The Closet is Done!

                              

                      

I started this closet cleaning challenge back in November.  It turns out you shouldn’t start projects like this right before Thanksgiving and Christmas when you’ve got a million other things to work on.  But hey, we finally finished it and I love it!  We can actually walk into it a bit now, instead of the contents pouring out of it.  I love, simply love, how organized the tools and cleaning supplies are with the peg board.  It may not be pretty, but hey that stuff is practical!  Bob painted the closet for me using a bright blue we found in the basement, free paint is great.  I got the shelving at Lowes, with the kids by myself.  That was a bit of an adventure.  Its press board covered with formica, but it works since the span of the shelves isn’t too wide.  Its sold in 12 foot lengths, so we got it cut before we brought it home.  I love that you can have Lowes cut something exactly the size you need it.  It just saves so much project time once you get home.  Overall, I’m super happy with how the closet turned out and we are totally inspired to take on our other closets.  Yes we have others that look like a bomb went off inside.  We’ll get there.  I’m just greatful to have the storage space!

Closet Update

Just in case anyone is keeping track, I did miss my deadline for my closet cleaning challenge.  We are actually almost done with it, but still need to paint and hang some peg board.  So I’m changing my new deadline to January 31st!  Aren’t you so relieved you have more time?  I am.  But I am already reaping the benefits of wonderful shelves floor to ceiling!  Its great. 

Closet cleaning challenge

I have many closets to organize and they’ve been on my to do list forever.  I’m tackling this utility closet first.  So here are the before pictures.  There are no after pictures because I’m in the process.  I’m planning on taking out everything, including that rod and shelf and installing shelving in there.  Of course I want to paint it and discovered some usable paint in the basement this morning that will suit perfectly.  Plus I want some peg board to hang my brooms and mops on one side and more peg board on the other to hang tools.  I’d like to find inexpensive storage boxes and organize everything and label it all.  Essentially give this closet a major overhaul. 

So would you like to join me in this closet cleaning challenge?  Don’t you have a closet you’ve just been meaning to give a major overhaul?  Am I inspiring you to tackle one of your own nightmare closets?  If so, send me your before picture and I’ll post it here.  That’ll give you and me inspiration to clean out our closets and get more organized.  Then send a picture of it all done and we can celebrate the before and after pictures.  Maybe I could come up with a prize for the best decorated/organized closet!  Anyone want to take me up on this closet cleaning challenge?

 

                

Porch is almost done!

While I didn’t create it with my own two hands, all of my creativity time lately has been working towards making our back porch a nice place to be.  Bob and I pulled off the old aluminum siding, scraped, bleached, primed and painted the walls to prepare for our deck to be built.  Bob also made the ceiling look nicer by adding some lattice strips and painting that as well.  Then we hired Keith Riley and Daniel to do the major work of building the deck.  They did an awesome job.  I especially love the storage benches they built for us.  Our neighbor is going to help Bob screen the porch in.  So in the end we’ll have a screened in deck/porch.  We’ve got more painting to do now that the walls have been repaired in some spots, but for the most part, its looking and feeling quite comfy back there.  Bob has especially worked hard on it painting many many evenings and weekends to get it ready.  I’m so thankful for all of the hard work he’s put in on top of everything else he does for us.   We’re hoping to paint the trim and doors a cool green color (of course, I love green!).  We also have two ceiling fans to hang, some porch lights to install, and I’d like to hang some patio string lights too.  But for now we’re ready to bring on the spring and summer gatherings! 

So here are some pictures of the progress and when its really done I’ll have to post more pics of that as well. 

Before:

     

The wood arrives (that’s Keith in the red shirt) and the building process begins!

       

The kids test out the new porch.

       

The (almost) finished porch.