Now, as i've noted before, it is no fun to simply trot into a store and purchase the things I want to effectively use my space, rather, it is much more fun to pull things of off the street. Want an example?
A couple months ago it occured to me that I kind of need a coatrack, shoe-rack, and related accouterment. Now, for some of these things i was at a loss for how to make them without things like a saw or a power-drill, or whatever electric tools are often used in the construction of furniture. So, as i began to start piecing together other bits of furniture for around my apartment, I started looking at things as if they could fit the niche i need filled.
Example one- Coatrack-
So, if you're wondering, nobody really places coat hooks out for people to nick-up. (if they do, then hell, people more savvy then me are getting them.) For a while, I tried to turn the little wooden separators in wine boxes into some form of hat-rack. I even tried cutting and bending an old floor lamp into a useable coat-tree. But nothing seemed to really work. So it was much to my surprise, when a few weeks ago, i noticed in the basement of my building, in the freebie piles of furniture left by existing and leaving tenants, there was this guy: (actually this piece)
So, I left it down there, but with a sticker with my name on it, to give me time to ponder. And since I do most of this in my spare time, of which there really isn't much, i figured i'd let my brain stew on it for a bit. One of the notable perks of having a lazy super is that they are not exactly fastidious regarding clearing out the basement, so one can imagine that I had a good amount of time to think it over.
Eventually I got a bit annoyed one night, something frustrating at school was bothering me, and I decided to go down into the basement and disassemble the sonovagun. It took me five minutes to undo what looked like it probably took the original owner an hour, and bring it into my little apartment for analysis.
But with all the stuff and bits spread out, I saw solutions to my apartment needs, but ones which came with their own challenges. Most troublesome was how i was going to attach the coatrack portion, nicely stripped away, to a wall when it had no holes penetrating through the bridge from one side to another. So it went back to the closet, and waited another few days.
Finally i disassembled everything and laid it in front of me on my upside-down ikea rug. After playing with the screws and pieces, I attached the metal furls from the underside of the top shelf to the back holes on the rack piece, bending them forward, with the intention of creating an upsidedown U shape that would hook over my door. And gall-darnit, it almost worked! I would have gotten away with it if it weren't for a meddlingly small doorway to door space!
Damned again I frustratedly bent back the furls to ride straight to the ceiling, and you know what? I saw a couple of holes in the middle of the furl that i had previously missed. A few grunts and i had attached the bar and brackets to the wall above my shoe rack. Wha-bam- coatrack solved.
I took the bottom seat, and reset the back feet, tucked it into my closet, and ta-daaaaaa looks like I've got some lover shelving in my miniscule kitchen-closet-
Tell me what you think and CHEERS!
Pictures of my table and box projects are likely on their way. BUt gawd dangit, I'm having a heck of a time trying to get some of the inspiration to finish them!
Oh and the rest of the bits, well, I'm thinking headboard- but I'll need some paint...
