Turn an old dresser into a desk

Yay! I'm back in business baby!  I finally have a dedicated work space with a super fast computer!  I just love it!  It wouldn't have been possible if my son didn't love building computers and shopping for parts.  He is only 15 and I must say I'm pretty darn impressed. I'm actually sitting here now writing this and I couldn't be more pleased.   A little back story, my husband works from home so took over the home office a few years ago. I had my computer in there, but working next to someone who is on calls all day is quite distracting.  So I decided to make use of the guest room that anybody hardly uses. I didn't want to spend money on a new desk and have to sell this beautiful dresser I made over a while back so I decided to convert it to a desk.  Also my old computer was REALLY old and painfully slow. 

It's a bit tall, but with an adjustable chair it works.  You see that the keyboard and mouse are out of sight.  

We removed the top drawer of the dresser and installed this slide out pop up keyboard and mouse tray (link below.) We had to do a bit of a configuration underneath by adding a piece of wood to the inside for the mount since it wasn't quite flat. But it ended up working perfectly!

I love how it's cozy and not too sterile looking like in a normal work office.  I can also just tuck the keyboard tray away and use this monitor as a TV for when guests sleep in that Murphy bed you see in the mirror. 

Here is a close up of the keyboard tray.  And it's very convenient to have the drawers below for office supplies.  I like a clean look when it comes to organization with not too many things sitting out on the desk top. 

Here is a visual of the parts used in my computer. The box is not shown, but it's called a SAMA and comes with a slot for a DVD/CD player.  Who uses those anymore, this old lady does! BTW, my child may have gone a bit overboard on storage and speed when building this. Like did I really need a Gaming Graphics Card?  Who knows.  It's pretty awesome though and I'm uploading photos at light speed now.  All I really cared about was a cute white monitor and keyboard, lol.  But glad I have both the cuteness and functionality. 

Here is a source list in case you are interested:

1) Keyboard and Mouse  Newegg MSI Vigor GK30 Combo White, 6-Zone RGB GK30 Gaming Keyboard & GM11 Gaming Mouse, Water Repellent & Splash-Proof, 5000 DPI

2) Monitor: HP HP Series 5 27 inch FHD White Monitor - 527sw 27" FHD (1920 x 1080) 48-100 Hz

3) Keyboard tray:  Amazon Mount-It! Under Desk Keyboard Tray, Adjustable Keyboard and Mouse Drawer Platform with Ergonomic Wrist Rest

4)Webcam: Newegg  Logitech Brio 100 Full HD Webcam for Meetings and Streaming, Auto-Light Balance, Built-In Mic, Privacy Shutter, USB-A, for Microsoft Teams, Google Meet, Zoom and More - Off White

6) Desk chair - Home Goods 

5) All of the computer components came from Newegg.com 

Also tomorrow is the Fall equinox and Halloween ideas are swirling in our heads over here. 

xo
Cathleen

Office updates

There have been so many changes to our house that I haven't blogged about. Time gets away and life gets busy. I was looking through the house tour photos and realized I haven't updated so many of the photos.  I snapped some photos yesterday and updated that link plus I am showing you here. I will break it up into smaller posts because there are too many. Today are the office updates. 

I switched out the white chairs with the slip covers and put in these two Queen Anne dining room chairs. They are more open in the back so it let's you see the details of the desk, the wood plank inspired faux wood. Plus I added a throw blanket, faux fur pillow and this brown fur rug.

The french doors (as well as all the interior doors of the house) have been painted gray.  I also have since gotten a computer. My favorite part of my office. :)

The crystal lamp with the black lamp shade was a thrift store find for Halloween but it really works in here.

I found these cute doorknobs at a home store here and they are dummy knobs so were pretty easy to install.

The Bio Orb fish tank relocated here as well from the eat-in-kitchen. It's also very calming to watch them and listen to the bubbles.

With my new Kate Spade storage boxes my shelves look more filled in and complete.

I'm happy walking past this space now, since it's right off the entrance.  It feels clean, organized, and cozy all at the same time.

Happy January.

xo
Cathleen

Office update

Wow, summer is drawing to a end. Kids are back in school already and I'm finding more time now to get back to house updates. I wanted to totally immerse myself in my kid's activities and really focus on them, hence the delay in blog posts. Hopefully I'll have more "free" time during my daytime hours. My mind is all a wander about what house project to tackle next. In the meantime it's fair to say we've done so much I haven't blogged about so I need to play catch up.  My office has felt sort-of finished for a while, but I've left plenty of space on shelves for things to fill in over time. Here's how it's looking these days. Source list is at the end.

Most everything in this office, has been transformed in some way shape or form from how it looked originally. The desk for instance is a solid wood desk made by Aspenhome. I gave it a fresh coat of paint and the most fun part about it is this weathered paneled back. The desk had an open back, made for sitting against a wall. I bought a 4x4 wood panel at Lowes and used super strength glue to attach it to the back.

The parson chairs were chairs we had in our old house but I gave them a new look by adding these shabby chic feeling ruffled white cotton slip covers from Target online.

The sofa table from the Restore was the perfect depth for this small wall space and gives me a place to store stacks of magazines, some art, and a lamp. It also got several coats of paint.

I found this cute little gold hedgehog with a party hat from Target made by "Oh Joy."

I didn't bother painting the front of my desk. I didn't want to lose drawer functionality and nobody sees it but me.  The black vintage office chair was also a Restore find.

I finally have dedicated space to display some old vintage cameras. Some were my grandpa's. Others I've collected over the years.

The overhead chandelier is from LampsPlus. I love the brass pattern against the white. It also ties together the two brass curtain rods and other brass accessories in the room.

I know what you're thinking at this point. Yes the bookcases are also from the Restore!  I was lucky to find three large ones that were solid wood and I could paint them.

I love these modern West Elm curtains that are stamped with gray dots.

My dog loves to hang at the feet of these chairs when I'm working in my office. It's like his little man cave down there.

I think it's safe to say I could actually get some work done in this office.  It's functional, cozy and feels good to be in this room.

Source List:
Curtains -West Elm Stamped Dot Collection
Gray Sheer Drapes JC Penny
Gold Lamp on Desk - Home Goods
Note book and sticky notes on Desk - Kate Spade
Art - Jack Roberts
Hedge Hog - "Oh Joy" for Target
Ceiling Light - Lamps Plus Roxbury 22" wide Antique Brass Pendant
Wall Color - Agreeable Gray by Sherwin Williams
Floor - Shaw Flooring Engineered Hardwood Colt Weathered wood.
Ruffled Chair Slip Covers -Target
Chair Pillow - Jonathan Adler
Pencil Holder, Tape Dispenser, and gold Bird plate -Nate Berkus for Target
Rug - Hang Woven Cotton Dhurries by Balta
Everything else -Habitat for Humanity Restore

xo
Cathleen