messy craft room

Craft Room Makeover Plan

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After years of neglect, it’s time for a Craft Room Makeover! Let’s look at some craft room ideas and come up with a plan!

We have a room you don’t know about. In fact, we have two, but today I’ll be showing you one.

When we first moved in, it began its life as a guest bedroom. But we also had a guest bedroom upstairs (that’s the other one you don’t know about yet).

Did we really need two?

Guests weren’t exactly beating a path to our door here in bustling Glastonbury, CT!

So we made the decision one day in 2014 to move the bed upstairs, thus doubling the sleeping capacity of guest bedroom #2 (now just “guest bedroom.”)

The Room Formerly Known as Guest Bedroom #1 became Handan’s craft room.

Surely it would be enough to fit all of her crafting supplies, right?

Right?

Well, I mean, maybe for a little while…

But as every crafter comes to understand in time, crafting supplies rule the crafter, not the other way around.

After a few years, the crafting room became unnavigable. I give huge props to my babes though. Despite the lack of safe passage and secure footing around the room, she still knew where each and every little supply was tucked, hidden and buried.

The time has come for a change.

But not just for this craft room!

This craft room makeover will permanently alter two rooms!

No only will this craft room get a makeover, but we will be moving my office from the front room of the house back to the craft room. It will mean a downsize for me, but that’s no problem at all!

We’ll not only have a beautiful new craft room/writing room, but soon we’ll have a living/sitting room where my current office is!

Craft Room Makeover – Before

Here’s a peek at the room just before we started clearing it out for this makeover. Mind you – TWO hutches had already been removed and sold before this picture was taken, so try to add them in to your mental image.

entrance to a very messy craft room
Enter at your own peril!

That mountain in the middle was once a crafting desk. Now I find spiders with wee oxygen masks planting flags on its summit.

interior of a messy craft room
Jeezum Crow, it’s Mount Evercraft!

Okay, now this is a little bit of bullsnot. That empty floor you see there had been cleaned before I had a chance to take these pics. Before embarking on this makeover, I made my way around the room, just checking things out, and I had to clear a path for myself.

I assure you, that path was not there before!

messy craft room
Suspiciously clean floor…I don’t trust it.

There used to be shelves on that wall that were secretly removed before I had a chance to take these pics! Hmmmm, I wonder what’s in that closet??

messy craft room

There once stood another larger hutch next to this one that was filled with craft paint!

messy craft room

And back to the closet. I wonder what mysteries lie behind those bi-folds?

bi-fold closet door

Let’s have a look!

messy closet

Oh, and look! It’s an incredibly rare specimen! That little side table with the sewing machine on top is the very first DIY/makeover project I ever did!

side table in a messy closet

Handan and I bought that table (and 3 others + a trunk) at an estate sale back in the summer of 2013. That September (or early October), I went to the hardware store and bought a few quarts of Benjamin Moore paint. I painted two of the tables that day – for one of them, I even rebuilt the top from a new piece of wood.

Wow, I remember the feeling when I finished.

I remember the awe.

Paint was power.

With it, I could brush beauty across the face of neglect.

I thought it would always be as easy as a coat of paint.

LOL! I was a naive child!

Still, we’d need the healing touch of paint in every corner of this craft room!

Craft Room Ideas

Okay, you’ve seen the mess that is our “craft room.” Now let’s take a look at what we plan to do.

As always, my babes fired up her Pinterest machine and started hunting for craft room ideas.

Things were going well at first. The Pinterest machine was running smoothly, and the road was clear.

But then?

A bump in the road.

She slammed headlong into this website:

craft room ideas
Yes, that’s a camera hanging from that beautiful skylight to take awesome professional crafting videos. Don’t you have a skylight-mounted camera in your craft room? No? Hmph!
craft room ideas

Imagine standing in your messy bedroom surrounded by old and rumpled clothes. You ponder which pair of pants you’re going to try to pour your thighs into as you look in the mirror and wonder if your face can support the sheer volume of makeup needed to alter it into something you’re willing to wear out in public.

