L*K Office Tour!

It's still a "work in progress", but I thought you might like to see my new home office space. I had to wait until afternoon to take photos, because this room has bright east sunshine in the morning. Here's the view out my east office window. We're on a little cul-de-sac on an inlet of the main "Kansas-sized" lake. The "big" lake is around the corner to the left.

I thrive on bright (stitching) light and well lit rooms, so this office space works well for me. We have lots of windows all over our new house, so we can enjoy the lake and woodsy views. I chose a cheerful pale green for my office walls. The color is called "Dune Grass", so it furthers my personal delusion that I'm living at the beach.

OK...here's the thing. I designed our new house to look "coastal". I have the delusion that we are living at a beach somewhere on a lovely coast, but really we're living on an old sandpit lake in the middle of Kansas! I want my new house to look like an old house on a beach somewhere. Hey, whatever floats your boat - a little "coastal" humor.

My home office is tucked behind the kitchen and dining room in a spare bedroom. As I walk in I see this sweet little display of some of my favorite old things...globes and pastel pottery on a bookcase I bought years ago at a junk store. There's also an old DMC wood box on the top shelf. On the bottom shelf are some "vintage" pics of Lizzie and Kate that went with us to market many years ago. I "found" these old pics during our recent move...amazing what you "find" when you move!

As you look to the left, you'll see my new IKEA desk, looking much neater than usual for this photo op. I downsized my desk from my former office. So far this IKEA setup is working really well. I bought 2 flat white laminate tops that come in lots of sizes, then screwed on the legs. On top of the main desk you can catch glimpses of some upcoming designs...the new "yet unnamed" Flip-it series that's all about SNOW, 3 little Flora McSample mini stockings, "A Little Coffee" kit, and a new Inspiration Boxer.

As I sit at my computer, here's my view out the north window. I see my neighbor's lovely backyard, and bit of the lake beyond. My teeny desk calendar tries to keep me on schedule (OK, it looked bigger in the picture when I ordered it). I just made myself a little moss terrarium - we'll see if it thrives. The bowl of old marbles was another "find" when we moved. I found this stash of old glass marbles in an old purse from Alan's grandmother...who knew...and why was her purse full of marbles? Whatever, I love them!

Did you see my "ort" lamp on my desk? It's one of those fillable lamps and I've stashed it with colorful orts (bits of leftover threads). Ah...the many lamps I could have filled if I had found this sooner. It's sort of like the "ghosts of projects past" inside that lamp!

Behind my desk is my IKEA cube credenza (so glad IKEA finally came to Kansas City). Behind those doors and drawers are tons of threads, printer paper, you name it...it's hidden in there. But the real star on this wall is the giant pink sprinkled donut painting!  Our daughter, Sarah, did this custom artwork for my office. It makes me smile every time I glimpse it, and it really brightens the whole room. Sarah teaches high school art near downtown Chicago (shout out to Ms. Wain and her fabulous art students).

Check out the funky pink globe on the right (above). My son-in-law, Jeff, brought this to their marriage, and it somehow ended up at my house...hmmmm. (Not everyone has room for a pink globe in their decor!).

In the nearby corner is an old child's desk I've had for years. This desk has lived in so many different rooms of my house, but I always find a place for it...so sweet. Right now it's displaying the 3 BONUS projects from our current "A Little Mystery" Sampler. Under the drape is the model for "A Little Mystery". We shipped Part 3 (the final part) of "A Little Mystery" earlier this week, but I don't want to spoil the surprise for anyone.

On the remaining wall is the real "star" of the office...my CLOSET! Instead of clothes rods, I had the carpenters build shelves in my closet. It's crammed full of threads, fabric, and every kind of cross stitch supply imaginable. The tricky part is remembering where I put stuff in there when I hastily unpacked.

On the left (above), you can see the doorway that leads to my little office. Beyond is our sunny dining room with a few of my happy plants.

Finally, here's the office bath. I like to think of it as the "executive washroom". The office was originally a guest bedroom, so hence the private bath. I found a bright shower curtain at World Market that coordinated with my coral walls. I furthered my "old house" delusion by adding beadboard walls, tilting mirror with glass shelf underneath, pedestal sink and hexagonal black/white tile floor. I love the little floor flowers! 

Last, but not least, here's my office light fixture. I think of it as "Jetsons meet the Brady Bunch". It doesn't really match anything else, but I just saw it and loved it, so...

Thanks for joining me on the official Lizzie*Kate new office tour. If you have any ideas/suggestions for the L*K office, please let me know. I'm anxious to add more artwork, more plants, and surround myself with more "happy" things. Meanwhile...back to work!