I invite you to take a journey with me! I’m both excited and nervous to be giving myself this makeover challenge (and a bit embarrassed to show you these Before pics!) . I desperately need a functional yet inspiring work space. My current space is neither of those things… by a long shot!! The thought of having such a space gives me butterflies!! BUT – I’m a perfectionist, and I have lofty goals for what this space could be… in all it’s gothic glory! What if I don’t find those perfect pieces of furniture or accessories? What if I lose sight of my vision? What if I can’t find the time to complete the project? What if the final reveal looks nothing like what I envision?
As I’ve mentioned before… I am a girl that wears black clothes, platform boots, and black nail polish… I collect skull artwork… I attend Vampire Balls… My aesthetic lays somewhere between Victorian Gothic and Rocker Chic…. I am also an avid DIY’er and a Blogger and an Etsy & Ebay Shop Owner. I write, I paint, I sew, I upcycle, I make jewelry and crafts….. What does a work space look for someone like me? I’ll tell you what… there’s no pinterest images for that!! 🙂 Well… until now perhaps. In a nutshell I want a space that is functional yet creative… crafty yet macabre.
Let me bring you back to the beginning, so you know what I’m working with… after all, today’s post is focusing on the “Before” not the “After”.
When we moved into our house 3 years ago, I claimed the upstairs bedroom as my office. The previous owners had used the room as a bedroom for two… complete with colorless walls and some of the ugliest floral carpet I’ve ever seen…
At the time, I was going to be working from home … a temporary corporate job that required me to be on my computer 8 hours a day. I decided to set up a temporary office that would work with that situation. I painted the walls a dark purple and replaced the carpet with dark hard wood floors. I moved my shoe racks and dressing mirror into the room simply because there was nowhere else in the house to fit either of them. My desk was an old, shitty filing desk from Goodwill, and I also had a small black dining table that I thought would give me a work surface if needed. The space wasn’t exciting, but I assumed that once my temporary job expired, I would create a better space that would work for whatever more permanent path I followed next.
That job ended up lasting for 2 1/2 years! And for 2 1/2 years I worked out of a room that was never finished. I was so uninspired by the space that little by little I let it go…. it soon became a storage room… and the mess began to pile up. Bins, boxes, baby toys, papers, old mail… you name it – the floors were covered. I admit… I look like I belong on an episode of A&E’s hoarders!
OK… so what’s the plan? The goal is to transform this space into a place I can work everyday… a place I can be inspired to work on my dark creations…. a place I can concentrate on my writing… a place that is me and that I can be proud of. Here’s how I plan to accomplish it….
I am on the hunt for a new desk. I don’t really want anything that is a typical desk… instead I want a piece more like a dining table…. I want a chair on either side of the desk facing each other so the desk can double as a home for my computer, as well as a space to work on some of my projects. I do not want to be facing the wall like I have been for years. No need for any drawers or files… I’ll just have to find a way to store all of the files that currently sit in my old desk. Oh, and by the way… I’d love for the desk to be a funky antique or at least something ornate that can be painted. The chairs too… I don’t want an ordinary desk chair. I want a throne. 🙂
Storage storage storage!! I need lots of shelving and/or storage for all of my art & craft supplies. I have so many supplies, and many are tiny… buttons, beads, jewelry making trinkets, ribbons, sewing notions, paints, pens, scissors and other tools… the list goes on & on. I need to be able to store them in containers of some sort, and then store those containers in a way that’s accessible. Right now, everything is in little baggies spread out on every surface of my house. Thanks to my disaster of an office… my dining room is my craft room, and my kitchen is my craft room, and my living room is my craft room… you get the picture!! And then there’s all of my fabric… oh my gosh – I have so much fabric. One of the doors in this room leads to an attic space. My fabric is all currently stored in boxes in the attic. A lot of good that’s doing! I don’t even know what’s in the boxes?!?! Anyway… the problem with storage is the aesthetic. I do not want to end up with some ugly bookshelf. I want something cool… maybe an antique piece… maybe a hutch.. maybe 2? Ugh… where to find matching funky antique hutches?? See what I mean about lofty goals!?!