Just then, a voluptuous Brazilian supermodel sashays into room, circles twice around you and then exits, leaving the scent of some exotic perfume hanging in the air.

“Welp, that settles it!” You say to no one in particular as you hurl your pants across the room, turn the mirror face-down and climb back into bed.

That’s how we felt after discovering Micaela Ferraro’s craft room while searching for craft room ideas.

Go ahead. Go take the Virtual Tour of “The Mother of all Craft Rooms.” You didn’t want to feel adequate today, did you? Go on. I’ll wait.

See what I mean? Oh, I’m sure there are some who may find it inspiring. And don’t get me wrong! We’re in love with that room! But seriously, it’s like Donald Duck trying to follow Luciano Pavarotti in a singing contest.

Anyway, now that we knew what our room couldn’t be, it was time to figure out what it could be.

Craft Room Makeover Plan

Walls, Floor and Ceiling

For starters, those hideous walls need to be repaired and painted (I chose that paint color back in 2013. It is one of my greatest shames.)

And that gray carpet has to go. We couldn’t do it upstairs when we gave Barish’s room a makeover, but we can do it now. We’ve decided to go with a Pergo laminate floor.

We looked at several types of flooring and a ton of colors and settled on Pergo Timbercraft Crestridge Hickory. It looks awesome, and the price is right for our budget!

For the walls, we’re going to stick with what has been working great for us lately: Behr’s Bit of Sugar. It’s the perfect white for walls.

craft room ideas

And for the first time, I’ll be painting a ceiling! There’s no way we can avoid it – it has yellowed around the edges and especially in the corners. Once the walls are white, that ceiling will stick out like a bloody thumb if we don’t paint it.

Windows

We won’t be changing the trim to Craftsman style in this room. Instead, we’ll paint the trim to brighten it up, and then we’ll hang curtains to add depth and character to the windows.

Those two windows face south(ish) and west(ish), so this room gets a ton of natural light. It’s going to be an amazing room for crafting and taking pictures of our smaller projects!

Craft Room Requirements

  • Computer desk
  • Craft table for the center of the room
  • Printer stand/cabinet (for 3 printers and printer supplies)
  • A table for the Cricut and storage for Cricut supplies

Computer Desk

We haven’t decided on this one yet, but one thing is for certain: my current desk is waaaayyyy too big to fit into the craft room, so we’ll need to sell it. We’ll use the proceeds from that desk to buy or DIY a new desk. Most likely it’ll be some combination of the two!

Craft Table Ideas

We want a wood-topped crafting table so it would look good in our process pictures and videos. We don’t want a table that’s too bulky, nor do I want anything too feminine-looking.

Hey, I love crafting, ladies, but I gotta draw the line when it comes to hot pink glitter and fuchsia and bright turquoise furniture.

(You run in crafting circles. You know what I’m talking about!)

We love the look of the one below, but it’s over $1000, so there’s no way we could afford it unless I start selling body parts. It’s tempting, but I don’t think these parts would fetch what they once might have, so I wouldn’t have much left when it’s all said and done, lol!

Anyway, even if we could afford it, this table is too beautiful to ruin as a craft table and too expensive to use as a desk!

After a little search, we Handan found this one from Joss & Main. It’s more affordable (and it has two drawers!), but it’s still too expensive to use as a craft table.

craft room ideas
Source: Joss & Main

Most likely we’ll go with this IKEA Kullaberg desk. It has a similar look and it’s perfect for our needs and our wallet.

craft room ideas
Source: IKEA

Printer Stand/cabinet

We have three printers (don’t judge!) and they’re all different shapes and sizes, so we’ll have to design something custom to fit them all. Whatever we design will have to blend with the rest of the room decor, which is shaping up to be lighter wood tones and metal.

Handan loves this West Elm industrial bookcase, as it could serve as a printer stand and offer some additional storage space.

Unfortunately, we don’t have the budget to buy two of these (one on either side of the window), but we can certainly DIY something similar and better!

craft room ideas
Source: West Elm

Cricut table and storage space for Cricut supplies

We’re anticipating many more Cricut projects ahead, thus our Cricut Maker and EasyPress 2 deserve their own table.

