To expand on Utgartha's info.

1. Zap-A-Gap super glue is generally what I see most people using and what I use personally. You can purchase an X-Acto knife set for pretty cheap, commonly recommended is just a basic handle and a bunch of #11 blades, also what I use. Gap filling, probably not going to be a big concern for you at first, but super glue is a good gap filler if you do find the need to fill any gaps.
   
   
2. Primer, Rustoleum Ultra Cover Black and White primer is a good readily available primer that you can pickup at walmart or any local big box stores pretty much.
   
   
3. Vallejo, P3 and Reaper all offer paint "sets" that will give you a good start, this little Vallejo set gives you a good selection of colors to start out with. Alternatively, P3 offers paint theme sets, I've always found them confusing though, Reaper also has paint sets, they have two sets out now that includes an array of colors here and here.
   
   As for brushes, this is a difficult topic, synthetic brushes are really crappy, they will wear out within only a few weeks of use, synthetic brushes are typically what you get from most hobby brands, Vallejo, Army Painter etc. Right now Rosemary & Co is the cheapest way to get decent sable brushes, which are long lasting and hold their tip, eventually though you'll want to upgrade to Raphael or Winsor and Newton brushes, I would recommend a #1 and #2/0 also known as #00.
   
   As for a light source, you want something with a daylight bulb preferably, I use something like this but much much cheaper, you can find them at local furniture stores or WalMart.
   
   And lastly, r/minipainting is here to help, if you have any questions or need any help, just ask away, lots of helpful and kind people here and there are some tutorial resources on the side bar over there ---->

Hey there! Just finished setting up the nursery and writing this from my hospital bed during the induction process. Loved seeing everyone's nurseries! 


A few very smart humans before me said to decorate with things that you like or things that can live in the rest of the house. It really stuck with me and with kids toys being so loud, I kept the base elements simple and soft.  Honestly it's my favorite room in the house and both my doggos love to chill in there waiting for their bud to join :)




Amazon:

Doggo lamp (so far so good, but don't lose the allen keys.): https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0746CX88D?ref=ppx_pop_mob_ap_share


Tripod lamp, great deal imo: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07BDPJXGH?ref=ppx_pop_mob_ap_share


Wood & Steel Side Table: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B017ADG15W?ref=ppx_pop_mob_ap_share


Promise Babe Baby Play Gym Wooden Frame: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07LCN2TL7/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_i_R47gDb6WH0RCJ



WayFair

Glider: https://www.wayfair.com/baby-kids/pdp/davinci-piper-reclining-glider-dv2203.html



IKEA

Bakvam Spice Racks for the books

Raskog rolling cart for extra diapers and the whatnot.

Hemnes dresser and tall dresser (in the closet) found on Nextdoor. I kinda followed: https://www.twotwentyone.net/nursery-dresser-organization/ for the large dresser organization (with the drawer organizers). 


GOOGLE

Camera, home, nest smoke alarm, and hue lights bulbs.



From around...

The plants :) most hailing from Flora Grubb in SF and planters from Etsy and Flora Grubb.

Pillows, pretty sure the succulent is from Society6

Black and White throw, won't last long in the kids room, but from the couch and probably Ikea.

Rug: originally in our office (now kids room) is from ruggable. It's machine washable and w two older doggos, totally saves the day. 

Posters from Society6.

The crib was a hand-me-down from friends. 




Moar photos:

http://imgur.com/gallery/Y8gS2nF


Thanks! 

Edit: he's out! 3 days of inducing and then an emergency C-section. Fun.... Birth story coming:)

Great topic!

Something purely functional that helped me out a lot was to add a lot more light to my living space. I'm in the US, so we've got some pretty short days now (though certainly they're even shorter in Canada, Europe, and other countries at northern latitudes.). Having lights on at sunset (which can be around 4:30pm-5:00pm or so right now) until bedtime really helped keep my energy up through the evening, and then let me get a good night's sleep when I turned them off and went to bed.

I found 2700K temperature color bulbs to be the best looking by far. Floor lamps with indirect light (i.e., the bulb is obscured) were good to have, as well as additional task/accent lights. I bought enough lamps so that I felt awake inside even after dark. So I'd put 2-3 floor lamps in the living room, along with 2-3 accent lights and maybe a task lamp. Similar, though slightly scaled down, for the bedroom.

