home office | Beneath My Heart

Drop Cloth Skirted Wood Desk {a creative storage solution for my office}

10:15 am

Last week, I shared my new skirted desk in my guest post over at Shanty2Chic.

I am so excited with how it turned out!

(I am going to paint the walls a different color. This is the color that was already on the walls when we bought the house two months ago. I think a lighter paint color will help the desk stand out even more!)

I love this desk/table because there is sooooo much room to work! And I love the way the drop cloth skirt hides all my “uglies”…

I bought those storage bins at Walmart, and I am going to buy two more for the other side of my desk when I have the money.

It was so much fun organizing all of my crafty stuff!

Now just in case ya’ll go thinkin’ that I’ve got it all together, and my room is so neat and organized now, here’s what the other side of my room looks like….

See why I need more storage bins?

I am DETERMINED TO GET ORGANIZED now that the boys are back in school!!

If you missed my guest post over at Shanty2Chic, and you want to know how to make this desk yourself, here is the tutorial.

(Believe me… if I can do it, you can do it too!)

I purchase three 2x10x8′s from Lowe’s and place them on our saw horses…

Then I cut each board 82 inches long. (You could cut them as long or as short as you need them.)

Then I cut 2×4′s to make a frame smaller than the top of the table.

I used PL adhesive caulk at the end of each 2×4 before I used my nail gun to nail them together.

I also used PL adhesive caulk on the frame before I nailed it to the top of the table…

I place the three 2×10′s on top of my 2×4 frame and nailed them together.

Next, I cut some 2×4′s for the legs of the table and nailed them to the frame. It didn’t matter if my table had ugly legs because I knew I would be covering them with a skirt.

I made my table 30 inches high.

Then I used a clean cloth to wipe on the stain…

It is called Provencial from Minwax.

For the skirt, I cut strips from some drop cloths 31 inches long…

I LOVE drop cloths! I especially love that they are already hemmed on one side, so I didn’t even have to break out my sewing machine for this project!

Next, I stapled the drop cloth to a 1×2 board that was cut 82 inches long (the length of the front of the table.) I gathered the material every couple of inches to create my skirt.

Then I attached the skirt to the table by screwing the 1×2 into the table top. (I used 2 inch wood screws.)

drop cloths

Then the material lays nicely between the 1×2 and the table top!

I did the same thing to the sides of the table too!

This skirt is perfect for hiding my craft supplies in my office.

I grabbed some accessories from around my house to decorate it for now. Of course, I may change it around a bit still.

But for now, I am really going to enjoy this roomy desk!

If you have any questions about my desk, just let me know! :)

And don’t forget that tickets for Haven 2012 go on sale Monday, August 15th!!

I hope to see you there!

I’m linking this project to….

Home Stories A2Z Tips and Tutorial Tuesday

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Third time’s a charm!

8:20 am

Oops. I did it again!

I made another window treatment for my office.

If you are keeping count, which I am trying not to, that’s window treatment #3 in just a couple of months.

Yes. I am bordering on completely insane.

But I am very pleased with the results, and I am announcing here in front of everyone, “I will not make another window treatment for this office for at least a year. I promise.”

My office is the smallest room in my house, yet it has given me the biggest headache!

I just couldn’t get the look I was after, but I am as close as I am gonna get.

I. am. done.

Here’s where my office began…shortly after Christmas…

Yikes!

It took a couple of weeks to “decrapify” (as TDC says) my office.

Then I made this Roman Shade using my faux wood blinds, and I got this…

Double Yikes! Not liking it at all. Especially with my yellow walls that I hadn’t painted yet.

So I painted the walls my favorite color, Khaki Shade by Sherwin Williams and made another window treatment (#2).

Tutorial HERE.

Better, but I wasn’t liking the ribbons. Don’t know why. They just weren’t jivin’ with me. Too cutesy? Too girly?

I was trying to accessorize the rest of the office, but I could not get pass the window treatments. They were just plain buggin’ me.

So I used a similar procedure and made one more window treatment with some black material from Hobby Lobby. (#3)

Phew! This is more what I was after!

I am still playing with the accessories. I need a lamp shade, but not sure what style to get. The lamp was my mom’s. It was a cream color and I spray painted it white.

I think I like the “blessings” sign over the window. Is it too much? Do you think it would look better without it? Be honest. I am a big girl….I can take it. :)

I have to use a flash when taking pictures of my office because without it, it looks like this…

Does anyone know if there is a setting on a camera that reduces the glare of a window without using the flash?

Anyway, I have finally finished accessorizing my shelves. I am not moving another thing! Did I say I am done with this room? Done.

All of my accessories are things I had around the house.

I have had the two flower prints for a few years. My mom printed them off the internet for me, and I put them in black frames. Instant artwork.

I couldn’t find anything to put on the first shelf. So I stuck these empty frames up there, and I kind of liked it.

Then I kept layering them with the little tile that I made a couple of months ago, and a little stick ball thingy that was Mom’s.

I LOVE my burlap covered books. I knew I was going to use them in my office. They were so easy to make. You can read about them HERE.

The little bird was my mom’s. Love it.

More of my burlap books, mom’s little white vase, and her red “blessings” tin…

I hung my burlap board on this wall. You can learn how to make one yourself by watching my first video tutorial. (Or buy one from my Etsy shop.)

I got the white basket from Goodwill last summer. It was $1.50 and an ugly green color. I spray painted it white. Easy.

The plate holder on the wall was my mom’s. I put a white plate in it for now. I am going to get a smaller white plate with maybe a monogram?

I love the little horse and carriage silhouette I found at Goodwill for 50 cents. I just fell in love with it. I am contemplating painting the frame black, what do you think? (Yes, it’s hung with a push pin right now…see it?)