I spent Saturday morning this weekend surrounded by Ikea chaos. Bolts, allen keys, boards, screws, those weird things that go on the other end of screws that Ikea seems to have invented to enable us to put together shelves with zero carpentry experience (hurrah Ikea!)… but at the end of the morning, I had a clean, tidy, organised, beautiful studio.
You see, it had all become a bit of a disaster in my little studio. I have a habit of working on about 10 different pieces at once (I don’t have a very long attention span) which meant that my things were spreading across every available surface, not only in my studio but across the dining table, the kitchen table, the floor… I find disorganisation like that very uninspiring – I take my inspiration from a small piece of jewellery, lace, or some beautiful fabric or vintage millinery piece, so when everything is jumbled up, mixed up, and generally just all over the place there is nothing that really speaks to me.
I now have three Ikea Alex drawer units and they are absolutely fabulous.
So after all this DIY, organising, tidying and cleaning, I thought I would share some of the little details in my studio.
The control unit: iPod, Bose docking station, and printer. Three very important things in any studio.
As much as I love the iPod, I am still a 90′s CD girl at heart – my Alba boom box, one of the first purchases I made when I moved to London from the US over 8 years ago, still gets regular use (even still the occasional mix tape!). My taste in music hasn’t progressed much since the 90′s either… and if you don’t own Joni Mitchell Blue, godspeed thee to Amazon – order by 2pm and you can be in musical heaven by lunchtime tomorrow. While you’re there, I also heartily recommend the soundtrack to “Once” (about The Frames with music by The Frames) and anything by Bruce Springsteen (favourite line ever: “you ain’t a beauty but hey you’re alright…” what a charmer…).
Large pot of pens. I love buying pens and the physical act of writing with a nice felt-tipped pen. Sadly they only had blue and black ink this time around.
My very capable intern – although the regular naps are getting a bit much. And yes, I do have two monitors. Essential.
My Ikea Alex drawers put to use! I very much enjoyed all the labelling – took me back to my schooldays in the week before the start of school in September, covering all my textbooks in brown paper bags and creating fancy labels for the front.
A few orders boxed up and ready to go out. Also a truly fabulous book about decorative scripts throughout the ages that I picked out of a “take me I’m free” box outside my neighbours house (shhh!)
Crucial mid-design snacks. Always at hand, alongside either coffee, rooibos tea, or a glass of wine.
Some of the gorgeous materials surrounding me, neatly packed up in glass jars. Don’t worry, they won’t stay that way for long. I also haven’t included a shot of the floor of my studio, which has pearls wedged into every corner and crevice.
A few pieces I’m currently working on for an upcoming shoot
My very pretty and very useful noteboard
And last but not least, in case things all get a bit much, my day bed sits just inside the window which gets the most beautiful sunlight streaming through in the mornings. Although most of the time my intern has first dibs.
I have lots of photos and printouts of pretty things that need to adorn my walls, and I would love to find a a beautiful wall planner to help me keep track of things – any suggestions?
Thanks for reading
Vicky x
What a lucky intern – working in such a fab office! x
I know! Her workload isn’t particularly high either…