Take II - Reorganizing Your Creative Space in a New Home.

 Life changes. Sometimes in the blink of an eye when we least expect it, before we are even remotely ready for it. We are forced to adjust. And we do.

When I began moving out of our family home, I never imagined that I wouldn't single-handedly pack all of my own belongings. I never imagined the chaos that lay ahead. But the reality of the huge mound of boxes containing my life stacked on my new front porch was undeniable.

The most painful of all....the contents of my once organized and lovingly decorated craft studio, were now in complete disorder. The packing had been quick, careless and thoughtless. There was simpy no order or organization to anything. Where would I begin?

One box at a time, I unpacked the contents and assessed the damage and disarray. In tears, I re-organized, re-boxed and re-labeled everything from my studio and then put that part of my life on hold until I could find a more permanent home.

Finally the day came; after finding a new job and relocating to a new town, I found a rental house that felt perfect! There was a room on the lower level that, while quite a bit smaller than my original room, would serve as my new studio. I was excited to be able to once again put my room together and that part of my life back into place.

As I unpacked, the joy was overwhelming. I was giddy with the excitement of having my own special place to create in once again. Since I love organizing as much as I do scrapbooking, it was a win-win! The smaller space made it impossible to merely re-do the room I once had, but finding ways to adapt the old furniture and storage pieces quickly gave it a fresh, new look that I love just as much.

What once was a 9' stretch of deskspace now became an "L" shaped workspace and die cut center. A beloved shelving unit that was too tall for the new room was replaced with a ladder desk my roommate offered up. The mini-table that once (barely) served to hold my Cricket die cutting system was now efficiently filling the vacant space in the middle of the room. A place to store my albums underneath for easy access and fun embellishment and stamp storage on top. My favorite piece, the IKEA Exedit once again houses my paper and embellishment jars, as well as serving as the main focal point of the room. Closet doors were removed to open up the space and store the Iris carts full of tools and rubber stamps that had previously been housed behind-closed-doors in IKEA shelving units.

In the end, the room came together just as I wanted. Although a smaller space, it feels welcoming and inspiring. Truth be told...I have actually scrapbooked more in the new room than I ever did in the old one.

Sometimes when we least expect it, things work out for the best.

enjoy seeing your organizing options in a new way!

-dw.

Note: These pictures were taken before the room was entitrely completed. I am still working on getting all my Dymo labels on the drawers, paper holders, and boxes to replace the temporary Post-it labels.