I do want to keep my black table and chairs. The table belonged to my grandma so it has some sentimental value…but I also think having a table to use as another workspace will be helpful. It just needs to be free of junk!! A feat easier said than done!!
I need a dedicated sewing space. Right now, I pull my sewing machines out of my attic when I need them, and have to sew from my round table. It’s awful. I barely use the machines anymore.. for one – they are heavy and awkward to move back & forth… but also – the table is so overcrowded that maneuvering any size project around is a huge pain in the ass. Oh, and beside a sewing table, I’ll need a throne for that too!
I absolutely despise the light fixture/fan centered in the room! Almost as much as that putrid carpet!! It’s so extreme modern…. that type of design makes my skin crawl. I’ve wanted to gut that thing since I first took over that room. I need a chandelier! I have my own thermostat in that room, so I have no use for a fan. There is one problem when it comes to shopping for the chandelier – the height of the ceiling is low…. Most of the gorgeous gothic chandeliers I see are too big for the space, and would require me to only allow pygmies into my office! I have to find something small, but funky….. and I’d love a “project”…. this is the perfect opportunity for a trash to treasure DIY!!
The Shoe Racks & Mirror have to stay put… I simply have nowhere else to put them. Truth be told.. that mirror is one of my favorite pieces I own… so massive and ornate. And what fashionista doesn’t need a double-sided shoe shelf on wheels?!?! Would these both be better served in a closet? Of course…. If my closets were not already bursting at the seems, this might be possible… but for now… my craft room makeover will have to share it’s space with my shoe collection.
Since moving into this house I have become a mom… and my little rockstar is attached to my hip. If I’m going to be working in this new office/craft room… she will undoubtedly be with me. Therefore a space for her becomes critical. If she is happy and busy…. I can get work done. So while a kid’s corner may not be the “coolest” design element.. it is most certainly a critical one!
To finalize the space, I need to decorate the walls. I’ve seen images of some amazing gallery walls that have totally inspired me. I also have a few projects up my sleeve that may work well as decor. To date I’ve already created the Black Upholstered Memo Board and the Metamorphic Skull Candle Sconce for the space. I hope to work both of those into the decor. The key now is to keep my eyes open for anything cool for the walls. Unfortunately collecting a gallery wall of art does not happen over night, so hopefully I am able to pull something together to get it started.
OK… I think that rounds out my wish list for this space. Do you see why I’m nervous? I have A LOT of shopping to do!! I have A LOT of organizing to do! I have A LOT of cleaning to do! And I have A LOT of projects to do. But now that I have shared this article with you.. there is no turning back. There must be a Part 2, and maybe a Part 3, and eventually a Reveal. Wish me luck.
And stay tuned. As I begin work on this space… I hope to bring you posts on all of the DIY projects that I work on…. like the Victorian Desk Lamp that I worked on last week… More to come!
I was so thrilled to find this because I am in the beginning stages of turning my craft room/home office into an orgabided space that brings me inspiration and is decorated in a Victorian Goth style. But I am literally starting with the opposite…a brightly colored explosion of cutesy things and a huge mess. I would love to know where I can go to find pictures of how it looks now, to help me get some ideas! Btw your diy’s are amazing and I’ll be following many of them <3
Morgan – 1st of all…. I am so sorry for not replying to this sooner!! For some reason I never saw the comment come thru… who knows? Maybe because it was an older post. Anyway… I wish I had a wonderful response for you, but the truth is that I STILL have not finished my craft room/office. Ugh – So embarrassing! Since writing the original article, I have gone out and purchased furniture and accessories, but the room continues to be a huge mess, and not worthy of photos! I am determined to make it a priority in the new year. Please stay tuned, and hopefully I will be able to share something wonderful eventually. In the meantime, if you finish your space first, I’d love to see it.. Send photos!