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Getting Creative with Desk Accessories - by Audrey
(February 2006)Preface: Thanks to Jim who unknowingly turned me on to the joy of letter sorters via his wonderful Silkstone boutique photo last week.. :-)
Letter sorter. Business card holder. Post-It note holder. Pencil cup. Metal ruler. Paper clips. Push pins. Magnets. Small lucite photo frames. Would you have imagined that all of things in the photo above could be used like THIS?
Welcome to the grand opening of 'Shoetique of Soho'! In the photos above, the 3-tier display shelf on the floor is a letter sorter. The two tables on either side of it are post-it note holders. All the shelves are business card holders turned upside down. (Right side up, they make a great flower box or a handy place to display bottles, magazines, etc.) Lucite photo frames are very inexpensive and make great frames for mini artwork. Use them as is or add miniature molding for a more traditional look. Here’s a close-up of my favorite homemade product advertisement:
In the photo below, I discovered that a bent paper clip attached to a flexible magnet strip makes a great place to hang accessories. Believe it or not, large paper clips with a strong magnetic backing even work well for clothes! A large paper clip can accommodate up to 4 fashions. The art prints on the left side came from art.com. All I did was choose what I wanted and print it out. The artist in this case is Andrea Laliberte. (A quick side note: if it’s on the wall, it has at least one magnet attached to it. I’ll explain how to create your own magnetic backing later in the discussion.)
The display pedestal in the photo above is two business card holders standing on end facing each other. I added a square posterboard top covered in black contact paper for stability as well as a more uniform look. And that great chair? It's from Hobby Lobby of course!
Care for a little “Spring Bling”? Metallic look shoes and crystal encrusted purses are a sure bet to add some extra sparkle.
The corner display table is a pencil cup turned upside down. The cashier's desk is a pencil cup with a post-it note holder on top. In addition, I added a shallow posterboard shelf covered in more of the same black contact paper.
Other details: The overhead lights that you see in the second photo are miniature clip on lights meant for late night book reading. The feet on the letter sorter are jumbo size push pins (another great idea from someone on these boards, though I can’t recall who). You could also use regular size push pins, wooden pegs, wooden blocks, etc. Change the décor quickly and easily by using your imagination along with solid colored paper, printed paper or homemade advertisements. Put a light (battery operated or wired) underneath the pencil cup to give it a spectacular modern look.
But . . . what good is all that fabulous footwear if there's no one to wear them? Shoe fanatic that she is, Isha decided to stop in and check out the new spring styles and post-winter clearance event. Jelly boots? Oooo, fun!
Gold is definitely her color.
Those are nice! And they're ON SALE!!!
Just to give you an idea of how versatile they can be, here's another business card holder and one more pencil cup.
For the "magazine rack" all I did was add mini magazines that I printed out from Jim's Printable Minis online. To make the pencil cup into a table, I added a small circular mirror that I picked up from the craft store. I can imagine this table with many things including a floral arrangement, a piece of art, wig stands, or even a mannequin. Today, my display is a shoe boutique, but tomorrow, it will be a loft apartment complete with a wall of TVs! After that, an art gallery. The possibilities are endless!
Now for the really important info: WHERE DID ALL THOSE DESK ACCESSORIES COME FROM? Although the items I chose are merely a small sample of what’s out there, the black wood & faux frosted grass desk accessories all came from Staples, as did the silver metal look circular pencil cup. The magnetic photo frames came from the craft store along with the button magnets and the pre-cut circular mirror. The burnt orange leather business card holder came from Home Goods. (And as far as I know, they don’t carry them any more. Sorry!) I found the jumbo push pins at Wal-Mart in the stationery section and just about everyone and their cousin has paper clips. On to the magnetic backing. The “brick” walls for this scene are part of the Bella! Productions ‘Room with a View’ set which has reversible magnetic walls. (Though I was told that due to the excessive weight, going forward, only one side of the double sided room would be magnetic, so be sure to ask questions before you buy.)
For those of you working with bookshelves, foam core or pre-constructed dollhouses, etc., no worries. Just get yourself some thin metal rulers (I got mine at the dollar store) and either glue them in place with hot glue (if you want them attached permanently) or use removable glue dots. After that, add your wall coverings on top of them and you’re good to go. Note: the thicker the covering over the ruler, the more powerful your magnet will have to be to support the weight it will be holding. Shop around. All magnets are not created equal. Although I haven’t tried it yet, as an alternative, you might also be able to magnetize your walls by using magnet sheets which are sold in approx. 8” x 11” peel & stick rolls at the craft store. Just peel, stick (cut with scissors first if you need to) and in theory, you should be good to go. Of course, for a display like mine, you don’t have to use magnets at all. If you still want wall mounted shelves and you’re the kind of person who is not inclined to change your displays, then good old glue will do the trick.
That wraps up today’s diorama discussion. A special thank you to DeeinNJ, the Diorama Diva for offering me this guest spot, and of course, to our fabulous Doll Divas moderators, Laure, especially. I hope I’ve inspired you to look at every day items from a different perspective. And of course, if you do, we’d love to see what you come up with!
Best Wishes,
Audrey
