sneaky shallow storage

no matter how big or small your home is, clever, functional storage is always appreciated. 

in our house, i took full advantage of the space behind the doors of the master bedroom closets:

in my husbands closet, we used the space to store his ties!

it is amazing how many ties can be stored in a space that is normally "lost".

this solution literally only takes 3" of projected space from the wall. you could also use this space to install hooks for coats, robes or belts.

for this project, we used the most inexpensive walmart towel bar we could find.

we did the same thing behind the door of my closet---

(but used a different rod--sorry for the lame pictures here. 

the above pictures were taken by a pro...these were taken by me.)

and in my youngest daughters walk in closet!

we finally installed the closets in my kids rooms this past weekend.  my kids have never been so happy to hang their clothes up! it's pretty amazing how having the right kind of storage can make life SO much tidier and easier. it was a happy, happy weekend at the clemon's house!

dressing up your closet-tips and tricks

a few tips for dressing up your closets!

1. consider adding a mirror and a small dresser to create a dressing area inside your closet.

2. matching hangers make a closet look instantly neat and organized.

3. baskets are a great way to hide out of season clothes, and rarely used items.

4. adding a touch of green, like this preserved boxwood requires  zero maintenance and makes your closet feel more like a room.

5. upgrading your lighting can be an instant pick-me-up for any room, especially a small area like a closet.

6. interesting hooks can make hanging up belts, robes or scarves a pleasure, and look pretty when not in use.

7. consider adding some pattern with wallpaper or an all-over stencil.

a tour of my closet

a look at my finished (for now) closet!

the total cost to build the entire shelving and storage that you see was $300!

you can see a post on the planning and building here. 

the cost to stencil and "decorate" the closet was also really low, since i had everything on hand.

the only thing i bought NEW was the stencil! you can see a post on how i stenciled the walls here.

i layered an ornate thrifted mirror (purchased for $3) on top of my existing rectangular mirror with command strips.

the vintage drawer pulls were added to the ikea malm dresser to dress it up.

my necklaces hang from key organizers, purchased at walmart.

the mirrored tray and preserved cypress topiary were both tj maxx finds.

images by sara boulter.

sources:
wall color: benjamin moore winds breath
stencil color: custom mixed from ben moore samples
stencil: stencil boss
dresser: ikea malm
hangers: bed bath and beyond
leopard jewelry organizers: tj maxx
baskets: pier 1
belt rack: ikea
necklace holder: key organizers, walmart
rectangular mirror: home depot (about 10 years ago!)
small mirror: thrifted
drawer pulls: vintage from ebay

my first stenciling project

all-over stencils are a great way to get a high end wallpaper look at a fraction of the cost of wallpaper. i personally love the way they look, and think they are a smart and budget conscious way to add that extra layer of pattern to a room. since i have been renting for the last 5 years, i haven't tackled a stencil project...until last weekend. i am considering another stencil project for one of my daughters rooms upstairs, but decided to test out my skills in my closet first. boy, and i am glad i did!

after an exhaustive search for the "perfect" stencil, i stumbled onto a site called stencil boss and ended up purchasing this one, called the "ada morocco" stencil.  this shop has a great selection, including many stencils that i have never seen before.

 i wanted something that was feminine without being frilly, and i loved the balance of geometric shapes and softness of this particular stencil.


i wanted the paint to be a soft gray, and also have some shimmer to it, so i added some gold craft paint to a few gray samples that i had around the house. by the way, the gold paint did absolutely NOTHING to the color. nada. zip. i looked into buying a metallic glaze from lowes, but it was nearly $14 and i decided i would see if the craft paint would give me that slight pearlescent look that i was after. the soft gray was nice, but there was NO metallic sheen to be seen....so, if you want that soft, shimmery look, you may want to NOT be a cheapskate and get the metallic glaze!


anyway, onto the stenciling---
what i thought would take 3 hours took NINE.
yes, nine.
and by the end, i was pretty exhausted and feeling very impressed with all of those other people out in blogland that have attempted this project.
now keep in mind that i was stenciling around all of the closet built-ins and shelving, which make the task quite a bit more difficult than it would have been on a flat wall....but still--it was not easy!


about half way through the project, i had to stop and wash off the stencil, which took nearly 45 minutes, and made a mess out of my kids tub. i was not prepared for how long it would take to get the paint off of the stencil, but really impressed with how well it held up to my scrubbing!


after the major work was done, i realized that i still needed to get the corners!
ei--yi--yi!
it was already 10 pm at this point, and i was getting grumpy.


instead of cutting or bending the stencil to get into the corners, i decided to tape them off and paint a charcoal band around the ceiling, at the corners of the walls and around the closets shelving.



all in all, i am reasonably happy with the way it came out.
would i RATHER have a great thibaut or schumacher wallpaper in there?
yeah. probably.
and maybe one day i will cover up my masterpiece with something that i fall in love with, but for now, i love the dimension and personality that the stencil adds! it makes it fun to get dressed every morning, and adds the perfect feminine touch to a space than many of us neglect to decorate.


