Every year around this time I get the urge to rip apart another closet in the house. This year was no exception. With our eldest away at college, his wardrobe was the target. It was in dire need of an update, but I didn’t want to invest a lot of money to do it. Believe it or not, you can renew and maximize your closet space without spending a fortune!
The project was expedited when we needed to access our small attic, and oddly, the hatch is located in the ceiling of that closet. It’s not exactly ideal – more than a little awkward to get to. Since we had to empty the contents of the closet anyway, I figured that there is no better time than the present to tackle this mess. It’s been in desperate need of paint since we moved in, but life happened and it got kicked completely off the priority list…
Until Now.
There were stuffed animals in that closet from when our now 20-year-old was an infant! I thought we put them away somewhere else, but apparently not. So, I will tuck away the special ones and donate the rest.
Sidenote: Back in the 90’s, I was convinced saving Beanie Babies would somehow pay for his college education. The prediction at the time was that they were going to be worth something someday, thus the abundance of stuffed animals. Newsflash – they aren’t yet, and I doubt they ever will be.
Boy, is he going to be happy to have open shelving to store folded items and shoes (yeah right, he won’t care. He isn’t exactly a neat freak…but I will be thrilled).
The Process
First, we removed the shelves and the closet rod. Next, I gave the space a good cleaning from top to bottom. After that, I selected the paint. We had quart size paint samples that were purchased last year for a living room project. I hate to waste the paint we didn’t use, so the inside of the closet is an ideal way to use what we have without purchasing anything else. Then, I began painting the ceiling and working my way down, allowing the paint to dry before moving on to the next section/color.
I realized that for as deep as this closet is, maximizing storage wasn’t a consideration when the house was built. At best, it was an afterthought. There is so much wasted space! We will be adding additional shelving, hooks, and baskets for additional storage. The best part is for this project, we won’t spend much money at all.
One thing I always do when revamping my closets is to prime and paint the often tired, varnished wood a bright white color. Most of the time, I remove the old wooden shelves and replace them with wire shelving. This time, however, I am reusing what we have in the house to complete the project on a shoestring budget. Therefore, my husband took a belt sander to the existing honey-colored shelves.
Honestly, I haven’t decided on the final design of the locker yet, and don’t want to buy anything until I do. Why spend money twice? Once I see how the closet functions, I can decide if further improvements are needed and come up with a new design.
In the meantime, we will certainly double the capacity for storing clothes, shoes, coats, and more! The best part? The whole thing will cost less than $25 to complete. Remember, I had the paint, primer, shelves, hooks, and even extra shelf brackets on hand. If you have to purchase the material, and depending on the size of your closet, you will still likely spend less than $100. Woo-hoo!
Change is refreshing!
Once I complete this closet, I’ll post some pictures. Organizing and reclaiming a tired and dingy space takes only a small amount of effort and reaps huge rewards for years to come! Have you taken on a similar project in your house? I’d love to hear from you in the comments below!
Until Next Time,
April
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