We haven’t given our office any love in the entire eight months that we’ve lived here (other than deciding that it was no longer the dining room and shifting that into the old formal living room nearby). Pretty much our moving day MO was to: plop old office furniture down, work away, and ignore the fact that the rug’s crazy-off-center and you can bump your head on the old dining room chandelier. Sad times.
But the lack of love given wasn’t for lack of trying. We’ve been keeping our eye out for two similar/identical secondhand filing cabinets for, oh, eight whole months. So we were starting to lose hope after about twenty five visits to all of our favorite local thrift stores without finding two of them:
- that were the same height or depth (we ideally wanted to put two of them next to each other to make a square cabinet)
- that were even remotely operable (it was crazy how many were so dinged and dented that they hardly opened)
We even checked out online office supply shops and local places like Office Max, but a lot of the filing cabinet options that we found were upwards of $100 a pop – and we wanted two). Then on our recent trip to Ikea (for these shoe cabinets), this piece of furniture caught our eye as we strolled through the upper level:
It’s an “Effektiv” (hence the bad pun in the title of this post). And we decided half of it (it was actually two of them pushed together) would be the perfect solution for a little “situation” that we have going on (no not that Situation):
Yes, that’s a printer-paper-camera-bag-shredder pile right on the floor that’s sheepishly tucked out of view behind the sofa (but not completely out of view from a few other angles). And yes, Clara loves to push buttons and throw paper and cause general pile chaos. So something had to be done. Like yesterday.
Even though the Effektiv system has LOTS of customization options, we went for something very similar to what we saw on the showroom floor (just half as wide). I annoyingly lost the receipt (bad blogger) but it was in the neighborhood of $150. Which isn’t too bad considering some of the “heavily discounted office surplus” options would have been $200+ for the double-wide equivalent. Even the cost to build it all myself probably would have been in the $150+ range after getting all the drawer slides and hinges and file fittings (and I worried it wouldn’t have the same durability that I’d get from something made by experts since it would be constantly opened and shut). Oh and that price included one base, two shelf pieces, and the various interior fittings for a double wide file drawer on the bottom and concealed storage for things like our wireless printer and stacks of paper on the top double-doored shelf.
We figured it’d be a good piece to anchor this empty wall (opposite the wall with the desk, next to the doorway to the kitchen) while also adding some functional storage.
One by one, I assembled each of the three pieces and screwed them on top of one another. It was a thrilling process I assure you, so forgive me for glossing over it so quickly.
Oh and as for the vent on the right of it, luckily it has those angled registers so the air gets directed out at an angle that allows it to flow right out the side and into the room. There’s about a 4″ gap there (even though it looks a lot smaller in pics due to shadows) so it’s great thus far (we can feel the air easily coming out, so it’s not getting trapped or anything). Whew. Otherwise we’d just close that register because there are a few others in the room.
The beauty of this piece is that it slipped right in under the chair rail and fit pretty nicely width-wise too (we didn’t have the wall measurement with us, so we’re beyond relived that it wasn’t an inch too wide or something). It was offered with lots of customizable options – drawers, cabinets, hanging file systems, solid doors, frosted fronts, etc. We knew we wanted the upper shelf to work as a cabinet (to store the wireless printer & reems o’ paper mess) and the lower one to house a ton of hanging files (we have a surprising amount of paperwork due to being “our own business”). For some reason I’ve become addicted to hanging file storage and the two little file boxes slipped under our desk are, well, not doing it for me at all (they’re only about 7″ wide).
We went with basic white doors since they were the cheapest option and provide the easiest blank canvas in case we want to paint, wallpaper, stencil, or even O’verlay them with these cool things down the line for a more interesting (read: less Ikea-ish) look.
When it came to the interior fittings, first I put the file system in the bottom. It consists of a metal drawer/frame, a heavy weight in the back (to keep it from toppling when the drawer is pulled out) and a flat white cabinet face that will attach to the front. We also anchored it to the wall with an Ikea-provided kid-safe anchor system, just to be double safe.
