We have officially moved on to week 2 with the One Room Challenge. The design has been finalized and we are in the process of moving forward, quickly I might add. I am absolutely loving how everything is coming together to bring our family organization and functionality.
To recap on this incredible makeover, I have planned on putting the finishing touches on my children’s hallway and am converting our closet that is located under our stairway into a miniature walk-in pantry. When I thought of this idea, my first thought was “uh, GENIUS!’. Well, the pantry is 95% completed. I outsourced a carpenter to do the install, mainly because I am terrified of power tools and my husband works crazy, long hours at his job. In order for me to get this space completed, I would obviously need a little bit of help. So, I am going to talk about the transformation of this closet today.
This closet started out as a hot mess. We stored, or I should say threw, all of our cleaning supplies and materials into this one shelved space. It would give me insane anxiety whenever I opened the door to this area, all I wanted to do was clean the cleaning supplies. Awful. Getting the motivation to clean in general is tough enough, and then once you are motivated all you can think about is cleaning the cleaning crap. I had to put an end to the insanity. So, my plan was to move to cleaning supplies into the smaller closet, with multiple shelves I might add, in the same hallway. One thing done on our check list. Mission accomplished.
Now to discuss the pantry. I am getting so giddy about this, it’s a little weird. Ha Ha. Since our closet is really not that large, I only had a little bit of space to work with to make it functional and worthwhile. The plan was, one narrow lower cabinet and one floating shelf. After I came up with the design I was honestly concerned about not having enough space. Would it even be worth the effort? Would it be worth the money? Well... YES!!! Installation finished up two days ago and WOW. I decided on three drawers which would ultimately hold all of the kids’ snacks. (You know, the individually packed goldfish and chips that you buy at Costco that take up so much flipping space) I originally planned on storing them in baskets, but to be honest, baskets are expensive and they take up a lot of space. So, in the drawers they went. My one, wrap around shelf is now the designated spot for our flour, sugar and baking stuff that is stored in glass containers.
Yesterday, since I wasn’t bound to the house for this installation, I decided it would be best to hit the road and start looking for items to fit in the little cubby holes. One of my best friends showed me these narrow baskets that she scored at Big Lots. After she took the measurements for me, I booked it to store and snagged six of them. I was beyond excited since these cubby holes are an awkward size and I thought finding baskets that fit was going to be tough. Talk about the single most painless mission ever. But, while I was there, I found larger baskets that matched to go on the back floating shelf. DOUBLE SCORE. I purchased a total of 9 baskets for under $65. It was more than I intended to spend, but I was also looking for particular sized items. Looking back, I’m sure I could’ve found similar items for a cheaper price, but the impulsive shopper that I am, I said “whatevs… MINE!”
I raced home to see how everything would look in their new designated spaces. And heck yes, it works and works well. I stuffed them bad boys quicker than I did running to the register to purchase them.
I mean, it’s a perfect fit. These baskets are an espresso color. I have to admit, I was a bit skeptical about mixing the wood tones (The counter top is dark walnut – my go to stain by the way…) but I am starting to really love how it is all coming together. If i do decide that the basket colors are not the right shade, I have no problem spraying them down with some Rustoleum – when all else fails, paint. HA!
So, the pantry is almost complete! The drawer fronts are going in tomorrow, or Monday. I purchased our pulls today at Hobby Lobby and the plan is to wallpaper inside the closet to match the walls in the hallway!
Up next: board and batten throughout the hallway, paint, wallpaper, new lighting, then decorate (my favorite part – especially since it’s the only thing I’m competent enough to do throughout this entire process <insert laughing face emoji>) Next week, I will show everyone the wallpaper I chose, the completed pantry, light fixture and accent table I have purchased. Stay tuned and thank you for visiting and watching the progress!
