One Room Challenge- Week 3!

It's been a busy week!  We had a beautiful (and short-lived, just the way I like it) snow over the weekend, so that served as a good excuse to get a project done!  Our house is a 1960's ranch, and as such, closet space is limited.  B's room has the standard double-door reach-in closet, with one bar across the top and two shelves above it.  

Here is how it has looked for the past 1.5 years (once again, I am embarrassed to show y'all this!):

As you can see, there is nothing efficient about this set-up at all.  Lots of wasted space, and everything still feels crammed in there.  I literally would just close my eyes and throw something on to the top shelf and hope it didn't fall back down on me.  I knew it was time to make a change, so I got to work.  First I removed the bar and shelves so I had a blank space with which to work.

Whoever painted the inside of the closet before we bought the house didn't bother to remove the shelves to paint, so sanded down the walls down to make them smooth.

Then I measured from the baseboards up to the ceiling.  Why is this so important?  You'll see!

Have you heard of Tempaper?  It's wallpaper with an adhesive back, so you can hang it (and remove it) easily yourself.  It is affordable and perfect for this project, because I just couldn't justify paying an installer to put up wallpaper in a 3 year old's closet.

The pattern I chose incorporates the colors of B's room design- red and aqua!

And the repeat is small enough that there wouldn't be too much waste (it is important to think about this when you are wallpapering a small space).

After measuring and cutting (measure twice- cut once, always), I used my trusty step ladder to start to hang it.  

My pajama-clad helper smoothed it out on the wall.

The first row was easy to hang.  The second started out easy, but I ended up having to fight with it to get the pattern to line up perfectly.  I have a newfound respect for professional wallpaper hangers.  This tested my patience, for sure.  But finally, I got it.

I repeated until the back of the closet was done.

Then it was time to get everything back in the closet.

I had been looking around at different closet systems, and the Elfa system at The Container Store seemed to be a good option.  It has a mid-range price point (more than Home Depot but less than California Closets), and THEY WILL INSTALL IT FOR YOU!!!  And both the system and installation were 30% off until last week.  

Basically, Elfa is a grid system that is installed on the wall, and then you have the liberty to move the shelves and racks around as your needs change.  This is especially important for me now, since B is only 3 and his clothes are going to get bigger as he grows up.  It allows me to maximize hanging space now when his clothes are small, and then I can make adjustments within the grid as his needs change later on.

I went to The Container Store, closet measurements in hand, and I worked with a closet designer (actually a licensed architect who was picking up extra work at The Container Store due to the recession) to come up with a plan that was really efficient and suitable for my needs.  I highly highly highly recommend this (no, they aren't paying me to say that).  They create a space plan on the computer that you can look at, print out, and take home if you wish, before you decide.  It is very customizable.  

We went with the less expensive wire shelves with plastic covers (so your clothes don't get wire marks), but they also have solid shelf options if you want to spend a little more.  

The installers came, installed, and were gone within 1 hour.  They charged $180 to install, which I think is totally worth it, compared to putting my marriage on the line by having my husband and I install it ourselves. 

Now, the closet is so much more efficient.  It feels downright roomy.  (Yes, I left some clothes out for the photos, so you can see the wallpaper better.  But truly, words cannot describe the difference).

I added a couple of seagrass baskets to hold blankets and sheets.

I love having everything off the floor.  It feels so much cleaner.

The hanging space has doubled and the number of shelves has tripled.  

Quite the change from this:

To this:

And the best part?  B loves his new closet!

Be sure to click below to check out what the other ORC girls have been up to this week!

Chattafabulous 

Chinoiserie Chic 

Classic Casual Home 

the Cottage Mix 

Cottage & Vine 

Design Indulgence 

Design Manifest 

Everything LEB 

Hodge Podge 

Kim Macumber Interiors 

Little Black Door 

My Crafty Home Life 

Nicole Scott Designs 

Pacific Family Homes 

Pawleys Island Posh 

the Peak of Tres Chic 

the Pink Pagoda 

Powell Brower Home 

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