(another  weird panoramic iphone picture. it was midnight and i guess i was having trouble keeping my hand straight!)

i will have some great finished pictures of this space coming later in the week, so stop back by!


what about you? 
have you tried an all-over stencil project in your house?
any tips for me, since i will most likely still attempt another stencil in my daughters room?

custom closets on a budget

custom closets are expensive. if you have ever played around with one of those online closet planners, then you have probably been astonished at how much it can cost to outfit even a modest sized closet.

however, you can get a high-end, custom look on a TIGHT budget! 

let me show you what we did!

since the time we drafted up the plans for our house, we had always planned on building the closets ourselves.  (and when i say "we", i really mean my husband allen, and a talented friend of his from work.)
HOWEVER, we had the worst winter here in utah since 1945, which delayed a few important projects during the construction, which in turn delayed us building our closet shelving.
we went ahead with the projects that HAD to be completed, and put a few "non-mandatory" things--like the closets (and door knobs) on hold. you can live in a house without closets, but you might have a hard time passing the inspection without a retaining wall or plumbing!

so, we have been making do since we moved in with drawers and wardrobe boxes. (and there might have been a tension shower curtain rod involved on a small wall in one of our closets as well....)
anyway, we were finally able to complete the closets in the master bedroom last week, and i am beyond thrilled! (you really never appreciate simple things like a place to hang your clothes until you don't HAVE a place to hang your clothes!)

here is another look at the floor plan, so you can see the spaces we were working with:


as you can see, there are HIS and HER closets in the master bedroom, which is something that we have never had before. we may never be able to share a closet again. ha! ha!

one of the things that i knew i wanted in my master closet was a "dressing area".  i wanted some drawers, with a mirror and a place to store my jewelry and perfume. these items have always lived near the sink/vanity in my bathroom, and i wanted them to have their own little space inside my closet.

i used the martha stewart closet planning tool here for my preliminary layout:

in order to control the cost, i decided to use a chest of drawers from ikea. after visiting ikea, i decided to use the 4 drawer malm dresser instead of the cullen 5 drawer. i liked the proportions better, and the malm was available in white, which would match the MDF that we planned to use for the closets.

after purchasing the malm dressers, and talking over the budget and layout with my husband, we decided to tweak the plan a bit....
since the malm dresser is wider than the cullen dresser, we nixed the shelf on wall C, and then swapped the location of the long hanging area on wall B.

we purchased an obscene amount of mdf from lowes, and drove home veeeeeery carefully.
the mdf was made into a few boxes, that were then installed on the wall. the most complicated box was the one with the adjustable shelves for our shoes.
in order to make the slots for the adjustable pins, we made a spacer that went on the drill bit. this allowed the holes to be drilled the perfect depth to allow the shelf pins to go in.

 a sheet of pegboard was clamped to the sheet of mdf, and the holes were used as a guide.

isnt that handy?

 a grove was routed out for the fixed shelves, as well as the top and bottom of the box.

here is the shoe tower, ready to be hung!

the total cost for each closet, INCLUDING the $100 ikea dresser was $300. just for reference---when i priced it out my closet with pre fabricated units, the cost was between $900-1200, depending on the site! so, we built TWO closets for about half of what it would have cost us to buy a single one. not too bad!

**note: FREE labor definitely helped to keep the cost of this project low!

thanks sweetie!

a few progress shots---the pictures may look a little odd. i was playing around with the panoramic shot on the camera on my phone.



sorry i didn't get any more progress shots---as soon as i could, i started to hang up my clothes! after months of not having a closet, it felt like christmas.
i have some great "after" shots coming in the next few days, so stay tuned!

maximizing closet space

How to Maximize Closet Space in Your Apartment

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When you’re looking for apartments for rent, one thing that may jump out is the tiny closets. Small apartments are known for a lack of proper closet space, but if it’s the apartment you want (and can afford), you’re going to have to make it work. Don’t worry.  With a few simple tricks you can maximize the space in your apartment closet.

Start by Looking at What You Have

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The very first step is to look at what you have before you start trying to tuck it all into the closet. Get rid of the tops you haven’t worn in years, old shoes, ripped items. Donate, recycle, give away and trash the stuff that really is, well . . . trash. If you don’t really need it, there’s no point in trying to fit it into your apartment or home closet.

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Also consider your wardrobe. Is it July and you’re looking at a pile of bulky sweaters? Or is it December and you have a bunch of shorts and swim suits? Consider splitting out seasonal items and storing them when they’re out of season. These items could go in a bin under a bed or in a closet. Space-saving bags are great for sweaters and winter jackets.

Assess the Closet Space

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The next step is to figure out what you’re working with. In most apartments for rent, the closet space is not maximized very well. There may be a single rod or worse, two rods that split the hanging space and don’t allow for longer items. Take a look and see what you have available so you can start to strategize.

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Don’t forget to look up. Often there is a shelf with tons of space available above it. Also consider the open wall space inside the closet that may or may not already have hooks installed.

Baskets, Racks and Hooks, Oh My!

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Now it’s time to utilize every available closet organizational tool. Start with hangers. It may be worthwhile to invest in quality hangers. Many have padded arms to keep wide-neck or slippery clothes from landing on the floor. Also, check out the tiered hangers to truly maximize space. These hangers allow 3 or even 4 items to be hung on one hanger. You can triple your closet space.

If you don’t have any drawers, you can pick up some baskets for loose items like socks and underwear. Hanging shelves and racks can help organize shoes and other items. In fact, the pockets designed to hold shoes can also hold jewelry, swim suits, toiletries and more.

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Not all apartments for rent have small closets, but if you’re faced with a closet that just doesn’t fit your stuff, don’t get discouraged. With a little imagination and a trip to the closet organization aisle at your local housewares store, you can maximize and organize your apartment closet space.

*this is a sponsored post by bre properties