apartment therapy changing the world, one room at a time

So take a look at our new working corner. The new cherry-red desk was found at Goodwill covered in obscene graffiti. A couple of coats of paint later, it fits in perfectly with our crafting cabinet.

The chair was given new life with some paint, too, We bought a bike rack to hold two of our four cycles, and found other places to store the two we don't ride as often.

Overall, a very green project based on reused and refurbished items. Here are a few of our tips from reorganizing our home office:

• Organize, then containerize. Take an inventory of what you have first, then decide what you'll keep and what you'll recycle or donate, and then come up with a more efficient way to store it.

• Buy furniture and accessories second-hand. You'll be doing your part to recycle, reduce, and reuse! And you'll save money. Plus, when you buy something used, you can do a lot to make it your own. Paint, stencils, decoupage--all these DIY tactics will leave you with a new objet d'art.

• If you're moving furniture out, see if you can reuse it in another way. We took apart our large Ikea desk and put the frame on our porch. Come spring, it will serve as another sturdy shelf for our container garden.