Craft Room/Closet Challenge

When you live in a smaller house, every square foot counts.  We have a pretty nice sized storage closet in the back of Big's bedroom and until now, it's been jam-packed with "stuff".  Most of this "stuff" included things we never used or would never use.  When we staged the house for sale back in August, I moved out nearly every item from that closet and stored it all at my in-laws'.   When our attempt at buying and selling failed and it was time to bring it all back, I looked at that space and how open it was and saw the potential.  I swore I would not bring anything back into that closet, or the house for that matter, that we did not use, did not need or did not love.  So I ended up donating about 90% of that "stuff" to Purple Heart.  Ahhh.

The closet needs a lot of help aesthetically-speaking.  Sure, it's functional: it is dry, it is pretty big, it is a great space to store suitcases and other things we don't use every day.  But when I took a closer look, I realized the room can be a lot more.  I've decided to make it into a dual purpose space: a storage closet and also a little craft room where I keep all my crafty supplies.  And to up the ante, I've decided to limit what I can spend in this space to $30.

The first step was to do some necessary upgrades to the space.  One piece of ductwork had some asbestos around it.  Although it was safe and not airborne, we decided to have it removed just so the house was totally clear of asbestos and so when we try to sell in a year or so it won't be an issue.  Check.  The next step was to add some lighting.  We definitely need a little light in there. So, we had an electrician come by and wire up a functional light. Check.  These two expenses were exempt from my $30 limit.

So, I'm now left to make the space pretty and functional and to use wisely each and every inch of square footage in there without making it feel too crowded or cluttered.  I had a mismash of storage pieces in the room (a few cheapie bookshelves from Target and a few closet organizers).  I plan to paint them all white.  I have a ton of primer  and paint left over from when we painted the nursery back in 2006 - so the closet will be that same light blue.  And because there is very little ventilation in that closet, I'm even more thankful that we opted for the Sherwin Williams Harmony paint (zero VOC).   So the furniture and the paint is costing me nothing.

I will need to take stock of what I have, what I need and where things will go.  But that is part of the process and the fun!   Here is the space and my cheap-o furniture now.  Stay tuned for updates on how this space turns into an after!

I know I should probably be a little embarrassed at the state of my closet, and those who know me well know that usually I am really super ridiculously organized, but in this case, since I know I am going to transform the space, I figured I would just kind of throw it all in there.  Plus, this will make even more dramatic before & after pictures!

Got any advice for me as I roll up my sleeves and start on this project? I'd love to hear!

See you swoon,