Monday, February 14, 2011

Weekly Challenge #2: The Launch Pad

I'm not done with this area yet, but here's where I am with it all.

This is the area of the house where (ostensibly) our family can place everything they'll need to grab before heading out the door for another fun-filled day of work and school.

In theory, in our house anyway, this would be A Good Thing. Alas, our current launch pad does not work for us at all.

Here's what it looks like at 1 am, when all our things should be beside the door:



No sign of a backpack, or work bags, or anything remotely like what will actually walk out the door with us. Our coats are in the entryway that is through that door...except when they're hung over the backs of dining area chairs, or hung over the stairway newel post because apparently my family hates to hang up their coats in the coat closet it's hard for more than one person to be in the entryway hanging up coats at a time. (That back entryway is a prime target for this upcoming Home Improvement season)

One of the things I like to do is to clear a space out, take a picture, print it on scrap paper, and then draw all over it in order to see what will work and what won't.

I started by moving the bookcase:



Already that opens up possibilities. One of the things that really bugs me is that the carpet/hardwood floor division is right in the MIDDLE of that wall, directly under the electrical outlet. Originally the carpet was supposed to start right at the door frame and angle toward the staircase. In reality, the carpet installers had trouble with that, so our builder asked if they could just lay it lined up with the edge of the stairs. I should've come to look at where they were planning on starting it, but I didn't. And it bugs me a whole bunch. The shoes are on a remnant of that carpet, but they're actually on the hardwood floor.

ANYWAY.

I took down the clock and picture so that I could have a better idea of what I had to work with, since I'm not too happy with how it all looks. Of course, my inspection crew woke up from their naps and came to get in my way help out.



Once I'd cleared everything out of the way, I was able to sit back and think about what we need to have in that space to make it a good launch pad.

It needs to have:
  • A place for keys

  • A place to hang up coats/jackets

  • A place for shoes & something to sit on to take said shoes on and off

  • A clock

  • Pictures or something to fill the space

  • A lamp


In our old house, we had a peg coat rack, with an Ikea peg rack right above it for keys (this is a very old picture from 2004. Apparently Amanda was a Gryffindor Quidditch player for Halloween that year. Also, we've had that clock for a few hours short of forever.).



I went and found that coat rack from my Room of Requirement closet (formerly known as The Closet of Doom), but it didn't fit along that wall. Well, it fit, but the coats would've either covered the light switch or the electrical outlets.

Moving on, I thought that one other thing that was needed is someplace to sit to take off/put on shoes. I'd been looking at longer ottomans with storage, but didn't know if they'd fit. I got the mat from the entryway to cover up the carpet/hardwood floor thing, and got the little ottoman that has our Playstation & Wii games and controllers in it and moved it over to see if that would even work.



I'm on the hunt for the various things I need for this area. So far I have picked up some coathooks, but I don't want to put them up until I have the rest of the things that will need hung up as well so that I can lay them all out to be sure I'm putting the least amount of holes in the wall as possible.

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