i want to live at ikea

Since we moved into this house, we've been "making do" with the office room.  We jammed our desks and entertainment center in here with two fold up chairs initially.  Then we rearranged and took pieces of the desks away so we could fit our couch in here.  But it certainly hasn't been perfect.  I have to sit sideways when I use my laptop, and the couch is falling apart (I bought it for $50 used from our neighbor's grandma back in 1998).  Plus, there wasn't room for a craft desk, so all of my crafty stuff has been shoved in the closet and I work out of the overflowing bins when I do a project.  We spent more time in this room than anywhere else in the house, between our desks, the playstation, and the TiVo.

So it's time for a little more rearranging to make this more livable instead of just making do.  The last few weeks have been for trips to IKEA, first for brainstorming, and then for making lists and plotting.  Of course, some time in Visio recreating the current layout and then rearranging digitally instead of with our muscles and that helps when comparing which furniture is better to buy.

We are going to redo the office and turn the guest room into my crafty room.  The old couch is moving in the craft room, because it's just fine for one person to sit in still, it's only when there's two that the cushions split.  So I can sit and knit with it.  The office will get a bit of new furniture.  The craft room will use the shelves that were previously in the closet and a small desk that had the phone on it in the office, as well a new desk/shelf unit and some tables for projects.

I've been cleaning up a storm, clearing out a ton of old junk and then moving things around to make room.  I still have a bit to do, but every day I'm making steady progress.  It's amazing to throw stuff away and realize just how old some of this stuff is and that there's not a time I'll ever really need it.

Of course, if I just lived in IKEA, that would save some money and time ;)  But I'm so excited about all of this, it really is a welcomed change and a very worthwhile project!