Ah, ergonomics.  It’s amazing how important that concept has become to my life as I age.

We recently got rid of the computer armoire I’d had for 10+ years.  Craning my neck to see the monitor had just become too painful over time.

So we upgraded to the Pittsburgh standing desk from Pottery Barn… my leg muscles and knees are still adapting, but it has helped my neck and back.

Without the armoire, though, there was a lot less space for the little things that accumulate around your desk.  However, I now had a LOT of wall space available that I didn’t have before.

Solution?  A workstation wall collage.  I had so much fun with this project, from the beginning to the end.  First came planning what each individual section would be – some were must haves and some just fit in naturally as I designed.

Then we went to the coolest specialty wood store and found out specialty wood is extremely expensive.😀  In the end, we purchased some nicely grained cherry and pine plywood at a fairly reasonable price.

Then came the best part – distressing the wood!  Distressing wood is an awesome way to get out any frustrations you may have.  We sanded and hammered and smacked the boards with a sock full of screws.  We scratched it with a pike and stabbed at it for wormholes and and even dented it with giant bolts.  I’m sure the noise drove the neighbors crazy, but, man, was that fun!  And the stain really brings out all that great definition.

Adding the hooks, clips, files and cork finished everything up…  if you are interested in doing something similar yourself, our sources included Wayfair for the hooks, Container Store for the metal magazine pocket, wood pushpins and rustic bulldog clips, Pistol Pete’s Etsy store for the clipboard clips and CraftCuts for the metal initial.  Oh, and the wood pencil caddy came from Pier 1 (we didn’t make that, but doesn’t it go nicely with everything we did make?)

Love my new, more ergonomic workstation – fingers crossed, it not only helps my back, but makes me more productive, too!