Although the lakehouse feels more spacious than the townhouse, and comes with the added bonus of a detached guesthouse and huge detached garage, it has one fewer bedroom than the townhouse and an awkward, 5-foot tall, unfinished basement that is inconveniently accessed. At first I missed the finished basement (with stairs leading to it!) and spare bedroom the townhouse boasted. Frankly, though, we just can’t be trusted with the extra space – we had mindlessly been stashing junk in the townhouse for years. When we packed the U-Haul, it became abundantly clear that we have too much stuff, and most of it had been hiding in the basement. My goal for the lakehouse is for it to only house things we love or can’t live without. I decluttered a bit before we moved, but I’m going to have to be even more ruthless as I unpack.
I think organized closets will be key to overcoming the decrease in storage space (and maintaining my sanity). To show the closets some love, in the fall we removed all of the warped shelves, melamine closet fittings, and bi-fold (or sliding) doors, so each closet was a blank slate. You already saw what we did with the blank slate in our bedroom. Remember the fun orange closet? Surprise: it wasn’t the first colourful closet!
The colourful closet thing actually started when I began running out of white paint. I had realized that in my paint partnership with Canadian Tire I had over estimated how much turquoise I would need for the kitchen makeover. Because the white paint I was provided was rather thin and required three coats, not the two I planned, I was running out of white. On a whim, I painted the three hall closets (a small cupboard beside the main entrance, plus a coat closet and linen closet) turquoise to avoid having to cough up some cash for additional white paint. You actually caught a sneak peek in the bathroom mirror when I showed off how I spruced it up. See?
Here’s what the hall closets looked like before: oak trim, scuffed paint, more oak molding (acting as shelf brackets) and warped shelving (already removed).
I loved the turquoise closets and that’s when I decided the bedroom closet was next. I tried so hard to steer Hubby toward a greenish teal so all of the closets would be watery hues, but no dice. The guy loves orange.
As a reminder, the bedroom closet was previously pale pink, with oak trim, and a horrible white melamine closet fitting that was one windy day away from toppling over.
Over the weekend, I tackled the last remaining closet, in the office, and painted it a greener turquoise than the hall closets. Actually, it’s colour matched to the laundry room floor in the townhouse. I was so sad about leaving our freshly updated laundry room; my favorite part was the dreamy turquoise floor in the perfect mint-tinged hue. It has made me seriously happy to bring that colour to the lakehouse.
Before the wash of turquoise the closet was dinged up, outfitted with oak trim and and makeshift brackets, and pale, pear green paint that was really scuffed. Along with the master closet, this one also had a super ugly, really dated light fixture inside. Both closet fixtures were replaced with the inexpensive exterior light I used in the laundry room makeover.
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| So long, ugly light! |
Hubby has cut some new, inexpensive white melamine shelves for every closet but the bedroom. One day we might rearrange the shelves, use better brackets, create custom wood shelves or some other fanciness but for now we used the existing brackets (primed and then painted to match the closets colours) and are just happy to have fresh shelves. Let the organizing begin!
The colorful closets are such a great idea, Tanya! I love the watery colors you chose
Thanks!
What a fun surprise every time you open the doors! Kim at Yellow Brick Home recently did the same thing in their entryway coat closet. I love the idea of using calm colors around the home with sweet little explosions of color in unexpected places.
I think I repinned Kim's closet the other day! I've seen this done for kid rooms so many times, I'm happy it's catching on for adult spaces. We need fun too!
Hey Tanya,Wow.So beautiful closets.Loved all these colors you've used for them.
Thanks! They are really making me smile as I unpack.
Love the idea of painting the inside of closets. Im planning our laundry renovation at the moment which has a brick built in cupboard which I was going to either wallpaper inside or paint. Im thinking paint will be a little less awkward to do in such a small space!
I love the look of wallpapered built-ins but I agree: seems like a boatload of work to me. I always favor a simple, easy project with minimal swearing. I'm team paint. And, by the way, super jealous of your built-in. I'm wanting for storage and ogling everyone's closets and cupboards right now 🙂 Whatever you choose, it sounds like your laundry reno will be beautiful and fun!
I love the color Tanya! You have a great space for a new style and I have another idea for my own space. Keeps me going to choose what color to my space. Thanks for this wonderful idea!
Thanks! It sure is a fun burst of colour when I open a closet 🙂
Gorgeous and THANK YOU for saying 'one fewer bedrooms' rather than less. You give me hope for the future of the English language and good clear communication!!
You know, I think I actually have insanely awful grammar for someone with a PhD. Just really bad. My punctuation is worse. But the "less" and "fewer" is one distinction that stuck with me. However, after seeing every food item labelled "less calories," I feel my grasp waning . . .