A friend asked if I would do a post on DIY closets. So here you go Alanna! I have built three closets and have a few tips to share, I hope you find it helpful. I am going to take you down the road I took as I began researching how to build an organized closet. First I would suggest you look through several layouts to see what you like, what meets your needs and what looks possible. Below are 5 closets you can build yourself and is a great place to start your search. There is a bit of sweat equity, but it is doable. I will also give explanations, links and videos on how to accomplish each one. Note, these are not all my closets. My closets are full of clothes and I’m not in the mood to empty them to photograph, but I will show you how to get each look and you will feel amazing when you are done.
Closet #1 Why not start out with an Anna White, she is after all my hero and most of her designs are straightforward to build and beautiful. Two of the three closets I built were to encourage my children to hang up their clothes and have no excuse for putting them on the floor. Anna has step by step instructions so I won’t spend much time explaining here. Anna used screws to tighten the shelves into place from the outside of the shelf, she also made adjustable shelves with shelf pins, but you could make yours permanent if you wanted.
Closet #2 Another great option is to consider a floating shelf as found here at buildsomething.com.
To get this look you need a support boards screwed into studs like this. The shelf is then built onto this support board with another support board underneath the shelf where it is floating off the floor.
In fact support boards are needed in all the areas pointed at by an arrow. This allows you to add lots of clothes to your clothes rod, lots of stuff on your closet shelves and not have a disaster. This photo (minus the arrows) is found at garymkatz.com I can’t provide the exact link because I could not find it! So sad, but it was labeled with their website and I want to give them credit.
And this is what I mean by disaster. Find those studs and secure your support boards and shelves well.
How to find a stud – as in a 2×4 behind the wall, I know what you were thinking 😉. If you are using a battery operated stud finder – first, hold down the button on the side of the stud finder, move from left to right, when it beeps make a mark. Now move from right to left, when it beeps make a mark. It should look like the picture below. This is an estimate of where the stud is. Place your screw between the two marks.
If you have a magnetic stud finder simply move the stud finder back and forth feeling for a magnetic connection to a screw in the stud. When found it will stick to the wall like a magnet on the fridge. This method is much more accurate as it actually finds a stud, where the battery operated at times may find a wire, the exact thing you don’t want to drill into. I have the battery operated stud finder, that is breaking and had to borrow one. When I read reviews the magnetic stud finder was highly rated, I think that will be my next tool purchase.
You will know for sure that you hit the stud because the screw will give a bit of resistance and pull into the wood. Remember to pre-drill to avoid split wood. If you are covering a large section of closet, 4-6 feet, it’s ok to miss a stud here and there, but make sure you have at least 3 studs secured to your support board.
Closet #3 I love this look from Mysweetsavannahblog.com, its modern and and sleek, but calmed down by the cedar plank walls and ceiling. To cut plumbing pipe you will need a pipe cutter. You are then able to get this whole look. Check out thisoldhouse.com for a great tutorial on how to cut the pipe.
If you really want the ceiling and walls too, the pieces hook together tongue and groove like you see below. make sure you use a level or right angle because the boards can quickly tilt at an angle, by the time you notice they’re already nailed into place and it’s a pain to fix, not that I’ve ever done that 😉 , I’m just trying to save you time.
Closet #4 This design found on Houzz, is a great example of reinforced clothes rods. Put a hanger with a shirt on it and give a few inches, this is how far from the wall you should place your rod holder (about 11 1/2″). I like to make sure at least one end is in hardwood or the stud. You can see in this picture that a piece of wood has been fastened to the shelf to hold the rod in place.
To install the rod holders make measurements and screw into place with the opening facing up. Then simply cut the clothes rod to size and slide into place.
For shelving that is below eye level, I like to install metal, wire shelves so you can see what you have without having to bend down. Check out your local ReStore to find wire shelving to do our earth a solid. I found these at the ReStore, and washed them up then spray painted them to give a nice new shine. Cut to length with a hacksaw or bolt cutters. I would suggest you use whichever tool you can access. A hacksaw takes a long time, but bolt cutters cost a lot for a tool you may never use again. For added convenience there are many options online for wire shelves if you can’t get to a ReStore. Notice that there are plastic support clips along the wall. I tried to get these into studs as often as possible (like the hole there in the wall where I missed the stud and readjusted? ha ha, that happens, I’ll fill that in with caulk and no one will know, except for you of course).
I also used these closet brackets to support the shelf and hold clothes rods. Notice how I have screwed the closet brackets into wood and not just into drywall, this gives better support and makes sure it can hold the weight of the clothes and what is put on the shelf. If possible I try to place my brackets over a stud, if that isn’t possible having wood for the bracket to go into will still give added strength.
