So I finally finished decking out the other half of my Instagram-arted basement pegboard. Yup, I added a little makeshift shelf that I primed and painted, got a non-electrical music device (how’s that for mysterious?), and even hung something kitchen-related as art. Actually a lot of you guys have been asking what we did with the cutting board that we picked up a couple of months ago as part of The Shops At Target collection, so… I give you… America The Pegboard-iful.
I just thought it made for some cool (and sawdust-proof) art, since I’m into maps and all.
It worked out nicely that the blue-painted edge of it coincidentally goes with my navy pegboard. Although down the road it might be fun to paint it a more contrast-y color (or use decorative tape). Or do something else entirely to add some more interest.
I contemplated painting the shape of Virginia on it to mark where our home state is located, but I think it would work better if we lived somewhere that floated in the middle of the country (like Utah or Missouri) since painting such a small coastal state like ours might not make much impact.
The other thing I’m enjoying up there is my new iPod dock, which I purchased for $45 through an Etsy seller (Index Drums). Gotta have tunes while I saw and drill to my heart’s content, right? And sometimes getting myself a little “prize” for organizing/upgrading/taking back a room that has long been neglected makes the process a little more exciting. So since I tackled a ton of projects in the basement using just sweat equity, scrap wood, leftover paint, and pre-existing pegboards – buying this guy to add some function to the room feels like a nice reward.
I stumbled upon it while looking for an affordable but unique music dock that also didn’t require me to plug it in. I knew I wanted it to sit up on that pegboard, and having a big cord coming across my workspace would be obnoxious. So this plywood dock was perfect – especially since it never has to be charged or anything. It basically is just an echo chamber that naturally amplifies the sound that comes out of my iPhone’s built-in speaker.
The custom listing I purchased from even allowed me to indicate the type of case that my phone was in so they could carve the slot to the exact proportions of my device. I also got to pick the painted design and the colors. I’ve been very happy with it so far. It’s no BOSE speaker, but it looks good, sounds good, and I like that it doesn’t require any batteries or charging.
I quickly put together the shelf that everything sits on by just notching out and painting a piece of scrap wood so that it would balance on a couple of pegboard hooks.
As for the other stuff on the shelf, I grabbed a white elephant (from book project #197) and one of these Warhol soup cans to hold my pens. Er, well, pen for now.
And with those simple but functional additions, I’ve officially used all of the pegboard space in the basement. Not gonna lie, these little functional/organizational coups can feel just as exciting as building a deck or gutting a bathroom. I have no idea why. Maybe just because when you stand in a space all the time, and actually know where everything is and like the way it looks, well, that’s a special kind of house-love going on. And you know I have a thing for my pegboards…
Has anybody else hung anything unusual (on pegboards or just the wall at large) lately? When you look at this project, I put a cutting board, a chunk of scrap wood, a soup can, and a plastic elephant on my wall. I think that counts as unusual, right?
lesismore says
my husband keeps buying pegboard and accessories for the garage, and while i appreciate his desire to organize, i think pegboards are so boring. this is a wonderful way to brighten our very dark and grey garage and give it some life.
thanks for curing my peg-boredom. ;)
Meg says
Seriously John…I have been a follower almost since the beginning and have drooled over several things over the years. This takes the cake. I want a man cave and I’m a woman…lucky lucky man. It looks GREAT! Well done. =)
YoungHouseLove says
Ha! Thanks Meg!
-John
Jennifer says
I have the same USA cutting board hanging my boys’ room. I love it, I also thought it was cool art. Great minds think alike!
Sheri says
love it! Especially that cute speaker! Etsy is such a great website.
And as I’m looking at your post, I am remembering that I had a dream about you guys last night (nothing bad or dirty so get your mind out of the gutter haha). I was at one of your book signings and I was SO excited to meet you guys! When I finally got to the front of the line for you to sign my book, I was completely flustered and did not know what to say! Yep, I’m a big dork even in my dreams haha.
I’m guessing this dream was triggered by the fact that I finally ordered a copy of your book last night :) Can’t wait until it arrives!
YoungHouseLove says
Haha, that’s so funny Sheri! Hopefully tonight in your dream we’ll be the weirdos and you’ll play it totally cool (that’s exactly how it is in real life).
xo
s
Kaci says
I am SO inspired to tackle my disorganized basement now! Good idea on adding art to even the most “unfinished” parts of the house (in a literal sense).
Nicole says
I am intrigued by that iPhone dock! I’ve been looking to purchase one of those speaker/ceramic animals from West Elm to use as a covert music station, but maybe I’ll look into this instead.
