In this example, my friend Tami’s place had some old crates used as shelving when she moved in which looked cool… I mulled it over for a bit, looked around and didn’t see anything fantastic but when a grip of them came up for an ok price I just said fuck it, bought them, and then figured out how best to use them.

The beauty of a project like this is it’s pretty cheap and easy so if I don’t like it, I’ll just take it all down and then either use the crates for something else, give them to a friend or sell them for close to what I paid for them…

Mostly I just go around gathering ideas from friends, shops, sites and whatnot and then think about how I might be able to take those ideas and make something my own out of them… If nothing else, I’ll just try to do it cheaper…

I’ll have a post in coming weeks about antique trouble / cage lights… Pretty badass but usually super expensive… The turn of the century ones with the wooden handles are especially beautiful, but again, expensive… So this week I tracked down a later model one for about $20 that I’ll tinker with until it looks and feels more like one of those older ones… I’ve got a few ideas for rewiring and adding a wooden handle that I may pilfer from a non-working bicycle pump… If all goes well, I’ll have a pretty cool little table lamp for not much more than $30…

Sure, it won’t have the history and character that one of those old guys has, and I do appreciate that a hell of a lot, but sometimes you just can’t afford it… At the same time, making something yourself adds a sense of history and character that just can’t be bought… and I like that.

A question: In regards to coming across something on craigslist: Do you have something in mind and start looking for it, or do you just peruse the site that much?

I just moved into a new place and haven’t really done anything with it yet, so I’m always looking for ideas.