So I took my stupid pill and threw out the "lets clean the coat closet" challenge to Elle.
What was I thinking???
This is JUST the shoe part......
But wait... there are MORE shoes......
The whole thing..... still in the closet......
Yes, the jackets and detritus are out of the closet... but the stuff the kids wore today hangs on the hooks..... IT NEVER FREAKIN' ENDS......
And then there is the door insanity......
But, of course, it being Mother's Day Weekend.... I couldn't just clean the damn closet. No. I had to be SUPER MOM and PAINT first.
I gathered my tools..... standard issue valspar semi-gloss, fantastic short handled brush (I had two... in case someone came over to help or something), stubby foam roller, can opener, stir stick, and coffee. I also had a rubber mallet...... we will get to that part later.
Wait. Look at the photo above again... do you see the SIZE of the screw in that hook? Shit. Apparently I got tired of it coming out of the wall and went for the 2.5" screw. Welcome to the 'stead. We do things a little differently around here. What would a contractor say? He'd say, "Nice drill." That's what he would say.
Upon emptying the closet I remembered the scary trap door into the crawl space. The beauty of living in a house built in 1897. You can crawl under the dining room and kitchen. You can't get under the living room or laundry room or bathroom.... that's where the bodies are stashed.
I stuck the camera down the hole. It was scary. I didn't look.
Why yes, our house is logs on granite pile footings. Does that worry you?
Slapping on paint. Goodby yellowish smoker's hack closets... hello glowing white.
Fast-forward throught the boring bits.... and ta-da. Gorgeous.
Now lets talk about that stupid black shelf. It should fit. I've made it fit in the past. I had to use my rubber hammer. I love that thing. There isn't a lot you can't accomplish with a good rubber mallet. Stupid fraggin' crooked walls.
I also smashed my thumb in the metal part. Happy dance. I had to curl up on the floor and whisper swear words. I didn't want the kids to come and try to help me.
So.
How to organize this? The closet is, basically, 4 feet long and 23 inches deep. How to maximize storage? Suggestions??
Small person. Post brownie eating. Wearing her (sister's) favorite jammies and her brother's shoes.
Do you see the giant shoe pile behind her??
There is this, smaller, giant pile.....
And this..... oh my.
It all came OUT of the closet... but will it all go back IN?????
Stay tuned.
2 comments:
OMG . . I haven't even started. I opened it, cringed and shut the door. You are super mommy.
My house is obviously laid out differently and there are only 3 of us, but maybe you could apply some of my hat & mitten corralling to the shoes. Shoes go in your room, except in the winter when they can be by the woodstove drying. My problem was coats, hats, and mittens. We had two racks of 5 pegs each with coats falling off of them. Plus coats strung up in the basement by the stove. Two large totes hung either on the rack or, more likely, on the dining table, full of hats & mittens to dig through. It was out of hand.
Now each person can have one coat and one jacket on the hooks, the rest go in your room. I got one of those small stacking bin things to put by the back door for the hats/gloves. Each person can keep however much they can stuff in their bin. It's only big enough for a few items for each, and the rest go all together in a rubbermaid thingy by the stove.
This is the first winter I've done that, and while it wasn't perfect, it worked. I think it will work for work gloves/hats/safety glasses, etc. through the summer. I guess I could have explained that faster by saying I only allow a few items per person to be kept at our go-spot. Find somewhere else for the rest. I realize you probably don't have closets in all the bedrooms, so...that's the best I can come up with. Sorry.
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