I never planned for my favorite space in my entire house to end up being a nook in my closet, but after streamlining and updating the space, it is 🙂
What I Started With
Last summer, I found this cute vanity stool at my local antique store for $10. Since I couldn’t pass up buying the stool at that price, I had to search for a small desk that could be used for my makeup. It should be noted my Alex drawers with all my makeup were stored in my office at this point.Â
A few weeks later, I went back to the same antique store and found this cute fold out desk, which I figured would be perfect in my closet. After losing a few pairs of my favorite sandals to my beagle puppy, I decided to move my shoe storage off the ground and put it on top of my Alex storage.Â
And Then I Was Inspired...
My goal in redoing this space was to make it look intentional and put together. I knew I wanted white furniture. Thanks to Pinterest, I found lots of gorgeous desks turned into vanities and landed on the IKEA Micke desk.Â
I love how much space I now have to store my makeup and favorite everyday products on my vanity.Â
I didn’t know what I wanted at this point beyond the white desk, but I did know my black Alex drawers weren’t going to work. Originally, I wanted to paint them white and bought spray paint. That turned into a disaster of streaks and disappointment. I did find some white paint in my basement and used a small roller, which got rid of my streak problem. In my search for white paint, I found some pink paint I’d purchased on clearance because it was a goof and my pink palette was born. Following mini me’s suggestion, I painted the drawers in an ombre pink pattern.Â
So began my quest for pink accessories. I found the most gorgeous fake flowers at A.C. Moore for 75% off, curtains, pink spotlights and a throw rug from Marshalls. On the way out, I found two teal pen storage containers (I spray painted them pink) for 50% off, and fabric from Walmart and Joann’s. I found the most hideous white faux fur chair while shopping at Marshalls that I’d decided I was going to use as my vanity chair until I went back and saw they wanted $80 for it. Unable to justify the purchase, I used a can of white spray paint on the base of the vanity bench and using my handy dandy staple gun, I covered the top in a pretty pink fabric from Walmart. The fabric I bought from Joann’s was very similar to the dusty rose throw rug. I bought half-a-yard and then cut it in half and sat my Alex drawers on top.Â
My new pretty storage caused a problem for me: I didn’t want to put my tacky Target shoe shelving back on top of it and I’d recently been on a rearranging streak and needed to find a better spot for my purses and work bags. I’ve seen plenty of posts on Pinterest and within the blogosphere where people redo their closets with white bookcases. Well, because of my beagle puppy, I knew I wanted doors on my bookcase. It just so happened while hubby and I were at IKEA buying my vanity, we came across a tall cabinet that had the exact look I wanted for shoe storage. They also had a smaller one that was (what I thought to be) perfect for the top of my Alex cabinet and could hold my purses. Low and behold, they weren’t considered bookcases, but display cabinets for the dining room. The beautiful part is they were much cheaper than the bookcases with doors. Did I mention, these doors have glass windows and the shelves are made of glass for perfect displaying purposes? I was in heaven.Â
The smaller Brimnes cabinet was a bit longer than the base of the Alex drawer, but I didn’t want to put my heavy drawers on top for fear it might break (nail polish is heavier than you think). The cabinet is roughly the same height as my Target shoe storage, but now it holds more flowers I bought from A.C. Moore, a silver tray that keeps track of my perfumes, and a basket with my favorite hair products and lotions.Â
See the white chandelier hanging? Well, that was the brainchild of a DIY Pinterest pin I thought I could handle. Other than being smaller than I had hoped, it didn’t turn out too terrible if you squint your eyes. It’s hung by a strand of pearls and a strand of diamonds wrap across the top for accent. I may or may not have hot glued my fingers repeatedly while putting this thing together.
Since I couldn’t put up a lightbulb in my DIY chandelier, I searched the interwebs for pink girly chandeliers because if I was going to be extra, I was going to be extra. Of all the places, I found one of my favorite additions at Target. The best part of this is that it came with the option of plugging into an outlet or wiring.Â
The large cabinet ended up not fitting like I wanted it to in my closet because it would block the doors that hide my clothes. For a second I considered just taking the track doors off, but in the end, I decided it was best to move it into my actual bedroom beside my dresser.Â
I couldn’t believe how fancy I felt putting my shoes and purses on glass shelves. I thinned out my shoes previously so I actually have some room for a few more pairs…
I didn’t buy everything at once so I wouldn’t blow my budget and bought as many pieces on clearance or on sale as possible. Pinterest and HGTV have me obsessed with renovating spaces. Now that this is done (for now), I’m trying to figure out which space to makeover next.Â