I also support the underside of the shelves in the corner like this. Each X is where it was attached to a stud. I then placed plywood on top of the supports and screwed them into the support boards from above.
Choosing your own layout is the best part of a DIY closet. It is great to pick what you think you will need. The diagram below that I referenced above from GarymKatz.com clearly shows where to put support boards and how to position clothes rods so you have room for all your clothes. Basic closets usually have one long rod for dresses and long coats and nothing else. I love how efficient shelves and multiple clothing rods can be.
Closet #5 from MadeintheMeadows.com, is a beautiful closet. I love the ship lap on the wall and though the website does not say how they made this closet, it looks like it was made from pallet wood- Yay for reusing! You will see the same concepts of support boards and clothes rods as described above. The one thing this closet has that others don’t are those awesome lights under the shelf, lighting the clothes rod. Pretty awesome. It would be most convenient to have these wired in (the shelves here definitely look thick enough to hold wiring). If you are not handy with wiring or don’t want to hire it out, a close second is battery operated lights that can be installed anywhere and have a remote control. I used these in my kitchen to add extra light, they are awesome.
Well, there you go, my quick 5, closets you can do yourself. Anytime you spend building shelves in your closet is well worth the sacrifice. It makes life easier and less cluttered and if you have children they have nothing to hold them back from cleaning up. I wish you well on your upcoming projects. Post below your closet successes and remember to share this with someone who is looking to build their own closet.
These bench ideas are all over Pinterest and I love them, because they inspired this in a moment of desperation. Someone was giving away a free king size “headboard” and because I haven’t had the time to make my desired headboard I thought this could fill in until I get there. Well… I show up to take a look and immediately realize it is a foot-board. My initial thought was to say, “no thank you.” But, the foot-board-giver had these pleading eyes like, “please take this thing away.” He also looked like he had just had the worst day of the year. So… I took it. The whole way home I’m thinking, “I’m going to need to explain this, this large thing that isn’t going to be a headboard.” By the time I arrived I had planned out the whole bench and was ready to start. It also helped that the same week someone else gave away real walnut wood planks, left over from a kitchen cabinet job and the house being built down the street donated a few pieces of hardwood (really, I did not just take them :). Before I knew it, I had everything needed for my spare parts bench.
Upfront disclaimer, the reason this bench was able to cost just $15 is because a bulk of the wood was free and I already had most of the paints, stains etc. It’s leftover, spare parts–but that is the beauty of it. With a little imagination, you can bring leftovers together and get a nice piece of furniture .
First I built the front legs and support piece of the bench. I took one long piece of 2×6 for the support, which I actually had to buy because no one is going to give away good lumber like that. As you can see it is rough wood which makes it cost less. It also take forever to sand smooth, I will show you in this article how to deal with that and get a smooth look. You will also need to notch out the wood of the vertical leg piece. Then you will need to pre-drill with one of these handy drill bits specifically for that purpose. It also has a large drill at the end that will drill out a hole to fit the screw head so you can caulk over it. If you don’t pre-dill you will more often than not split your wood.
On the vertical leg piece cut notches about 1/4″ apart with a circular saw. Adjust your saw so that is cuts the depth of 2×6 board. Then use a chisel or screwdriver to break off each piece.
Clean it up with a chisel and rubber mallet like this. If you don’t clean it up the 2×6 board will not lay flat. No need to sand it, but get off the jagged wood so it is smooth. In this picture you can see the portion behind the chisel is smooth enough for the board to lay flat.
Now to get rid of rough wood, sand it a bit just to get the real jagged parts off, fill in gaps with caulk and let it dry. After it is dry take drywall mud and spread a smooth layer over all the parts you want smooth. Drywall mud fills in gaps nicely and blends this joint together almost seamlessly.
Now the bench is ready to prep for paint. When I am planning on painting a piece that is varnished this is my quick trick that works really well. I sand the entire area that is varnished with a sanding block. See all the scratched up wood? That is going to allow the primer to really stick well to the wood. In order for it to stick you will need to also wipe down the piece with a damp cloth and get rid of all the dust.
Next prime the whole piece with good primer. Cheap primer will not stick as well. Remember to give nice even strokes and watch for drips, they are much easier to take care of while they are wet than when they are dry.
Select your desired bench color. I have seen plenty of cute white benches or black benches, but I already have those colors incorporated on my front porch. I finally went with this color because it is a nice country blue and can pop a bit with the white railing and red brick.
I wanted to add a little texture and personality to the color so I sanded the edges with my sanding block and stained it with a walnut brown stain to give it a warm well loved look.
Then it was time to make the seating. Since I had come across such beautiful walnut wood. I decided to make slat seating. Like this. Testing out the waters to see if I liked the spacing ect. The arm rests were just placements until I could get a jigsaw to round them out a bit and tie it in with the nice curve of the back of the bench.
