Studio Progress Pictures

Joe put together some of the bookcases/storage units for my quilting/art studio yesterday.  I was able to unload a few boxes, but realize that the room is still relatively a blank slate at this point.  The color layer comes last!   Click on each thumbnail to enlarge the image.

View from the door:

     

Desk/Niche storage:

Some prelim. details:

I still need to unpack my yarn, fabric stash, and thread.  Right now, my thread stash is in the two large plastic storage bins under my longarm quilting machine.

For non-quilters, that rather LARGE machine is called a longarm quilting machine.  I use it to quilt quilts, plus it has other uses to create fiber objects.  My husband calls it my very expensive play toy- LOL!

I am still hunting for just the right fabric for this room right now.  Perhaps tomorrow I will drive down the hill to search.   I also need to run back to IKEA for just a few more organization items.  Wish I had a Container Store near me!!

More Later….   Hugs, Carla

Studio Remodel continues

Today will be spent on putting together all the studio cabinets and bookcases. Part one was emptying the studio and some paint. Part Two was deciding which office and storage solutions were best for me, and now Part Three is installing the storage pieces.

Yes, that means that Joe and I took another visit to IKEA yesterday, however, I learned my lesson from the other day and went with a specific list. I am happy to report that we were in and out in only one hour! Plus, we had a truck bed full of boxes. It was a miracle!!
I’ll share some pics tomorrow of what we get finished today.

Guess who conveniently lives right by the IKEA ?? Our new grandbaby Jack, so of course we had to stop by for some squeezing time!! We hadn’t seen him for a week, so it was a surprise how much he grew in that time! Jack is now more alert, too. Here he is staring intently at his grandfather:

Today, Jack is officially 4 weeks old!! Isn’t he adorable?

Tomorrow, watch for studio pics, also I took some pretty pictures of spring flowers. For those of you still experiencing snow and cold weather, this will give you a glimpse of what is right around the corner.

Hugs, Carla

IKEA Adventure

After a yummy 5 course gourmet Valentine’s meal the night before, on Friday I decided to visit Ikea and pick up all my storage units for the studio makeover-in-progress. So I borrowed Joe’s Tundra and roared down the hill to the closest Ikea- about an hour drive away. So far, so good.

The moment I walked through Ikea’s door, I instantly felt bombarded with visual stimuli and a rush of shopping excitement!  I somehow made it through the maze to the office, desk and bookcase section, but found myself wandering around for an hour or more in just that section alone with measuring tape in hand! The choices were immense and overpowering, to say the least!

I had previously picked out my desk legs and top, so I made note of where to find it in the downstairs warehouse section of the store. The bookcase and office storage section threw me for a loop as I ran between one system or another. Then I also got diverted by all the storage and bulletin board smaller items that you pick up along the way.

Just about the time I had narrowed it down between two office storage systems, I hit the bedroom/wardrobe section and completely lost my focus. I found 2 other systems and would also work in the studio.  Plus, I bet I could sneak one of two of these terrific shoe storage to hold quilting supplies and tuck them into the studio somewhere:

By the time I made it to the warehouse, I was tired and cranky!   My next step was to find the desk parts, and storage cabinets.  Unfortunately,  there was no help around for the lifting and retrieval,  so I had to get creative to man-handle the boxes onto my dolly.

It was clear that I needed to come back and do this all over with strong manly arms for the heavy work.  But, at least I could get all the smaller boxed items that weighed less than 50 lbs.

My Ikea adventure was almost over for the day.  I only had another hour of wait time to get through the check out line and then lug it alone out to the truck.   By the time I got behind the truck’s wheel and turned on soothing music, I felt as though I had ran the visual equivalent of a marathon!

Of course, I now have to go do it all over again tomorrow in order to get the larger boxes with Joe,  my strong manly husband!

Anyone else feel OVERWHELMED by shopping at IKEA with all the various choices?

Enjoy your weekend!