we decided to try to map out our planning process in a
step 1. the research
we knew that we wanted a portion of our basement to have an "office" feel. a place we can organize our life, work on work, study, read, game, & pin while still able to be very close to one another. soooo began my obsession with finding the perfect desk for us. no pre-made desks were in our price range but after perusing my FAVORITE blog ever Young House Love i found this inspiration. click for a link to their 13 foot desk. and one of my favorite things happened in the 3rd paragraph - they linked up to another sample desk project from Aubrey & Lindsay. LOVE. two ideas. similar looks. LOTS OF INSTRUCTION! and then just to make me even more happy there was a picture post in response on A&L's blog with little detail but it was L-shaped with a slightly different color scheme! SCORE!!! so we have tons of ideas and lots of options.
inspiration visuals:
(links to images located above)
step 2. organize a plan for supports
first things first we already owned 2 black [although mis-matched] computer chairs. we wanted to make those work with our overall design. we also wanted 2 strong contrasting tones between the wood and the support postings. we perused A LOT. online [ikea, target, walmart, craigs list] in person [goodwill, salvation army, local thrift stores, habitat restore]. and came up with NOTHING! then...... a little luck and hopeful idea. could we take some "left overs" [aka filing cabinets] from ian's company move and recycle them for our desk?!? fingers crossed yes! so we secured 3 black filing cabinets to utilize as supports for our desk frame. plus they go well with our black chair design.
can ya dig it?!?!
total cost of filing cabinets = 0 dollars.
step 3. choose a lay out
we moved the filing cabinets home, left them in the garage for a month and nearly forgot about them. then after i FINALLY finished boards we moved them to the basement and set them to visual our design. we debated the two options from the other blogs & inspiration pictures.
option 1: 10-13 ft long straight desk
option 2: longer [very technical measurement] L shaped desk
how did we decide? we sat in the chairs in the different arrangements and ultimately just went with what felt right. we opted for the L shape for more desk space + the pretty corner design.
step 4. map out design & measure, measure, measure
after sitting with the chairs at different heights and taking some rather informal measurements we came to the conclusion that there was not a need to build up the height of the cabinets or add depth to the desk top requiring a support beam behind the desk bases. (see both blog designs to read more about how they supported their desk top & built up their cabinetry for added height) this means we only needed to measure out the wood needed for the desk top and the corner support structures.
and if you have an adorable, tech-savvy husby [like i do] generating a computer-aided design helps to visual the final product.
we ran all our ideas by our BFF jon, the construction engineer. he put on the official stamp of approval and provided the truck for transport of the goods. thank goodness for wonderful friends.
step 5. purchase supplies
we headed out to lowes.
original budget $100.00
we opted for-
5 -[ 2" X 8" X 10'] pine boards (desk top)
2 - [2" X 4" X 96"] framing boards (support boards)
american finish wood stain - light/medium tone stain
semi gloss polyurethane
foam brushes X3
1 box of 2" wood deck screws with full thread
for a grand total of $77.50
proof:
****we may need to get some more stain & polyurethane but that is still well within our original budget!
step 6. preparation
step 7. assembly
COMING SOON! Lots of cutting, sanding, staining, and screwing!
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