This last fall we completed a large renovation in our kitchen, part of that renovation included a redesign of the eat-in nook that we use as an art area for my kids. We redesigned things to give the older kids a bit more access to open ended art supplies where they could create their own art projects. This led to a bit more need to clean up. Whether it was just paint/glue/marker whatever, I've been finding that Nora and Henry need a space to clean a bit. Eventually, I would also like to add art that includes the use of some water -- felting wool comes to mind.
Anyway, long story short, I've been looking for a way to upgrade our access to water in the art area. The previous system worked really well, it just didn't give us a space to work with the water. Well, the solution finally hit me while I was walking around IKEA. This bench! I confirmed with Morgan that he could cut away the slats and bought it!
An added benefit of this set up is that we get a bit more storage room now. On the bottom shelf, we keep all the smaller cleaning supplies that my children use around the house. The tray on the top includes their plant care materials and a tiny scrubber for working in the sink. Then, they just have a nice working surface to line up art trays, dishes, or whatever they are working with.
If you wanted a dish washing stand, this could easily be adapted with two buckets! Then, to empty this, Nora/Henry/myself can empty into a smaller bucket and then pour into our adult sink.
So, that's it! An easy DIY, IKEA hack!
