Friday, April 1, 2011

Card Catalogue Dresser

I have no idea where my love of labeling things comes from. But gosh I love me some clearly labeled drawers, instructions, illustrations. Anything with a label makes my heart skip a beat. I think it is the perfectionist, OCD side of me fighting to break free. Photobucket


But I guess there are worse things to be in love with than a well labeled dresser?


This guy was ripe for the picking with his clean lines and plain drawers. Keeping it from looking too visually cluttered is the real key to using card catalogue plates.

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A little white paint, followed by some grey paint, followed by some distressing and we were ready to attach our filing cabinet inspired chrome handles and frames.

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Taking the crazy 1 step further I printed up some fantasical labels on the 'puter.

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On a totally different wave length, I have to make a confession. I have ventured over to the dark side and bought this set of faux-piaries (aka fake topiaries in the event the joke fell flat...). I rarely ever see fake greenery that I like, and when I spied these two at Home Sense I was thoroughly fooled so in the cart they went. The price tag was unbelievable as well, totalling the cost of just 1 real topiary from HomeDepot.

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And a big thanks to my Dad for loaning me the artwork in these shots! He opened a new restaurant a few years ago and I sourced all the black and white artwork from the local Archives with my mom. These two are waiting to go into another location he is renovating, but in the meantime I am gonna put them to good use (and maybe they will get lost before the reno is done?).

Anyways, thanks a lot Dad!

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43 comments:

Unknown said...

I LOVE this! The labels, the dresser and how you have it decorated! You have inspired me to redo my trash pick from last year! Love your blog! Thanks for sharing that dresser is amazing!!!

Pink Daisys Blog Spot said...

I LOVE this dresser!! The labels are awesome! I love the color, the fake "greens" which is all I can grow :) just the all of it.. Your blog is awesome too.. I hope you don't mind I added you to my blog roll!
You just inspired me to redo the dreser my tv is currently sitting on!
Thanks for the post

Cassie said...

This is a really beautiful card catalogue! Your finishing touches are great!

Alicia said...

The dresser is beautiful and I really like the topiaries. When I was first scrolling through the pictures I thought the top drawer label read "candies" and I thought "Yum! A whole drawer of chocolate!" I think I might have a bit of a sugar problem. . .

Crisp Interiors said...

This is just perfection, Holly!
Would you mind sharing where you got the card catalog label holders?
I love how you printed them up on the 'puter ;)
You're the best!!
P.S. your sis did a fantabulous job on my blog layout! thanks for sharing her info with us!

Rosa @ Flutter Flutter said...

LOVE, LOVE, LOVE!! Any chance there is a specific paint colour that you'd share??

Unknown said...

Thanks so much ladies~

The hardware comes from Lee Valley, and while I wish I could share the paint color, it was a mix of grey, white and a touch of aqua that I had laying around and blended together. Don't be afraid to play a little with your left over paint!!

Sarah @ Cozy.Cottage.Cute. said...

This might be my favourite piece that you've done. Loving the shape and colour!! And labels, of course. ;)

this lil house said...

Love, Love, Love! As always. Funny, I've always been obsessed with card catalogues and am always looking for more...my favorite random card cat find was on a saturday drive with my mom....
Thanks for the inspiration!
Tasha
http://thislilhouse.blogspot.com/2009/11/saturday-drive-card-catalog_01.html

The enchanted home said...

Like everyone else, I just love this! What a super idea...so creative, unique and downright beatiful, a true conversation piece...and LOVE the color! Great job.
Stop by..doing a great giveaway!
www.theenchantedhome.blogspot.com

Anonymous said...

What a clever idea...faking a card catalog by adding the hardware. GENIUS! Thanks, as always, for the inspiration!

Carol-Anne said...

I just finished a post about fake flowers/greenery and then clicked through my 'favourites' to check out your blog out for today...only to see your mention of pretty fakes! Oh, and the lableled drawer is fabulous!

