The Olive Tree....

I recently decided to jump on a “decor bandwagon.”

Seems olive trees are all the rage right now. As I have mentioned before I have a few issues keeping indoor plants healthy so I have zero issues with breaking the “no fake plants” rule. If you are like me and have a black thumb for indoor plants, it is the only way to bring “life” into your home. (I kick butt when it comes to outdoor flower beds but this is where indoor plants come to die!)

Anywho, I have an olive wreath…but I was hesitant to spend a big chunk of money on a tree that 1) will go out of style in short order (think ficas, fiddle, etc) and 2) may or may not actually look decent.

So I did a little research and read reviews and landed on THIS tree on Etsy. I went with the 6’ tree. Pretty tree and very affordable but still seemed a tad short. I knew I was going to have to put it in a basket or pot so I decided to give it a little lift in the process.

I found a large pot at Lowe’s I like. To “pot” the tree I needed another smaller pot, some scrap cardboard, spray foam and decorative rocks….

I placed the small (and very inexpensive) pot upside down into the larger decorative pot…I secured it with a bit of hot glue just to keep it from moving around.

I hot glued the potted tree on top of the small pot. I used cut up card board around the small pot just to “fill in” the space and give a cardboard collar something to set on.

After all that I used spray foam to fill in and secure it all….

I use this spray foam for several reasons. First it puffs up pretty solid and kind of acts like a “glue” to hold everything super secure. Second, while it dries pretty hard on the top, it still is a foam and is easy to stick stuff in it if you want to…like for floral arrangements and such (I used it HERE for fall urns!) It is also relatively light weight so it fills these pots without adding a lot of weight like rocks would! It is also lightweight so it makes it easier to move the pot around!

Lastly…it is much cheaper than floral foam!

A few hints for using this stuff…it is super sticky…let it dry before you mess with it! If you get it somewhere you don’t want it, just let it dry well then scrape it off! (If you fail to take my advice and mess with it while it is wet, use mineral spirits to clean it up.)

It expands quite a bit so work in “layers”…let it cure well before you add more if needed. On this project I did two “layers” before I got it to the right height.

If you find that it is “too high” in spots, you can cut it with a serrated knife to trim it down after it has dried.

Since I was using black decorative rock, I sprayed the foam with black paint so it would blend in….

Then I just placed the rocks on top of the painted foam….

I like the overall height and look now. You have to “pot” these anyway, might as well add a little height to them.

I decided to put it in the corner of my breakfast room. If I want to move it to another spot, it is relatively light weight…not so much that it is a tipping hazard but not so heavy that it would be a pain to move.

You may notice I am already decked out for Easter…this little tree gave me the perfect spot for one of my newest Easter additions….

Next week I will share a bit more.

Until then….

"Mud room" bench....

This is a project you see a lot on Pinterest and it is a super simple and functional use of normally wasted space.

Case in point…my daughter-in-law’s sister’s (Laura) house….

This room is next to her kitchen…designed to be the “breakfast room” space but is really used as a thoroughfare from the garage into the house and has become a general “drop zone catch all. “ With two small kiddos, it could be the perfect “craft room” and drop zone but as you can see there was no form or functionality to the space.

So she sent me this “inspiration” photo.

A functional and organized space for shoes, backpacks, coats, etc.

Heck, I can build that!

She likes the board and batten look of my entry more than the “panelling” look in her inspiration photo. No biggy. Remember what I have said before…the key to any project is first, your inspiration…..second, your plan and third, the execution.

So we had the inspiration…just a few tweeks and we had a plan…

Now it was time to execute!

I have said before I am not a “how to” kinda person…I am a “YOU CAN DO IT” kinda person. So find a tutorial for installing board and batten and building a bench that makes sense to you and works for your space.

First up…the bench. I had to off center the middle support because of an outlet but it was pretty basic stuff…2x4s, construction mastic and wood screws. Again, find a tutorial that makes sense to you! (Even I look at tutorials sometimes and say WTH!)

I build the legs of the bench out of 2x4s then clad them with plywood. Simple.

I used 1x6 pre-primed pine to trim out the front of the bench. MDF will “swell” if it gets wet so you can use it on wall treatments but I highly recommend using a solid wood product on anything adjacent to the floor.

I always use pre-primed or prime and sand before I install to avoid having to prime and sand inside the house!

I used 3 1x6 lengths of oak for the bench top. You can also use pine…MUCH cheaper but Laura liked the look of the oak. I used a rooter on the edges, just a hair, so when I joined them together they look more “plankish” than solid.

