Project: Cat Shelves - A Cat Tree Alternative

In effort to NOT have a house full of bulky cat trees and scratching posts, I did some research and am in the process of creating attractive vertical space for Matsu.

Here she is demonstrating her new shelves (carpet samples from Flor, shelves & brackets from Ikea, plus some feathers and catnip spray to make them more “attractive”)

Mosaic Mirrors- Find a New Value In Old & Broken Stuff

When two of my favorite plates- ceramic handpainted in Mexico- broke, I delayed tossing them out. Instead, I placed them in a box and allowed my ideas to “percolate” around the broken but still lovely pieces. The result is this mirror (ikea mirror from prior to college, plus broken plates, plus industrial glue/hot glue… a dab of glass or paint now and again).
 
I am attracted to color and texture, so it’s no suprise that I like mosaics.

Furthermore, the use of my right brain to create in tandem with my left brain to fit the puzzle pieces together makes mosaic-ing a wonderfully fun project.

Not only are mosaics a great way to exercise both sides of the brain, but making them can be a tremendous stress releiver as well, depending on how many things you smash, tear, and break! In order to find the right colors and shapes, I’ll hammer and smash many of my items that were once deemed to be “useless”.

Here was my mother’s birthday present this year (red acrylic, rocks from Alki, copper wire, driftwood, smashed glass):
     

A note: I inevitably got paint onto the glass surface, but it cleared away nicely with nail polish remover and a q-tip once I was done!

Project: Musician’s Workspace. A Small Space Solution

As we were moving into our new apartment last July, I was challenged to find a way that my beau’s active music career could mesh with my need for a de-cluttered space. To clarify, dating and living with a musician means instruments, the instruments’ various cases, cds, cds, CDS, mics, amps, and the zillions of cords that connect one to the other to the other to the other…. In short: there is the potential for a lot of clutter.

He was NOT enthused about my idea when I presented it- putting his workspace in the closet. (How do I explain to him that I was not trying to hide his stuff, when that clearly seems to be the case?)

I had to act quickly before he got up the nerve to stop me- I measured, double-measured, went to Home Depot to buy and cut wood (it’s my dream someday to own a table saw), went to Target for some free-standing organizer shelves. Got online and bought 3M Command hooks, pantry organizers, baskets, boxes, etc….

And created:

Working...



Relaxing...



I even developed a crude sort of guitar over-door hangar with a nice little foam pad behind the guitar body so that it won’t bang against the door when its opened. I didn’t want to put holes in the door when attaching  his guitar wall hook (made from a metal wreath hangar, wood guitar wall hook, and some screws). The guitar would typically be hanging on the right door in the above picture, with an Iron Maiden poster flag serving to cover the foam.



 (As an aside, here is the email conversation that I had with a gentleman who invented “guitar hangars” to hang in your closet, when I asked him about guitar over-door hangars:

Me:
Hello,
I would like to purchase two hangers. How much are they? I am actually looking for something that is like a wall hangar, but can be fit over the door. Have you invented something like that yet?
Very sincerely.

 Response:
Jill;
[...ordering info...]
The hanging on the door I do not believe would work well.  Every time you open or close your door the guitar and going to bang, and even the hardest coatings will chip off.
Side note: my mother always bought those over the door shoe hangers and they never really worked, the door never really closed properly etc.
Thanks for the interest.

 Oh well, I made something that works GREAT!

I’ve been making tweaks to the set-up since its completion; I look forward to posting more detailed pictures!
And at the end of the day, he can close up shop and nobody will bother his work.

How To Build a Table for Budget and Space Constraints

  

Build a 
Counter/Island/Work/Dining/...   
ALL -Purpose Table

I am in the process of designing an industrial-ish workbench for my kitchen/dining area. Since all of our counterspace and kitchen utilities are located along one wall , there’s a bunch of open space that would be perfect for a kitchen island or work surface.
I want a work surface that is:

1. Counter-height (about 3 ft high), to increase my counterspace during food prep.

2. Long. Enough to fit three workstools per side so that people can eat and work comfortably, as well as have space to spread out when they are working on projects.  =)

3. Narrow, because my apartment isn’t very large, and I don’t want to have to “suck it in” everytime I have to get around the table to go from the kitchen to the living room.

Other than those specificities, I really don’t want much (no designs, no special lumber, and so on…). Oh right, I DON’T want to spend $1,000, which seems to be the going rate for plain, large, industrial tables/benches.


I’m looking for something like this from Infusionfurniture.com:

But without the potentially high price tag.

I would be perfectly happy with a workbench, but they are either too wide and short, or too long and narrow. I’d like to get rid of the bottom shelf on workbenches, too, so that [my eventual] shop stools can slide freely underneath and out of the way.

Or I’d like something like the simple counter top + panels from Ikea pictured at the top of this post (the length is okay, but it’s still too wide; plus these panel have to go on and around something, like the kitchen island stuff that Ikea sells, and I just want the “shell”).

Totally uncomplicated, right? 

Well, after weeks of searching online retailers, restaurant supply stores, Craigslist, and getting quotes from local furniture builders & designers, I don’t think that I’ll find what I’m looking for, unless I’m willing to pony-up the cash…

In my search, however, I found a great blog by designmom.com. It really fits my desire for simplicity and industrial- where the elements that the table is made of look just like what they are- no frills.

So I’ve drawn-up plans to build this table as per my specific dimensions, and I also contacted a local sheet metal contractor in Ballard for the table’s surface. (I’m also considering a butcherblock surface instead of the galvanized sheet metal.) Overall, I think I could do this for under $200. The main problems are as follows:

1. Finding a place to build it (an apartment just isn’t the environment for construction and woodworking);

2. Finding a large enough vehicle to transport it when complete; and

3. Finding quality expertise and willing volunteers to help out - people who will settle for payment in food and drink rather than in cash.  (Any takers?)  =)


Actual design and construction to follow...

Exercise: Name Your Ego!

A fun proposition came my way about a month ago:

A dear friend of mine told me about naming the ego part of her personality 'Heidi'. Heidi, she said, loves to put off her responsibilities in order to go on adventures outdoors and hike about mountains, even when her spiritual self reminds her that it's important to stay grounded and address responsibilities for her own growth as a person.

This exercise made me think about my own Ego's "name"- the part of me that would prefer to shrug off responsibilities in order to pursue immediate passions and interests. After a bit of soul-searching, per say, I found Jackie.


Meet Jill:

- Striving for spiritual wholeness
- contemplative, empathetic
- I know that there is something greater than a 9-5 job and making rent.
- My utmost joy is communing with and attending to those I love.
- To the detriment sometimes of attending to myself and my passions

Meet Jackie:

- I want nothing more than to tinker and learn new skills.
- Building, arranging, inventing
- Gutsy, creative, determined
- To the detriment of my relationships with others, sometimes, and even with myself.

Together:
- Curious, thoughtful team.
- Jackie strives to meet Jill's craving for "Nurture Structure" and Jill works to live hand-in-hand with Jackie, even when she forgets about everything except satisfying her curiosity.
- Nurturing Structure


One thing that Jackie and I can agree upon wholeheartedly is our craving for an organic, ego-spirit balance.

This blog narrates our projects and discoveries on the journey to achieve this hand-in-hand partnership- this fluid and flexible balance within.