Going to Town with my Dymo

Yikes! I know, that kitchen was terrible. It was probably très à la mode back in 1974 when it was installed but I’m so glad it’s not mine anymore.

 

I’ve shown you how the cabinets came in handy in the hobby room and now I improved on the organization in there by labeling the drawers.

 

There are so many of them so it got difficult to memorize which drawer holds the paint rollers and which one the sand papers but now it’s eeeeeeeasyyyyy. Just read the labels.

 

I’ve sent Wille down there to fetch tools for me and he’s reappeared really quickly with the right stuff so IT WORKS!

 

I used my trusted old Dymo and the clear tags with black print which are my favorite ones. My Dymo is a few years old but this one seems to be similar. I love my Dymo!

Wiieee! It's Friday and I have a whole weekend ahead of me. So little time. So much to do. Happy Weekend!

Comments

[Älvan]

Happy weekend to you too! I love my dymo so much I actually made a dymo tag for it, saying "I <3 my dymo". Cheesy, I know :)

[rosrmaryfromoregon@msn.com]

I have loved everything you've done so far but I just do not understand the choice to put labels those beautiful cabinet doors.

[Messy]

Yay, weekend! I know I'm going to sound like an annoying mum, but I do hope you will sit down with a coffee and *enjoy* the already amazing transformation your house has gone through!
It's amazing. My hat off to you.

(BTW, small question: did you save those seventies knobs on the doors? If you don't like them yourself, chances are they will be very popular on eBay or the like...)

[charli]

hey! spackling and rollers are the same in english and swedish! love it!
and I totally get the labeling. its not like they're wonderful custom wood drawers in a kitchen that just need a coat of paint. Those poor cabinets/drawers were just not ideal kitchen cabinets/drawers. Fine for a hobby room, though.

[Maja]

I would also like to change my kitchen cabinets, even though they are just 10-12 years old. At least I would like to repaint them but Im not sure how to sand the surface since those are not a classic wodden cabinets but covered with wood grain look vinyl.

[Carlos]

Um, I'm sorry, but to me there's NOTHING beautiful about those old kitchen cabinets IRL. Fake wood grain melamine and all the rest is chip board and plastic...

[Carlos]

My first thought when I saw them was to give them to my friend Sanna who sells similar vintage glass knobs in her mom's interior design store until I realized that these weren't glass, they were plastic, so I tossed them. Wille's built in wardrobes upstairs did have large chunky glass knobs though so I gave her those to sell :).

[Carlos]

Exactly.

[Carlos]

I'm sure something could be done to them, like sanding and then priming so the top coat will stick. Ask at your local paint store, there are so many great products out there!

[Maddelaine]

It looks really organized. I actually really like the shape of your cabinets. I think this many drawers can be very helpful (as you demonstrated by using them in the hobby room). I'm not a big fan of the colour though. What do you think of them? Have you considered painting or covering them?

[Brismod]

I love my Dymo too. You've done well to repurpose the cabinets for your hobby room. You have so much storage! xx

[friedas favorites]

Yay. One Benita organization tip I already have done myself. I use Ikea Helmer containers (with 6 drawers each) for the same purpose and they come with labels already. i think drawers are just perfect. nails and screws in one of them, tools in the others, etc. just like yours. so simple and efficient.

[rosemaryfromoregon@msn.com]

I guess the cabinets must look much better in the photos than in real life then because in the photos they look very sleek and clean; I think I'm responding to the way the labels seem (to me, anyway) to detract from that look.

[Carlos]

I have, but it's way, way down on my priority list. Expect to see them painted sometime in 2020...

[Carlos]

This hobby room is where I do painting, gluing, carpentry etc, where I keep the lawn mover and other gardening equipment and it's really a space to be messy in while trying to keep the rest of the house neat and tidy. The cabinets are there for practical reasons only and I love that I can now find everything at once. It's not meant to be pretty, but practical :).

[Hxx]

I had a Dymo when I was little and labelled everything - I feel a bit of technologically-improved nostalgia coming on!!

[jja]

I love my Dymo (read first time about it here and bought one afterwards) but you love yours for sure more :-)))))
Have a nice weekend.

[Helena]

Hos oss har vi väldigt lite eluttag i köket, så ofta samsas det många sladdar i ett och samma uttag. Sedan jag märkte sladdarna med min Dymo så är det såååå mycket lättare att genast ta rätt sladd!! :) Älskar min Dymo med!!

[Petra from NL]

I love my Dymo too! The clear labels are nice indeed. In our pantry I used white ones on white shelves. I also like the iron-on variety which I used for several projects too.
Would love to have such a big hobby room... we have to reorganize our garage again (mostly declutter) to reclaim the worktop in there. On our list for a little time off work in October.

[Leena]

I <3 Dymo too!
But I noticed there are chopping boards on top of the drawer units? How handy are those! When ever one needs to punch a hole through something or cut something with the carpet knife, those will come in usefull.

