In an effort to declutter my desk space at home, I recently built a handy little shelf to (a) cover my ugly old radiator and (b) store my paperwork and craft supplies somewhere away from the top of my desk. It was looking pretty bland so I DIYed my own Kate Spade striped folders (cost = zero dollars!.. because I had all the materials already on hand) to replace my dingy mismatched manilla ones.
The difference isn't that dramatic, but the space definitely looks more pulled together because it all fits in my white, gold and pink theme... rather than looking like the rainbowed craft room of a child. Keep reading for the easy how-to!
WHAT YOU'LL NEED:
white file folders
metallic gold washi tape (I used scotch expressions)
scissors or xacto knife
(1) Start on one side of the folder and place a strip of washi tape flush against the vertical edge.
(2) To make sure your stripes are evenly spaced, cut a small excess piece of tape and place it next to your first stripe, with the edges touching. Then adhere your next stripe touching the other side of your tiny tape spacer.
*I only put a spacer near the top of each strip and then eyeballed the spacing at the bottom. The beauty of washi tape is that it can be pulled up and placed again if you're not happy with your line, but if straight lines are not your forté, just put a second set of little tape spacers at the bottom of your stripes as well as the top, and your stripes will be perfect!
(3) Repeat steps 1 and 2 until the whole folder is covered.
(4) Flip the folder over and carefully trim the excess tape from your edges. I experimented with both scissors and my xacto knife for this, and they work about equally- the xacto knife was a little easier to use around the curved corners and label area of the folder, while the scissor was easier to get a perfectly straight, close cut on the straight edges. Use whatever you prefer, but if you're using an xacto, be sure to put something underneath you to protect your work surface! (cardboard works just fine)
(5) Remove your tape spacers and discard. Or if you're going to make more than one folder, stick them to the edge of your desk or work surface and then re-use them when putting together the other folders (it will make your washi tape last longer if you waste as little as possible on the spacers!)
My bizzare bedroom lighting makes metallic tape look kind of crazy in photos...
I always have jars and jars of pens, pencils and markers floating around my workspace. I can never seem to cut down on the amount of writing utensils I own. And while it screams Look! I'm artistic! It definitely doesn't contribute to the simplistic clutter-free aesthetic I'm always striving for. Easy solution? Stop displaying your pens out in the open like the artwork they're not and hide them away in a pen-sized drawer!
For the record, this classic wooden ikea bad boy is next on my DIY to-do list. Planning a cool graphic paint job for the drawers... stay tuned.
Another easy update? Swap your 20 year old collection of random paper clips, binder clips, safety pins, what have you, and just pay a couple bucks for some all-gold supplies. I recently spent three whole dollars on a box of assorted gold binder clips (link HERE) and a whopping $1.74 on cute gold paper clips (link HERE). Money well spent considering it gives you the gold desk supply look that's uber trendy right now, but costs you a whole lot less than say, this $30 gold Kate Spade stapler (swoon).
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 // CLUTCH: MICHAEL KORS // EARRINGS: ANTHROPOLOGIE ( SIMILAR ...){kind=link}
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