The basement looks great BTW, isn’t it nice having a nice, clean workspace again? I always feel more motivated when I have a clean space.
YoungHouseLove says
Yes! So nice.
-John
Jane says
Is Target still selling the Warhol soup cans? Or did I miss out? :(
YoungHouseLove says
I think they might be gone but maybe try ebay?
xo
s
Becky says
ANNNNND …you seem to be harboring a crock pot for those secret cooking sessions. SCORE!!
Ally says
When “Peg” first appeared, she sorta looked like a soda-shirt & jeans kinda gal…
BUT, look at ‘er now…all glammed-up in her L.B.D. equivalent! :)
JBoom – you and Peg make a lovely couple (of DIY-ers :)
xox
YoungHouseLove says
Haha!
xo
s
Pamela says
Not that I need an iPhone dock, but I love checking out Etsy vendors. You certainly made an impression on Index Drums. He is offering a limited run of custom docks thanks to YHL. Sadly, the cost for us readers is $60, not the $45 John paid.
YoungHouseLove says
Yeah, it looks like his prices went up since we ordered ours. But you could always get the plain one for $40 and customize it with your own paint job!
-John
Chaney says
That “speaker” is awesome! Um, I think I may just need one. Thanks for the source on that!
jbhat says
It looks amazing in there! You are giving Handyman over at Rambling Renovators a run for his money on his workspace.
jbhat
YoungHouseLove says
Thanks Jbhat! And again, it was so nice to meet you last week.
-John
Wendy says
That is the most beautiful work space I’ve ever seen! I’m sending it to my husband to (hopefully) inspire some additional organizational efforts in our basement. :-)
Mary | lemongroveblog says
You guys have the nicest looking basement/workspace I’ve ever seen! :) Our workroom/utility room is a big ole’ mess right now – so I’ve got some serious basement envy! ;)
Ann says
It looks fantastic and has totally inspired me to organize my workbench, which has gotten really cluttered since our baby arrived last fall!! (in fact, there’s a case of diapers sitting in the middle of it at the moment).
I think target sliced delaware off the cutting board altogether, though – boo! :-)
Rachel May says
This is totally inspiring me to organize the garage! Need to get my butt moving on that.
Megan says
I love this basement!!! I’m trying to get my husband on board for working on ours. We finally bought shelves for storage and a new deep freeze. Our old one was donated to a couple for stink bait and they hauled off the gigantic, avocado green one for free (I almost felt like paying them to take it away!). We have a work space but no display/vertical storage for tools and we are always losing things. My tools are going in my new bucket buddy … away from the husband and his ability to lose everything!
Jen says
I haven’t read all of the comments, but has anyone else noticed how Wisconsin has apparently merged with Michigan and Lake Michigan fails to exist? Sad times for maps and the midwest.
YoungHouseLove says
Yeah, I noticed that. It’s definitely a bit more of an amorphous United States. If you it makes you feel any better, the Delmarva peninsula of Virginia got absorbed into the mainland too.
-John
Amber says
Looks great! I definitely agree with what you said about small projects like this being just as satisfying as the big ones, We (well, at least I do) sometimes neglect the spaces where we spend most of our time, especially work spaces, but small bits make all the difference.
Unrelated to this, I was wondering if you would consider putting a permanent link to the most recent giveaway somewhere on the front page (sidebar maybe?) to make it easy to find. Or maybe that already exists and Im just blind :p
YoungHouseLove says
Since a permanent link to the most recent giveaway would change each week, it’s a lot of upkeep (that we’d probably forget!) so the fastest way to find it if you’d prefer not to scroll is to click on the “Categories” tab near our faces on the sidebar and then click “Fab Freebie.” That will put the most recent giveaway at the top of your page!
-John
Christa says
Hello! So jealous of your basement space! I notice there is no insulation in your basement ceiling. We have a basement I would love to use more but I fear breathing in millions of microfiber insulation dust as the ceiling is covered in it. Do you think I can just rip it all out? I am not even sure what purpose it is serving…
YoungHouseLove says
Oh yes, ours actually has lots of insulation stuck up in certain parts. Ideally covering it with beadboard or paneling to make a false ceiling would be great! Or you could try removing it but the room above it might get colder. Hope it helps!
xo
s
Stephanie says
Love the US cutting board. I picked one up on clearance months ago and finally got around to hanging it after the holidays. Since we’re a military family, I painted mine with chalkboard paint and marked all of our homes through the years, though I’m thinking I need to get craftier with the chalk. Anyway, I feel like my decision to use it as art is validated now, so thanks!
