Archive for January 2012
How-To: Wine Crate Nightstand
Remember those modern wooden nightstands that Ryan and I built 1.5 years ago? Well, they’ve been gone since October, when I sold them in a yard sale.
After living with them for a year, I realized that we had no need for large nightstands, and they were just another piece of furniture that we had to dust and keep clutter-free. Oh, and having the open bottoms? The pet hair that collected was ridiculous. I don’t know what on earth most people use enormous nightstands for, unless they are living in a small apartment and need to maximize space. Read the rest of this entry »
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You Are Invited: DC-area Blogger Meetup!
It’s official! Christina (The Scrappy Housewife) and I would like to invite any of you locals to join us in Vienna, VA on Saturday, Feb 4, for a Blogger / Facebooker / Tweeter meetup. (Really, we need a better word for that, because that’s just a mouthful.)
We’ve decided to kick things off with a cup of coffee or pot of tea at Caffe Amouri, where we can sit down and actually talk to each other in real life for the first time. :) Then, if weather permits and we’re in the mood, we may stroll down historic Church Street, and peek into the shops along it. It’s pretty pathetic that, after 1.5 years here, I still haven’t visited the locally-owned shops in my own town. Read the rest of this entry »
Just for Fun: 12 Questions
Good morning, friends. Today I’m just going to share a quick Q&A with you. When I saw the Q&A that Mikalah posted yesterday, I was inspired to write a little. I often don’t do those long Q&As that circle the blogosphere, because I don’t want to answer 35 questions about myself and my life. But this one – only 12 questions – I can do. :)
1. How long have you been blogging? Read the rest of this entry »
State of the Studio
Do you remember when I was pondering if I should move my sewing studio? As soon as Ryan woke up that day I asked him – I just couldn’t wait – and he was totally ok with it. I dove straight into that switcheroo with gusto, let me tell you. Anytime I have a chance to move furniture around or rearrange a room I get excited.
It’s times like this when I have a pang of envy for full-time bloggers who can start a project and just tear through it in a few days. I started moving the sewing studio to the basement on New Years Eve weekend, and it took until this past weekend to get to 90% completion. Because this project would directly affect my business, we made it a top priority, but it still dragged out.
Even though I tried to have an organized, efficient move, it caused some upheaval – mainly because some of my storage system didn’t fit in the basement, so I had to pack most of my stuff into boxes until we had storage figured out. It definitely caused some disruption with Janery business, but the upside is that, in the new space, I think I’m positioned for super organization and efficiency of operations.
Storage Decisions & Delays
The cabinets pictured below above are three Ikea BESTA units. I had the bottom two in my upstairs studio, along with one tall unit. The tall guy didn’t fit under the lowered ceiling, so he went away courtesy of Craigslist.
It was annoying to have to sell a barely-used piece of storage furniture. However, the space against the wall, where the lower ceiling limits use, really was the perfect spot for fabric storage and ironing. It’s so awesome that the ironing board finally has a home to call its own, rather than being in my way in my office/studio/dressing room combo that I had before.
In the photo below, please also note that there is an electrical outlet right where I need it. It’s these little things that you think nothing of until you become a regular ironer-of-fabric.
But back to the BESTA part. Having lost the tall guy, I needed more storage. Off to Ikea I went, with measurements in hand. Home I came with a BESTA unit that would fit on top of the first too. Until I opened the box and realized that I’d bought the wrong color. Crap.
Having to drive ONCE down I-95 to Ikea in Woodbridge, VA is a problem. Having to go twice = Disaster, and all because of traffic. I’ll leave it at that. Long story short, we eventually got the cabinet returned and brought the right one home, and finally my stuff got organized.
For now I’ve hung my thread/scissor storage frame on the wall above my sewing tables, along with a cork board. I’m not in love with how it looks, though, so it will probably change.
But this, right now, is the state of the studio.
PS: Silver lining of the move - My computer is now upstairs, so if I get distracted and want to hop online, I have to run up a flight of stairs and across the house. Guess who’s not getting distracted very often when sewing? Either that, or my butt and thighs are going to be rock solid.
Blissdom, Las Vegas, and Janery: Dilemmas of a Handmade Biz Owner
One of my biggest challenges as a full-time corporate employee and part-time handmade business owner is finding balance.
