An antique tools garage workshop you can park in! – Part 4

Learn how to turn a single car garage into a functional garage workshop that also serves as a parking space! Complete with a rustic antique tools wall gallery!

Learn how to turn a single car garage into a functional garage workshop that also serves as a parking space! Complete with a rustic antique tools wall gallery!

When I first had the dream of parking in my single car garage, I honestly thought the only way I could manage that feat was to ditch my workshop workspace completely.

But I couldn’t have been more wrong! Not only did I get both a full working workshop and space to park, I have more work area than ever when it’s in workshop mode!

Sounds impossible doesn’t it? But the key to making this work?

Parking in a Garage Workshop Series

 

1 – Come up with a plan and purge hard!

2 – Build custom storage to suit spaces

3 – Hang up whatever you can to save space

And be willing to pull the truck outside when it’s workshop time!

Welcome to Part 4 – the final reveal!

Read all installments to-date HERE

And I did it!

Today I’m sharing Part 4 of the final outcome, all decked out like the prettiest garage workshop ever! With plenty of space to park too!

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An antique tools garage workshop

you can also park in!

 

planning a single car garage workshop I could park in

See the mess and clean up in Part 1 HERE

The messy before:

 

It seems like forever ago that my workshop looked this messy. But with a cold snap brewing outdoors, I wanted my truck indoors, so I hustled and made it happen.

The days were long, but I chopped up the monumental tasks into hours if that’s all I had to spare. The key was to keep at it even in small increments.

Learn how to turn a single car garage into a functional garage workshop that also serves as a parking space! Complete with a rustic antique tools wall gallery!

The organized after!

 

Today, the garage workshop is neat, organized, and pretty too!

To the left is the bulk of the workshop tools, work surface and wood storage.

And to the right is extra storage space for things that can lay flat.

This arrangement allowed me to back my truck into the garage, and open the driver’s door against the flatter wall, while the other wall still housed all my workshop gear ready to go without any additional setup.

So today I’m taking you on the full tour, which includes the mitre saw area I haven’t shown yet, with all the hidden special features this compact yet productive workshop entails!

compact garage workshop

The miter saw work table

 

This workbench houses my miter saw, along with a custom reclaimed wood power tools shelf to the right, and a chunk of pallet holding hammers, etc to the left.

The outlet is below the table, a heater baseboard is centered below the table, and a double ceiling fluorescent lighting fixture is positioned perfectly over the saw!

compact garage workshop with antique tools wall gallery

The wall behind the miter saw provided such a fun opportunity to store the tools I needed, along with display my antique tool collection to theme it up right!

compact garage workshop with antique tools wall gallery

Antique tools wall gallery with storage

 

I’m a believer in surrounding yourself with things you love to look at. And you can bet the wall gallery effect the antique tools take on totally inspires me to crank out those DIY projects!

Check out a review I did on this Bosch miter saw HERE

compact garage workshop with antique tools wall gallery

Most of the antique tools are also in working order. It’s always fun to pull one down now and then and work it old-school!

Staying to a mix of wood, rust and blue on this wall space made everything blend in well with the newer miter saw!

But there’s some hidden secrets to this area I can’t wait to show you!

compact garage workshop

A hidden compact work table

 

Note the wood door that’s in front of the work table. It’s held in place with a simple chunk of wood.

This is actually the top of a work table!

Find some handy workshop tables on Amazon HERE

compact garage workshop work table from a door and saw horses

Once the door slides to the, the two sawhorses hidden under the table can be pulled out.

(the sawhorses are actually lightweight IKEA trestle table legs like I used on my sewing desk HERE)

compact garage workshop

And boom! There’s an extra work table I can leave indoors or haul it outside for sanding!

The key to making this work well was ensuring both the door and sawhorses fit the height of the table, and that they were lightweight enough to move around where desired.

It works epic!

But there’s another secret to the main miter saw table…

Check out various sawhorses on Amazon HERE

compact garage workshop

Pull-out work table on casters

 

The space to saw long planks of lumber is rather tight if the boards run beyond the table length. However there’s a fix!

Visit a huge variety of casters to put on tables HERE

compact garage workshop miter saw table on casters

Attaching full swivel casters and two door pulls to the front of the work table makes pulling it forward a breeze! In this position, I can cut any length of plank. And when done, it’s easy to push back into place again.

However the best way for this to happen is to ensure just the table came out with the pull.

compact garage workshop

Shelving and storage wall mounted

 

To help with that, all the shelving was mounted to the wall, so the table could be pulled out by itself, rather than housing a bunch of other stuff that would create more weight.

building easy DIY garage shelving for a garage workshop

See how the shelving was made in Part 2 HERE

Note the space between the shelving and the work table. Cool, right?!

See some unique workshop shelving ideas HERE

compact garage workshop

Another one of the essentials is the hidden cable box. See that little wood cupboard hanging on the wall to the left?

compact garage workshop cupboard hiding the cable box

Learn how to make the pallet cabinet HERE

Hidden cable box inside a cabinet

 

The pallet wood storage cabinet has no back, exposing the cable box when the door is open for easy access, then once closed, is protected from dust, and hidden from view!

I hang a notebook on the outside of it instead. Much more productive.

compact garage workshop pallet hammer organizer

See how this pallet tool storage was made HERE

Piece of pallet for tool storage

 

This chunk of pallet located on the left side of the miter saw houses hammers, a carpenter’s square, safety glasses, right next to the hearing protection.