Then the top half just consisted of putting on two cabinet doors, so the whole thing went from this…
…to this…
You’re probably wondering about our knob dealio. We decided to skip the ones from Ikea and go for a more homemade handle. We thought something rustic like casual string was a nice contrast to the sleek lines of the rest of the piece.
Okay, I’m totally kidding. The string was just temporary (since I learned the hard way that it was impossible to open the doors without prying them open with a flat head screwdriver without it).
I wasn’t kidding about passing on all of the Ikea hardware options though. We tried to like something. Really we did. But nothing was really doing it for us and we thought knobs from somewhere else might give it a little more character and make it work with other things in the room (like our $35 thrifted lattice desk chairs). Note: of course we have about ten million other changes we plan to make in here (slowly by surely) when it comes to the furnishings, lighting, etc.
But back to the hardware. Yeah, we’re hoping that adding some non-Ikea knobs or pulls could help to make the whole thing look a smidge less Ikea-y (as would eventually painting, stenciling, or wallpapering the fronts, sides, top or the whole darn thing). But we’re not gonna do any of that ’til the whole room is further along. Because who knows, once the room is painted (stenciled? wallpapered?) the piece could look best in plain ol’ glossy white (and we’d be kicking ourselves for having jumped the gun). We already found some pretty cool Anthropologie-ish handle options at a place that rhymes with Schlobby Bobby though, so once we make a final decision and screw them in (which always freaks me out by the way- is anyone else totally intimidated to drill right into new furniture?) we’ll be back with updated pics for ya. Hopefully within 24-ish hours.
Has anyone else added some functional office storage recently? Did you have better luck hunting down something secondhand? Do you also have a deeply rooted fear of drilling holes into new furniture to attach hardware? I must measure things fifteen times just to be sure I’m not hanging them an inch off center or something.
Reenie says
cute cute video :)
heather says
What kind of wireless printer do you use? I’ve been looking for one but scratch my head. I still have the same one I bought when I went to college in 2002 haha.
YoungHouseLove says
We have a HP Photosmart C4780. It’s kind of quirky, but it works most of the time. Haha.
xo,
s
Marla says
hey, I think it’s time for that overlay project (the fretwork for Ikea furniture). Maybe? Anyway, I’m hoping you do that somewhere in your house some day and curious if you would diy it. I want to try it!
YoungHouseLove says
We definitely love those! Always a possibility down the line!
xo,
s
Blair says
Your dining room office is exactly the same as ours. We are in the process of switching it over and have almost the same light fixture to bump our heads on as you! We can’t decide if we want to leave the desk on the back wall (where your desk is) or not. It kinda bothers me that it is the first thing you see when you walk in (maybe because my husband doesn’t always leave it as organized as I would?). What are you guys thinking you might do? Leave it there? Move it to another wall?
YoungHouseLove says
We have tried a bunch of arrangements and are planning to try a few more (and a few old ones again) soon. Might have to make some graph paper floor plans. Haha. We’ll keep you posted!
xo,
s
Stephanie Phillips says
“Schlobby Bobby” Snort. Giggle.
Thanks for that! :)
Jaime says
Looks great, guys! I can totally relate to fear of taking a drill to a brand-new anything. I found myself in charge of that particular project when we installed our new (Ikea) kitchen a couple of years ago. It was nerve-wracking but with a lot of preparation (and a lot of deep breaths) I managed to pull it off. You can do it!
Jyl says
Woo! Clara has so hair goin’ on! Go Clara!
Ahem. Yes, I am also intimidated to drill into new furniture. A fear I was forced to overcome when I renovated my kitchen with Ikea cabinets (Spoiler: you have to drill each and every one!). Ikea sells this Fixa drill template http://www.ikea.com/us/en/catalog/products/90101778 that I fell in love with. You just line up the center, than the mark the holes, and ta da! Piece of mind! Totally worth $1.99. Pro tip though, buy two- cos they crack easily. Happy drilling!
YoungHouseLove says
Oh yeah we saw that there but didn’t get it for fear that the hardware we end up with won’t match up with the measurements. But it looked genius! Especially for a cabinet project!
xo,
s
Jenny says
I love how Clara does a Gollum-like crawl at the end of the video! What a cutie!
kimb says
This room needs some hight, ie book cases or something, just an opinion, I’m sure you have already thought of that.