To cut the slats to size I used my miter saw, cutting four pieces at a time. I then sanded each piece lightly softening the corners and edges.
Each slat needed to be secured to the back and front of the bench. I secured the front by pre-drilling each slat like this and then screwing it into place. You will notice I am drilling in at an angle and had to be careful that my screw would go through the slat and the 2×6, but not show. I was successful on all of them, but one. I simply filled the hole in with colored wood putty.
To secure the slat on the back I used a nail gun. Each slat had to be measured so I could know where to nail in the back. I also used a hand weight to hold each slat down so that is was in the exact spot I wanted it to be when I nailed it.
Here you can see where I am measuring to get the placement of the next slat and where the holes are for the other slats. This was my first time using a nail gun and I was a bit intimidated, wear ear plugs and make sure no one is in front of you just be be safe. I did have one nail hit to the side and ended up having to pull it out and try again, but amazingly all the other nails went where I wanted them Yay!
Now it’s varnish time, the pinnacle of refurbishing and building. I love how it brings out the shine and beauty of the wood. No stain here, it’s all natural wood color. I made one mistake here and used my good brush and even though I cleaned it “thoroughly” or so I thought, with paint thinner, it still dried hard with varnish residue. I was reminded again why I love cheap paint brushes so much and finished the rest of the bench with these bad boys. They are so inexpensive you can toss them instead of spending for ever trying to clean them out and it not work anyway. They also work better–at least I think so.
Once you have it varnished you need to let it dry for a few hours, lightly sand it wipe it with a damp cloth and do another layer of varnish. You should varnish at least three times on bare wood that has never been varnished before. When you have all the layers on let it dry for a good 24 hours or so before using it. I used oil based varnish for indoor outdoor use since it would be sitting on our porch.
This is how you transform your ordinary desk into the best kitchen island imaginable. I know, It’s pretty presumptuous to claim “the BEST,” but there are so many cool things to consider for your next island – YOU might even decide it’s the best…if you want, no pressure.
First you need to find the perfect desk, dresser, cabinet – which ever piece speaks to you. I collected five desks before I settled on this one. I liked the curve of the top drawer and the symmetry of the drawers.
Kitchen flow — A kitchen island can pull a whole kitchen together and make it the most accessible, efficient place in the house. To make this dream a reality, look around your kitchen, where do you spend the most time? Do you make a lot of smoothies, really like to throw things away (me), have children who like to cook and who you want to teach to clean up after themselves? All of these kitchen uses can be incorporated into a well built island. Consider what is near your kitchen island. As you can see below, our table was near one end of the island. So we placed the tilt out trash on that side, making it easier for our kids to scrape off their plates before putting them in the dishwasher. Since we had also redone the kitchen we had a deep drawer built in that held our everyday bowls, plates and cups. This drawer was placed conveniently between the dishwasher and the table allowing our kids to put away dishes and set the table – such a beautiful thing! We also kept the island temporarily short so our children had a counter height where they could make lunches themselves and help cook in the kitchen. (read about the Kid Friendly Kitchen here)
This arrangement was perfect for us. A tilt out trash helped our kids to clean up after dinner then each put their plate in the dishwasher. I wanted our kids to know how to work in a kitchen even if it’s just to take care of themselves. Here is the tilt out trash can. I first saw this idea while living in New England and decided one day I would have one. Little did I know that one day I would feel comfortable enough with power tools to make one myself and I’ll show you how on this post.
This was the portion closest to my oven, I wanted my island to be useful on every side. Consider what items you want easy access to. You could easily include your blender near the fridge or a shelf that holds all your drink accessories. I chose to have a place to slide a few cutting boards and pizza stones. Eventually I put some hooks right under the counter there for hot pads, but you’ll just have to take my word on it- I don’t have a picture.
Consider making a cut out for trash on top – easy food prep and looks awesome. Place a cutting board next to the opening and prep away, simply sweeping scraps off the side. You can read about how to make our own counter top with food prep access here.
Tilt out garbage — no more smashed toes from roll out versions. I like that it tilts out instead of having to roll along the floor, it take less space to toss your stuff.
First you have to build a structure the size of your trash can and attach it to your desk or dresser piece. You can see that I made the 2×4 structure come just under the top of the desk. I did this so I could use the desk top as reinforcement for the structure to fit in. Later after I added the top counter piece (read about it here), I added a few spacers to the trash can structure so it was the same height as the desk top. I also used wood glue and varying sizes of screws to attach it to the island. Pay attention to where the hardwood is in your desk. There were good places to screw into along the drawer supports, the top and bottom of the desk. If I were to do this again I would use 2x2s and not 2x4s. It wasn’t weight bearing and added unnecessary weight. But I guess we can sit on the island and jump up and down and it won’t break so that’s a plus. 🙂
The tilt out door was built by creating a bottom piece and front “door” piece. Basically a square wooden rod the length of your door and two right edge triangles to act as support. In the second picture you can see I had just added wood glue and was preparing to add the plywood door. I further attached the door to the support triangles with short screws that would not come through on the other side of the door.
