Thursday, January 24, 2013

The universe knows what I need and it is sending in donations. -part 1


Setting up a studio with a tight budget.



I recently read a great interview in designsponge.com in which crafter Danielle Henderson said that, "[b]eing poor is a great creative motivator."

That statement pretty much sums up my approach to how I am putting together my work/make/craft studio.  Reusing, recycling and upcycling is a major theme and I want to share with you the development process.

This first part is about the baskets that I found on the alley behind my apartment and the rack that I found by the dumpster of a storage unit.

I wanted to take advantage of the wall space above my work table and came up with the idea of setting baskets or boxes on the wall so I could put my on going projects and materials at hands' reach.  A couple of days later, I found two big wire baskets on the alley.  The white plastic coating was a bit chipped but it was nothing major.

While thinking about how to hang them, I realized that I did not have any hooks at home but I had a set of four metal "L"... the kind that are used to join boards of wood to make boxes.  I bended the "L"s and shaped them like hooks, screwed them to the wood beams that I installed on the wall (more on those coming up on part 2) and the baskets went up.

hand-shaped hook
the tool shelf to be

Then I wanted a way to put my most used tools on some sort of rack also above my work table and remembered that a couple of years ago I had found a wire rack (of the same style as the baskets mentioned above) and that the rack was in our work storage unit.  Now figuring out how to use the rack for my need took a bit of what I like to call "brain modeling."

"Brain modeling" for me is when I close my eyes (or stare at the materials for a project) and visualize how to move/reshape/cut/build/etc., things to come up with potential outcomes.  That way I usually come up with an idea not just of the project but also of which tools I will need.

I had to bend the rack to shape it like a shelf.  It took some muscle and the help of a pair of pliers. The final product was pretty much exactly what I wanted and it is now on the wall.

before
after

So now I have both baskets for materials and a shelf for my tools above my work table that cost me zero dollars.



Next week, I will tell you about my work table and the wood beams on the walls of my studio.

KQ

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