Studio Calico

workspace wednesday

Hello there!  Dawn McVey here!  I'm happy to get to share my studio with you today!  I cleaned up just for you!!  Haha....I always say having company is the best motivation to clean things up and so, dear friends, I've tidied things up a bit and I'm happy to welcome you to my studio...

This is my desk.  It's actually an antique library table, but I love it for how deep it is.  It allows me to have a shelving unit (salvaged from an old computer desk) on the back side of the desk so all of my card stock is close at hand, while still allowing me tons of desk space on which to work.

I have a vintage baking tin holding washi tape at the moment, though as you can see, it's about time to come up with a new plan for my every growing washi collection.  :)

I use vintage style penny candy jars to store rolls of felt on the top shelf.  The jars are from Wal-mart and were somewhere in the $5 range.  You'll see as we work our way around my room, that I really like to have all of those gorgeous colorful supplies out where I can see them!  It makes for a much prettier room to work in and I find being able to look at my supplies to be very inspiring.

We were at Paper Source one day and I fell in love with some shelving units they had on the wall, holding stacks of ribbon just like this one.  Sooo, I asked my sweet hubby if he could make me a custom unit to store my Papertrey ribbon collection, and he did!  We designed it to fit on the wall, in the space between the two windows in the studio.  This also just happens to be immediately to the left of where I sit at my desk, so everything on these shelves, is also easily accessible from my chair.

In the little file cabinet that sits right behind my chair, my laptop sits on top and in the top drawer, I store all of my Papertrey dies.  They're kept in CD sleeves and labeled by collection or individual die.  These are also easy to flip thru right from my desk chair.

On the wall opposite my desk wall, I have two bookshelves (purchased years ago at Target) that house cards, Studio Calico wholesale goodies, Studio Calico kits and even my yarn stash.

I use a vintage drawer to hold my Mister Huey's spray mists.  Goodness, I love those little guys.  They look so cute all lined up in rows!

On the wall as you walk into the studio, I have a couple more file cabinets.  On top is my Vagabond (die-cutting machine) and printer.  On the wall above, are shelves filled with my Papertrey Ink stamps (the stacks of CD cases) and other miscellaneous items.  As I make cards for each month's release at Papertrey and at Studio Calico, I line the cards up on the shelves.  That way, I can enjoy them for a couple weeks before it's time to take them down and start the process all over again.  ;)

The framed magazine covers on the top shelf are ones that I've been blessed to have a card on the cover.

To the left of that wall, brings us back to my desk wall.  This is a second desk in the room (it sits just to the right of my library table desk) and basically serves as my sewing station.  The cubby unit above the desk is from Pottery Barn and houses my mini canning jars filled with Papertrey buttons.  The jars are also from Wal-mart and come 4 in a box (found in the canning supplies section) for about $4.

I hope you've enjoyed this little studio tour!  Pop in again any time.  :)

workspace wednesday

Hey everyone! I'm here to show you a few photos of my scrap studio. Well, It's not actually a studio, it's a balcony off my living room. I love it anyway. This is where I usually spend my days when the kids are in school.

This is how it looks from my living room. Space is limited in Singapore, as you can see. I crammed as much as I can in that little space (it's about 7 x 7). I still have albums stored someplace else. This here, is also as clean as it gets. :)

The IKEA tubs are my favorite. They can fit a lot of stuff too. The one marked 'thickers' has about 65 packs inside it. Definitely can fit more, but I will want to pare down before that happens. :) Cardstocks and Studio Calico embellishments (far right) are in file box and containers bought from the $2 shop. I store all my ink pads + thin dies inside the document drawer (far left), in that same cube, you can also see my beloved cursive typewriter and scoring board. The red tubs has random embellishments. I say it's random but I know exactly what is inside. Just the way my brain works.

All my Mister Hueys + Sharpies + Twine +and the 'vintage' 7G stamps that I still love, live in this wooden drawer. 

On top one of the expedit, my Jelly Belly dispensers, Big Shot and metal Coke bottle holder. I got that for free from one of the shop owner in Thailand (I made Sam ask if we could buy it, because I'm quite shy. Ha!).  She refused to take our money. How kind was that? This is the kind of stuff that I will remember. :)

Washi tapes + baby wipes. My best friend made the washi holder for me. Think I need another one, eh? The ones I recently used are in the wooden box. The frosted plastic container holds paint brushes, extra scissors, distressing tools.

Wooden veneers! I love these! Love the wooden box, love the veneers! Can't get enough of them. I'm hunting for maybe another box exactly like this so I can have them all in one place. Currently, I have the cameras and hearts and arrows in two little glass bowls.

And here are what's always on my table. My enamel tray so I can have all the embellishments I'm currently working with in one place. Saved me a lot of time crawling under the table looking for that die cut/brad/punched out piece. You can also see magnets in the tray, I'm really big on making sure things stay where they are supposed to be, can you tell?

This box holds my finished layouts. I usually put them into the album once they're about full or maybe after every 15 layouts? Around there. This is a good compromise. I don't have to put them into albums straight away, but I also can't let them spill out of the box, because it will drive me crazy.

