Bathroom Closet Makeover

I don't know if I've mentioned this before but home improvement projects kind of suck sometimes.  I mean sure, they're fine in the beginning when I am planning and picking out paint colors and they are great at the end when all the hard work is done and I get to add all of the finishing touches.  However, in the middle of these projects I often find myself questioning my sanity and wanting to pull my hair out in frustration.  

This was  definitely the case with my bathroom closet project.  It was supposed to be a simple weekend project but then real life, mercury retrograde, the laws of physics and my lack of math skills got in the way and it ended up taking five weeks!  However, now that it is done, I choose to tell myself that it was all worth it.

So here's what I started with all those weeks ago:

Before: Messy Curtain Covering Messy Closet

Unlike the other closets I've tackled in this house, this closet never had a door.  Hippie and I tried to come up with one back when we renovated the bathroom (click here if you missed that post) but soon realized the location of the closet made a door unfeasible. So I just threw up a curtain instead.  This allowed me to hide all kinds of things I didn't really need behind there and didn't look all that great, which got on my nerves.  So finally I just decided I needed to make it pretty and organized enough that it didn't need a door or a curtain.

The first step was cleaning out the closet (which took forever), then Hippie and I removed the shelves (easier said than done) and I got to work painting and (drum roll please) wallpapering!

Closet In Progress

Now, normally I am afraid of wallpaper but then I saw this Devine Peel And Stick Wallpaper at Target (affiliate link) and decided this would be the perfect place to try it out.  The most challenging part about putting it up was figuring out how to get the pattern to line up but once I did, it went fairly quickly.  I did have to peel it off and back on a few times to get it just right but that was the beauty of this stuff.  I can see myself using it again on other small projects.

That done, it was time to put the newly painted shelves back in, which proved to be even more problematic than getting them out.  Finally I just bought some pre-finished shelves and they went right in and looked so much better (lesson learned).

Then I got to do the fun part of organizing and decorating.  I put everything I didn't want to see in pretty storage bins and containers but was able to leave out many of the things I use the most.

Storage Bins and Decorative Containers Keep Shelves Pretty

Cotton Balls and Swabs Never Looked So Fancy. ;)

And then finally I was done!  Woo-hoo!

After: Open and Organized Closet

Of course the big challenge will be keeping it this way.  I'm sure some adjustments will be made as I go along but I think this will help me keep the clutter from building up like it did before.

Do you have any home improvement challenges or tips you'd like to share with me?  Please feel free to leave a comment below.