A few floor lamps I liked:

• https://www.ikea.com/us/en/p/vidja-floor-lamp-with-led-bulb-white-30416149/
  
• https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01KMWCNBY
  
• https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01NBPHPYF
  
  So if you're in the northern hemisphere and you feel a lower-mood, lower-energy this time of year, and maybe are also having poorer-quality sleep, consider if adding more light to your living space might help. I can say in my own experience, it really helped soften those difficulties for me.

3 walls very light beige (as light as it gets!), the wall with the window, brown!
then use this fabric to make your super curtains!

Let's change out those curtains!

just a few bonus decorating ideas

have this book shelf mounted in one corner of the room, from the way the layout looks in the picture, i'd say that right side corner you should mount this.

and then maybe this floor lamp somewhere on the left side of the room to add a little extra light. And since there are so many different bulbs, you can really mess with the lighting ambiance of the room!

and maybe this poster up above your window, going along with it. Adds a bit more rainbow to the room, and all the colors on the brown wall would really look amazing.

and if i so happen to win, I would super appreciate a GC to go towards my DS fund! :D

there are sprays but they don't last long. i would recommend getting a roll of spiked deep pile carpet protector and putting it on the floor spike side up. it will be fine for you with shoes on, while discouraging the cats completely. this stuff is easy to clean, while home depots and lowes have this on sale for a few bucks per yard. obviously you'll need to put enough distance down along their path so the cats don't simply jump over it. don't worry, it won't hurt their paws, it's simply uncomfortable for them.

http://www.amazon.com/27X75-PROTECTOR-Multy-Industries-5300057/dp/B000M7S4EK

another idea is to use an air or water spray device that motion or collar key fob activates. put one of them on each side of the doorway standing sentry to keep the cats out, while you the human step over it's detection grid. after a few hits they won't come back for more, so the spray and battery should keep for a while.

http://www.amazon.com/Contech-StayAway-Motion-Activated-Pet-Deterrent/dp/B000DZFFN4

of course, the simplest solution would be to install a door and keep it closed. if you need to keep the door open a crack to hear what's going on upstairs and for air exchange, simply put a long hook and eye door lock on the inside and purposely mount it so keep the door open a few inches while locked. sound & air exchanges, but the cats won't squeeze through. if the gap is ~3" you can still lock/unlock the hook from the eye even from the opposite side of the door by inserting your fingers through the door crack. a door chain or hasp works well, but this hook does a better job of keeping the door ajar if the doorway gets drafty.

http://www.amazon.com/6-Gate-Hook-and-Eye/dp/B00004Z0TU

this is what i use to keep my cats out of the bedroom, while still being able to exchange fresh air and loud conversation between rooms.

.

BTW if you keep cats in the same home as a high sanitation work space, you may need to invest in a good mechanical HEPA filter. I have a similar need as you, and got an;

http://austinair.com/products/healthmate-series/

it's expensive upfront, but it's low filter replacement costs over time will make it cheap and low maintenance over the lifetime of your cat. I've had mine over a decade, and it's whisper quiet and works as good as new as long as i replace the drum filter every 5 years, and wash out the nylon pre filter annually (or semi annually depending on the environment) replace the pre filter with a new one every 5 years too. one is included with that replacement filter drum.

http://www.bestfilters.com/Austin-Air-Healthmate-Standard-Replacement-Air-Filter_p_251.html

http://www.bestfilters.com/Austin-Air-Healthmate-Standard-Size-Replacement-Pre-Filter_p_239.html

if you are *coin mining using multi-GPU servers, a HEPA filter may dramatically reduce the amount of fan/heatsink cleaning you will need to do over time.

Since it's a church, is there some other area you could securely store your bike? Like a storage closet or room? Even if you had to lock it while it's in there, that would free up more space. Then you could put a nicer big lamp in that corner. Something like this which would help with that minimalist feel you're going for.

An accent chair like this would also look nice, be comfy to read in, and more in line with the look you mentioned. Similar ones are frequently at places like TJ Maxx or Target.

This isn't a magic "bam! you're awake and not going back to sleep!" solution, but it's worked for me.

Get a floor lamp, preferably one like this that allows you to adjust the light direction. Buy the brightest bulb that the lamp can safely use. Put the lamp beside your bed, with the bulb aimed at the head of your bed.