Here, I display some photo magnets my sister made for me, a sweet note from a friend, the letter S I got on clearance. I also hang some stuff I use frequently with some S hooks. Printers tray was not supposed to be there, lol. Neha still need to rearrange her room so I'm holding onto that for the time being. The metal white tiered unit holds some adhesives, some pens, some mist droppers, some tags. Basically random, but I know exactly where is what.

That works for me

I hope you've enjoyed this little peek into my tiny scrap balcony. I'm always changing stuff up, rearranging. The space will be a work in progress forever, I think. :) 

If you have any questions, please leave them in the comment section and I'll be happy to answer them for you.

workspace wednesday

For this week's workspace Wednesday, we're sharing a peek into guest designer Teresa Collin's workspace! Teresa's room is a perfect reflection of the elegant style obvious in her layouts and products!

We love how Teresa has left room to showcase some of her pages and mini albums - do you have display space in your scrapbook room? We'd love to see - link us up in the comments!

workspace wednesday

Hi Everyone! Today, I’m going to share my studio space with you. It’s the third bedroom in our house and is on the second level, therefore quite private. It’s always been a work in progress, never the top priority as far as decor goes. Since it’s a fully functioning workspace, it’s typically a mess! Over the years, I’ve picked up lots of inexpensive vintage pieces to use for storage. The only furniture in the room that I would consider investment pieces are the desk and the blue/green storage piece with shelving, otherwise everything was on the cheap!

Here’s an overall view of the room:

I just purchased the vintage French desk at Junk Bonanza and I’m happy with how it’s working out. Any time I purchase something new for a room that needs to be really functional, it makes me a little nervous. The desk that I had before was in my studio space for over 12 years and it worked well, so I wondered how this one would be functionally. So far, so good!

 The drawers were the biggest surprise for me. They look so small, but they’re super deep, so they hold much more than I thought they would.

 

The thing that is nice is that it’s all contained. In the past, I’ve used a desk with a shelf and no drawers.

I store my paints in a little scruffy vintage suitcase. Perfect!

My washi tape is in a vintage bowl. I’ve had to upsize the bowl three times! I also have a bowl with the remotes (although I never watch tv in this room anymore...now it’s always netflix on my ipad) and lots of little silhouette shapes that I cut and then didn’t use.

One of my favorite things about my studio is this storage piece. I’m not sure what it was built for? The opposite side is really fun too, it has about fifty cubbies! But it takes too much space in this small room to have both sides exposed.

My photo storage is pretty lame, but it is doing the job for now. I have an old metal file system that i used to use for photos, but I sort of like having my photos loose.

I like to have things in my room that inspire me. Gifts that my friends have made for me inspire me the most. Everything on my art wall is either made by me or by friends or family members. In the second photo from the top, I have artwork from my sister and from KL (Kerry Lynn Yeary!) My sister did the framed lemon sketch and KL made me the awesome shadowbox. Sometimes while I’m letting an idea formulate in my head, I just look around and smile.

One thing I should probably mention is that across from my desk is a closet with shelves loaded with ugly plastic 12x12 containers filled with product. It’s not pretty, but it works! I didn’t take a photo because that was one area that I didn’t get tidied up! It’s not horrible, but it’s strictly functional. The best part is that the closet has bifold doors that shut!

Here’s another view of the room. I really need to buy a wide-angle lens, don’t you think?

If you have any questions, please leave them in the comments! -Becky

workspace wednesday

Hi guys! So when we bought our home, there was a room in the basement that had no lights, was filled with junk, and had a huge table in it that we knew we'd never be able to get out. We shut the door and forgot about it for a while, but once I began scrapbooking we started to think about making it my craft room. We cleaned out all the junk, painted the walls, my husband installed 3 rows of 8 lights, and then I realized that that giant table was beyond perfect for me.

I love my room, but keep in mind it's in a basement. Of a 100 year old home. It's not fancy, there's cords running everywhere and the windows need replaced. But it's mine. And because of it's lack of fanciness, I can splatter mist and paint to my hearts content and no one cares. So here you go!

I keep all my papers, cardstock, adhesives and most of my supplies in these cubes. They're super handy and I don't have to search for anything. A lot of loose embellishments, bits and pieces and stickers go in some old Pyrex dishes I have. My husband hung some pegboard for me and I use that to hang unopened packages of veneers, alphas, stickers, etc. I use some fabric bins for opened packages of Thickers - it's completely overflowing and a mess but it's handy. Like I said, none of it's fancy but it works for me!

 

workspace wednesday

Hey everyone! We're here today with another Workspace Wednesday. I love these scrap room features - they always get me inspired to clean up my room! Today, our August guest, Wilna Furstenburg, is giving us a peek into her space. I think it's a perfect reflection of her soft and romantic scrap style! Here's what Wilna has to say about her space :

I love my space… it doubles as an office and my scrapbook room. I love that everything has it's place and most of the furniture is from IKEA (sadly Ikea don't make the desk any more). The old chest of drawers are from a pawn shop and I paid $50 for it. My schnauzers love this space too… that's why they have their own little bed here. The one thing that I had put in was a chandelier! Thanks for looking! -Wilna

For even more scraproom ideas, please check out our Storage and Organization Pinterest board - it's curated by our Design Team and is full of awesome ideas!

workspace wednesday

I've been learning everyday how to get organized and, to be organize in your work, you gotta have an organized desk!

