justem: little bits of this and that

#workspacewednesday

Hello, hello! Two weekends ago I finally found some time to get my scrap space organized. I've shared photos of it over time, but this is the first time it has ever been truly clean and organized. I still have a few boxes to unpack, but for the most part, it all came together like I'd been envisioning for the last year!  I wish I would have taken more photos, but the light was not great. Perhaps another day I will take some detailed shots of my shelves and my drawers, but for now...here is the one and only photo of my CLEAN space:

I realize it's not as fancy or cool or vintag-y or organized as some. ;)  But, I'm loving it.  Sadly, the desk is already a mess...I've got tons of assignments coming up in the next week and a half.  Now that I've had it clean, though, I'm really vowing to try to keep it that way!  Have a great day! 

#workspacewednesday

A quick note that I have a Workspace Wednesday post up on the October Afternoon blog today! This week we celebrated a year in our home, and the post looks back at the progress my scrap space has made in the last 365 days. I'd love for you to check out! :)  

#workspacewednesday

I have absolutely nothing exciting to share today except this {blurry} photo of my crazy messy desk and the start of a Gossamer Blue layout. That will have to do. ;)

#workspacewednesday

Happy Wednesday!  Last week I talked about the new typewriter I got at the UW Swap Shop.  The typewriter, however, was not what I stood in line at 7:45 a.m. one Friday morning to get! ;)  What I wanted...was this:

When I first saw the picture of these cabinets of drawers, I assumed they were small like card catalog size.  When I got to the SWAP, I discovered a rather large (and crazy heavy) piece of furniture.  Without really thinking about  the implications of buying a giant piece of furniture that would need to be hauled into our attic, I plopped down my cash, had some strong students load it into the back of my truck, and headed home.  Once I got home and we had to get it out of the truck did I start to think that maybe this was not the worlds greatest idea...but look how COOL it is!!!  

Fast forward a few weeks to this past Saturday.  My husband and I decided it was time to haul this puppy upstairs.  We used an appliance dolly to get it to the second level of our house, but the stairs to the attic we re too steep and narrow so we just had to lift it up step by step. It was quite a process...I was on the bottom and basically bench pressed the cabinet up each step, took a rest, then did it again while my husband pulled from the top.  The SWAP Shop had some listed online...they ranged in weight from 570-645 pounds. ;) We took all the drawers out, but man...it was still really heavy.

To get an idea of how deep it is - here is a side photo. I think it was 28" deep, 20" wide, and 53" tall. It is much deepr than the IKEA Expedit shelf it sits next to!

(BTW...clearly I did not clean or organize a single thing before I took these photos! Remember...work in progress!)

The drawers open a little differently than expected - each row opens up entirely and the drawers life out. This is great because I can very easily move individual drawers if I decide I want a certain item in another place!  Here is a look in one row:

Some day I will get all the drawers filled and share them all...but for now I'm just working on cleaning and organizing my space now that I finally have enough places to store things!!  I really love the cabinet - and though my husband might not agree with me - it was totally worth the pain of hauling it upstairs!!

#workspacewednesday

Hi!  Today's is Wednesday...so here is a little tidbit about my workspace!  I recently got a "new" typewriter.  I have another one that I got many years ago from a friend who acquired it when a local school was cleaning out a storage room. It's adorable - a little blue Brother traveling/teaching typewriter - pretty much like this one. It's SO cute and easy to take with me places. BUT, the ribbon is crazy expensive and doesn't last long, and the typewriter itself isn't in great condition. It often leaves a giant crease in the paper, which drives me crazy. Lately I have taken to just using my computer and using a typewriter font for big pages of journaling, and using the little typewriter for smaller things like labels.  

Last month, if you follow me on instagram, you may have noticed I got a HUGE "new" cabinet of drawers for my scrapbook space.  They are awesome - and I will share them here sometime soon!  I purchased them at the UW Swap Shop (thanks to my friend Barb for telling me about it!!), which is a store that sells all kinds of old stuff from the university. The day I got the cabinets, I also picked up the typewriter. It is an old office typewriter - which means it is humongous. It's so big and heavy! BUT...it works really well and...it was $10. Awesome!  