Rustic and White said...

This is all so lovely together. What a great idea for the dresser. One that I am sure many readers are going to "borrow". Thanks so much for sharing:o)
Cheers,
Carrie

Michael Wurm Jr said...

adore this holly! adore!

one of my favorites. and these library/card file things are just all the craze these days!

happy to know i can 'get the look' without handing out the cash to buy one!

Sandra said...

Seriously love, love this. I LOVE labeling, numbering, alphabetizing . . . I was a teacher for 30+ years. :-) xoxo

kristina said...

this is beautiful!! i too am obsessed with labeling! great job!!

Jess Cole said...

I LOVE that dresser it is awesome! And the little pots are so cute!

Anji Johnston said...

What a brilliant idea and so well done. You astonish me with every post! I'm so inspired - thank you!

Robyn said...

That whole look is so inspiring! Truly gorgeous. Absolutely loving it.

Amanda said...

Holly!!! i am SO mad at myself right now! i found those exact handles on clearance at Target the other day for $3.74 for a pack of four of them! less than a dollar a piece! so i of course bought all four packs... and then, returned them bc i had not a single thing to put them on.

ughhhhh! maybe i should check to see if they're still there before i have to go to work tomorrow. i'm totally kicking myself!

LOVE that dresser by the way!

Stacey said...

Looks great! And now you can be super organized! I need to take this tip from you!
Stacey of Embracing Change

Lori @ Katies Rose Cottage Designs said...

Ohhhh wow so very
gorgeous!!!
I love it !!

laxsupermom said...

Beautiful job! I love the color, the hardware, and the font on the labels. Was that everything, yep, everything. Amazing transformation! Thanks for sharing.

Lovely Little Nest said...

LOVE it!! The color and the labels are perfection!! Well done. :)

Kim @ The Gab said...

I love labels too. Thanks for the inspiration.

Jo said...

I love that dresser! I want it. But I currently have dressers almost coming out of my ears. Maybe I'll just have to paint one of them grey and put cute lables on.

Unknown said...

I would never have thought to add the chrome label frames. Simply adorable. I am jealous. Chic Rooms

jvw home said...

Looks beautiful....love the computer labels, the handles, everything!

Ali said...

So creative! What a fantastic idea... my OCD side can totally relate to this and I might have to steal the idea at home - and share it with my readers as well (crediting you of course)!

Krystal Wight Armstrong said...

So much great stuff in this post! The faux-piaries are very nice, I love the chrome hardware, and you made the perfect lables! But I really like that photo of the boy and his dog. Can you tell me the title or artist, or where it was found? I'd love to find a print of it too! Thanks for sharing this fun post :)

Kelley said...

I am going to be so bold as to say that I think this is my favorite piece of yours - EVER!

Melissa said...

LOVE this dresser and would love to know where you found the handles and card catalog labels...

Simply Bungalow said...

Love this! What an amazing transformation. You did a wonderful job.
~Heidi

Korrie@RedHenHome said...

This is so beautiful! What a wonderful inspiration. Where did you find the card catalog frame-thingies?

Anonymous said...

Fabulous!The dresser looks amazing! I'm curious, where did you find the hardware?

Sarah said...

love love love this dresser! and those labels and handles.

Free Art Printables said...

It looks fabulous! I love it!

Kim said...

Wow! It is like you live in a picture perfect magazine...truly remarkable!

Satis House Studio said...

I love this project!!!!! You did an excellent job! Where did you get the filing cabinet frames and handles?

Satis House Studio said...

I love this project!!!! Where did you get the frames and handles?

Jenny @ Simcoe Street said...

I love this!

Shawna said...

I love it! I have always, always wanted a card catalog but the real ones are so expensive. Your project is now on my list for my living room makeover. I got faux-piaries by the way! ;) Where did you purchase the little frames for the project?
Thanks for the inspiration!

Unknown said...

I love the color! What colors did you use?

 
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