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How Can I Upgrade My Bedroom Closet?
In today’s market sometimes when we are searching for that perfect home, we cannot always get what we want. Compromise is becoming more and more an expectation when buying our lifestyle. Fortunately with skills at hand and materials available at a low cost, you can upgrade your bedroom closet.
Depending on the size, there are a lot of options to choose from to make this happen.
Our bedroom closet is very small. It feels smaller than the reach-in closet we shared living in a one bedroom condo. This was a huge compromise buying this property. One wish was to have my own closet, but this home does not have that option. Fortunately, with some tools at hand and a small budget to make it happen, we are adding a few shelves for better organization. This is to add more clothes in this tiny, yet open space.
What Is The Best Paint Colour For Closets?
In case you are wondering why an orange closet, this is leftover paint from our condo. The room is also dark with no windows or proper light. A nice bright colour with a light on makes everything easily visible and the closet feel more spacious.
What Tools & Materials Do I Need to Upgrade My Bedroom Closet?
- circular saw
- table saw
- mitre saw
- jig saw
- air compressor
- 16-gauge pneumatic nailer
- measuring tape
- carpenter’s square
- 2″ paint brush
- paint roller
- paint tray
- drop clothes
- 4’x8’x3/4″ sheet of paint grade plywood
- small angle braces
- 16-gauge nails for pneumatic nailer
- latex primer paint
- latex semi-gloss paint
Are Custom Closets Worth It?
The short answer is yes. If you plan to sell your home within 5-10 years, a custom closet will more than pay for itself. If you are considering a closet remodel to help the resale value of your home, consider doing it once you have renovated your kitchen and bathrooms, as well as upgraded your flooring and lighting.
Is It Cheaper To Build Your Own Closet?
Yes, the average cost to DIY a closet upgrade is between $17 and $30 per square foot. This also gives you creative freedom to have your closet exactly how you want it, which is very liberating.
How Do You Transform A Closet?
Draw out your space and add some dimensions to it. Grid paper works best for this. In our case we had some left over plywood from our kitchen upgrade so we only needed to purchase one 4ft x 8ft sheet of 3/4″ plywood for this project.
Empty your closet completely. Remove the existing shelves and closet rods that you hang your clothes hangers on. With the layout of the design in hand, cut your plywood pieces to size and test fit them.
In our case the new pieces had to fit the existing space so obstructions were marked and a jig saw was used to make final adjustments. With the two sides in place it was time to make the corner shelves. Supports were attached and the shelves were test fitted.
How Do You Make A Small Closet Bigger?
Shelves, Shelves, Shelves!
In this area we added four corner shelves for folded clothes to have a space. These large side pieces that create the corners are attached to the wall with small angle braces.
Not one house has perfectly square corners so a little scribing and adjusting was required.
Strips of plywood are attached to the wall for the four shelves to sit on.
Along with this addition, we added a second layer of shelves above the clothes racks which just needed wall supports and the shelves themselves.
What Is The Best Material For Closet Shelves?
Plywood. It is by far the superior option compared to MDF and melamine particle board. Plywood resists sagging and warping and is easy to work with. Plus it is actual wood which gives your closet a cozier feeling.
Once all the pieces fit together the way they should we primed the new wood.
The next day we painted the new shelves white with a semi-gloss latex to give the shelves a nice finish.
Once everything was dry the shelves were reassembled and we were able to bring our closet back together.
Does A Custom Closet Increase Your Home Value?
Yes. It gives practical and aesthetic value to you while you are living in the home. It also provides a great R.O.I. because an upgrade like this sets your home apart from the rest which means it will sell easier for more.
Despite the space remaining the same, the use of this closet has expanded. Now I can have folded sweaters and shirts in shelves that are easily accessible.
Plus there is another top shelf which allows items that are not often used to be tucked away nicely.
How Much Does It Cost To Replace A Closet?
On average the cost to remodel a closet is $125 per linear foot. Depending on the size of your closet and how fancy you get with options and finishes it can cost between $750 to $2500 to remodel a closet.
The total cost of this project was under $150.00. By making this small adjustment we increased the value of this room by creating extra space.
This is a great way to upgrade your closet by DIY. Any marks on the walls are touched up afterwards.
May 6, 2022
