Saturday, December 21, 2013

Awkward Closet Redo--Dollar Store Solutions

I have this awkward closet/wall/door thing in the room I've converted into my actual closet.
My house is a million years old, and way back in the day, closets weren't really a big priority.
In fact, bathrooms weren't a priority. It's super obvious where someone in the past just tacked on my bathroom to the exterior of the house.
I have this horrible image of me absentmindedly walking through my backyard and accidentally falling into a pit of what used to be the outhouse.

I'm shuttering just thinking about it.
Ok, back on track.
So, in addition to adding a bathroom to the house, someone at some point decided to add a closest.
But instead of what you or I might think of as a closet, someone just built out a wall paralled to the existing one and called it good.


This little area has been the scourge of my existence.
That curtain there? It's really just to keep my from having to see the mess that was that hole and go into immediate organizing guilt.
But one of my favorite bloggers,I Heart Organizing, recently tackled an awkward storage space in her house, and she inspired me to do the same.
To see her final (amazing) product, see this post.
Like her storage area, mine started out as something that just held little-used items...then, as time went on, more....and more... and more things just appeared there.
It got to a point where I really couldn't even get to anything, because it was so precariously piled that one risked injury even getting too close.
I didn't think about taking a "before" picture, and honestly I'm ok with it. It was too ugly to subject you too, dear readers.
A fairly accurate representation of what the closet looked like before.
The first step was taking everything out.

it also snakes around to the left
I know that this seems like a lot of work, and maybe you even think it's not worth it.
TRUST ME. It is totally worth it
Starting with a blank slate saves so much time, frustration and wasted energy.
Step number two was to install a light.
A big part of my problem was that I couldn't see anything pushed back into that far-away corner.
I got this battery-operated light at Amazon for practically nothing.
Then came a trip to the dollar store!!!!
I love an excuse to visit the dollar store. But let's be honest--I don't even need an excuse.
A shopping spree at a dollar store is practically nothing anyway!
I grabbed everything I could find that even remotely looked organizational-y.
And spent a grand total of $15 and some change.
Then I organized all the things I wanted to keep into piles. Everything else I didn't need or didn't want went into the trash or the donation pile.
From there I took washi tape and labeled all the bins.
Initially I didn't think I would need labels, because I bought all sorts of different kinds of bins.
But it's amazing how just a week later one forgets where she put anything.
Those labels have been a blessing.
This ugly, under-used space now holds my beauty items that I buy on sale or in bulk. I also have a whole bin for all the samples that come along with a serious Ulta and Sephora addiction.
I couldn't be happier about this project. I now see what I have when it comes to beauty products, which has kept me from buying shampoo on every grocery trip--because I'm just sure I'm out--and having six bottles around the house.
I also had no idea how many nail polish colors I already had until I put them all in one place. That's saved a lot of random nail polish buys. I have 14 different reds. Come on.
Now I'm already looking for my next project!
What organization projects have you done recently? Let me know, I'd love to see your ideas!

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