Handan has already designed something for our Cricuts. She assures me it’s going to be an easy project.

“Easy” for and engineer and “easy” for me are usually two wildly different things, but we’ll see.

Let’s just hope the usual trend of my DIY projects won’t apply to this one!

Craft Room Makeover – Beginning the Work

It all started with the worst job of all: clearing the room. Barish and I spent a full day ferrying all the crap in that room to the basement, where Handan valiantly tried to find a place for it.

As dusk approached, there were just a few odds and ends left.

And my babes is so happy we’re finally underway!

Here is our craft room – emptied of junk but full of promise.

empty room

The closet is still full. I’ll tackle that soon.

After clearing the last remnants, I repaired the walls.

filling wall holes with spackle
repairing wall holes

The next step will be to remove the carpet and baseboard and then paint the walls and ceiling. After that, we’ll install the new floor!

Craft Room Makeover Checklist

So what do you think? Do you like the plan so far? We’d love to hear your thoughts!

We love it when you share our posts on Facebook and Pinterest!

craft room ideas
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48 Comments

  1. Thanks for this post, Greg. It’s timely as I am about to tackle my craft room in a couple of weeks. It’s very similar to Handan’s before pictures. We moved here several months ago and there are still boxes of crafting stuff everywhere. Mine has a section just for sewing but it’s such a disaster that I am sewing curtains for my soon to be nephew at the breakfast table.
    Cannot wait to see your next steps!

  2. I can totally sympathize with Handan’s happiness over a craft room! I was just as happy when we did mine 🙂 Love the plan! Are you going to mount a camera somewhere too?

    1. Hi Sara, we’re not planning to mount a camera, since there isn’t one specific space that i’ll be working in. I need freedom of movement! 🙂

  3. I have one comment (okay, maybe more than one). Think twice about a craft desk that is just a surface. There’s no storage under your possible desk. In a small room, that’s a huge waste of space. I know that you might want to keep things open and airy, but you could finagle a little storage, and still accomplish that. I know from where I speak. I am an avid paper-crafter, AND a quilter. I have more paper, stamps, dies, ink, paint, Big Shots, drafting supplies, etc. than you can imagine. And, fabric! Sewing machine, ironing station, more fabric, thread, quilting rulers, patterns, etc. I use every conceivable bit of space. Under, above, over, and some suspended from mid-air. Short story: don’t sacrifice storage if you can figure out a way. I CAN’T WAIT TO SEE YOUR ROOM!

      1. I am a paper crafter, a lot of ink , sometimes paint. I ended up with a glass topped desk from IKEA. That wasn’t my plan, but the price was right and I ended up loving it. Very easy to clean and it looks beautiful! Can’t wait to see your transformation.

  4. Gosh! We have 2 rooms like this. Or maybe even worse. The piles are bigger. One is going to become a walk-in wardrobe, the other – a home office. I am procrastinating, as clearing the room is the worst job of all, as you rightly said.

    I thought you are going to make the craft table yourself. It could be a nice project for the blog + you can make it so the dimensions are perfect for the room.

    What are you going to do with the kick boards? Put them back once the laminate is installed or replace them with new ones?

    1. Hi Val, we are making a custom table for the Cricuts, but the craft table will likely come from IKEA. We may make some modifications to it. I’m going to keep the baseboard, but I will remove and repaint them as they are filthy! I would consider getting new ones, but these are already super long and cut for the room. I don’t know how I’d transport 13-foot pieces of baseboard home in my car! 🙂

  5. I really enjoy your stories about your family and projects.
    After seeing your choices for your craft room/office redo I feel like I am having desk and printer table deja vu.
    You should check out the desk Kristi Linauer of http://www.addicted2decorating.com just designed and built.
    Can’t wait to see how it all turns out.

  6. I’m about two weeks away from organizing my craft room, and can’t wait to see your ideas. Mine won’t look as nice as yours, but I always seem to copy or adapt what you do, and I end up with something better than I thought of myself. Thanks for the help!!