I built the bench top, using a biscuit joiner, in the garage… no stain just 3 coats of polycrylic, and then installed it before I moved on to the wall treatment.

For the board and batten wall treatment I used preprimed MDF.

I usually install the horizontal pieces first…making sure they are perfectly level. Then I go back and add the vertical boards. Putty all the nail holes and seams and make sure you caulk EVERY joint and crack…sand it all super smooth.

REMEMBER if you can feel it you are going to see it after paint…so sand and feel with your hands! Sometimes it can take 2-3 coats of joint filler to get good coverage.

We covered the wood bench top and painted with a brush and roller…three coats!

GORG!!!!

We added cute little hooks Laura picked out!

I was still loading tools and the littlest (3 y.o.) was already claiming all the hooks for his back pack and Hulk costume and mask! Probably should have added more hooks…lol!

Props to Laura…I really believe the vision and inspiration are the most important keys to any successful DIY project.

She did good and I have no doubt this little area will now serve her family well!

Preserving pictures from old negatives...

Again, I am probably the last person on earth to discover this, but I thought I would share just incase ONE person is as clueless as I have been.

I love old photos. I am the keeper of all the family archive photos and documents.

When it comes to my immediate family photos, I have always developed and printed every roll of film, printed every single digital picture (phones and cameras,) labeled the back of every picture and put each into photo albums for each kiddo.

When I bought my first digital camera in 2004, I would print EVERY picture I took, label them and put them in each kid’s individual album. Then I would make a back up copy onto a CD, and in recent years, a jump drive. All labeled by year and stored in my fireproof safe….

Even now, every year I print every picture on my phone, label them and store them. Then I copy the entire year onto a jump drive.

From birth to adulthood (when I had to snatch pictures off their social media), I have them all…THOUSANDS.

Unfortunately,I have never been able to find a good way to wrangle the boxes and envelopes of negatives…THOUSANDS!!!

Granted, all the pictures have been printed and stored, but I could never bring myself to dispose of the actual negatives….you know, those flimsy brown strips (for you youngins who don’t know what a negative is). I mean, what if the house burns down and the albums go up in flames. Keep in mind the negatives have been stored in a cedar trunk in the guest room so not sure what I would do if the entire house went up, but that is another issue.

One day last year I stumble on this nifty little gadget….

I found it here on Amazon.

It really works exactly like it says it does…you run each negative through the machine, punch a button and it sends the photo to a SM card that can then been transferred to your computer, then stored to a jump drive.

There may be one out there that lets you save it directly to a jump drive but I couldn’t find one at the time.

The photos are top notch quality…and even better when you consider that the machine allows you to make minor edits to the photo before you save it. It works on 135, 110, 126mm negatives.

It took a few days of sitting and scanning but it was worth every minute. By the time I was finished I had every “pre-digital” photo stored onto a jump drive.

I gave each of the kids a jump drive of their photos….great stocking stuffers! While they have all these pictures in their albums, most kids (anyone under the age of 40) will probably never sit down and go through a picture album…but they will pop a jump drive into their computer and look at old baby pictures.

Which is exactly what my youngest daughter did…”How did you get anything done the first 6 years of my life…I was so cute, oh my god!”

Yep…she was.

I had almost forgotten how incredibly precious they all were…until I got to spend a few days looking at, and preserving, all their old pictures.

Now my next big archival chore. Transferring all the photos on CDs onto jump drives…because evidently, in spite of what they told us, those too can degrade over time…so now I am transferring thousands of photos on CDs to my computer so I can put them onto jump drives.

We have 4 computers and three ipads in this house and not one has a CD drive…that should tell you something!

A new black and white Christmas tree...

This is our third Christmas in this house and every year I add something new.

Last year it was the “Stewart decor”….love and can’t wait to deck this room this year!

Year before was my “funky bow” obsession…still love those as well.

In both these links you can see a lot of my Christmas decor. Over the past few years I have added simple pre-lit trees to several rooms…guest room. office, all season room, dining room…most already had some “froo-froo” (flocking, berries, pinecones) so I didn’t really decorate any other than the main tree in the living room.

But while cruising Instagram I saw something that stopped me in my tracks.

This tree….

LOVE! I just think it is soooo pretty!

When I added the accent wall in my office earlier this year, a credenza is one element I wanted for this room. A few months ago I found the perfect credenza….a Heywood Wakefield Cliff House credenza in super awesome condition. Just happen to see it on an Instagram posting from one of my favorite vintage stores and was able to snatch it up over the phone. I can not tell you how much I love this piece….