YoungHouseLove says
It needs a whole lot of everything! Haha. We’re definitely just getting started in there (after 8 months of doing nothing, no less- haha).
xo,
s
Jen says
The other day I randomly decided that I had to have an old-school metal filing cabinet for my office supplies…y’know, no reason, just because they’re retro and awesome. (Well, and, I can’t help feeling like old filing cabinets are imbued with the ghosts of my sisters, the secretaries who have come before me.) The next morning I looked on Craigslist, not really expecting to find anything, and lo and behold there was a dude giving a filing cabinet away for FREE. Even better: the pickup location was practically around the corner from my house. That big old hunk of metal weighed a thousand pounds and baaaaaarely fit in my roommate’s car, but it’s mine now! When I get it painted and get everything stashed away in it, it’s going to be AWESOME.
YoungHouseLove says
Um, yeah. That’s amaaazing! Lucky lady.
xo,
s
Ashley @ DesignBuildLove.co says
got to LOVE Ikea’s flexible office/storage options! I too went on a several month search for the perfect storage solution and finally ended up with a white Ikea cabinet as well! Worth the money and totally customizable!!!
Julie says
I love the cabinet & totally need one similar but hate putting that kind of thing together…
Clara is a cutie! And you sound just like Natalie Portman in the video – for real!
ekd says
Hey John/Sherry! Another issue you’ll have with that vent is that it’s spitting out cold air. And that cold air is saturated with water. If you put your hand 4″ from any vent in your house it would feel damp after a few minutes. And even if it was made out of solid wood, it would be bad news bears. So, as an HVAC engineer, I definitely recommend closing that vent to avoid possible water damage. :)
YoungHouseLove says
Thanks for the tip! I’ll just shut that thing since we have a few others in the room.
xo,
s
Kristi Whitman says
Your office is AWESOME, but I am worried about your chairs. I know they probably feel fine (and sure do look nice), but with all the time you guys spend on your computers, you really should have something more ergonomic. Repetitive strain injury is not something you want to mess with – trust me. Be gentle on your bodies, Youngsters!
sincerely,
a concerned but caring reader. :)
YoungHouseLove says
Thanks for the thought Kristi! We’ve used them for the past six months or so, and they’re actually really comfy and even – dare I say it? – ergonomic! The seat is nice and cushy, the angle and support of the back and arms are nice, the only difference from an office chair is that they’re not on wheels! We originally weren’t going to use them in the office because we thought they’d give us back/neck pain, but we’re so glad we gave them a try! They’re more comfy than my last leather desk chair of 4+ years in our first house!
xo,
s
Rachel Tatem says
I know how you feel… that’s our master bedroom… no love yet, we are getting to you I promise
Felicity @ Our Little Beehive says
I’ve never been able to love an Ikea knob either. HD has a huge selection online that are reasonably priced. I love the ones we got for our kitchen and they were only a couple dollars each.
Lisa says
Do you have a Lowe’s nearby? They have some really beautiful cabinet knobs and pulls from Michael Aram in shiny chrome, gold-tone and oxidized metal, just do a keyword search for Michael Aram on their site. (You can also order online.) They are not cheap but you only need a few, right? I love the toothbrush and toothpaste for a bathroom, the animals, toys and clothes for kids’ rooms or playrooms, the clothespins for laundry rooms, the spoon/fork for a kitchen. If only we had a reason to replace any knobs in our apartment or on our son’s dresser… (we don’t). The bamboo knobs and pulls might be fun in your office, and would bring in the design of your chairs: http://www.lowes.com/pd_249369-59609-211359_0__?productId=1071187&Ntt=michael+aram&pl=1¤tURL=%2Fpl__0__s%3FNtt%3Dmichael%2Baram%26page%3D1&facetInfo=. Or check out the twig or leaf?
YoungHouseLove says
Ooh thanks for the tip!
xo,
s
Melanie says
I had the Effectiv system in my house :( It was a great solid sturdy piece. I’m sure you’ll enjoy it and all the great storage it provides.
