Things to do in 2010: Part 5

Of all the goals I have for 2010, this might end up being the biggest. It has three parts:

1. Clean up the space that is currently reserved for my little studio.
2. Keep everything related to my little studio in my little studio. The guest bedroom will be reserved for guests, a bed, my desk, and minimal storage of paper and envelopes on the closet shelves only. Likewise, the kitchen counter and table will be reserved for kitchen items only.
3. Once my studio is cleaned up, keep it clean. And keep my desk clean. No more piles of paper and cards and envelopes and tags and scraps of paper. In fact, I like an idea I saw a few months ago to clean off my work surface at the end of every day. It's true that I'm more motivated to work on a project if I'm not faced with mounds of clutter.

Speaking of mounds of clutter...

This is what my studio looked liked yesterday morning.



Whoa is right.

Since October, I have been ridiculously busy, between printing projects, editing work, and getting ready for Christmas. And I really felt like if I took just an hour or two to at least organize some of the piles, I'd fall into a black hole somewhere. And I didn't have time to fall into a black hole, so I left the piles alone.

And they multiplied like bunnies.



Part of the problem is that I was keeping every box that entered our house. I hate trying to wrap Christmas presents and not having any boxes on hand. But I think they were breeding at night when I turned out the light.



I am happy to report that as of yesterday afternoon, all of these boxes have been removed and will be taken to the recycle center this weekend.



One of my biggest problems has been the lack of any good options for a workspace or storage. The room is very small, and I really need some magical piece of furniture that has gobs of storage underneath and a large, flat surface at the right height so that I can stand there for hours on end mixing ink, cutting paper, folding cards, packaging note cards, etc.



My idea of magical furniture is an amazing antique wood cabinet with lots of drawers and a gorgeous patina. Let me tell you, they don't exist in my neck of the woods. Rather than prolong the agony, I finally just went to Walmart, and for $60 I got three book shelves that are the perfect height. I arranged them in a U shape against one wall. I need to find a nice thick piece of plywood to put on top for a work surface. I'm still looking for that magical piece of furniture, but for now this should work just fine.



I also love this wood chest. I got it at an antique store in Frederick, Maryland, about 10 years ago. It's really simple but I love it because it is lightweight and easy to move around. Unfortunately, it was in the line of fire when we had the bad leak in our ceiling over the summer and has bad water stains down the front. So I'll refinish it this summer.



I started on this project yesterday by removing all the boxes. What a great feeling to have them gone! I have a bunch of editing and printing work this week, but I am committed to spending two hours a day cleaning and organizing until this project is finished!