How to Create the Perfect Craft Room

To the outside observer it may just be a craft room, but for us, it's our sanctuary, safe haven, and happy place. Just like someone may go to the gym to sweat out a day's worth of emotions, being in the craft room takes your mind off the outside world and lets you enter into a state of warmly welcomed focus. There is one thing that is needed, the craft room itself! Today we will walk through ten of the most important elements to help you create the ultimate craft room!

1) A Sturdy Table - While some projects require precise and delicate crafting (origami), others have some heavier duty steps such as hammering and drilling. To avoid having a table collapse and getting paint all over your freshly polished wood floor, get yourself a sturdy wooden or metal table. Make sure there is enough surface space for your workspace, instructions, and tools. BONUS - if you can find one with adjustable legs (or be able to add height to the table with books under the legs) that will make it easier to transition from projects that are easier when sitting, to others where standing is preferred.

2) A Pegboard - While there are a million ways to keep your craft room organized, we are huge fans of the pegboard. Just like a larger scale pegboard can hold all your gardening and power tools in your garage, a smaller sized one can be just as useful with your tools in your craft room. Hang your scissors, threads, buckets filled with utensils, and other miscellaneous tools on it, just make sure it is safely secured to the wall!

3) Abundant (Natural) Lighting - It's pretty safe to say where there is crafting, there will also be colors and plenty of them. To truly see the vibrancy of those colors, make sure to have plenty of lighting in your craft room. We have always been fans of natural light, but just in case you are crafting in Northern Norway in the middle of winter, make sure to have ample overhead lighting and some lamps on hand. For more delicate projects like crocheting and sewing, it's imperative to get every stitch perfect, and I would bet my house you couldn't do that in a dimly lit room. Plus when you are finished with your projects and want to take pictures, natural lighting can do wonders to make your project seem even that much better, kind of like a natural photoshop ;)

Via A Diamond in the Stuff

4) Racks & Drawers - While we do have our pegboard to hang lighter tools and utensils, it just doesn't make sense to hang a ream of construction paper. For the less aesthetically pleasing materials and heavier tools, get a nice rigid rack or set of drawers for them to be stored. Better yet, you can even decorate your drawers or shelves to match the theme of your craft room.

5) DIY Photo Studio - Perhaps you want to make a few bucks with your crafts and sell them on Etsy or your blog. Well, let me tell you from experience you will need great pictures! Luckily creating great product images has never been easier. The two most important elements are your background and lighting. Once you have a nice white background and a generous amount of natural light, you're well on your way! After you take your pictures, services like Mister Clippings can edit them for under $10/picture to make them look as professional as ours ;) (Spoiler: we use them too).

6) Display The Crafts You've Made! - Nothing adds flair and more importantly your personal touch more than the crafts you have already made. There are a few reasons why we make crafts, but one of them is to show them off. What better place to show them off than your craft room.

7) Desk Organizers - These are great because 1) you can make them yourself and there are a million ways to make them and 2) when you're in the middle of a project, you don't want to keep reaching up to your pegboard for the pair of scissors. Desk organizers are great to keep the tools you are actively using for a project within reaching distance. When they are not in use, go ahead and put them back on the pegboard to keep your desk/table nice and clean.

8) Ventilation - This may go without saying, but it is important to have pristine air quality in your craft room. For projects that require staining or painting, it's crucial to get fresh air flowing through, or you might be feeling a bit funny halfway through the project. Also, for projects that require a lot of time, pleasant cool air will help you stay concentrated on the task at hand.

9) Emergency Clean-Up Station - Part of what makes crafting so fun, is that it allows you bring out your inner kid and get a little dirty. That being said, it's all fun and games until you spill stain or paint all over the floor. Depending on the type of tables (wood, glass, metal, etc.) and the type of flooring (carpet, wood, etc.) you have in your room, have some cleaning stuff nearby in case of emergency. Also, it wouldn't be a bad idea to have some stain remover close by in case you decide to craft in your Sunday best.

10) Trash & Recycling Bin - Another one that may be common sense, but is essential for any craft room. For those of us that don't like to keep every scrap, having a bin close by can keep your craft room nice and neat. It will save a lot of space on your table and help avoid getting stuff on the floor. Plus it just gives you another chance to decorate another element of your craft room!

There you have it, if you can accomplish these ten steps you'll be well on your way to creating a crafting heaven. If you have any more ideas for craft rooms or want to show us pictures of your own, post to any social media and use the hashtag #adultsandcrafts and we would be happy to share it with our followers.

Happy Crafting!