Master Bedroom Closet Makeover on A Budget

|

Hey everyone! I’m soooo excited because today is the day we finally get to share our master bedroom closet makeover! We’ve been working on it slowly for a couple of months around other projects and, well, life.  It’s been 8 long years living with these pieced together racks so it’s time to get organized. I can’t say that I’m not embarrassed to be showing you this but here’s what needed to happen:

 

Master Bedroom Closet Makeover organization to do list - Life on Kaydeross Creek

 

Master Bedroom Closet Makeover - Organizational to do list - Life on Kaydeross Creek

OUCH, holy cow, that hurt. So, here’s what we did to make the most of the space we have. I started by measuring out how many inches of clothes we each have (tops and bottoms) and then added a few inches to be on the safe side. For example, I needed about 60″ of hanging space for my shirts.

We also had stuff in there that does not need to be like heavy fleece jackets that can go downstairs in the mudroom closet. This was also an excellent opportunity to purge the stuff that we don’t wear anymore (let’s be honest, none of us are getting any smaller around here 🙂 ) Once I knew exactly how much space we needed for hanging stuff and folded stuff, I made a plan on paper.  It’s a bit crude, but it was definitely effective! Truth be told, I worked in retail for over 20 years so that may have had an impact on my design. 🙂

 

Master Bedroom Closet Makeover - Putting the plan on paper - Life on Kaydeross Creek

 

I also drew out plans for the other two corners of the closet but they are much more simple. My brother, Jamie, who is a builder, helped us get started and suggested we build  each section in a cubby or “box” and then attach them all together. We used birch plywood for the boxes, MDF for part of the base and pine for the rest of the trim.  The other thing he suggested was that we use a dado blade (a special blade for a circular saw) to make grooves in the plywood where the shelves would slide in and also connect the corners of the boxes more securely.  As the dado set spins, the two outside blades cut the dado walls (grooves) and the chippers remove the waste material in between and smooth the bottom of the dado (groove).

We wanted the boxes to be 20″ deep so we had someone at Home Depot cut the sheets of plywood that come in 48″ in half for us. That way they were easier to transport and to rip down (cut) at home to 20″. Then hubby measured and marked out where the grooves would need to be. One at the top to connect the pieces and one 12″ down for the top shelf.

 

Master Bedroom Closet Makeover - Putting the plan on paper - Life on Kaydeross Creek - Life on Kaydeross Creek

 

Once the pieces were cut we started assembling the first box. You can see the notch at the top where the other piece will fit and be glued and nailed together.

 

Master Bedroom closet makeover - building the boxes - Life on Kaydeross Creek

 

Here’s the first box installed…

 

Master Bedroom Closet Makeover - Box assembled and placed - Life on Kaydeross Creek

 

We learned a lesson with this one because we built it downstairs and then had to carry it up. Um, not smart. We decided to build the other three boxes upstairs. Here is the storm before the calm. Holy cow, what a mess!

 

Master Bedroom Closet Makeover - The storm before the calm - building the boxes in our room - Life on Kaydeross Creek

 

We added a few more shelves to two of the boxes and then started placing them in the closet. Hubby used 2×4’s to attached them to the floor which also provided a bit of a toe kick.

 

Master Bedroom Closet Makeover - installing the boxes - Life on Kaydeross Creek

 

When all of the boxes were placed, he screwed them all together and to the walls. We’re almost there with this master bedroom closet makeover!

 

Master Bedroom Closet Makeover - boxes installed before trim - Life on Kaydeross Creek

 

Then he added a 1.5 inch pine trim to the front and crown molding to the top. Let’s just say I spent A LOT of time spackling all those nail holes and caulking the edges.

 

Master Bedroom Closet Makeover - built in cubbies with the trim added - Life on Kaydeross Creek

 

After it was primed and painted twice (I went through a gallon of paint just on the cubbies and trim and pretty much didn’t leave the closet for what seemed like days) it was time to put the bars in. We bought a long metal bar and then cut it to the size we needed for each hanging section and then I spray painted the pieces to match the cubbies. They were installed with little metal cups.

