Workspace

My bedroom is small. At first, I tried to make do with the layout and the furniture I had, but every time I sat down at my desk to work I was immediately annoyed and felt cramped in. Solution: design and build the perfect desk.

I'm nearly finished - just need to add a stabilizing beam to the back, plus some shelving. Above is a photo of the desk as it stands now. The top is 8 feet long and is supported by six 4X4 pine wood posts. I'm pretty happy with how it turned out - especially since I've never built anything like this before. This also represents my first time staining wood, which was more fun than I thought it would be.

The only bad experience I had was with Home Depot. Getting them to cut wood at 90 degrees is asking a lot. I ended up having to take the wood to an independent lumber yard to clean up the mistakes made by HD.

This whole project has been a gigantic learning experience - I'll impart just one probably obvious piece of advice: if the wood is heavier than you think it should be, don't buy it - the extra weight isn't because it's more dense or sturdier, it's because it's filled with water, and if left outside, will eventually cause the wood to crack.

Excuse the unmade bed - I'm going to get a smaller mattress and push it against the opposite wall. In any case, I already feel less boxed in. Los Angeles freeways have enough congestion, so who needs it in the bedroom? Well, maybe Wilt Chamberlain, but he's the exception, not the rule.