Studio organization: Works in progress storage

On the hunt for some new furniture, I hit the antique malls for the first time in maybe a year! I was way past due. I've been looking for a buffet-type piece of furniture to use in our living room, but I came across this instead.

Over the past six months or so, I've been slowly building my studio, while also trying to work in said studio. It was a mess, and the whole thing was just leaving me feeling disorganized and crazy.

To get some clarity, I made a list of every function I needed the space to perform. Work space, materials storage, finished goods storage, packing space, etc. And then I realized I had a big hole in my process: I had no storage area for works in progress. Everything was just everywhere. Painted frames drying wherever I could find a flat surface, which, in turn, gave me no place to work. It seems really obvious now, but I just hadn't broken it down like that before.

So anyway, when I ran across these units with perfectly sized shelves, I lunged. At $40 each, they were easy to say 'yes' to. Because if you've ever priced letter sorters or furniture with a bunch of shelves or pigeonholes, you will know that $40 is a bargain. And forget about finding anything made of wood. I bought one, and then went back the next day for the other.

These things are SOLID wood and super heavy. And also handmade and a bit rough, but I sort of like their garagey character for now. The space is still a work in progress, but I feel like all the functional components are finally here. Let's hope I can share some prettier pictures soon!

Working on a workspace + etsy dreams

Last fall, we closed in an old garage door that led directly into our basement. It was non-functional and not at all insulated. Frigid in the winter and I swear you could feel the wind blowing through.

Old boarded-up garage door (November 2012)

Other than making it more energy efficient, the main reason for fixing up this space was to turn it into a workspace-slash-studio. A dedicated space for painting, building, taking photos, etc.

Wall up, pre-drywall (November 2012)

The last time I showed this space here, there wasn't even drywall up. It's up now, but like the rest of the unfinished basement, it's not taped and mudded. (A previous owner started finishing the basement, but didn't finish finishing the basement.)

So I'm starting to create my basement workshop. Looking at these photos, you probably wouldn't have guessed anything had been done at all. Really, it's not so pretty at this point. But considering what it looked like not even a year ago, I am allowed to call this progress.

I was going to paint this concrete wall behind the work bench white to freshen things up, but. It's already sort of a white-washed light grey, and I have grown to love the chalky texture so I'm keeping it the way it is.

Even though it looks a mess, things are coming along. It needs more organization and some prettifying, but I'll get there.

You may be wondering why I need a workspace like this. I'll let you in on a little secret: I'm currently working to start my own etsy shop. All my legal start-up paperwork is in order, and all I'm doing now is using every spare bit of free time I have to make things. It's slow going, though. Given that I'm on mom-time, my free time really doesn't add up to very much.

I'm not quite ready to show my wares here yet, but I will divulge more soon. I'm trying to act all confident and business-lady-like, but truthfully, the thought of opening this shop is making me so nervous for all the normal reasons. (What if nobody likes what I make? etc.)

Any etsy shop owners out there with tips or advice on calming those fears? I've read just about every article out there about opening a shop and I feel prepared, but still the nerves won't quit!