Thursday?? Already??

I had planned on posting a recipe for meatballs today to go with the spaghetti sauce that we made last week, but time has slipped by me this week!  Ever have one of those weeks that no matter how organized you try to be, you still don't accomplish anything on your Git 'Er Done! list?? 

Hmm, maybe my list is too long...

A priority for me right now is to design and build my creative space!  Even though I have taken on new projects since our decision to no longer create Just Cre8 kits, like teaching at ScrapFest and working on the Hands On! blog and another feature article for Canadian Scrapbooker, I have been making time to exercise my creative muscles.  My crop buddies and I were scrapbooking almost religiously every Friday but decided to stop over the holidays.

In that time, my scrapbooking stuff got scattered all over the place.  Much of it was out in our family area, left out from our last crop.  It was all transferred to a couple of tables to make room for Poker Night.  Some of it was packed for overnight sleepover crops at my sister's place.  Other pieces were sifted through to create birthday and Valentine's Day cards.  New products was dumped unceremoniously on top, since there was no REAL home for it yet.

Truth be told, even when we have tried to make plans to scrapbook, I have been hopelessly overwhelmed by the thought of trying to FIND anything to use!  That's when I decided that if I was going to continue scrapbooking, I needed an organized, well-planned studio to do it.

So I did what I always do when I need inspiration and ideas... I Googled! And oh, the riches to be found on the Internet!! My ultimate room would look a lot like Jana's, except with dark woods. But because I'm pretty certain that her cabinetry alone is worth more than I can afford to put in, I happily just soaked in her storage ideas!

There are certain elements that I know I want.  I want double french doors, similar to this photo of amarissa's from Two Peas in a Bucket:
 

 
This will allow me to scrapbook in my studio, but still feel connected to my family if they are watching TV or playing Wii.  Mine will have to open inward, though, due to an ill-placed bulkhead.
 
I saw a lot of scrap rooms that utilities the Expedit bookcases from Ikea.  I'm torn though - I love the idea of having everything visible and at hand, like Laura Vegas' former scrap room.  She features two of the bookcases (along with an enviable island, made by her mom!):

But part of me envisions this crisp, clean workspace (when not in use, obviously!), with everything stored (read: hidden) in cabinets.
 
I came across Stacey's scrap studio on Two Peas, as well.  I fell in love with the mix of white cabinets, paired with black island.  I like the idea of a smaller island in the centre of the room and then a sit down counter along one wall.
 

I love this type of island that you can stand, or pull up a stool, when your back starts to ache and your knees scream, "SIT DOWN, OLD LADY"...
 
What?  That's just me?  Oh....
 
At any rate, there's still alot of planning that has to happen and then there's the whole "budget" thing.  I'm blessed to have a fairly large room (about 12.5 x 12.5 ft) but floor to ceiling cabinets along one or two walls would be quite expensive.  The accountant in me is sensibly thinking that there are other parts of the house that could use renovation (namely the upstairs master bathroom that leaked and is the really reason that my scrap room does not have a ceiling...) But a (big) part of me thinks, reasonably, what's a few thousand dollars when you have twice that much (or more!) of scrapbooking supplies that you aren't using??
 
Decisions, decisions, decisions...
 
I'll continue to plan and mull it over... in the meantime, next Thursday, we'll resume with a new recipe!