It is so big that I don't really have a place to put it, so right now it is just sitting on top of a locker basket on the floor! I'm not quite sure WHERE I'm going to put it, but honestly, the whole layout of my scrap space is up in the air right now as I figure out how to include my giant drawers!  The only other negatives are that it doesn't correct (bummer) and as you can see in the first photo, it sometimes leaves a bit of a "shadow" when it types, but honestly, to me, that just adds character! It's not fun to look at typewriter by any means, but it works well, and that's more important to me!

Do you have a typewriter? Where did you get it? Or did you play along with #workspacewednesday? I'd love to see your post! Have a great day!!

#workspacewednesday

I'm so sorry for the lack of posting lately!!  I have three layouts to share and about ten other posts that I want to write out!  For today, here's a quick look at my workspace.  The biggest "'problem" with my awesome new scrap spaces is the lack of storage.  I had SO much built-in storage in my last house - though I was down in the dark basement, so this one is still leaps and bounds better! ;)  I've recently become a little obsessed with thrifting and Craigslist! I've gotten a few pieces for my scrapspace, including an amazing old set of drawers (that I will share once I get them up and running in the space - you may have seen them if you follow me on Instagram) and also this cute little vintage appliance cart. I paid about $15 for it, and after seeing similar (and, quite frankly, less cute) versions for a lot more money on the internet, I'm feeling pretty good about my purchase! ;)  It works perfectly to store my 12x12 paper holders and some other items.  I'm sure its contents will change over time, but for now here's a peek at it in its new home next to the oh-so-famous Raskog! ;)

#workspacewednesday

It's blurry - but here is a look at my table right now. It's a big old mess of Gossamer Blue leftovers, including some Teresa Collins and Chickaniddy goodies!!  I finished up my projects last week and haven't sat back down to clean it all up yet! Maybe tonight... ;)

#workspacewednesday

Good Morning!  Today I decided to play along with Workspace Wednesday.  I just took a picture of my desk today...the entire room looks (if you can believe it) even worse than it did the last time I posted a photo. ;)  

My desk is covered with Pebbles Yours Truly. ;) It looks a little like Valentine's Day threw up all over my scrap space.  I must admit, I'm really looking forward to getting started with my March Gossamer Blue kit that came on Monday - I've had enough pink lately to last me awhile!! Here's a sneak at the project I created with all of this mess! It will be up on the Pebbles Blog tomorrow!

 Are you playing along with Workspace Wednesday today??  Link me up! :)  Have a great day!

#workspacewednesday

Happy Wednesday! So, I've never played along with Workspace Wednesday before, and I highly doubt this will become a "regular" blog feature, but I thought maybe today I could show you a photo of my current scrap space - which is completely a work in progress!! As most of you know, we moved into our new home less than two months ago.  Packing scrap stuff was insane.  I'm truly embarrassed at how much I have. Before we moved, I purged a ton. I donated several huge boxes of product to a local home for girls that I used to volunteer at, and I also sold about 10 flat rate boxes jam packed with product. I feel like I still have enough product to start my own store. ;)  One of the things we love about our new home is the attic, which was renovated by the previous owners.  It it a perfect space for a scrap area, a small workspace for my husband, and someday it will probably also serve as our playroom.  

Here is the picture from the house listing: 

In our old house, I had tons of cabinet space and room for a few shelves. This space is fantastic, with lots of natural light, but it doesn't have nearly as much room for shelving.  We put our IKEA Expedit shelf up here, because it was truly the only place in the house that it would fit!!  Here was the "bare bones" of my workspace a couple of weeks before Christmas:

Looks nice and clean, right? That's because nothing was unpacked yet. ;)  Here is a look at it yesterday.  If you can believe it, I've already packed probably 15 boxes in addition to all of THESE boxes!!

The shelves look like they are decently put together, but I actually just threw stuff up there haphazardly as I unpacked it, and I haven't even unpacked the "bulk" of my product yet - that's all packed in about 10 individual pizza boxes.  

And finally, a close up of what is on my desk right now - Project Life, Week 2!

I have a LONG way to go in this space. It feels wrong spending time organizing my scrap space when there are still other sections of our home that are in disarray!!  But, I am happy that it's gotten unpacked this much, and that I have a place of my own to create!  I think when it's finally finished it will be pretty fantastic!  I will continue to share photos of the progress, as well as photos of other parts of our house!  Have a great day, and link me up if you, too have a Workspace Wednesday post!