[Monica]

Ha. So there is clear tape available. Must research for my label machine. Have a great weekend!

[Carlos]

I know! I keep forgetting that I have them, but when the countertop is jam packed with projects and tools and I do remember them I'm like "yes!" :).

[elisa]

it is astonishing how great it looks reworked like this! i'd be giddy over a hobby room such as this. i gave my labeller away :( as it didn't translate in power to the uk, now and then i think fondly of it. if other people can find what you need in your house, you know you're amazing. x

[RebeccaNYC]

I think you must have more hours in the day than I do! Really Benita, you are amazing. All this and a full time job? And I think the cabinets look great, tidy and clean. I know they are not white, but they are neutral, so there IS that! And if you nick them, or spill something on them...who cares. Another great project.

[Die Rabenfrau]

Can't you come and renew our basement? ;-)
I'm also sure, your day has more than 24 hours, you get so many things organized in such a short time! I like my Dymo, too!

[Kristín]

Brilliant idea, wish I had something like this in my storage room :)

[Angela]

I loooooove my Dymo too :-D My husband bought it when we moved houses three months ago: every furniture that he disassembled, he put all screws in a zipp lock bag and tag eeeeeeeverything :-D Now I'm using it without stop :-)
Btw, great tip about the transparent tape, I didn't know it! Just bought it via amazon.de :-)
In Germany,
Dymo: http://www.amazon.de/Dymo-S0883990-LetraTag-100H/dp/B0030E5WYW/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1314962756&sr=8-3
The tape: http://www.amazon.de/Dymo-S0721550-LetraTag-Schriftb%C3%A4nder-Transparent/dp/B000KT8KGM/ref=pd_cp_office_3

Cheers, thanks for the great tip (as usual :-) ) and have a nice weekend!
Angela

[devil]

I just love that you re-purposed the old kitchen cabinets. How resourceful!

The labeling idea is a great one. My old eyes would need larger labels, though. ;)

Have a fantastic weekend, Benita! And your readers, too!! :)

[Pauline]

This looks just like my brother in-laws (who is a dentist) office. He has a draw system that is really similar.

They really don't look that bad in the photo, so maybe you have fantastic photoshop skills :)

As someone else said I’m not a fan of the dymo stickers though, and as far as Chez Larsson is concerned that’s a first. Sorry

[carolyn]

I am a DYMO addict too. My friends make fun of all me labelled jars in the kitchen. I love your idea of labelling the drawers. I've done the same thing to a drawer unit in my office and it just makes things so much quicker.

[Annie]

Loved my first dymo where you punched in the letters, very retro these days, still have it with red tape, but never use it.

[Maddy Webster]

Another wonderful and clever re-purposing! Love the new handles, and the labelling is great too. I recognise the legs under the cabinets, I have the same ones (here in Australia) under our bathroom vanity!

[Jane]

I like them. I actually think the labels make the cabinets look much better. Besides, it's MUCH MORE practical. I mean, the reason I love your blog is that you combine function with style so well. Also to me, functionality comes first if I have to choose between the two. I can't stand things are pretty but useless, unless it's an ornament.Some says it looks like a dentist office. I'd say it's what you want a workshop to look like.

[Lisa Flaherty]

I recognize those legs from Ikea, I think! What a great transformation! Was it easy to get rid of the black kick plate and elevate the cabinets on feet? A very nice work space, indeed!

[blue china studio]

You always amaze me, I mean you actually made those kitchen cabinets look presentable. Love the labeling, I label everything...well not everything. You know what I mean. You've so inspired me to get my house projects completed. Thank you!

[Carlos]

It was really easy. They were screwed into the floor and the cabinets were propped on top... Unscrewing then from the floor was kind of tricky though :).

[nr14]

Veldig så smart:)

[Shelly]

I really like the feet you put on the cabinets. Between that and the new hardware they really look great. I know you're not worried about them looking great, but it's a huge improvement! Great job as always!:)

[kathleen]

When we moved last winter, I labeled all the light switches in the new house. There are tons of them at each doorway...multiple switches for the same light or ceiling fan...so that you can turn them on or off no matter which door you use to enter a room or leave it. We would be switching on light after light before turning on the one we actually wanted. The labels were an amazing help. Now we have mostly learned which switch controls what, but the labels look okay to me, so I'm leaving them up to avoid houseguest's confusion.

[Amy]

Dymo has been a great way to teach my son how to write.. he has even labelled me my husband and hes older sis!! I-L-O-VE-M-Y-D-Y-M-O

[Ett stenkast från Fyndet]

När kommer din bok om att organisera sitt liv?? Älskar alla tips och trix, layouten på inläggen, texten - alles! Och nu att få följa upprustningen av ditt nya hus. Tack för att du delar med dig!!

[Monica B]

Jag gillar min Dymo, även om den är av en betydligt äldre version. Käckt tips, förresten!

[rental mobil]

Very nice, thanks for sharing.