A Place for My Thunder Laser
This right here is where most of the magic happens and is a large part of where building the shop became necessary. When I upgraded to the Thunder Laser I knew I would want to start taking over wood cutting for my customers as I had previously outsourced this task. You can read this blog post all about which machine I purchased first when I started with the Thunder Laser brand if you’re considering purchasing one for yourself. We actually purchased this large Thunder Laser second hand as Thunder Laser doesn’t sell this size anymore. We love it though and definitely keep our Thunder Laser cutting in the shop!

Cleaning Up the Sawdust
Often times after cutting a door hanger we have to sand it so that the edges are smooth and to eliminate some of the black residue left behind by the laser engraver. That’s where this cool tool comes in. The holes in the top of the cabinet act as a vacuum that lead to a collection box. When we sand our door hangers here it will collect the sawdust and help to eliminate a ton of messes. It might look like some random holes in the countertop, but this might be my one of my favorite features of the new shop!


A Shipping Station Upgrade
If you’ve been following along with me for a while you know that I started my business shipping from my kitchen table and I have done that for many years. When we started building the shop, I was so excited about the ability for a station just for shipping. I have all my shipping supplies laid out on the counter and the table in the middle of the shop allows me to assemble boxes for subscriptions, share recently cut wood blanks on Facebook Live, and even package up items to get them ready to go! I love the convenience of this ship station!

Storage for the Shop
Another important thing when building the shop was utilizing the space and creating a place where we could store inventory. The loft above the kitchen/breakroom is perfect for just that. I’m so glad that we added it!

A Place for Breaks
As Southern A-Door-nments grows I wanted a space for not only us to take a break during the day, but a space to provide future employees a break as well. We added this breakroom area under the storage loft and I am so glad that we did!

There’s still some things we plan on doing, but I absolutely love being able to walk out to our shop and work now. You’ve probably seen me go live from the shipping station frequently on Facebook to update you on new products or to share about subscription boxes. I’m so excited for the potential that building the shop unlocks for Southern A-Door-nments Decor!
14 Responses
What a wonderful place to go to work, and the best part is that it’s right in your back yard! So proud of you, Tamara, and your team, in how you’ve grown this business into something beyond even your imagination through very hard work. I hope you are able to continue on this journey for years to come and I look forward to buying from you for as long as these arthritic fingers will let me paint. I’m having the time of my life and can’t get enough of the goodies you create. You’ve made a real difference in my life. Hats off to you, my friend!
Thank you so much Cindy! We are so proud of it and yes it’s beyond anything we ever dreamed possible!
I’m so excited for you 💗!!!
Thank you April! We are excited to watch this grow!
That is an awesome set up! I know you love it!!
Yes it’s a dream come true!
This is so amazing – you are your crew are an inspiration to me and I’m sure to hundreds of people. If you build it, they will come – I’d work for you just so that I could relax in the fabulous break room. Congratulations to you. All your hard work and dreams have come true.
haha we do love the snacks in the breakroom! I keep it stocked!
This is a wonderful space! A dream of mine! Congrats!!!
Thanks Tammy! It’s been a dream of mine for years! So amazing to see it come to life!
Tamara I am so happy for you and your family I have followed you for a long time I remember you sitting in that little room and watching you go live. You are such a joy to watch and such a sweet person hopefully one of these days I will meet you in person! It shows when you are passionate about something you will give 100% so stay sweet as you are now and I can’t wait to follow you thru your journey in life! Thank you for sharing your life with us
You are so kind Robin! I would love nothing more than to meet you too! I know you’ve been following for a long while! Your continued support and love means the world to me! Maybe we can meet at SA LIVE one day!
That looks great!
Thanks Phyllis! It’s beyond our expectations!