  7. Suzi beat me to it – definitely check out the desk Kristi Linauer made! We just had our floors redone and put that exact same laminate (Crest Ridge Hickory) down. It is gorgeous, and everyone thinks it’s real wood. You will love it! It does show every speck of dust and dog hair (we have 4 and 2 of them are professional shedders), but I don’t care 🙂 I’m looking forward to seeing your progress in this room … and I will be drooling wishing you would come redo mine, lol

    1. LOL, we have two dogs, and one is absolutely a professional shedder! 😀 We love the color of the floor – it’s going to be great with white walls! 🙂

  8. Can not wait to see the progress of this space! I also have been trying to do my craft room. Slow process for me.. Thanks for sharing!

  9. I think the before was the reason guests were being scared away! It gave me a near heart attack or at least a persistent nervous twitch.

    You are lucky to have a full craft room though. I have a craft nook (basically a built-in counter top in a corner of my basement rec room) that is woefully inadequate. But I will be redoing that rec room in the near future to something better.
    That craft room is the tour has some great features, but ixnay on that carpet. Carpet in a craft room is asking for trouble…stains from spilled craft paint I(in my case also leather dye), trying to find tiny dropped jewelry findings, etc.
    Glad you are going with Pergo. The white walls will definitely help keep it bright and creative juice inspiring. Can’t wait to see the end result.

    1. LOL, You should have seen it at its worst! When we started clearing some stuff out a few months back, we weren’t planning this makeover. Oh, I wish I had pics of the flaming hot mess it used to be!! Don’t worry, the carpet is out. Pergo on the way in!

  10. When will we see part two of this project?? I too am in the beginning stages of redoing my daughters old bedroom into my office/craft/Pilates room!! Have flooring, paint, curtains, desk, just need to clear out room and pull carpet so I can paint!

  11. Have you used Pergo flooring before? I have had 1 room in my current and previous house with it. Beautiful to look at but lord help you if you drop anything pointy and it hit point down (scissors anyone?). Ask me how I know
    And any water stains that are not wiped up immediately will cause the edges to swell. Pretty soon your sweet floor is not so sweet. Again, ask me how I know (unknown spill in this case)
    I would recommend you look at a luxury vinyl product instead. I don’t know the price points for a craft room it makes more sense to me

    1. Hi Mona, we spent a looooong time debating between laminate and LVP. If money were no object, we would have gone for real wood, but after weighing all the pros and cons of laminate and LVP, we chose laminate. 🙂

  12. Thank you for showing me that my room isn’t the only one that’s a mess! LOL I’m looking forward to seeing your makeover and see what ideas I can use. The craft desk from IKEA is nice, but have you looked at the SKARSTA sit/stand desk? I have it and love it. I’m short and regular desks are a little to high for me to use comfortably, plus I wanted a higher table so I can stand when working and not strain my back. This desk can be moved from 27-1/2″ to 47″ and anywhere in between. It has a hand crank to raise and lower it (I didn’t want/need anything electrical). It only comes in white but, with your talent, you could swap out the top for wood. Just a thought. Looking forward to next week’s post.

    1. I think everyone’s is a mess, lol! So that desk for the middle of the room is more for very small crafts and pictures. It could be used either standing up or with an office chair. As for where I’ll be typing out these posts…well that remains to be seen 🙂

  13. I agree about the desk – don’t loose the space. But have you thought of places like Harbor Freight…use large rolling tool boxes for storage and table work space? They can lock in place, easy to move when you re-arrange (yes she will). If you think industrial, used commerical kitchen supply/auctions can give you the look, sturdy, and easy to clean, even put wood on top of the stainless steel. With your talent, skills and wife’s design it could be awesome. Looking forward to seeing the results. (Yes, I look forward to stealing your good ideas!)

  14. I craft in a former bedroom. My work surface is a cutting board from a fabric store supported by cabinets with pull out shelves, all on a frame with wheels! It is surrounded by bookshelves piled to the ceiling with “necessities “. I won’t even try to describe what’s in the closet! Looking forward to seeing how you make order out of chaos. BTW, I have cousins in Glastonbury!

