the shelf project. finally.

awhile back i moved the big, black, ikea corner bookshelf from our living room to the kitchen. i rearranged the living room, and the bookshelf was weighing it down on one end. i had been trying to come up with a good way to store my etsy/craft supplies, bills, things to-be-filed, etc. through a collaboration with delana, it was determined that the shelf in the kitchen with baskets would be a good idea.

i moved the shelf to the kitchen where it was immediately covered in piles and piles of junk. it has remained that way for some time. i purchased the baskets a few weeks ago half off at hobby lobby. they sat in my car for awhile.

finally, today, i bit the bullet.

before:

after:

there was no question that the baskets had to have lids. having baskets designated for specific things and actually putting those things in said baskets is a big step for me. having OPEN baskets is too much. that means what's inside would have to be presentable. not gonna happen. with the exception of my projects-in-progress basket, which usually contains pretty things, lids abound. my nine baskets are: 1.) things to be filed, 2.) things to be dealt with (bills, etc.), 3.) inspiration/to-do projects, 4.) rubber stamps, 5.) paper/cards/envelopes, 6.) ink & writing utensils, 7.) miscellaneous craft supplies (spray paint, mod podge, sponge brushes, acrylic paints), 8.) projects-in-progress and 9.) ribbon & string.

i accessorized with some random stuff i already had. a gold ikea lantern, some retro fire king pottery, a hand painted japanese bowl and jadite-colored tin that i purchased at antique stores and a little house plant in an ikea planter.

the card sets are a couple of etsy orders i MUST finish soon. not shown is poor jenny's set of thank yous that is 1 million years overdue.

i don't think it's perfect. i'm sure some tweaking will go on with the presentation. in fact, i think i may move the basket off the very top of the shelf as soon as i publish this post. it looks weird. please comment with suggestions and thoughts. don't be shy. i know your decorating skills rock.

regardless, the after is light years better than the before!

now, i'm inspired to straighten the rest of my kitchen.

sweetness.

***

edited later: see? changed the top already. kylah said the basket on top would be better with some other stuff added. i tried something with a teapot and a cake stand, but it looked sorta weird. this is a glass ikea (can you tell i like ikea?) pitcher with black river rocks and pink flowers cut from the bushes in my front yard. what do you think? better?