I then used a continuous hinge to attach the bottom of the door to the island. A small chain was attached at the top so it wouldn’t fall all the way open.
I added several adjustable felt pad levelers so I could move the island without it damaging my floor and the adjustable feet helped me get a perfectly balanced top. Simply tighten or loosen each foot until it gives contact to the floor.
I used sliders on the bottom of my recycling cans, inexpensive and only cost $7 instead of $75. It is also much easier to clean and get to added storage behind. Make sure to use a heavy use, polyurethane on the floorboard of the island to hold up from the sliding.
Useful shelves –There was room behind my recycle cans so I added a shelf for more storage. Here I stored extra can liners and rarely used baking containers. You can see there is a cut out portion where the recycling bin fit.
Very affordable counter top design — plywood. I know, why would anyone choose plywood. Well it was meant to be a fill in until I could get my glorious butcher block top, but the fill in worked out so well I quickly moved on to other things. Who knows, I may add a butcher block top one day, but for now, here is how you make a plywood counter.
Easy to clean — After you have finished adding all your favorites to the desk you will need to choose trim and paint to pull it all together. I chose a simple trim that looked easy to clean and didn’t have small areas that would collect more things for me to clean:). I also chose a satin finish paint that could hold up to a lot of use and a lot of washing. Each of these trim pieces were caulked before painting to fill in gaps and give it a professional look. This thin trim is actually extra slats from our 2″ blinds. They didn’t add a lot of bulk, but still gave the island nice defining lines.
There you have it, the Best Desk to Kitchen Island, or the best for me. I would love to hear about your must haves in a kitchen island, share comments and pictures below.
We wanted to create a little nook in our basement where we could just hang out and read a good book. This was a big project because the basement didn’t exist, so it took several additional steps (framing, drywall, etc.) before the building of the bench and staging the area. In the future we’re going to put a zen garden and fairy land in the window well.
A plywood countertop has its pluses for being quick, inexpensive and versatile. True you don’t go into a remodel dreaming of a way to incorporate plywood – usually. But plywood, when used properly and with a bit of foresight, can be exactly what you need. You may want to buy time to save for your dream counters (as was my situation), or you may not be sure which counter you want and would like to get a feel for your kitchen before making the plunge with your hard earned cash.
Start with a cutout of the size you want on plywood. Since it is just plywood, let your imagination go wild.
I ended up adding a trash lid to the top of my counter (link to the Best kitchen island), to see if I liked it. Give it a try see if you like the shape before you commit with a more expensive counter.
A thick counter looks better than ¾ inch. Get this look by adding an extra 1 ½ inch wide slat to the underside edge of your plywood counter. I did not have clamps, so after wood glue I weighed each slat down with hand weights. It worked.
Do a dry run, make sure it fits the area. Consider using a router for a smooth edge, or to experiment with an edge finish.
I used a piece of paper to get a uniform curve on each corner
Plywood does leave gaps where it pulls out a bit of wood from the layers. Simply fill these in with wood putty. Wood putty won’t stain the same way as the rest of the wood. After I stained the counter I went back and painted the wood putty so it matched the rest of the counter edge. Or you can buy colored putty and put it in after you have stained your counter. Get two or three colors so you can blend to match your counter. Walnut putty will not exactly match walnut stain — I don’t know why, but it won’t (buy here).
To finish off the counter you have a few options. You can use a heavy duty polyurethane or go really heavy duty and use a bar top epoxy… nothing will penetrate that counter. I went with the polyurethane because I was still planning on switching to my awesome butcher block and didn’t want to spend the money for the bar top. Now I love it so much I’m going to keep it this way so bar top would have been worth it.
Best wishes with your projects and post pictures in the comments, I would love to see your personalized counters.
Hi, I’m Natalie. I’m a mother of four, an artist, and a DIYer that loves to reuse, recycle, and refurbish. I like power tools and teaching others how to save money while improving their home.
This arrangement was perfect for us. A tilt out trash helped our kids to clean up after dinner then each put their plate in the dishwasher. I wanted our kids to know how to work in a kitchen even if it’s just to take care of themselves. Here is the tilt out trash can. I first saw this idea while living in New England and decided one day I would have one. Little did I know that one day I would feel comfortable enough with power tools to make one myself and I’ll show you how on this post.
I added several 
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