New Year New Furniture!

I have gotten so behind on things, I have no idea where to begin. Last time I wrote, the leaves were just starting to turn and now there's snow on the ground! I hope you all had a wonderful holiday season and now that we are into a new year, I resolve to try to keep you more up to date on things.

My sewing/craft room has changed so much since I last wrote. I have lots more storage, thanks to some brand new furniture pieces. I was finally able to purchase some new things and they have made all the difference in the world.

Being true to my frugal nature and to my budget, I purchased items that I had to assemble myself. It was time consuming, but saved me money. I also shopped at a bargain chain; Big Lots, so that saved even more. I purchased two bookcases and two storage units that each had 9 cubbies. I had wanted white furniture, but the storage units didn't come in that color.  I could have got them in white, if I was willing to go with less cubbies. To me, storage capacity was more important than color. Even at that, I couldn't get all the pieces I bought in the same color, but they were close enough.

Above are the cubby units. I stacked them on top of each other to save floor space and also approximately match the height of the bookcases. Originally I was going to make fabric boxes to fill each space, especially after I saw the price of the ready-made ones. When I thought about how long it would take to make boxes for 18 spaces, I came up with another option. I decided to use plastic baskets and boxes from the Dollar Tree. Additionally, I added a fabric covered box (self made) and a few tins to the mix. If needed, I can actually fit a plastic shoe box under each of the baskets, adding even more space.

To keep everything neat and easy to find, I labeled everything with these great labels that I found on Pinterest.

They came in aqua, which was the perfect color for my room. The labels also downloaded as an editable PDF, so the font on each label is uniform and I didn't have to look at my lousy handwriting. LOL!

Next to the cubby units, I put two bookcases with adjustable shelving. This came me room for more storage, plus display space for my dolls.

This just about completely filled the wall, opposite my machines, up to the door. You can see my small ironing board is tucked in there on the floor for now.

I also reorganized my white plastic drawer units and relabel them in a uniform manner as well.

For the larger drawers I used the same labels as on the baskets in the cubbies. For the smaller ones, I used another aqua label from Pinterest. For those, I used my label maker to "write" on them. My handwriting really is terrible.

You can see that label on the container above. Does the shape of that container look familiar? It came with French's Onions in it originally. I used spray adhesive and covered it in fabric and lace. My great friend, Josetta brought it to me on Thanksgiving, along with the delicious green bean casserole she put the onions in. Not only do I save "trash", but  I have my friends bringing it to me too. I love it!

For another trash to treasure idea, here's another item I made.

I wrapped aqua (it looks blue in the pic) rope, leftover from another project, around a tin can.

I use it to keep my Tacky Glue in. Because of the thickness of that particular glue, I always store mine upside down. That way, when I need it, it is right at the tip, ready to use. Just in case it leaks, I don't like to keep it in with anything else, so this can is perfect.

Another quick trash to treasure project, also courtesy of Josetta, is this little container, that mints had come in. I just added some felt flowers, cut with my Sizzix dies, and labeled it.

Isn't it just too cute! I love that it already came in a color that worked in the room.

There is still so much more to be done, but I am thrilled with the recent progress. The room is really starting to coming together and is becoming more functional and beautiful every step of the way.

Happy 2014!