YoungHouseLove says
So cool! Love that!
xo
s
Emma says
Loving the pegboard! How about putting a star or a heart sticker right where Richmond is? The concept would be sort of like marking the capital of a country. Except Richmond would be extremely close to DC on this map that maybe some people would interpret it as the capital. Hmmm…
YoungHouseLove says
That’s sweet!
xo
s
NancyB says
Couple of things:
1. The workshop is just too clean! :)
2. Someone may have already mentioned this but why don’t you decorate the map with your book tours locations?
YoungHouseLove says
We actually have a cork backed map in our frame hallway that we can’t wait to add more pins to (we’re going to use all of the same color to delineate tour stops). Can’t wait!
xo
s
Koliti says
Dude, I love your space!
A whole lotta man-cave/work space love going on!!
Weird stuff on the wall rocks!
I hung a carved wooden trivet on my gallery wall –
love the wood tone and the texture,
and it was only 25 cents at a rummage sale!
Megan @ Two Live Colorfully says
This looks really awesome! That ‘speaker’ is rad!!
And I just love that y’all even decorated the workshop. No space left unturned!!
karen says
hey..you could even pin every state you’ve been on from the book tour!
YoungHouseLove says
We actually have a cork backed map in the frame hallway that we’re planning to do that with (it already has lots of other pins, so we’ll use a special color for the tour stop ones)!
xo
s
Michelle N says
Looking good John! I regret not picking up that cutting board for myself. :(
Found this site today. I know you guys like Eco-friendly stuff. pretty neat site. http://www.ecomom.com/
YoungHouseLove says
Thanks so much! Great tip!
xo
s
Michelle N says
Oh and how awesome is this…. Every order you place goes to help feed kids in the US! Pretty amazing
YoungHouseLove says
So cool!
xo,
s
Meleah says
That dock is super awesome! Just a few days ago I hung something strange on the wall. I made my son a 4 lane race track on a piece of plywood. He angles it by putting one end on his bed and uses it to race his cars. It was always behind the door scratching up the wall when not in use. I decided to do a dark stained US map outline on it’s back and hang it on the wall. Now he can play with it and when it hangs back up it looks like art. It saved us some cash too because it fills that wall that needed something. :)
sue says
Oops, looks like the upped the price on the custom speaker to $60?
YoungHouseLove says
Yeah, looks like it. But now you can also get the plain one and paint it yourself for just $40.
-John
Linda Adams says
Your shop looks wonderful. It ALMOST looks too good to work in and mess up even a little. Get busy and make something. Show us some sawdust or a few boards on the floor. It’s just too clean to be a workshop!
Truly – I think it looks great. Would you like to come to Kentucky and do the same to my step-father’s workshop? (just kidding – mostly).
Linda
YoungHouseLove says
Ha! Be right over.
-John
Bobbi says
So is the little elephant just one of those plastic toys painted? TOO COOL- maybe the moose can get some friends!
YoungHouseLove says
Yes, we found him at the dollar spot at Target and sprayed him for the book! Also found a cool plastic pineapple and “ceramicized” a slinky too!
xo,
s
Sassafras says
Looks Pretty Pegarific to me. To go one peg further, my husband used some spare pegboard in one of our old garages to make sliding doors to cover the bottom run of cabinets. He just cut some small filler boards (maybe it was quarterround) and he nailed them out at the edge top and bottom to make a run guard rail. He then cut two pegboards to cover a certain area maybe two or three cabinets w/a small overlap, then he cut a slightly finger size hole in the center of each edge big enough to stick a finger in and slide the boards either direction. I’m thinking either the pegboard was loose and flexible enough that when he wanted he could take the doors off easily. Or maybe he left a gap in the middle of the rail so they could slide out if he wanted them too. Been too long ago, but I do know he could take the sliding doors out easily enough if he needed or wanted to. He also used large copy paper boxes to store his goodies in on those shelves. Just a couple ideas if you can use them. Love the docking station & his shelf buddies!
YoungHouseLove says
Sounds really cool!
xo,
s
Joy Galloni says
Began reading your blog to prepare for creating one. I’m outside of Richmond in Prince George County; but I do shop some of the same stores, etc.
Maps are one of my passons also – along with books and recreating things. Please take a glance at my book pages from maps recreated into letters (initials).
Civil War Battle Maps & atlas pages are a few; you can see them on ETSY at http://www.booksetc.etsy.com
Working & living in an organized space makes life easier. Yeah, I’m a librarian. Thanks! Joy
YoungHouseLove says
Really cool!
xo,
s
Ana from Portugal says
Where’s Alaska?
