Lightroom Folders - Can I "Demote"?

I have a quandary in LR 1.4.1 that I'm unsure how to resolve, short of re-importing my entire catalog. I know how to "promote folders" but I can't seem to be able to "demote" them.

I decided to give myself more real estate in the folder menu within the Library module by removing the top 2 folder levels so that I would be left with the enclosing Year folder with its Month and shoot folders - bite straight into the action rather than drilling up/drilling down unnecessarily.

This was achieved very simply by r/clicking, choosing Delete... then Promote Folders. Nice. And if I move that folder around in Finder, LR still knows where to find it.

I'm having a bit of a DAM rehash (i.e. re-organizing my photos) and decided that I want the 2 folder levels back in 'above' my Year folders structure.

But I can't reverse the 'Promote Folders' action above. To add a new folder, it tells me that the list of files already exists, then no photos were found to import.

Any ideas?

I share my library between the Mac HD and an external hard drive (working folders on the local drive, archive or finished work is moved within LR to the external, with the same folder structure). Wondering if I should move the working folders to the archive, create new (empty folder), then move back? I'd still be trying to create an 'empty' folder with 'no photos to import', surely.

Thanks in advance.

No matter. I renamed my folder structure 'in reverse' in Finder to get it back to the way it was.

Another enhancement request for LR I think, seems to me an obvious omission, like a car without a reverse gear.

In v1.x you'd put a dummy image in the level folder you wish Lightroom to show, and import it. Once that's done, Lightroom shows the folder, and you can delete the dummy image.

It's a minor enhancement I'd expect to see before too long.

Victoria Bampton wrote in post #5418639
In v1.x you'd put a dummy image in the level folder you wish Lightroom to show, and import it. Once that's done, Lightroom shows the folder, and you can delete the dummy image.

It's a minor enhancement I'd expect to see before too long.

Aha. So there is method to the madness. Bit of a plebeian workaround in my opinion, nevertheless worth knowing. Thanks Victoria.

Did most of my DAM re-hash over the weekend so shouldn't be needing that nugget again too soon.