Getting Organized

Craft with a Craft

Feb 23

Where to Begin

Here is the “Before” of the space. It was BAD! You can’t even see the amazing insect artwork Mac had drawn on the bench.

As cliché as it sounds, organizing or controlling what I can, really helps my mental health in my chaotic life. In a moment of frustration the thoughts in my head came out and I said “I don’t know where to begin.” A friend within ear shot, said that she always started wherever she was standing (in her case with cleaning her home) and worked her way little by little.

Well, I found myself standing near our messy “landing pad” near the back door morning and night. The pile of coats, bags, and shoes had become more than I could stand. We don’t have a coat closet near the back door (which we use more than the front door), so I came up with the idea of an armoire to hang our coats and hide the mess. I let Mac in on my plan. We initially started looking for a new piece of furniture to serve this purpose, but given our budget and distance from Ikea we needed to figure out something more cost effective.

Renew the “Before”

“Before” of the furniture piece. It had a drawer, but I had already started cleaning when I realized I forgot to take the “before” picture.

Like my last project, I found an old piece of furniture on Facebook Marketplace that seemed to be just the right size for our space. The price was right and it was solid wood! Energized to breathe life back into the piece I quickly started cleaning it up. It had been in storage and had gotten quite musty. To kill any mildew and clean the surface for painting, I used 10% bleach and sunlight. I dusted and vacuumed the piece, mixed up my cleaning solution, gave all surfaces a good wipe down, and finally left it in the sun to dry and air out. There was also a split in the wood on the back leg. Mac glued it and left the clamp until it was dry and ready to paint.

Next I went to pick paint! I polled my six-year-old and fellow Instagram users, because I couldn’t decide between pink or blue. I settled on Rust-Oleum Chalked Paint in Soothing Blue. I had used Linen White in my last project and I loved the effect. Similar to my last project I didn’t need to prime with this paint selection and it dried quickly in the sun. I did apply three coats, but I still have about half a can left! While at the hardware store I also grabbed some antiqued brass knobs as the drawer was missing pulls of any kind.

While I waited for the paint to dry I sipped a delicious sour from Birdsong Brewing Co. For some reason when I’m crafting or working on a project, I gravitate toward sours. Mac thinks maybe the tart bright flavor energizes me. I think he’s right! Black Bird (10 IBU and 5.1%) is a sour ale brewed with Black Tea and Lemon (P.S. I LOVE lemon). I now think tea infused beers are great, especially sours! I’ve only tried a few, but I’ve liked them all so far! The lemon hit my taste buds first, so right away I was loving it, but then I started to pick up on other citrus flavors and finally the herbal and floral flavor offered by the tea hit me on the end of my sip. This dynamic flavor profile was exciting and energizing in itself! I grabbed this can at the Blue Ridge Bottle Shop. I actually returned recently hoping to buy up all they had, but I guess their other customers liked it too! No luck with this bird brew.

I thought once the paint had dried we were ready to get organized, but once in the house I could still detect a bit of a musty smell on the back of the cabinet. Mac and I decided to go ahead and replace the back with a fresh piece of wood. I’m really happy we did, not only to freshen the piece, but the birch plywood Mac found is a nice light color, which brightened the inside of the armoire. If I’m being honest, it was also kind of fun pulling off the back. I felt a little bad, because the piece had the original markings, but we took lots of pictures!

Organizing the “After”

I am really happy with this “after” shot. Having this level of storage by our back door has been a game changer!

Once cleaned, painted, and refreshed I was ready to organize! One really neat feature of this vintage piece was that it came with a rod equipped with sliding hooks, which makes quickly hanging coats and hoodies a breeze! The bottom drawer is so large that I was able to organize bags, hats, gloves, and scarves for the whole family! I was able to repurpose the piece of furniture that I formally used to store these items and use that space for a pretty table and plants!

Needless to say, completing this project felt great! My only regret is not telling you about it sooner!

To celebrate a problem solved and a job well done I grabbed Fenceline from Black Berry Farm Brewery, which I also found on a trip to the Blue Ridge Bottle Shop. I think I was inspired by the quilt square on the can. The blue definitely reminded me of our new armoire and the yellow reminded me of the sunshine that helped me with the project. Fenceline is a Belgian-style Farmhouse ale (27 IBU and 5.5% ABV). This beer had a really nice wheat feel with notes of sweet melon, almost honeydew, while still having a crisp after taste.