DIY Office Organization – with Martha Stewart

Aug 22

I’ve been having so much fun this week setting up my new home office with my Martha Stewart Home Office supplies that I can’t believe it’s Thursday. already!?

I’m going to do something I normally don’t = share a quick before and after shot of the office shelving. Yes. before I’ve even shared how I diy’d my way through Wednesday afternoon and stressed over every little accent placed on the shelving. Guess I’m too excited. Tomorrow you’ll get the detailed shots, but have a glance at this…

 

Can you spy the differences?

Anyone who says a little spray paint, a couple home accents, and a few Martha Stewart Home Office products don’t make a huge difference….Line up in front of me so I can pinch you. 😉 I can’t wait to share all the details tomorrow about what exactly is placed on these shelves and how inexpensive everything is to do/purchase yourself.

If you’ve been reading my blog for a while, you likely recognize a few of the diy projects on those shelves. And you also know I love to recycle items into storage and organization pieces. In this day and time, there’s no better way to operate in your home than to re-use as much as you possibly can. These diy projects were completed using items I had laying around the house in storage boxes just waiting for their big makeover.

First up, these baskets….

 

 

now, some of you may like the color. personally i had no issue with the color when they were in my previous home. however, the baskets were tucked away on shelving in the office closet. With the baskets out in daily sight, the color was a little jarring for my taste and the overall, peaceful, pretty look I am going for in my new office.

enter stage right…spray paint…

Yup. A little paint never hurt anyone….O anything. Baskets included!

Gabbed my basket collection and some cardboard. God thing I have a lot of cardboard on my hands…

then i laid out the baskets in the driveway….

and tested with a few sprays…

 

The white, while very pretty, wasn’t the winner…

 

What a difference, right? Just a few $$ spent for paint and you can change the entire look of something you may have considered donating.

While I was outside painting, I decided to also freshen up the ‘ol white board…

This used to be the family command center white board in the old house and was still painted to match the house trim color (softer tan). With the new house and new trim color (swiss coffee), it was time for a little nip/tuck.

First, I trimmed out the edge with painters tape…

Then filled in the middle with more tape strips…

 

After a quick spray with heirloom white and some time chilling in the fresh air…

I brought it inside for the big reveal…

 

 

Again, a little paint makes a big impact. No more yellowish/tan…

With my freshly painted items complete, I got to work on my next project. I love to keep old boxes that are pretty enough to re-use or even be covered. Especially if the box looks like it could contain something. I’ve had this stack of boxes for 5 years….

These are from restoration hardware and were the boxes used to hold picture frames….

 

I ordered a few standing frames for the old house and they arrived securely in these boxes. The boxes were so pretty (one of my favorite colors is teal, if you couldn’t tell from the blog colors) that I’ve kept them this entire time. Figured eventually I would re-use them as a gift box or for storage. Well, finally, they have a new use!

The smallest box now holds my command adhesive strip collection…

The medium box holds my supply of laminating sheets…

And the large box holds oversized envelopes…

With my supplies secretly hidden away, it was time to label. To do that I used Martha Stewart’s adhesive metal bookplates…

I always admired these bookplates, but never had a reason to use them. these are the perfect solution for labeling items when you want to step up your game from washi tape or a label maker. They up the class factor, in my humble opinion.

They are easy to use too! just stick them on your item, add a clear or white label to the label paper and slide them into the bookplate….

 

 

Loving this! and don’t worry, you’ll see how I’ve hidden that restoration hardware label tomorrow…

I’ve had this spacious, navy Ralph Lauren box for even longer than the above boxes…

It now holds my white apple cords…

yup, no one needs to know they aren’t coiled perfectly inside. that’s the beauty of hiding things away in a box…but also keeping it contained and in one location.

this box was gifted to me at least 10 years ago…

It’s been so long I forget what the gift was inside. But the box is still here and still beautiful. It’s now stowing away my extra Martha Stewart Home Office supplies…

and with a bookplate!…

I added more bookplates around the office. you’ll see them all tomorrow, but here’s another quick example of how useful they are…

and a clear example of how behind I am on paying those bills. Ugh!…

 

Well, at least I can easily find the bills, right?

😉

My final easy diy project is dressing up these old binders…

Last week I discovered full sheet washi tape…

 

Someone out there is a genius – thank you, whomever you are!…

it was simple to dress up the binder spines with a patterned washi sheet and a few more supplies…

Just trim the washi to size…

Then slowly apply, smoothing as you work your way down the binder spine…

That was easy!…

I labeled the binders with a bit more washi and my label maker…

Hello lovers…

 

A few small, inexpensive diy projects and you can make your space pretty on a budget…And make it a true reflection of you. again, the sneak peek before and after…

 

painting those baskets was one of the best decisions! i love their new color! the espresso color allows the Martha products and other accents to shine through.

back tomorrow with the full reveal and even more little secret storage ideas hidden away in this space! have a great day and thanks for following along this week! don’t forget to enter the Martha Stewart giveaway for your chance to pretty up your own office space. 😉

(i linked up with tatertots & jello)

comments +

  1. MelissaG says:

    See…this is why I come back here day after day! I just love you! I spray paint so many things. Like I don't care what color something is…if its a good deal I will buy and spray paint. However, never thought about painting baskets!!! And your boxes…amazing.

    So I have to tell you a story. A little over 9 years ago, my twins were born. I brought them home to a 10 year old, a 27 month old, and a 12 month old. Needless to say, I wasn't able to get out much. I had always loved to organize, but it was now a necessity! One day my husband came home with a label maker. I thought I had died and gone to heaven! Fast forward 9 years, hundreds of thousands of labels and several moves later…when we moved to our new home in May, I kept the label maker in my car so I could use at the new house and at the old house. Well, someone stole it and my iPod touch out of my car! How sad I was. I got on eBay and got the exact same one. 3 weeks ago I was getting my clothes together to consign with Just Between Friends, and the label maker is gone. I am pretty convinced it is in one of the bins with the clothes I took for someone to price. Anyway, this past weekend ( yes I lived 3 weeks without a label maker) I went to Walmart and got the exact one I see in your pic here. I still haven't figured it all out though! So anytime you want to blog about label makers, I would for sure be happy!

  2. Melissa says:

    Love the Sex and The City reference thrown in there!

    Can't wait to see tomorrows post! I have enjoyed this Martha Stewart week so much!

  3. Simply LKJ says:

    Looks fantastic! Where did you find the full sheet washi tape?

  4. Christina says:

    Wow, what a huge difference in the baskets! They look great! Love reading your blog and the inspiration!

  5. Christina says:

    What a huge difference in the baskets! Love it!

  6. Kathy says:

    I love your home office! Your blog is so inspiring,

  7. Alisa says:

    Where did you find the shelves? I love them and want to recreate this in my office!

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