My son also has the IKEA tool belt & tools! Never too early to get them started.
Andrea says
Indiana University has a surplus store with various sizes and styles of filing cabinets (mostly in good condition) for $50-75 a piece. If only I had somewhere to put them!
If you decide to look for more, you might check out the closest college/university to you and see if they have a similar store.
YoungHouseLove says
That’s such a great tip!
xo,
s
Meg says
We got Effectiv storage units to flank the fireplace in our living room! http://thatsmegnacios.blogspot.com/2011/07/living-room-before-and-after.html
Also no knobs :( Keep us posted on your solution. For now we just don’t use the cabinets.
Melanie @ Mailbox Journey says
Clara is the cutest thing ever!
I really need to get to IKEA one of these days – I love everything you guys bring home from there. (The closest one is in Baltimore & I live in Central PA)
ashleyK says
We have the exact same unit, but in the dark black/brown color in our office! I seem to remember it being much more expensive when we got it three or four years ago!
It has held up well, and also houses our wireless printer and router on top and files down below.
We used a butter knife for probably two whole years to open the drawer because I couldn’t decide on what type of handle I wanted!
Brittany says
Love the Clara video. Reminds me of when my brother was learning how to talk, I was about three or four and my parents couldn’t understand a single word he said. I was their “translator”… I can’t understand babies for the life of me now but I bet 3 year old Brittany would know exactly what Clara was saying!
Erin says
I have a really easy, inexpensive way to save your heads. Can’t really tell from the photos what’s holding your chandelier, but when I converted my dining room to office space, I used a very inexpensive “S” hook on the chain. Pulled up the chandy closer to the ceiling and I ended up liking the look better than when it was hanging down bonking me on the head every few minutes.
YoungHouseLove says
Yeah, we’re definitely planning to make some lighting upgrades (you’d think we’d do that sooner than eight months after constant head-hitting). Someday we’ll get ‘er done! Right now I think we’re just conditioned to walk around it. Most of the time. Haha.
xo,
s
Sarah says
OMgosh…lol at the link to “the situation”, I thought you were referring to an actual situation in former blogs or something.
YoungHouseLove says
Haha, you know John. Always randomly linking to something odd. Wait a minute, I think I do that too.
xo,
s
Anna says
Could you also post a pic of the inside of the storage? I’m dying to know what they actually look like when ready to or “in use”.
YoungHouseLove says
Sure! In our hardware post we’ll share a lot of full monty inside pics too!
xo,
s
bridget b. says
have you guys seen this overlay idea for ikea furniture? cute way to upgrade.
http://www.elementsofstyleblog.com/2011/08/from-the-genius-files.html
YoungHouseLove says
Oh yes- love those! Definitely a down-the-line possibility once the room comes together a bit more!
xo,
s
ruthie says
You totally got me on the rustic string handle! I was thinking oh, maybe they’ll at least paint it or put a bead on it or something!! Now I’m cracking up.
Karen says
That’s a great looking piece and I love that it doesn’t look like a filing cabinet.
I took a look at those fretwork designs and I’m amazed at all the options and how expensive they make a piece of ho hum furniture look. Love them!
Then… the OCD clean freak in me started thinking about what a pain they’d be to dust. Buzzkill.
But… a great map decoupage might look awesome on that cabinet… ala Nate Berkus.
YoungHouseLove says
You know I love me some Nate- and John loooves him some maps. Haha.
xo,
s
tracy says
Oh my gosh, Clara is SO CUTE!!! I love the way her little face looks when she says “moo”. How do you get anything done with her being so adorable all the time? Love it. Can’t wait until my little guy starts making animal sounds.
Oh and you totally got me with the string thing. I was like “uh…seriously?” I was super relieved when I realized I had been “had”.
YoungHouseLove says
Animal sounds are the best! And random words. Every day she pulls new ones out of thin air. Yesterday I held her up to look out the window and she said “tree!” and pointed at the big magnolia out front. I almost dropped her. So smart!
xo,
s
Tammy says
These are great. We’ve been looking for some file cabinets too.. I wonder if these cabinets come in black?
