Another Small Home Improvement Project - Master Bedroom Closet

It may seem a bit odd to some of you to begin a master bedroom remodel with the closet, but for me it made perfect sense.  For one, it was the area that needed the most attention, and second, it would allow me to put a lot of stuff away so our house was much less of a disaster zone.

See where the paint line stops at the closet?  Words escape me

Lots of scuffs and black marks on the shelves
That was a repeating theme throughout this closet

I am embarrassed to tell you that this closet has never been painted since the house was built back in 1979.  Not by me and not by the previous owner.  It seems that when we painted the master bedroom we both seemed to stop at the closet.  Sad, but true.

All cleared out and ready for paint

Here is the closet organizer system in pieces

Admittedly closets are a pain in the butt to paint.  You have to empty them out and then work in a very tight space.  It seems to take forever too.  And let's face it.  With a closet you just close the door!  Right?  No one sees it.  Well, that all may be true, but still not a really good excuse for not taking better care of this space.

Paint!

And more paint!
Covering up that 1970s tan

I began by removing everything with the exception of the built in linen shelves.  They are particle board and likely would've broken had I even tried that.  Instead I left them in place with the idea they would get a much needed coat of paint.  Which they did!

Amazing what a good coat of paint will do!

My youngest painted the floor in preparation of carpet

I vacuumed up a ton of cobwebs, because let's face it, teenagers don't clean.  They don't clean because they don't see dirt.  Had she realized they were in there I'm sure she would've been adequately grossed out and would have sucked them up the vacuum cleaner, but I'm fairly certain she was oblivious to their existence.

Removing the closet system made for some pretty tight workspace

With the closet organizer system I'd installed a good twenty years ago removed and sitting in the middle of the bedroom floor I pulled up the carpet and pad.  Then I removed the tack strip and all the staples on the floor before scraping it all with my handy dandy 5 in 1 tool to remove the spackle splatters and joint compound globs left behind by the construction crew.  Lastly I gave it a good sweep followed by the vacuum cleaner.

  

I reinstalled the closet track which we had to remove in order to take up the carpet

New carpet in the linen closet!

I filled loads of nail and screw holes in the walls of the closet with joint compound and allowed it to dry overnight in preparation of paint.  The next morning I sanded the drywall repairs and I was ready to get started.  I had nearly a gallon of leftover paint in the garage from painting the stairwell and our downstairs hallway so this was a very good way to use it up.

Amazing transformation already!

I was able to use up a boatload of leftover carpet scraps in here!

It takes a lot more paint then you think it will when it comes to closets.  And with all the tight spaces you are guaranteed to paint your elbows and get plenty of paint in your hair.  That being said it sure does look good now!  Clean, bright and fresh.  I love it!

Time to clean!  A magic eraser easily took care of these black marks
No more wire hangers!

My youngest daughter used the leftover lilac paint I purchased last year from the oops! shelf at Home Depot to seal the floor just like I did downstairs.  Once the paint had a chance to dry and cure I used leftover carpet from our downstairs living room and hallway to carpet the closet.

Ew!  This closet rod bracket was turning yellow

After cleaning it I gave it a good coat of white spray paint

With the carpet installed it was time to put the closet organizer back in place, but not before it got a really good scrubbing with some soapy water and a magic eraser.  Twenty years of use left behind plenty of black marks.

I spent a solid two hours with a bucket of soapy water and a magic
eraser cleaning every square inch of this organizer and re-installing it

It was totally worth it!

My carpentry skills have much improved over the past twenty years so this time the closet system went in smoothly and without much drama.  I remember originally there being a lot of swearing involved in this project.  Probably because I was lazy and didn't paint the closet first!  LOL

Shelves and rods all in place

I let the linen closet shelving dry for a good three days before I began to put things away there.  I really didn't want to have things stick and pull away the paint so allowing the paint to cure really well first is always a good idea.

No more black marks, cobwebs or dirt anywhere!

My things are now put away and residing in the master bedroom closet and I've relocated most of my daughter's things to the downstairs bedroom closet which has given me back my laundry room and a good portion of our upstairs hallway.  Our linens are no longer in the dining room and our extra toiletries and laundry supplies are now off the bathroom floor.

I love it so much!!

With the closet completed we now have ample space to continue on with this master bedroom update project and get it completed.  Oh you guys, I can hardly wait!  It is really starting to look so good!