It’s my dream to someday earn my living as an indie biz owner, so that I can work from home on my own terms while I raise our children. But a lot of work is required in order to achieve that dream.
Aside from the day-to-day difficulties of balancing the regular tasks, there also arise bigger dilemmas about what external events or tasks I should commit to. When I consider a weekend trip out of town, it’s not just “can I take that weekend off” – but how will I prepare ahead of time for the time that the shop will “lose”? Read the rest of this entry »
Guest Room, Part 3: Temporary Wallpaper for an Accent Wall
Do you ever gather the supplies needed for a DIY or decor project, then procrastinate on tackling it out of fear that it won’t go well? That’s exactly what I did with the Tempaper that I ordered for my guest room makeover . . . way back in October. Then late one night during the holidays, Ryan and I cleared out the room and I determined that it was time to dive in. After all, that paper wasn’t going to hang itself!
Have you heard of Tempaper, a temporary removable wallpaper? I thought it would be good to test out a roll of it in the house, since it appears to be an excellent temporary wallpaper option for renters.
I pulled Ryan away from the new Star Wars game just long enough to help me clear out the room, then I got to work.
For the guest room I ordered one roll of Tempaper’s Edie pattern in Frosted Teal. I hoped the single roll would cover the small back wall (left wall in photo above) of the guest room, creating an accent wall behind the bed frames.
I laid down my large sewing cutting mat, and used my rotary cutter and clear ruler to cut the Tempaper. The combo of the cutting mat and long clear ruler helped me to measure and make super-straight cuts.
A note of caution: Either I received a defective roll, or the Tempaper material scratches easily, because shortly after rolling the first part out flat to cut, I noticed this long white scratch on it.
I started hanging the Tempaper on the right side of the wall, working my way left across it.
After the first length was successfully hung, I got worried that the single roll may not cover the entire accent wall. (Yes, I should have figured this out before starting – it’s just that the wall is so small that I was sure one roll would be enough!) Knowing how long the first piece was, I did some quick measuring, and found that I would come up about 3/4 of one strip short of covering the whole wall.
Crap. I was determined to get the Tempaper hung and done, and more importantly, I wasn’t going to shell out another $85 for another roll, most of which I wouldn’t need.
The solution? I decided I could stretch the single roll of wallpaper and make it work.
Two large headboards of the two beds I’m modifying would be sitting against this accent wall, and there is no other possible furniture layout for them in this small space. Therefore, I wouldn’t have to totally cover the parts of the wall that would be blocked by the headboards.
I measured the headboards, and the areas that they’d cover, then marked it on the wall with painters tape.
I hung the second sheet of wallpaper and stopped at the tape line – which saved me a good 20 inches of paper.
In the photo below you can see the part of the wall that is not covered by the second Tempaper strip. However, when the mattress is on the bed frame, the blank area won’t be visible.
I continued the hanging process until I covered the entire wall – or the entire exposed area, at least.
I know the exposed areas are going to be covered by the headboards, but I have to admit – the incomplete wall coverage is driving me crazy every time I see it, and every time I look at these photos! I wish the roll had been just a bit longer. Is it too much to ask that one roll cover a simple 10 ft x 8 ft wall?
I’m going to post my official “review” of the pros & cons of Tempaper, but I want to do that separately from this guest room progress update.
Have you ever used Tempaper?
Why should a blogger care about SOPA?
If you’re anywhere close to social media this week, you’ve probably heard about SOPA. But it’s very possible that you’re not someone who really gives a hoot about politics.
As a matter of fact, I don’t know about your political leanings, because generally I keep this site politics-free.
But I’m writing this last-minute post just to beg you to give about 5 minutes of thought to this legislation. If passed, our entire community of bloggers and Twitter users and Facebook fans could be at high risk. The internet as a whole would be at risk.
Instead of writing about a situation that is already well-covered in the online community, I’d like to suggest that you read this article at ThinkSplendid: SOPA and Your Business.
A Little Orchid Garden
For years I’ve had random orchid plants struggling to survive in various nooks and crannies of my homes. They always irked me because I felt the random pots never had homes, and were really just acting as clutter. Add on the fact that none of them were thriving. A new solution was needed. Read the rest of this entry »