Here you can see a few of my most well-organized (and CLEAN!) areas on my desk! I like to have what I use the most around the table (call this laziness).

Photo ONE : This is a displayer my dad built for me! These are CAKE plates that he mounted with wood, so that I can store my Washi Tapes and my stamps! :D Clever uh!? Clever and cheap! Way cheaper that those vintage displayers...ok ok...the vintage ones are more beautiful but I'd rather spend my money on washi tape! :)

Photo TWO : I have this letter dispenser for a while, just to store my alphas. Pretty handy to see them all quickly! I store them by brand.

Photo THREE : This is my Studio Calico Stamp corner! :D All of my SC stamps (clear/unmounted) come in these 2 boxes. I just need to flip through the stamps and I can find what I exactly need for my project!

Photo FOUR : and this is my ink displayer, aka an old cassette carrier! :D All my inks fit perfect in it! :)

Always keep your favorite near you, ok? :)

workspace wednesday

Welcome to Workspace Wednesday! Today we've convinced our July guest, Shimelle Laine, to give us a peek into her scrap space. She's sharing some great tips for keeping tabs on the goodies in your stash and for working in a small space.

We live in a very small flat in London, and I scrapbook right in the middle of our living space. My scrapbook space includes five pieces of furniture: a wire paper rack for 12x12 papers, an Ikea Expedit bookshelf to hold all my albums and some supplies, a small sewing machine table with some storage underneath the machine, a dresser with drawers that hold my photos amongst other supplies and my worktable, where I stand to scrapbook.  Its drawers hold my most used supplies, including pens, inks, adhesives, basic tools and Thickers!

I find I only use things when I can see them, so I focus on open storage that displays the colours and textures of different elements.  I'm not a fan of plastic and avoid it in my storage if at all possible.  Instead I use a lot of second-hand pyrex bowls as well as some cardboard and metal storage options, glass jars and a wire cake stand.

If I have a supply I know I love but I forget to use it, I rotate it out into a bit of display, like my Jenni Bowlin inks and punch on this cake stand.  The coffee cup was filled with some buttons I kept forgetting I had in my collection.  After a while, I'll start to remember to use those items so they can be rotated to somewhere else and another supply I need to remind myself to use can sit in this place.  The rotation keeps me from ignoring something too long.  I only keep consumable supplies for six months and then they have to go unless I have a really fabulous reason to keep them.  With tools and non-consumables, I keep things in set storage spaces and I can't have anything new if that space is full.  This is something we do throughout our house as a good tool with small-scale living.  It's really challenging and I definitely haven't mastered it yet, but it is always my goal.

I love keeping things like washi tape, flowers and die cuts in bowls so I can just sift through easily.  I do the same thing with my paper scraps on a larger scale - they all sit in a basket.  Sifting through is a great way to find inspiring combinations of colour and pattern that I might not otherwise have discovered.

Of course some baskets get a bit overstuffed and it's hard to sift!  All my clear stamps are an example... this is a basket that needs to be purged but I'm having trouble admitting it! Still, I find I use the stamps I can see so it makes a difference to keep rearranging things in the basket, even if it's ridiculously filled to the brim.  

I keep all my mists and paints in one cake stand, which means right now I'm not allowed anything new from the look of this!  I started keeping my mists in a drawer a couple years back and I am so glad I changed that out, because I love the sight of all these colours on my counter.

Thanks for letting us into your space, Shimelle!!

workspace wednesday

 

Hi SC'ers, I am happy to share a few snaps of my space with you today. My creative space is small and located in a corner of my bedroom, so there has to be a place for everything to keep me "semi-organized". One of my favorite items on my desk is my Making Memories carousel organizer (i think almost everyone has this) but I still love it after all of these years!

The majority of my supplies are located along a wall in my bedroom and I love my IKEA bookcase to store my albums, idea books, stamps and small embellishments.  I love storage that I can add more supplies on top of, like my bookcase and soda crate to extend my storage upwards.  I keep most of my Mister Huey's Mist on top of this vintage soda crate and above my desk.

I love to recycle cute packaging from gifts or store purchases to store smaller tools.

Thank you for stopping by for a glimpse into my creative space!

workspace wednesday - nina ostermann

For today's Workspace Wednesday, we're sharing a peek at where our June guest, Nina Ostermann, scraps.

I’m sharing a small room with my husband. It´s the office room for him and crafting room for me.  When we built our house, I had never thought about scrapbooking. This was a huge mistake but that’s the fact.

To organize the paper, cardstock, thickers, BigShot etc. I have a Ikea Besta system. So I can close the door and the chaos is hidden for a while. A large part of embellishments is storage in a wooden toolbox from a DIY store . (I´ve painted it white so it fits better with the rest of the room) and white plastic boxes on my desk.  

Everything is in my area, that´s the only advantage of a small room. 

I hope you´ve enjoyed this peek into my little workspace....