(Yes, that is my cat Leo who prefers to drink out of the island faucet. He’s waiting for me to turn the water on and is somewhat annoyed that I am taking pictures instead.)

Even though our home office is right around the corner, there always seems to be a proliferation of papers strewn across the island … things that need to be tended to in the next few days or more likely …weeks.

When I saw this little crate I thought it might be cute to corral all of the paperwork so that I can actually prepare food on my island. 

I like the patina and texture it has.  They had a few other sizes and shapes as well. We’ll see how long this system actually lasts. But I also like that I can just pick the whole thing up by the handles to clear everything off to cook or change it out for a vase of flowers. In the meantime, I’ve spotted a few other interesting uses for metal crates …