Laundry Room Dreaming

Living in a hundred year old plus house, you run into a general lack of storage. People in 1907 did not have any stuff, needless to say I'm not sure I would have survived! We have neither a usable attic nor basement, so you have to get creative, learn to love the space bag, and utilize every hide-able spot behind and under your furniture. When I first visited this house when I was house shopping I made a comment about adding  some built in storage in the laundry room, as there is a perfect 12 inch recessed area along the wall. The space in question is odd, 11 inches deep plus molding and about inches 72 long.

I've been looking around and considering many options. The first place I looked was of course, Lowes. The area is too shallow for base cabinets but is the perfect depth for wall cabinets. So armed with my tape measure I hit the kitchen aisle and tried to but my rudimentary algebra skills to work. After coming up with many combos I still ended up with an undesirable look, at a very high costs. Each 30 x 30 wall cabinet runs about 150-200 dollars a pop. Bust #1!

My second idea was to use standard bookcases that can be easily purchased at any big box store. And for hidden storage, I figured that I could run a rod with funky fabric across the front. I located some bookshelves online at Walmart.com and priced them for about 50-75 dollars a piece for a 5-7 shelf unit. So immediately I ran out to my local Walmart and to my chagrin I discovered that what I was looking for did not exist in store. Bust #2!

My most recent idea takes me to my old friend Ikea. I first looked at the standard Billy bookcase, sticking to my second idea. And that's when I came across the Billy with doors! BINGO! Covered and uncovered storage, can we say heck yes! So here are my current ideas. 

1. Billy bookcase with doors (upper is glass)
2. Billy bookcase with lower doors only
3. Billy bookcase
4. Billy dvd storage
5. Lack shelf

6. Gruntal lighting
7. BÖJA
8 and 8a. Vaster (in white and red)
9 and 10. Calypso and Erbium

My favorite combo as of right now would go a little bit like this...

(Note: Excuse my low budget Picassa editing, I stake no claim as technology extraordinaire!)

Because the space is such an odd size, there is left over space to the tune of about 10 inches. I considered an addition shelf, number 4 above for a custom, finished, built in look. However, that leaves me without any storage for the broom and swiffer. So I was thinking that the above combination would leave me with just the extra amount of space for those items, along with some hooks for other small items.

As for the lights, I have been crushing on the Boja for awhile now- but I also like the reverse boob light of number 9 and 10. It all comes down to how much I'm loving it in real life. I find that a lot of times I fall in love with something in the Ikea catalog only to be bummed out by it in real life. Either way, I definitely want to grab some lighting for the inside top of the book cases so I can show off my tchotchkes.

So that's my plan right now, what do ya think? Help a gal out!

Kitchen sightings

This past Friday evening J and I went over to a friend's house for dinner and cocktails. As with any good gathering, the kitchen is the hub of activity. In the kitchen, I spotted a few very cool ideas and though I'd share. Thanks for letting me photograph and share your cool ideas, JJ!

DIY recipe (or whatever) holder:

I totally love this idea! JJ said that originally this creation was for an odd sized small window covering, but that it didn't work out. But, it's secondary purpose seems pretty rad to me. She uses it to store her desert recipes for a desert of the month club she's a part of.

I have used these types of hooks for no sew curtains for years, but I love this inventive and practical use. In the kitchen, it allows for you to clip up notes, take out menus, current recipes, cooking ideas, whatever. This same idea could be used in an office or bedroom for notes, inspiration, to do lists, etc.

Paint Can Storage:

JJ previously told me about this idea, but I had yet to see it in action. Being a super duper chef, she has many kitchen utensils and needed some large readily accessible storage. She looked all over, but came across these unused paint cans at Lowe's and scooped them up for 3 bucks a pop. The paint cans came in waaaaaaay cheaper than the other options she had been considering. I am diggin' on the industrial feel, and just think it'll be so easy to clean!

 Rice bags:

Aren't these just so cute- I love the color and rustic feel. JJ scored these from an old job (she's worked in lots of restaurants) and uses it to store things she'd rather not see, like plastic bags, etc. I need to get me some of these! (Note: check out her cool hanger with all the different hooks! Simple and sleek.)

Onion Bags:

These are onion bags that J bought over the years. She started searching for cool ones when buying onions, and decided to turn them into kitchen decoration. She says the Burger Buddies is her favorite because "they are pals, and belong together." Awww, ain't that sweet! I am envious of these, and again the colors are similar to the rice bags above and really pop against the color of the kitchen. And the cost? Free, with the purchase of onions.

Well those are my kitchen sightings! Have a cool kitchen sighting or idea that you wanna share?