Visit my own recommended DIY tool must-haves in THIS POST.

compact garage workshop

This power tools space is functional and looks good too!

compact garage workshop - miter saw table and wood storage

See where I found the red storage rack HERE

Reclaimed wood storage rack

 

To the left of the miter saw worktable is the lumber storage rack.

I’m so grateful the durable could stay, because it stores all sizes of reclaimed wood just so perfectly! I’d be completely without it.

I also have an extension cord that is accessible and ready to be used indoors or outdoors. That way I don’t have to dig around for the plugs behind the table or wood storage rack.

There’s even a place for the shop vac hoses, hanging from overhead wood!

compact garage workshop

See the holes in the wall in Part 1 HERE

Wall boards create decor and mounting capabilities

 

There is also a hidden method to this wall gallery. Some of the boards are covering drywall holes that were cut during a renovation. I never did patch up the drywall because I like accessing some electrical installations in walls.

So instead, random planks of wood cover some holes, becoming part of the decor, and more secure ways to mount hooks and other storage for tools.

compact garage workshop

A woodworking workshop that is neat, tidy, bright, pretty, and ready to create!

compact garage workshop

Take a closer tour of the pegboard storage HERE

Back of the workshop

 

Towards the back of the workshop is the tool pegboard, tool chest, storage cupboards and larger equipment such as the table saw, pressure washer and compressor to the left. 

The board across the garage floor is positioned so the back tires of the truck hit it when I’m backing in, to warn me where to stop before I hit anything.

compact garage workshop

See more of the General Store cubby bins HERE

View General Store stencil HERE

Cubby storage

 

To the right is a large cubby filled with rusty junk, paint supplies, sandpaper, electrical cords, construction levels, etc. 

This cubby is sized so perfectly for that space, don’t you think? It completely clears both door accesses 100%!

And that open back door really helps to add natural light along with excellent ventilation when the front garage door is open as well.

Find some helpful paint can storage ideas HERE

ladder storage in a garage workshop

Visit Part 3 – Painting aluminum ladders with wall storage

Flat wall storage

 

I’ve already shared the flat side of the workshop in Part 3 HERE.

The key to this wall is to ensure everything is stored as flat as possible so there’s room to open my driver’s door once the truck is backed in.

And the most important save for me was keeping that amazing huge worktable! So it was painted white like the rest of the wall so it would visually disappear. Looks pretty, doesn’t it?

Even the aluminum ladders got painted, then mounted to the wall on boards for easy and accessible ladder storage.


Stock up on a variety of lightweight aluminum ladders HERE

Search for some attractive folding tables HERE

diy garage shelving for car care

Learn how to make this garage shelving HERE

… and the garage shelving and ladders mounted above it to the wall, so everything would fit.

All the garbage cans are located near the garage doors so they are within easy reach on garbage day.

I mean, look at all that concrete floor workspace!

When the truck is pulled out, I have more square foot building space than I have ever had, for furniture makeovers, repairs or loads of workshop table space to work with!

The only thing I am currently lacking is storage of undone pieces. I do have some space in my laundry room if need be. But the lack of storage is keeping me honest! When I haul something home, I work on it right away so I can move it into its new location and use it, rather than store it!

And it keeps me from collecting too much, because there’s only so much house anyway, right?! If I bring something big home, something big has to go as well. The lack of storage space may encourage me to sell locally too. Because I will never stop woodworking on DIY projects.

compact garage workshop

Summary…

 

All this was thanks to buying another truck.

Because never in my wildest dreams did I think this new garage workshop arrangement was possible. Until I hauled out the mess by purging hard, found new storage spaces, and made it work!

And now I get to play with all my tool toys in this pretty new custom garage setup that fuels me to WANT to build more stuff!

Just as soon as I get rid of something else first…

Read the entire Parking in a Garage Workshop Series

 

1 –  The Plan and the Clean Up

2 – Easy and Free DIY Garage Shelving for tools

3 – Painting aluminum ladders with storage wall

4 – The finished garage workshop tour (you are here)

Read all installments HERE

 

Other spaces I create in:

 

Make this reclaimed workshop setup for free!

View the first upcycled workshop setup HERE

Visit other workshop organizing projects HERE

adjustable wood paint shelves in a paint studio

Tour the paint studio HERE

new sheet curtains on pipe rods in photo studio

Check out the photo studio HERE

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Categories: All Cool Projects, DIY, Junk Drawer, Organizing, Tools & Building
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11 thoughts on “An antique tools garage workshop you can park in! – Part 4

    • Thank-you Eva! I still can’t believe this is my new workshop! But there’s no easy fix… just gotta decide it’s what you want and start hacking at the pile a minute at a time! haha (ask me how I know)

  1. You thought of everything! It’s amazing Donna!
    I’m working on clearing out my garage as well, by tackling all the projects stored in there, while also tackling yard work, lol.
    Today was a beauty day, and I got all the bushes etc trimmed. Piles picked up. Next sunny day is edging. 🙂 Could you come show me how it’s done??

    • Thanks Kim! I’m thrilled with the outcome and it’s so much fun to work in now! And you’ll do great with the edging… if you were down the street, I’d be helping in a heartbeat!

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