Studio Makeover: Workroom Update + Easy Wall DIY

It's been awhile since I updated you on all the projects going on in the studio. I've been in such a hurry to get them done that I rarely stop to take pictures or document the progress. But as we finished up the workroom last month, I actually remembered to photograph everything we did. A miracle!

First up, I made a commitment and glued the wallpaper down. Last time I posted about the workroom, I told you that I was stapling the wallpaper instead of gluing it. I was afraid I'd change my mind and didn't want to be stuck with yellow flowers forever. But after 8 months of living with the pattern, I can't imagine changing it!

Gluing it down was easy. The wallpaper was pre-glued and after all these years, it was still sticky. All I had to do was put it in water and stick it on the wall.

Next it was time to add a little trim. I needed a place to hang some of the art we have for sale and the side of the workroom was perfect. I used white trim to frame out a large space, cut out the wallpaper inside it, and painted it turquoise to match the bottom half of the wall. It was a perfect, easy solution, especially great for those trying to add interest to an otherwise boring wall.

Before

Wall Frame DIY

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This DIY is SO easy that I'm not even going to bother to explain it. Just head to Home Depot, pick out a trim to coordinate with your room, paint it, cut to size, and attach it to the wall. There are so many decorative options here. You could fill the inside of the frame with wallpaper (like the picture on the left) or with a contrasting paint color. Make the trim the same color/stain as your molding, the same color as the wall, or add a punch of bold color. Endless possibilities!!

March 28Day In-Studio Event!!

It's time! We're gearing up for this month's 28Day studio sale. Wednesday, March 28th from 4-9p we'll be in the studio with drinks and pizza hanging out, listening to music, and selling furniture. Stop by to get first dibs on awesome new stuff, much of which is ONLY AVAILABLE IN STUDIO like wall art from iamhome, new vintage wares, and of course a super selection of handmade. If you need more of an incentive, we're doing 28% off all in-studio purchases over $50. Yea!

Apartment 528 | 2023 W Carroll Ave | Chicago IL 60612 | 312.970.1528

Our West Town studio is located on the 2nd floor of the Carroll Ave lofts near the corner of Damen and Grand. Just look for warehouses and a big sign on Damen that says "Kinzie Industrial Corridor" and you'll know you're there! Free parking is available in front of the building. If you're taking the bus, the 50 Damen lets you right off at Carroll. There are also train stops within walking distance. Free delivery within Chicago will be available for those who can't carry their purchases home.


My computer's still being fixed :( so I can't create any cool graphics for you but take a look at some of our favorite new items below.

Vintage armchair. Newly upholstered, PLUS it rocks AND swivels. Yep. Swivels.

Blocks. Duh.

I know these are technically champagne coupes but for us unsophisticated folks, they're also great for drinking wine, Dr. Pepper, and even milk. That's how we roll!

Chalkboard skulls from iamhome. They come in four awesome colors. Every home needs one.

Teeny Screenies screen printing kit. Lots of colors and designs to choose from. 

See you there :)

Our First In-Studio 28Day!!

After almost 2 months of moving in and getting the studio just as we want it, we're happy to announce that we're FINALLY ready to have our first 28Day studio sale event! Come by Tuesday, February 28 11-7p to shop our entire selection of handmade and vintage products, including our new inventory and items only available in the studio. Plus we'll have great deals and giveaways all day long.

Apartment 528 | 2023 W Carroll Ave | Chicago IL 60612 | 312.970.1528

Our West Town studio is located on the 2nd floor of the Carroll Ave lofts near the corner of Damen and Grand. Just look for warehouses and a big sign on Damen that says "Kinzie Industrial Corridor" and you'll know you're there! Free parking is available in front of the building. If you're taking the bus, the 50 Damen lets you right off at Carroll. There are also train stops within walking distance. Free delivery within Chicago will be available for those who can't carry their purchases home!

See you there!

2/28 UPDATE: Checkout pictures of the studio and our super awesome inventory on our facebook page.

Studio Makeover: The Doors

The doors are (almost) done!!!

After stripping, sanding, and staining for what seemed like an eternity, I finally got the doors kind of done. For now, I've only worked on the front. I got so tired that I didn't do the inside of the door. I think I'm going to go the lazy route and just leave the inside painted white since the only person who's going to see it is me anyway. I still need to get curtains to hide the mess and find some awesome antique doorknobs, but other than that we're done! 

