Saturday, October 1, 2011

Project: From Empty Wall to Mud Room

I'm back!!  I can't believe we've been here a month already.  At the same time it seems like we've been here forever.  We absolutely love the midwest!  Still haven't seen Chicago, but every once in a while I pinch myself to remind me that I live in its vast suburbs.

As expected I am up to my eyeballs in fun projects.  I keep having to re-focus myself to the task at hand. There is just so much I want to do!

Function first!
 See these feet?  They are completely adorable aren't they?

They also never stop moving and I constantly have black skid marks and wet puddles on my entry floor :)  The rain has become a fairly constant companion for us here in Chicagoland.  I really sorta love it!  And while the rain boots bring slightly irksome consequences I know the snow boots will be much worse.  I had to do something!
 I have this wall in my garage......haha - and it begins!  Since one day soon I will have my garage cleared enough to park in it (gotta love moving) and this will become our "entry door" I decided this might be a good place to start.
 I ran to the local hardware store.  I'm totally sticking to Home Depot for wood- this place was a bit of a joke.  I grabbed some 3 inch screws and some 2"x12"x4' boards and had them cut me 4 18" pieces - even though they aren't all 18" (grrrrr...one day I WILL own a saw).  I think 18" is a little large for the kids actually - if I was to do it again ;)  I would make them more like 15" or something.
 I screwed them together, stained and finished them and I have a bench with boot cubbies for right around $10.
 I made this peg board last Christmas to hang the stockings on.  I split it with a friend and it cost each of us $5.80!  And it made a fun girls night project.  Since I now have a fireplace it needed a use so I stuck it on that empty wall.
 I added a 4 lower hooks (1 for each child).  And since they are double they can hold snow pants AND a coat.  Oh, and the stool is one of the many random things the previous tenants left that the landlord didn't take care of.  So its mine :)  If this were MY house I would have probably painted the wall too so it would look a little more finished, but this definitely works.
 Yay!  A place for rain and snow covered boots!  I realize that come mid winter when we are FREEZING our little tushies we might not keep the coats in the garage ALL the time.  I'm not quite sure what to expect yet.
Ahhh.....much better.

And I have rain boots too!  I am so excited.  This is the first time EVER in my life I have owned a pair.  I love them!!


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3 comments:

Melanie said...

I LOVE THIS IDEA TOO!

You see, I have four boys. Four boys who's feet stink. It's not so much the mess of the shoes in the house that get's to me. It's the smell of them. I, too, have an empty wall in my garage...I may just have to do this.

Thanks for the awesome tips.

Sarah said...

Hey Katie! Thanks for the idea and tutorial! I am finally getting around to doing this and I just have one question - is the bench sturdy enough with just the screws? Did you have to put any L brackets in or any other supports, or did you just screw them all in? Thanks! :)

Steve and Katie said...

I just screwed them in and mine seems to be doing okay. As long as the screws are long enough. Though L brackets would certainly help to ensure stability. I had also thought about putting on a bottom board as well, then it could be used as an upright shelf later if I wanted. The most maddening part about making mine is that the guy at the store didn't cut them all the exact same length, so I had to try to sand them until they were somewhat level. I really need a saw!! Good luck!