Small shop transformations are our favorite category of reader submission. There’s something about the constraint – the fixed square footage, the limited ceiling height, the one outlet that has to serve everything – that produces creative solutions you don’t see in large, well-resourced shops. These are the ten best small shop transformations in our reader archive, organized from “impressive for the size” to “genuinely astonishing.”
The under-stair shop (Portland) – A wedge-shaped 60 square feet of basement floor under the staircase, previously used for storing holiday decorations. Now: a complete hand-tool woodworking setup, with the workbench built to fit the wedge shape exactly. Custom angled cabinet under the bench for storage. Low-profile LED lighting that fits the varying ceiling height under the stairs. The builder can’t stand fully upright in the back half of the space. She doesn’t need to – she sits on a stool at the bench and everything she needs is at hand. She’s made three pieces of furniture in it, including a small rocking chair that had to be assembled outside because it wouldn’t fit through the opening when completed.
The balcony shop (New York City) – A 40 square foot apartment balcony, enclosed in the winter with plastic sheeting, equipped with a freestanding workbench and a collection of hand tools. The builder works on the balcony in fair weather and in the living room in winter, carrying tools back and forth in a tool tote. He has built and sold furniture from a Manhattan apartment for four years using this setup.
The closet shop (Boston) – A standard bedroom closet, 2×6 feet, converted to a hand-tool shop with a fold-down workbench that covers the full closet width, shelves above for tool storage, and a floor-level storage box for lumber offcuts. The closet doors close fully when not in use. From the bedroom, there is no evidence of a shop. The transformation cost $180 in materials and one weekend of build time. Submit your small shop for a feature – the smaller and more creative, the more interested we are.