Buy an electronic timer like this. It will turn your lamp on/off at set times. When you set your clock, set the timer for 15 minutes before you're going to wake up.

The lamp will give your body the signal that it's morning and time to begin waking up. If you close your eyes again, it'll be harder to fall asleep again.

Wow, never knew there were so many giraffe things out there! Thanks for the contest :)

1. A giraffe wine holder
   
   
2. A giraffe floor lamp
   
   
3. A cute giraffe wooden box
   
   
4. An adorable giraffe stuffed rocker
   
   
5. Giraffe Tea Kettle

Awesome! I love your paint racks and paints. Very neatly organized!

You may find a 5000k LED light helpful to further light your workspace.

If you can't or don't want to mount a light onto the wall, perhaps something like this:

Brightech Litespan Slim- 2nd Edition LED Reading & Craft Floor Lamp - Dimmable & Light Color Adjustable with Touch Switch - Standing Tall Pole Task Lamp with Gooseneck for Office - Black https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01AQTWUKW/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_c.b8Bb3B88NWN

I don't have any pics, but I have some advice.

Declutter, declutter, and declutter some more. Organize stuff, move stuff to another area (bookshelf or closet), and throw stuff out. The last is painful but necessary.

Here are some rules I try to follow.

Zero Object Spaces. Sounds vaguely science fictionish, but it's what I call an area that should have nothing on it at the end of a project or when switching projects. If you have one thing out, it's easy to leave two things out. If you have two, three's even easier, and so forth into madness. If I had your space, the whole desktop would be a ZOS. I'd move the 'scope and power supply onto the shelf above, if they pass the Hierarchy test.

Hierarchy. How often do you use it, and how soon will you use it next? The less you use it, the further away you should store it.

Organization. Stuff you can't find is stuff you can't use. It looks like you're in good shape there with all the labeled boxes.

On another note, I suggest a good soldering mat for your desk. And I like a magnifier lamp on an arm -- light right where you need it and magnification for SMT or just thorough inspection.

hm, not sure about the options for that type of tube lighting. if budget allows, you might want to swap that out for a wooden chandelier.

if you're going for a mid-century modern look, that lamp you listed would be fine. i'm sure it gives off plenty of light - that part is more dependent on your particular bulb.

i use this paper floor lamp myself, and one of these flame effect bulbs on the bottom, with a lifx smart bulb on top.

it's versatile lighting that emulates the visuals of a fireplace/lantern nicely while being tunable in color/brightness/animations etc.

on that note, i wholeheartedly recommend going with smart bulbs if you haven't looked into them yet.

Thank you so much for your input, I can't explain how helpful it is!

So I'm going to go ahead and purchase the tan article couch :)

​

I'm also thinking of these items, do you think they're a good match?

Murphy Beds:

https://www.wayfair.com/furniture/pdp/red-barrel-studio-kimsey-queen-storage-murphy-bed-with-mattress-w000376503.html?piid=264428993

https://www.wayfair.com/furniture/pdp/wade-logan-lower-weston-murphy-bed-w001436198.html?piid=2065831161

Floor Lamp:

https://www.amazon.com/Kira-Home-Industrial-Efficient-Eco-Friendly/dp/B07VVSKYLV/ref=sr_1_16?crid=VHKX108G3ZFB&keywords=searchlight%2Bfloor%2Blamp&qid=1566724802&s=gateway&sprefix=searchlight%2Bfloor%2B%2Caps%2C334&sr=8-16&th=1

Coffee Table:

https://www.wayfair.com/furniture/pdp/world-menagerie-coffee-table-w002045519.html?piid=32414894

​

If only I knew what color the rug should be!!

Also here is the type of faux concrete I was thinking about: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ItrxnFNuj7U

​

​

Ps: Don't be fooled by the view, there's actually a graveyard there ;) hahaha

Great rug! I saw in the comments that you are willing to get rid of the big chair, I think that it would be best to do so. The furniture is too big for the space. Below I put some links for chair suggestions. I also saw that you want lighting suggestions so also put pairings together.

I would also suggest maybe painting the wall behind the couch to help make it pop. If you do get rid of the chair, the couch you need to center on the wall along with the coffee table and have a chair or two in the other side on an angle to it can be a more social space.

