Thank you so much for all of your kind words on my Home Office/Studio Makeover post! I had so much fun (and a million projects) customizing the space to better fit our needs. One of the things that was a must-have on my list was more storage. This room has really high ceilings and no closet, so I thought the best use of space would be shelving. I also thought it would be fun to use a bunch of uniform vintage apothecary inspired boxes on the shelves. With the amount of space the shelves take up, it could have gotten cluttered and overwhelming pretty easily. I love the look of the uniformity.
Joss and Main sent me these Sprout boxes for my project. They are intended for kids toy storage and are very sturdy, so I knew they would work well for my needs. Joss and Main is a rotating deals site, and I don't see them on there right now, but you may want to check back or try their sister company, Wayfair.
I put each of the boxes together- 16 total. I had originally intended to cover/paint/something the straps that hold them together because I didn't know how the nylon would look, but I ended up leaving them when all was said and done. I thought they seemed pretty neutral and brought out the other pops of black/charcoal in the room. I would love your feedback at the end of the post- would you change them?
I mixed my favorite warm gray stain (HERE) except I modified the formula a little bit 3:1 (3 gray: 1 jacobean). I wanted them to be on the lighter and warmer side.
I first coated each box with wood conditioner (In my opinion, wood conditioner is worth every penny when staining!), and then did a single coat of stain. I didn't put a protective layer on the boxes because, well, I didn't want to. I like the idea of them gaining age and patina. They are for my workroom, so they can show a little age an wear. The more the better actually.
I wanted to add hardware to really give it that vintage apothecary inspired feel. I ordered mine from D Lawless, but I will do a separate post on how I aged them. They were bright, BRIGHT, brass before. I used pliers to hold my little nails while I hammered them in. It would have been better to use needle nose pliers, but I was being impatient :). I just used small screws to attach the pulls.
I still need to add labels to all of the boxes (and to the drawers on the adjoining wall) and organize (and declutter!) all of my things, but I am so excited to have the space to do it. I have mentioned this before, but I am a little weird in that I am a messy creative, but I still crave order and organization. This allows me to have the best of both worlds. Organized boxes with my stuff thrown in.
I might try to snap a few more pictures soon. These ones didn't show the chandelier in all of its gloriousness very well. The chandelier is so much more grand in real life so it actually balances out the heaviness of the box wall. Now I just need to get labeling and organizing! Don't forget to tell me what you think about the nylon straps... would you change them at all?
Michele @ The Joyful Home
These look great! I can relate to the messy/creative-organized thing. It's a constant struggle, but I own it 🙂