So….when I saw the black and white Christmas tree I knew exactly where I could put it. In the corner next to the new credenza in my office where it can be seem from the living room and entry!

Last year I bought a little flocked tree for this room and set it on the side table in the front window. Pretty but just okay.

So I set out to recreate the black and white tree!

First thing I did was order a simple pre-lit flocked tree…bought THIS one and I really like it.

Then I took a picture of the inspiration tree to Hobby Lobby to find each little element.

One problem I ran into was finding the different ornaments…black and white polka dot and striped ornaments are not really the “in” thing.

What to do, what to do?

Time to break out the ole’ glue gun and get creative.

I bought some plain black and white ornaments and glued black glass beads and ribbon to the white ones and gold ribbon to the black ones.

I added pretty little bows to a few ornaments..

I was able to find a few “glitzy” ornaments that I dressed up with bows, a few velvet picks and even some simple white pinecone ornaments.

I made big bows out of gold and black holiday ribbon and glued inexpensive small black ornaments together to create little clusters.

Filled in here and there with inexpensive poinsettias.

The ornaments are certainly not “keepsake” ornaments like the main tree but simple and inexpensive and will be super easy to change if I decide to go with a different color scheme later down the road.

I wanted a tree that was simple but elegant.

I think I pulled it off!

I wish I had a link to the inspiration tree but it was on instagram and now I can’t find it. But there is tons of inspiration on Pinterest so look until something takes your breath away….then go out and create it!

YOU CAN DO IT!!!!

How do you eat an elephant....

I have talked often about checking off chores on my “honey do” list.

Now that I have completed a few major projects I am working my way through the list of “mundane chores” on my refrigerator….

Some people make their lists on their phones…some on erase board calendars. Me…just a plain ole’ note paper on the fridge.

It works for me. You do what works for YOU!

But just do it…make a list and complete one little chore at a time.

Whether it be repair something, paint something or clean out something.

This one has been on my fridge since this spring…nothing happens overnight!

My neighbor wants to paint the inside of her house. She doesn’t want to pay a fortune for someone else to do it but she is completely overwhelmed with the thought of painting IT ALL!

As I have said before…how do you eat an elephant? One bite at a time.

Case in point…one of the chores on my list is “paint trim.” By that, I mean ALL the trim throughout my entire house.

Why? Well I painted it lighter when we first moved in and now I found a white I like better. As I have completed a few trim projects around the house (the dining room wainscotting, the breakfast trim, the entry board and batten) I have painted them the “new” white (BM Chantilly Lace). That makes the old trim look “dingy.” Course now my kitchen cabinets look “dingy” so that will get added to the list

Holy crud what a chore.

So I have broken it down into manageable small projects. A few weeks ago I painted the trim in the entry. Then the trim in the living room and dining room. One day this week I did all the crown in the den and kitchen and the next the base and door trim. Still haven’t painted around the windows and eventually I will work my way to the master bath.

Only then will I mark that chore off the list!

I told my friend to do the same…make a list of all the rooms she wants to paint and break it down…each room…ceiling, trim and walls…then just start working the list, one area at a time. It may take a few months, but I really believe that if you break down the BIG projects into small manageable chores you are more likely to start and complete the BIG project…eventually.

So make a list and start eating…one bite at a time!

Another check mark on the "Honey-do" list...

We returned from our annual Colorado trip last Thursday. We rode trains, zipped across the Royal Gorge, rode bikes from Vail Pass, did our guided fishing trip, shopped, gambled a wee bit and drove the mountains looking at Aspens! Glorious!

Before we left I completed a few “honey-dos.” I got my fall decor up, we got our back yard sodded, I got the yard over-seeded, I painted some of the trim (repainting it with my new favorite white but still have more to go!)…just a few things on my “Honey-do” list I keep on the refrigerator.

Back home and back to work!

One of my spring projects this year was another swing pergola. I love these little projects and we sit in this swing all the time. (HERE you can find a pretty decent tutorial!)

One thing I knew I wanted to do from day one was to stain it black. I like the natural look of treated wood but it does grey over time.

I used Cabot Semi-sold stain mixed in black. I wanted black, but I also wanted to see the grain through the stain.

Almost all tutorials I have read on sealing or staining treated wood suggest you wait 3-6 months to treat it. Treated wood tends to be “wet” and it is important to give the wood time to dry out and “cure” a bit. In my case I waited around 5+ months…I would liked to have waited a tad longer but we had a super dry summer and I wanted to get it done before it gets too cold.