 

Master Bedroom Closet Makeover - side wall completed - Life on Kaydeross Creek

 

OK, so you can see the new light fixture in this picture. I really didn’t want to spend any more money on this project and I had this old fixture in the basement which I had used in my store. It’s the match to the one I used in my daughter’s room.  I just needed to remove the “crystals” and give it a good coat of spray paint.

 

Master Bedroom Closet Makeover - new light fixture -Life on Kaydeross Creek

 

The last thing to address was more storage for linens and a place for the laundry. To make the best use of this space, I decided to go up. We picked up this old TV armoire at the Salvation Army for $20 some time ago.  I planned on using it for storage somewhere and then the closet project came up. I love using these old pieces for storage and you can see one of my other armoire transformations HERE.

 

Master Bedroom Closet Makeover - Armoire used for storage before - Life on Kaydeross Creek

 

The problem was it was too short. We didn’t need any more shelves so it would have been wasted space above it if we used it as is. Since we still needed a place for the laundry baskets we decided to build a base to put the armoire on top of. That way they are much more accessible on the bottom.

 

Master Bedroom Closet makeover - adding the base for the armoire - birch plywood - Life on Kaydeross Creek

 

We made it out of the same birch plywood and trimmed it out with the 1.5″ pine trim to match the cubbies.

 

Master Bedroom Closet makeover - the base for the armoire - Life on Kaydeross Creek

 

After giving the armoire a good sanding,  a couple of coats of paint and new glass knobs, here’s what it looks like all assembled.

 

Master Bedroom Closet Makeover - More storage using an old TV armoire - Life on Kaydeross Creek

 

I know, right?!? I think it’s my favorite part. 🙂

Here’s the other opposite side.

 

Master Bedroom Closet Makeover - Hangbars in for more storage and dresser - Life on Kaydeross Creek

 

 

Master Bedroom Closet Makeover - full view - Life on Kaydeross Creek

 

I. LOVE. IT! Here’s the best part. We spent less than $500.

The birch plywood, trim, paint and bars/cups cost about $400. We spent $20 on the armoire and I had the dresser that we put in the side cubbie. You can see that project HERE. We also had to purchase the dado blade set which I think was about $55.

I have to admit it was A TON more work than I thought it would be but it was worth it!  I still have to add hooks to the wall for my scarves and a rug but it’s so nice to walk in there and be able to actually find what I am looking for. Now let’s just hope we can keep it neat.

 

Master Bedroom Closet Makeover - closet organization with built in cabinets - Life on Kaydeross Creek

 

Master Bedroom Closet Makeover for under $500 - Life on Kaydeross Creek

 

Not sure you want to build something but still want organization. Here are my Amazon picks to make the most out of your space:

Thank you so much for spending some of your time with me today! Do you have major project or mini projects in the works? I’d love to hear about them!

Happy DIY’ing!

Col

 

 

 

Similar Posts

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

33 Comments

  1. Hi Colleen I love this project! I was just wondering what thickness ply you used to build your wardrobe?

  2. This turned out beautiful. If you don’t mind, what color did you paint the unit you just built? Congrats!

  3. So wonderful.. I had my closet done a few yrs ago.. No way could I have done my self. You were blessed to have Hubby todo this with you. Looks awesome.. Your first picture it show a heat.ac vent. What did you do with that?

    1. Hi Linda! Thank you! When we updated our mudroom just below the closet we had to re-route the duct work to add a window. After that, not much air made it up to the closet anyway so we just took it out. We really didn’t need it. 🙂

  4. Your closet looks fabulous! What a great way to use the armoire, too. The new light fixture gives a nice glam look to the space. Thanks for sharing at Snickerdoodle. Pinning.

  5. What a great closet makeover. I would love this 🙂
    Thanks for sharing at Creative Mondays last week, you are one of my featured blogs today.

  6. Beautiful makeover and I just loved the final outcome! I am in the middle of a closet room makeover and boy it’s a lot of work and so time consuming.

  7. I can’t believe what an incredible transformation. I’m​ definitely suffering from closet envy!
    Can’t wait to see what you’ll do next! 👏