  15. In the craft room she loved there was open windows with no curtains etc. I myself would take down those horrid blinds patch up the holes, paint and then hang grommet curtains for easy closing when the sun is too strong. When they are open, it lets light in with a much nicer, cleaner view.

  16. Lets just say, I love the post, it is very timely BUT I don’t have the guts to take on the challenge just yet!!! Keep sharing ! Thanks

  17. You have no idea how happy I am that you’re redoing this room now, because I’ve been pouring over Pinterest for weeks for ideas to redesign my crafting….wall? Nook? Is a straight area still considered a nook?

    I’ve only got a desk and a set of drawers but with my stuff taking over I’ve never actually used the desk as it’s constantly covered in stuff! It’s my biggest shame ?

    But i definitely agree with some other commenters: Don’t lose the space beneath your centre table. You’ll regret it later, much like I have. I bought a beautiful desk that had a single drawer and was nice and open beneath but all that’s happened is I’ve had to stack crate after crate under there because I had no other storage and it looks terrible! If I could go back in time I would buy a desk with far more built in storage – as it stands now I’m trying to find some sort of cabinet or drawers I can fit underneath. Fixing a problem I wouldn’t have had if I’d thought about it for two seconds longer than it took my heart to fall for the desk.

    I’m so excited to see some of the storage solutions Handan can come up with for smaller items, as those are the bane of my life! All those paints and brushes, bits of paper, stickers, and the fabric! What does one do with it all? I trust you, Handan! I know you’ll have a solution!

    I am super excited for this makeover.

    1. Jay, I wouldn’t have pegged you for a messy guy! Hopefully we’ll have some good solutions to help get you and your nook sorted out! 🙂

  18. This couldn’t be more timely as I have embarked on a similar journey! You don’t mention that you have found that rare creature, Greg! Handan in jeans! <3!

  19. First – now I cannot get that inspiration room out of my head! Best part for me is all the storage around the perimeter with great workspace in the center and two more workstations besides. How are you going to use your closet area – storage or workstation? Looking forward to seeing your plan unfold. And now I am going to stare at my craft room/laundry room and pout

  20. I so love reading your posts ! This one, however, I REALLY enjoyed because I have a craft room that is so jammed up it makes yours look clutter free. My spouse refers to it as the “crap room” – I intend to tackle it in the very near future and it is overwhelming. Thank you for the inspiration and for improving my self esteem-now I know I’m not the only person in this predicament! ( Mind you, it’s a self inflicted predicament) (aren’t most of them?)

    1. Believe me, we’re no strangers to overwhelming! You should see our basement – makes that craft room like a well-organized room in a minimalist’s home! 😀

  21. Oh wow! I am so excited for this!! I saw this post some up in my email and have not been able to look because I have been sick. But I have been re organizing, re doing my craft room FOREVER! I have lost SO much inspiration because I haven’t been feeling well, my stuff is piling up and so much “inspiration” I am trying to find on Pinterest is well…. Not inspiring. I LOVE older vintage looks, and so much of what I have is my mothers & grandmothers. I also LOVE the process of working on what I made! But so many rooms I have found are the same. I was beginning to think I LOST something.
    I love your blog and posts, and I ESPECIALLY love that your craft room looks like mine right now! It gives me a lot of motivation, believe it or not! I have been reading your blog for a while and look forward to every email I get! I am very excited to watch your craft room take shape!! Thank you for ALWAYS bringing a smile to my face!

    1. Marie, I hope you feel better soon, so you can get into your craft room and tackle it head-first! Starting a project like this is always the hardest part, but once you get going, it feels great! Good luck to you!

  22. Thank you for sharing your own story. I currently have a room that I’ve been trying to rearrange and organize for a couple of months already. I do not know where to begin with this process, it is overwhelming and stressful. I love the after-solution, you guys did an awesome job. Congratulations! I love it!

    1. Hi Michelle, I know it can seem overwhelming at first, but if you break it down into smaller chunks, it becomes much less scary. Usually the hardest part is where to put all the stuff that’s in the room while you work on it. Once you have that sorted and the room emptied, it’s a beautiful blank canvas.