Grown-up Version of Back-to-School Supplies Shopping - Ashley's Home Office Reveal

The love of shopping skipped a generation when it came to my mom.

But there was one time of the year when you could count on her

 to load my brother and I up in her big, white Mercury Cougar,

 (which was incidentally almost the size of a school bus!)

and head to town for Back-To-School Shopping for new clothes and school supplies!

We didn't start as early as they do nowadays.

Shopping... or school!

Farming was a big industry in our parts, so school was scheduled to begin

after Labor Day... when Tobacco Season was over.

I will let you in on a little secret though,
no longer a child,  I still find myself getting a little giddy on the inside
 this time of year, when I walk into the stores with all those huge bins
 lining the aisles, filled with brand new markers,
paper, notebooks, pencils, pens, etc, etc...

My days of buying school supplies for the kids are rapidly coming to an end,

with only a rising high school junior left in the household.

Although I do suppose helping Ashley set up her home office in a little niche
 in her apartment, is kind of the same thing. 

 Just on a more mature, sophisticated level, wouldn't you say?
"Back-to-school supplies evolve into office supplies as our years progress!"

For instance, check out Mack...

 A tape dispenser we found at Target, he's not just another pretty face, but also functional!

As with the rest of Ashley's apartment, the office area was put together
with several re-purposed, upcycled projects.

The little stool painted gold and recovered with navy coral-printed fabric, 

 coordinates nicely with the living room.
{Stool found at Golden Leaf Antique Mall in Mullins, SC}

The $30 Desk found at Carolina Country Peddlers Mall in Lumberton, NC,
was structurally in excellent condition.

The desk was painted navy overall, except for the gold to accent the middle cubbie.

 A custom-cut piece of glass provides a protective topper.

New quartz/brass knobs were added to update the piece...

The navy nautical prints were purchased from Adam's Ale Art Prints on etsy,
replacing existing prints in a set of yard sale found pictures.
The frames' color/finish was perfect, and we were also able to salvage the mats as they were.

Gold spray paint transformed the silver base of the printer table,
a leftover from Ashley's college dorm days.

And on a slight tangent...
To protect the top of the table from spray paint over-spray or stray mist,
I covered the area with contact paper.
Used this same technique when painting the mirror in her living room.
The contact paper has just enough adhesion to hold it in place,
but not enough to damage most finishes or paint underneath.

Back to the topic at hand...

Long gone are my days of buying

 sweet, whimsical school supplies in hot pink, lime green, and wild cheetah print,
with Lisa Frank graphics.

...and for David, notebooks with superheroes and "jacked-up trucks" covers!

...but if you sneak a peek in my cart
on any given shopping trip to Wal-mart around about now 'til September,
you will most likely see a new ream of wide-ruled paper,
 a spiral bound notebook with a pretty cover,
 or maybe even a pack of fine-tip writing pens among my other items to purchase.

Old habits die hard!   :)
~Rhonda

_______________________________

PS...
Hump Day Reading Summer Reading Highlights
 will resume next Wednesday,
and I'll share just a few shots of Ashley's porch.

If you missed the previous post covering the rest of her apartment,
you can check it out {HERE}.

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