the ironing board

First, two things.

Thanks to all of you who offered counsel on the matter of shoes. I do believe that existing black flats will accompany the colorful dress to the bridesmaids lunch/tea.

And, thanks to all of you who are game to lend a hand or two, three, or more to my quilt project. Scans are a great way to close the gap of distance or lack of fabric. Just go to my profile and click on my email address. Voila! If you need my snail mail address to send fabric tracings, email is also a great way to let me know. (Caroleb, I couldn't respond to your request because I couldn't get to your email!)

Now, the ironing board. I am indebted to my mother for this. She uses her ironing board to wrap packages. It's the perfect height for this project since it doesn't require bending over. I have found it the perfect accessory for photographing things! In this picture I documented the parts of the rehearsal dinner invitations that are finally done and on their way to designated recipients. Phew! I contemplated so many variations along the theme of combining the colors of the dinner (yellow, cornflower blue, lime green). In the end this is the look. Not exciting, but not dull, either. I had fun especially stamping the little bride and groom on the corner of the envelopes.

But back to the ironing board. I keep it in my office/sewing/craft room. Sometimes it is set up for days, and risks becoming yet another surface area on which to put things that don't have an immediate home. Other days it is folded and leans up against the side of my paper storage unit. The iron is plugged in at all times and has a home in one of the cubbies of my paper storage unit that is being used to store fabric. (I believe in spaces that can have multiple functions.)

I use the board to iron, to wrap packages (I am my mother's daughter, after all), to lay things out for a look-see, and to offer a surface to photograph things. The cover is bland enough not to distract from what is being photographed, and the background doesn't seem to interfere much, either. It's a perfect solution.

And it got me to thinking about what ordinary, everyday things get used for handy purposes other than that for which they were created. As I look around my office I also notice that a shoe rack stores stationery and craft supplies, a kitchen utensil container holds pens, pencils, scissors, paint brushes and other long and lean gizmos. Like emery boards.

What about your space(s)? How do you use items or places in your home to help you organize or streamline your life? As my grandmother would say, let's share the wealth (of ideas)!