you have the space for floor to ceiling storage on the back wall, which you are underutilizing.
go vertical.
built ins. or a pax system from ikea. or kitchen cabinetry re-used. it would even accommodate a closet with floor to ceiling doors on barndoor hardware hung from the ceiling, our curtains if you like that look.

How about an L-shaped desk with file cabinets/storage shelves underneath.
Looks like lots of stuff you don't use on a weekly basis - either get rid of it, or store it away.
Delete shoe shelf - put them in your bedroom closet.
That wall next to the door with paneling, can accommodate shelving up to the ceiling.
Go to Ikea and get nice looking boxes, magazine holders, and baskets for all your junk. Color code them per project - Sewing = yellow, Office = red, etc.

hmm, maybe a desk with more storage would be good. Also, I say go vertical! do some cubbies and hang them (bolt them) to the wall, you can use these for shoes, etc. As far as anything else, maybe some built in shelving with baskets labeled "mail", "dog leashes" (don't even know if you have dogs, but ,,) and for whatever else you may have. OH, and filing cabinets would help too! Happy organizing!

Healthyhome is right, shelving was my very first impression.

If you dont want to damage the wall try an expedit or similar, get a few baskets to hide more 'cluttery' items. One for garden tools, one for sewing accessories, etc. Put some hooks on the other wall (currently opposite the desk) and use for coats, shoes, etc.

If you do rotate the desk, you could also mount more shelves under the window where the desk currently is, and use them to display/store the more frequently needed stuff (laptop, sewing machine etc)

Perhaps consider a shelf on the wall 8-12" above the desk for pens or other things that live on the desk all week - so they are already out of the way when the table is used for all the fun stuff at the weekend.

rotate desk? gosh i wonder whose idea that was ...oh about a year ago maybe?????

oops...was that mean?

I'll suggest what I have seen in the IKEA catalog from awhile back. I suggested it for someone's bathroom too.

Use THIS style cabinet:
http://www.ikea.com/us/en/catalog/products/40016834

Note that it is on casters and can be moved. It has a work space available on the top.

Use those UNDER a counter top:
http://www.ikea.com/us/en/catalog/categories/range/10379/10479/

The area then serves as just cabinets, when all the rolling cabinets are under the counter top.

It becomes a desk when you roll out one or two of the cabinets on casters and place a chair in front of the counter top.

It becomes extra work space when you roll out the cabinets to use as extra space. Which can be used while standing, or while sitting at the desk.

It encourages you to clean off the tops of the rolling storage, so that it will fit neatly back under the counter top.

My first thoughts were to use either the window wall or the short wall, but I realize that the best use of space is to use the TALL WALL for the counter and storage. Why?

Because you can then use that tall wall for more cabinets. Oh yes. Without the cabinets sticking out into valuable space, as the space below will be occupied by the counter top and rolling storage.

You can spend as much as you want, of course. And I don't know how much weight the cabinets or shelves have to support. But here is another idea from the kitchen section at IKEA:
http://www.ikea.com/us/en/catalog/products/90109487

They're a little over 4' wide. I'm guessing two of those would be all you'd need for that tall wall. Because the top is also a shelf.

Keep things small. This works as a short bench and as storage for shoes:
http://www.ikea.com/us/en/catalog/products/30034193

That's a great space. You could do anything with it. I can see it being a reading niche. I don't know where your kitchen is related to that space, but it could be a mini-kitchen. With things like the mini-fridge, the bottled/jug water, etc.

My space is pretty much like yours. So much to sort through and decide what has to go, what has to stay, and how best to organize it. But I don't own, so I can't PUT up counter tops and all that other stuff.

I stare up at my walls, with 9' ceilings, and think "Ya know, if I owned, I could put up cabinets all around the perimeter of the room where all my books could be stored out of the way, freeing up the majority of my lower floor area.

Instead, I have everything spreading out, narrowing in on me up to about 3 feet, and then clear space above. Sigh.

Decide what you want to use the space for: a work space or a drop-off area. Currently, you are trying to have it be both and the two are getting in each other's way. If you do need it to be both, you need to create zones. For work, you could use the depth of the table to store roll-outs (drawers, file cabinet...) to contain your sewing supplies and paper-work. For drop off, line the wall (with the door) with floor to ceiling shelving. Use containers (magazine bins...) to hold the things you want to store. Section part of the shelving next to the door for those things you aren't carrying into the house (shoes, chainsaws...). One of the biggest challenges of organizing a space it to make the commitment to maintain it. If you can't maintain it, you will not be organized over the long haul. Good luck.

don't get discouraged true blue. save and a miracle will happen :)

thanks for all of the recommendations guys! think the desk rotation is an excellent place to start. look for updates as the organizing progresses!

-shayna

Shayna, look here too, I can just see that top photo as well as the counter with stools working for your space...maybe both?
http://www.apartmenttherapy.com/la/organizing/top-10-organizing-tips-from-chez-larsson-050026

Get a desk with drawers or filing cabinets underneath. In a small space, you have to banish any furniture that doesn't provide either seating or storage. I learned this the hard way, with an apartment full of streamlined, useless furniture and a heaping heap of a closet.