Oh, and did you notice? WALLPAPER!!! I really wanted some old, retro wallpaper to decorate the outside of the room. I searched Etsy and Ebay looking for paper with red in it to bring out the red pipes above the room but couldn't find anything, especially in a full roll like I needed. But on a thrifting expedition Monday, I came across a FULL ROLL of groovy wallpaper. It looks like something straight out of The Brady Bunch! There's no red but I love the pattern and there was tons of it. Best part...it was $2.69!!!! Does it get any sweeter :)

Wallpaper up, time to paint!

I ended up stapling the wallpaper to the wall instead of pasting it. I constantly change my mind so I figured this was a better decision, that way I can easily switch it out for something else down the road. The pattern is busy enough and the staples are far enough apart that you have to look hard to find the staples. I did glue the wallpaper on the right side of the door because I was at the end of the roll at that point and had to put together several small pieces that didn't want to unroll. The paper is pre-pasted so all I had to do is wet it and smooth. If only everything was so easy!

Next on the list: finding door knobs, finally painting the green above the workshop, and finishing the taping and painting of the drywall inside the room. Almost there!

Studio Makeover: The Beginning of the Workroom

This weekend we built our new work/paint/sanding room. When I say "we," I mean Sam and Jesus from Property Comfort Interiors built the room while Jerome and I painted. Sam is our landlord's nephew and has been a huge help as we've taken on various projects around the apartment. Thank God they had a free weekend to help us out and were able to get our room up in just seven hours!

BEFORE 

Jerome and I took care of painting while Sam and Jesus did the building.

All done!!! (try not to laugh at my drywall taping)

The green paint is going to extend over top of the workroom.

At 12' x 6', it's not the biggest room but it's just the size I need to work on furniture and store my tools. Unfortunately we couldn't add a ceiling due to fire codes; the room must have access to the sprinkler system in the rest of the studio and paying for sprinklers to be brought down and added was NOT in my budget. That means we'll have to come up with some clever ways to work around having an open ceiling, such as using more water-based products to deal with smell issues or using plastic tarps over the ceiling of the room when doing smelly/messy work.

My favorite part of the studio so far? Our new doors for the workroom! Instead of paying for boring standard doors, we decided to go vintage. I wanted something wood with glass panels so I can see outside of the room while I work. I searched craigslist but couldn't find what I wanted. Then as we were loading drywall into the freight elevator, we found FREE old doors on the loading dock. According to Sam, these doors would go for several hundred dollars if we tried to buy them. MAJOR SCORE!!!! They were just laying there waiting to go out to the trash. They even have the glass panes that I wanted. Talk about awesome! I'm currently in the process of stripping, sanding, and staining them dark walnut. I can't wait to see how gorgeous they look when they're hung on the workroom!

I'm also in the middle of taping the drywall. By myself. This could be bad! So far, most of my taping has gone well and there have only been two pieces that didn't turn out right but I'll get those fixed in no time. The final coat of joint compound goes on today and tomorrow I'll be able to start priming and painting. Sam will be back on Friday to install the doors and then the room will be finished. YEAAAAAAAAAAAA!!!!!!!!!

Studio Makeover: Painted Floors Part 1

We started phase one of our studio remodel this weekend...painting the floors! The original floors were just bare plywood subfloor, not something I wanted to keep. We considered a lot of options like laminate or wood floors but in the end painting was cheaper. It was also easier than our original idea of pulling apart shipping pallets and using the planks to make wood floors. Be warned, that's NOT a project you want to take on until you've thought through how you're going to remove all those nails and plane and sand the boards. It's a LOT of work!

While part of me really wanted to stain the wood, using the building-required low VOC stain and sealer was too expensive for us. So we stuck with paint. After two days of PAINFUL floor painting that killed our back, shoulders, and arms, we're happy with the results! We used five gallons of Behr Porch and Patio paint in Gentle Rain to cover a 1200sf area and it turned out perfect. I'd highly recommend painted floors to anyone looking to do something a little different with their space. My suggestion though: use primer! We didn't because we were trying to save ourselves from having to paint any more coats than necessary. Instead we did one full coat and then thinned the paint with water to do a second coat. We also didn't seal it. Because this is a work space and there will constantly be furniture moved around, leaving the floor a little "imperfect" was fine for our needs. If you're painting floors in your apartment, I'd definitely use primer, do two full coats of paint, and use a floor sealer to keep your floors fresh.
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Ready to be stenciled!

Next on our list - stenciling. We're on the prowl for a retro-inspired design to stencil on the floor. I have no clue what I want but thanks to pinterest, I have tons of inspiration to pull from. What do you think?

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