C is for cabinet

I have a love of shallow drawers. I work with tiny little pieces-parts when I’m creating, and shallow drawers are great for storing all of them. One thing I’ve learned about myself over the years is that I need my supplies to be in at most two layers for me to be efficient and — more important — to be able to put things away properly when I’m done with them. Stuff piled in front of other stuff and tottering piles of boxes are the kiss of death for my already tenuous grip on organization.

A couple of years ago, I lucked into a 50-drawer library card catalog at a ridiculously low price — as in, I thought the price marked on it was for one of the sections, not all three sections plus the pull-out shelves, base, and top. Score! I pulled out all the card rods (stored away in case I ever decide to sell it) and cut foam core to line the bottom of each drawer. All of my beads and related supplies that fit in that drawer size live in there, and those things are always well organized and easily found and returned.

Last Wednesday, that little voice in the back of my head told me I should stop at a couple of antique stores along my errand route. I like to listen to that little voice, because she often has some really good ideas. I explored a couple of shops I hadn’t been in before, then stopped at a few more I hadn’t been to in years. At the last place I went, I found this cute aqua green cabinet.

Isn’t she pretty?

After a little bit of back-and-forth, she was mine, and then the proprietor and I tried to wrestle the cabinet into my car, which is kind of like a clown car in that I can get a lot more stuff in there than anyone might think possible (like the library card catalog — take that, skeptical antique mall guy!). This time, though, even with the help of two orange-haired skateboarders and the guy who parked in front of me, it just wasn’t going to happen.

So, I called my cousin, and he helped me pick it up with his big SUV on Thursday. It took about half a day to clean it up and get the drawers lubricated and put some drawer liners in, but it’s in good shape now.

I spent a bit of time rearranging up in the studio and populating her drawers with tools and supplies that were formerly in plastic boxes on that shelf you can barely see to the right. I’m not sure this will be her final location, since one of my goals this year is complete renovation of my studio, but for now it’s a good spot.

I’m still drooling over printer cabinets, though. I’ve been wanting one for years, but ones that are in good shape tend to be expensive. There’s a gorgeous one on eBay right now that is very, very tempting, even though it’s almost as much as I paid for my sec0nd car.

However, I do other creative work too, and the supplies for some of my other projects aren’t quite so petite. So, I’m thinking I need to recalibrate my drool toward something with some deeper — although still sort of shallow — drawers, now that I have my super-shallow-drawer needs covered. I’d love to get rid of all the plastic boxes and get the open shelving down to a minimum. I have my eye on a piece that just might do the trick, but it’s two days’ drive away, and I’m waiting on a shipping quote to see if it’s worth even thinking about.