For paint colors how about:

SW 9146

SW 6238

SW 6521

SW 9007

More colors here

Chairs:

One

Two

Three

Lamp:

One this would be next to the couch with the lamp part over the coffee table

Two this can be used as a side table, you could get two and put them on either side of the couch

Three

Yes it’s more expensive but it is worth every penny and your eyes will thank you.


OttLite K94CP3 3-in-1 Adjustable-Height Craft Floor Lamp with Magnifier and Clip, Champagne https://www.amazon.com/dp/B002CWPQ7Q/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_i_eEb0Db8X17GE9

This is what I would personally do..... take it how you will!

Where your current lamp is in that corner, I would do something like this

With that I would get the article nova if you're into sectionals, if not then an article sven if that's what you're into!

I would personally switch out the rug BUT if that's what you like, then keep it! i see one of your paintings have a splash of blue, grey and blue go extremely well together (in my opinion) so perhaps you can get throw decorative pillows in a light-ish blue color to add some color to the room.

It's this lamp - https://smile.amazon.com/gp/product/B01KKZRF5C/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_search_asin_title?ie=UTF8&psc=1 and it can me changed into a bunch of possitions. My plants do seem to really love it's light tho!

I got this led floor lamp from Amazon

It’s pretty bright and not as expensive as others. Maybe 1 or 2 of these would do the trick

I use this and absolutely love it.

Something like this
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B077NPBGSW/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_search_asin_title?ie=UTF8&psc=1

I guess the better term is arc lamp
https://www.allmodern.com/lighting/sb1/arc-floor-lamps-c477075-a76362~279627.html

It's this: https://www.amazon.com/Coaster-901199-Contemporary-Lamp-Chrome/dp/B00RHJIVLW so the round base version.

The lamp itself is fine, especially for $90.. but if I could go back, I'd spend the $400+ on a better repro with the rectangular slab + sleeker looking stem + more accurate shade. In fact, I will probably 'upgrade' down the road.

This is the one I got. It's not advertised to help with SAD, but I find it to be great. Lavish Home (72-0890) 5 Feet Sunlight Floor Lamp With Adjustable Gooseneck - Black https://smile.amazon.com/dp/B008E6BR36/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_XYg-Bb1BD9FGF

I have the 3 in 1 ottlite https://www.amazon.com/OttLite-K94CP3-Adjustable-Height-Magnifier-Champagne/dp/B002CWPQ7Q I use it as a floorlamp, but its got a clamp thing and the 3 bit part detaches from the leg to create a clamp table lamp. Or take the leg off and put the 3 bit in the base for another table lamp.

I use a couple of floor lamps in my basement. The type of floor lamp that has a decent horizontal reach from the base. Something like this: https://www.amazon.com/Brightech-Hudson-Living-Hanging-Brushed/dp/B077NPBGSW

I'm imaging that there is a triangular space directly behind the headboard ("The top of my bed is in a corner of room such that it's against two walls"). How about putting either an arc lamp or an adjustable floor lamp in that space?
https://www.amazon.com/Coaster-901199-Contemporary-Lamp-Chrome/dp/B00RHJIVLW/

https://www.crateandbarrel.com/sylvester-adjustable-floor-lamp/s678184?&a=0&source=igodigital&_=1498709379791

Amazon!

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01DZVMN32/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_i_LOwxDbHDHPC53

I got this LED Asian style floor lamp, it looks really nice and lights both my face and most of the green screen evenly. I also have a small desk lap I set on the floor and angle to cover a pesky spot of the screen with shadow remaining. https://www.amazon.com/dp/B01MZ6JKQS

This one: https://www.amazon.com/Brightech-Maxwell-Standing-Bedrooms-Display/dp/B01NBPHPYF/ref=sr_1_26?keywords=light+fixture+standing&qid=1558461169&s=gateway&sr=8-26

https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B01MZ6JKQS?psc=1&ref=ppx_pop_mob_b_asin_title

here you go

https://www.amazon.com/Brightech-Eclipse-LED-Floor-Lamp/dp/B01KKZRF5C

I've been using this for a few years:

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01E6CX34C/ref=oh_aui_search_detailpage?ie=UTF8&psc=1

It provides a ton of light and looks very basic.

Torchiere?

https://www.amazon.com/Brightech-Torchiere-Super-Bright-Floor/dp/B01E6CX34C?ref_=fsclp_pl_dp_1