The Work-In-Progress Room

Also known as the guest room, the storage room, and the Alexa Z Design production room! Previously known as the do-not-disturb room, for safety reasons of course. The door was typically shut (tight!) because this room used to be a complete and utter disaster. As in, don’t even try to walk in because you can’t see the floor. Seriously. 😉 I’m trying to find a good picture, it was a mess. It also wasn’t the best set up for a guest room and was nowhere near organized, so working in there was a disaster. I finally invested in a few key organization pieces (thanks Ikea!), gutted the room (aka got rid of a lot of boxes and junk), and now it’s so much more functional! While I choose to do most of my creative work at my desk in the playroom (as seen here!), this is where the real action happens! Printing, packaging, mailing, you name it. While this isn’t a complete before & after post, here’s a little sneak peak in one of our extra, work-in-progress bedrooms:

This little room currently houses a desk/working station, a guest bed, dresser, and about five hundred other things. I still haven’t gotten around to painting this room (though I do love how white and bright it is! just needs a little touch up) We did manage to replace the dark green carpet with our laminate flooring and this cheap rug (from Walmart!) adds a great pop of (a way nicer green) color! I’m still on the look out for a good stool or something to fit right under the desk (though, most of the time I end up standing, so maybe I don’t even need one at all!)

My DIY You’ve Got Mail mug houses any writing utensils and supplies and I like to keep a stack of mailers, business cards, and other packaging handy on this desk.

While I don’t have a good system down for organizing inventory quite yet, I do have an actual inventory! Which is crazy, because when I started, I cut and print each print individually as they were ordered. (=time consuming!)  Now it saves so much time having each print all ready to go!

Above my printer, I keep a supply of a variety of papers, stickers, and mailing labels for easy access. I used to keep them in drawers but this is so much more convenient!

Our poor guests get to share a room with all my junk, but at least they get a super colorful bedspread, right? 🙂

I keep hundreds of these stay flat mailers and plastic sleeves with chipboard on hand at all times. When I first started my little business, I bought thirteen of each and thought that was SO many. It’s amazing to see how much this little business has grown since then (all thanks to you guys!! 🙂 Oh, and that Don’t Freak Out sign hangs directly over my printer for a reason. Me + electronics don’t always mix well. 😉

And of course, my favorite helper! She helps fill each plastic sleeve with chipboard (even if it does take ten times as long!) and adds price stickers to the back of each product (and all over herself!) Not to mention, she’s utterly adorable to work with.

And thus concludes our sneak peek and behind the scenes look at the production / guest room! I’ve had quite a few emails and questions lately about starting and running a business, and other questions about design work. If you have any questions you’re just dying to ask, leave me a comment below! 🙂 I’d love to do a Q&A (and share some of my Etsy secrets) in a future post!

Frames, drawers, desk, baskets, bins, and wall organizer: Ikea
Yellow Dresser: Thrifted
Striped Duvet Cover: PB Teen (old)
All Prints: Alexa Z Design