~Tammy
http://www.bayparkdream.blogspot.com
YoungHouseLove says
I know they come in brown-black! Maybe black too? Anyone know?
xo,
s
Kate says
Ahh bless her. I love that video, what a little scamp! My friend’s daughter used to do animal noises, but when it came to quack quack, she mouthed the words, but sound never ever came out, it was very strange!
YoungHouseLove says
Haha, we’re working on quack quack right now. Sometimes it comes out a neigh neigh. Apparently horse noises are her default. Haha.
xo,
s
Angie says
When our oldest tried to say “quack, quack” it came out “da-da.” My husband was less amused than I was!
YoungHouseLove says
Haha, well once I asked Clara what mommy says and she said “no, no!” which cracked us up. Then the next time I asked she said “moo moo” – ouch!
xo,
s
Nicole @ pinkstringandgreenbeans says
We haven’t made it to office storage but for food/dishes/paper goods ect I searched forever for a reasonable, but sturdy and good looking because you can see it from the kitch and tv room. We priced out building one ourselves and finally bought the sweedish shelving from William Sonoma. More then we would normally spend but for that much hardware and high quality wood it wasn’t going to be cheap anyway.
Grazielle says
Clara is adorable!! It was nice seeing that you guys do have hidden unorganized areas of your house. Makes me feel better about my own house which always has some area that could use organizing or improvement. Can’t wait to see how you transform this room!
Autumn says
I kind of hope Clara does that one legged scoot for much longer. Walking too, yes. But that scoot is just wonderful!!
YoungHouseLove says
I know right? It’s more and more rare (she walks around 90% of the time now). So sad to see the pirate scoot go.
xo,
s
Kim at Yellow Brick Home says
We’re big dorks for office organization, too! I work with a friend in her photo studio, and we were looking at the Effectiv unit as well. It has so many options, and it looks so nice and clean!
We were lucky enough to score a big, wide filing cabinet at one of our favorite thrift stores in Chicagoland, Jubilee:
http://www.yellowbrickhome.com/2010/10/25/office-reinvented/
Not only did it fit perfectly in our ridiculously small office, but it was white! It was too perfect. Kind of creepy.
YoungHouseLove says
Woah- that’s perfect. And so pretty! Lucky lady.
xo,
s
Tara says
I was lucky enough to score my furniture from Bombay… before they were gone. Now I am completely shaking at the knees at the very idea of changing out the knobs or even repairing some of the dings! My husband and I treat it likes it’s worth a million bucks or something. It’s crazy, but I think it’s one of those items that we desperately hunted for and that makes it special.
By the way, I hate drilling holes in anything…I can never seem to patch the holes up and make the wall seemless again!
Lisa in IL says
Hi! Here’s the deal – never, ever, ever just “close off” a register. Your home’s heating & cooling system were designed to keep you not just cool in summer & warm in winter, but more importantly they were designed to keep you safe when operating. If you close the registers you risk overheating the combustion chamber aka heat exchanger portion of your furnace. if that portion overheats you risk cracking the heat exchanger which would allow combustion gases to vent into your home’s ductwork, not good my friend not good. then you will be faced with a repair vs replace situation that either way is going to cost you big $$$. if you close too many registers in the summer you risk freezing up your indoor cooling coil – another repair vs replace situation that again could cost you big $$$. just giving unsoliciated advice beause I would sure miss you guys if you ended up with combustion gases in the house whilst you sleep and I personally find reading about your d.i.y.ing more pleasureable.
YoungHouseLove says
Yikes! Thanks for the tip! We permanently sealed off a few registers in the crawl space with the guidance of a licensed contractor in our first house (when we opened some doorways we had to lose some vents) so we never knew it was a big deal! We actually moved into this house and noticed that about 50% of the registers were closed (I guess the old owners used more rooms than others, so some rooms were completely closed off so they were pretty cold when we moved in December!).
xo,
s
Annie says
I am at a kids movie at the library and had a second to read the post. I just died laughing (out loud) at “schlobby Bobby” OMG. Don’t ask me why I just thought it hilarious. Love you guys! Thanks for all you do. Make it a great day.
