Extreme Room Makeover

With all the more serious heart-to-hearts we've been having lately around here, I thought I would switch it up a bit with something.. not so serious? I don't know, I thought about this for awhile. It's almost like once you dip your toes into deeper waters, you can't go back. Well, you can, I suppose, but it's significantly harder. Honestly, I don't want my blog to be confined to serious talk. I did not start this blog to pour out my wee little heart for anonymous readers. I started this blog, as most of you already know, to document life. Okay, maybe not document, but as a getaway on the weekends, if you will. To talk about stuff where I have nowhere else to and to share tidbits of life. Don't get me wrong, there's always gonna be serious conversation, but life is not limited to just that, right? We're taking a break today. Correction: I'm taking a break today.

Welcome to Steady As She Goes' Extreme Room Makeover without the extreme and with less excitement than an actual makeover! If you've ever wondered where my little work space looks like, well, today's your lucky day!

For the longest time, I haven't had much of my own work space. For the past few years, I worked from the dining table, but the space was cramped and uncomfortable. Not to mention, there was a direct correlation between my weight increase and the refrigerator being (literally) one step away from my seat. I also really wanted a space of my own. There's something about personalizing your own space and the insane amount of inspiration you can simply draw from your environment. So naturally, I moved to my bedroom to do school. Your bedroom is basically your home inside a home. Unfortunately, I did not have a legit desk (more on that in a minute) and began doing work from the floor. Literally. I sat on the carpet, leaned against my bed frame and did all my work. Sometimes I'd put my laptop on the bed or on a small stool so I could have a pseudo table. Of course, my back wasn't having it and my posture started to look similar to that of Quasimodo's, so I finally decided to invest my money ask my parents for a better desk.

To be honest, I had a desk already, but it wobbled like crazy and was too small to be of any use (approximately 3.5' x 1.5'.) It sat in the corner of my bedroom holding junk and collecting dust. If you look super closely, you'll see a bottle next to the blue box near the left. Yeah, that bottle holds vitamins. It's been sitting there for almost an year now. I had it when I went overseas last summer and when I got home I left it there and haven't touched it since. I know, I'm gross. (And don't worry, I threw it away.) Among other gross things, there's also scattered bobby pins, a cup full of crochet hooks, a pill holder (hopefully with no pills in it), an Ed Sheeran cd, a human anatomy chart (uhm, don't ask), tie-dye duct tape, a watch, and a picture frame. Basically a whole bunch of nothingness.

So after my parents happily agreed to pay for a new desk and a mix-up, or should I say screw-up, (no? too weak?) at Ikea and having to exchange it, I finally finished assemblage last night. Can I just take a quick moment to say that Ikea is basically like real life Pinterest for everything you pin on your "future home" board? It's a little bit wack to see so many settings in one place, but it's a sure heaven for the ADD (and perhaps a nightmare for his companion.) So many sparklies to catch your eye. (Btw, from my last two trips to Ikea in the past week, I've deducted that getting ice cream at the store is the in thing. One dollah for a whopping cone. Sounds like a good deal to me.) Okay back on track.

I wanna say I put together the desk/drawer all by myself, but that would be a lie as Pops stood over me the entire time. In my defense, I did tell him I wanted to do it by myself, but he kept offering assistance as if a little part of him was dying every time I hammered in a nail or screwed in a screw. Since mom wasn't home, I asked if he could cook dinner instead while I finished up. I'm positive a little part of him did die. Of course, to make up for it, I took him up on his offer to help.

Buuut, enough talk, here's the "big" reveal! (Also, this one's for you, J! I expect you to send me a gushy message over it. Muah.)

I'm rather pleased with it. Here's more washed out pics for your strained eyes.

In case you're wondering, the shelf attachment did not come with the desk, which explains why the colors don't match. We just found it off another desk and because I needed a shelf to hold a couple of books I thought, "Oh heck, why not?" I don't think it looks too bad, right? The colors provide contrast and break up the monotony of the birch. (Ha, look at me, pretending to know what I'm talking about.)

The books on the shelf are a few of my faves (P&P and Mere Christianity), a current read (Bonhoeffer) and a textbook (Literature anthology). I'll most likely be switching them out regularly. The two little guys/soldiers were gifts from family friends who visited Kyrgyzstan many years ago. They've been sleeping in my drawers for at least five years now because I have had nowhere to put them. Don't cry little man (and woman), you're free now!

I really want to add frames and other knick-knacks on the wall, but I'm not positive how it'll hold up. The board and calendar that are currently on the wall have been there ever since I moved in and I may take them down. We'll see.

Well, now you know where I sit when I'm typing out my posts and papers. This is where the magic happens, folks. Anyway, thanks for sharing the excitement with me and listening to me talk about a whole bunch of nonsense. Hope you lovelies have a fantastic week!