I can’t believe you left it out, John! Tssk, tssk!!
;)
YoungHouseLove says
Ha! I’ll have to whittle one out of wood!
-John
JessieBelle says
Question: Maybe you guys already answered this, not sure…how does Clara like her ‘Big Girl Bed?’ I know she hasn’t really slept in it yet, but is the day bed the only bed that’s going to be in there, is it just for decoration/sleep overs, and you’re going to get her a real bed? I’m only asking, cause I remember I had a day bed type thing growing up, and that thing was CRAZY uncomfortable…no support, hard mattress, hard to prop up in to read, etc. Maybe they’ve improved in the last 15 years or so? Just wondering…
YoungHouseLove says
That’s going to be her big girl bed, but she’s still really into her crib so she’s not ready to transition yet. She loves fake sleeping in the daybed though. It’s a real twin mattress and it’s nice and low to the ground, so we hope it’ll be a good fit for her (we’ve had adult guests stay on it and say it’s nice).
xo
s
JessieBelle says
Ok, that last comment was supposed to be on Clara’s bedroom update post. My bad. :-P
YoungHouseLove says
No worries!
xo
s
Ada (new york) says
The beauty of knowing where EVERYTHING is = is priceless! Basement looks good! I’ve been thinking of displaying my sewing machine (mount it on a shelf) – perhaps seeing it can INSPIRE me to use it (or at least keep it from being buried in dust). As for unusual wall projects for my clients – we hung up wood pallets ON WALLS to hold artwork, books, magazines, planters (2 ferns) and even a lantern. Turned out pretty unique cool,and the best part we got them for FREE (craiglist ad) from a nearby gym. Here’s a link if you want to take a peek at it:
http://www.adasinteriordesign.com/ww_woodpallets/
YoungHouseLove says
Cool!
xo
s
Willem says
The “unplugged” iPhone dock is the coolest ever. Wish I had enough space at home to create a work room like this. :(
Sarah says
This might be more up Sherry’s alley, but I just have to share this ceramic fox speaker from west elm. A ceramic animal AND a speaker requiring no outlet – Perfect!
http://www.westelm.com/products/ceramic-fox-speaker-d206/?pkey=call-sale&cm_src=all-sale||NoFacet-_-NoFacet-_–_-
YoungHouseLove says
So cute!
xo,
s
Heather Hagler says
My favorite thing about this besides the complete organization, is the Two Door Cinema Club on your iPod!
Brittany says
Random question: I don’t suppose Index Drums has given you guys any kind of a discount code for readers have they? I’m going to get my husband one of these for Valentine’s Day and just thought I’d ask : )
YoungHouseLove says
Oh man, sadly they haven’t. So sorry!
-John
Hillary says
Missouri! My home state!
So – you are right, an outline would look much cooler if you were from a state as great as Missouri.
Jackie says
I love how this all came together. It looks really great with out feeling like you have a ton of stuff cluttering your space. I especially like that you added the personal touch. It’s so easy for a work bench to be super utilitarian.
Grace Anne Haynes says
I had some peg board cut to fit a garage-sale frame, painted both, and then installed fun, brightly colored and mismatching knobs on the peg board to hang my jewelry on! Super fun times.
Jerica says
I’m thinking of ordering one of the iPhone docks as a gift and am wondering if you have any further opinions now that it’s been in use for a few months? Thanks so much!!
YoungHouseLove says
Still a big fan. Hope it helps.
-John
Karmina says
Hi John and Sherry!
Long-time reader coming out of lurkdom in hopes you can lend some expertise. Does pegboard need to be affixed to a wall or can I just lean it against the wall at a slight angle? I’m a renter and can’t drill into the walls but I was thinking that a tall pegboard can hold some clothes (coats and jackets) and some accessories. I don’t have room for a bulky coatrack and I can’t drill coat hooks into the wall either. Think this could work? Any advice you can give would be much appreciated!
YoungHouseLove says
Hmm, I think it would work best if it was slightly secured – but maybe using 3M command hooks just at the top two corners (while the base is supported by a desk/the floor/etc) would help it stay upright without sloping too much so it works best?
xo
s
Karmina says
Thank you!
Mallory says
Looks great :)
I love pegboard! I actually have one in my closet holding all of my necklaces near the top and down lower I have hooks for camisoles. it keeps my closet tidy. I used pegboard (painted Navy!) in my son’s nursery as well, 3 hanging baskets hold essentials like wipes, lotion, grooming kit etc. it makes a nice focal point and is super functional!