Rachel says
Hi John and Sherry,
Off topic, but if you’re still using Seventh Generation products you might be interested in this fantastic drugstore.com sale that Hip2Save posted about today.
http://hip2save.com/2011/08/drugstore-com-40-off-seventh-generation-products-free-shipping-8-cash-back.html
YoungHouseLove says
Thanks so much!
xo,
s
Danielle says
Bee knobs could be cute…
http://www.cooltiles.com/emcabknoband194.html
http://www.homeclick.com/anne-at-home-460-bee-knob-large/p-333711.aspx?option=Brushed%20Natural%20Pewter&chnl=cse&ven=googlebase&cat=Hardware%3ACabinet%20Hardware&brnd=Anne%20At%20Home&itm=460|Anne%20At%20Home%20460-23%20Brushed%20Natural%20Pewter%20Bee%20Knob%20Large%20460
YoungHouseLove says
Haha- cute!
xo,
s
Rachel says
Another great post, yes. But that Clara-doll is killing me! She is too cute and expressive. You guys are wonderful parents. It’s so nice to see her growing up in such a healthy, happy, creative environment. Warms my heart.
Kate Ediger says
We finished our bathroom remodel in March, but have yet to put the pulls on 2 cabinet doors for the very fear of drilling holes into new furniture!!!!
jodir says
Check out these non-Ikea pulls on Ikea kitchen cabinets – in love!
http://paloma81.blogspot.com/2011/08/seventies-glam-with-twist.html
YoungHouseLove says
Oh yeah- that’s the stuff. I love it!!
xo,
s
jodir says
Here is a video of the home if you are interested in seeing more.
http://houseandhome.com/tv/segment/retro-inspired-townhouse
YoungHouseLove says
Gorgeous!
xo,
s
Sierra says
Effektiv? All I saw was an adorable baby girl! lol ;)
Nora says
I’m bummed you didn’t find old filing cabinets. I feel like we have so many old office buildings, my mom’s work gives away those old nasty desks and filing cabinets. I want to make something like this with a few filing cabinets for a longer desk but it wouldn’t have the printer space like your’s.
http://www.homemadesimple.com/en-US/HomeOrganization/PublishingImages/Feature/filing-cabinet-desk-tv-med.jpg
Clara is precious as always!
Lauren says
Clara is the sweetest!
I was at IKEA this Saturday but it was PACKED because everyone just got their catalog in the mail the Thursday before. I got a little overwhelmed and left (which is no easy task in IKEA as we all know; so many twists and turns and I somehow would always end back up in the sofa section).
I’m glad your guys’ trip was more successful! Can’t wait to see how the office comes along :)
OwningSingle says
I always find it hard to find file cabinets at a good price. Glad you found something from good old ikea.
Britni says
I found a filing cabinet at a thrift store a few months ago for seven dollars, add a can of black, shiny spray paint and it looks exactly like the $100 one from office depot! Now I’m organized AND not broke!
YoungHouseLove says
That’s so awesome! So glad you found a good thrift store one that worked! And seven dollars?! All the ones we saw were dinged and broken and priced at $50-75! Major deal.
xo,
s
Gudrun says
Not sure what I am about to suggest is quite for for the Ikea piece you just bought, cuz it looks pretty great on its own, but there is this awesome website http://www.danikacheryle.com/#! where you can buy “overlays” for your basic Ikea furniture and make it look a little more one-of-a-kind or just a little more special! You might have seen this already, but thought it looks like a cool project.
YoungHouseLove says
Oh yeah we linked to those right in the post when we mentioned stenciling or papering them or altering them in some way down the line. It looks like so much fun!
xo,
s
Gudrun says
You totally did! I finished reading everything and then saw the link! Haha. I jumped the gun! Great minds think alike? I think that would be a fun project to try! We might try that one day, because we sure do love Ikea! Keep up the good work! Love your blog!
YoungHouseLove says
Haha- great overlay-loving minds must think alike!
xo,
s