So this little chore has been on my fridge for 5+ months…I finally tackled it this week and was able to check off that “honey do!”

One down…so many more to go!

The never ending project....

Six months ago I shared a project I was working on …quilts. Sewing…UGH!!!!

As I pointed out in the original post, it was for a good cause…a way to show off the years of Christmas PJs my family wears every Christmas.

I finally finished the first SIX quilts I tackled.

Four are throws that are being given to my daughter-in-laws and my grandsons for their birthdays. I know they should probably be Christmas gifts but I want them to have them for the Christmas season. I also made a twin size and a full size for the upstairs bunk room.

This past week I added shelving and organized our spare room closet so that Brian can move all his “stuff” out of the guest room closet and into the spare room closet. While in the process I finally decided to organize the boxes of leftover fabric from the massive quilt project.

Well, low and behold, I had enough panels to make a throw for Katie…might as well whip that up…

…and Sarah wanted pillows…I didn’t have any panels for those so of course I had to whip those up as well…

…and I wanted a pillow using some scrap green velvet I found…whip that up. Two days of “whipping” and I am WHIPPED!!!

But I managed to use up a good bit of my leftover scraps and get everything organized. I still have a bunch of plaid pieces left I may do something with…someday!

It has been a few weeks of “giving what you have.”

One neighbor wanted a counter top over her washer and dryer…done!

Another wanted a walnut mantel… (similar to mine)

…and a storage divider for her baking sheets…

Done and done.

And of course I have a long list of things I want to get done before we head out on vacation in a few weeks. So little by little I am chipping away at the list on my refrigerator.

No, the closets and the sewing projects weren’t on the list.

That reminds me, I need to add them to the list so I can check them off!

The wardrobe reveal....

Last week I shared the wardrobe cabinet I planned to refinish and convert to a display cabinet….HERE.

Definitely lacking in soooo may respects. But I had a pretty good idea of what I wanted to do with it.

These “inspiration” pictures have been on my computer for over a year, just waiting on the perfect piece to transform!

The last one is probably my favorite…a Pinterest find. It was the one that influenced me the most, as you will see.

So the plan…remove the panels in the door and add glass. Remove all the shelves and add glass shelving. Lighten the back of the inside. Strip the doors and drawers and apply tung oil. Paint the rest of the outside of the cabinet black. Replace the hardware. Add a light.

So of course the first step is to deconstruct and then begin the stripping process on the doors, drawers and inside back panel.

What a chore!!!! I think someone, at some point, had applied at least 20 coats of poly. The 1/2 acetone, 1/2 lacquer thinner process I shared HERE, wasn’t cutting it. I applied Citristrip and wrapped everything in plastic wrap…that seemed to do the trick for 80% of the finish…then I was able to sand off the rest since this was mostly solid, then clean it up with the 1/2 and 1/2 mixture. Remember, you don’t want to vigorously sand veneer because it can be super thin and you can end up sanding right through it. I started with an 80 grit then finished with a 220 grit. Then I hand sanded it with 220 to get it butter smooth.

I knew this piece was old (which is why I know the poly was NOT the original finish) and that was confirmed when I checked out the underside of one of the drawers.

It was signed and dated…most likely by the person who constructed it…August 11, 1914…wow!

The other thing I discovered was the mortise and tenon peg joint. So super cool. Normally drawers are constructed using dovetail joints. This was unusual to find, but probably not unusual for the times.

I removed the doors to make it easier to work on the inside as well as make it easier to strip them. Remember to ALWAYS reenforce screw holes when you remove the screws. Not hard at all. Just take a match stick, dip it in wood glue, then insert the stick in the hole and break it off.

This will ensure that when you go to reinsert the screw, it won’t be loose or “wonky.”

I stripped the inside back panel then sanded it down. I tried lightening it with oxalic acid but it still seemed a tad to dark and a bit yellow. So I ended up applying a whitewash. Just a little white paint mixed with water, brush it on, wipe it off…like a stain. I can still see the character and grain of the wood but it lightens the interior considerably.

There was a tiny bit of veneer on the base of the cabinet and one side was in pretty rough shape. My original plan was to remove all the old veneer and apply a new piece. I planned to paint the outside of the cabinet so it didn’t matter that it would be different than the other side.

Problem was, when I went to remove the loose veneer, some of it was SUPER stuck…as in it was NOT coming off.

Soooo, punt.

I scraped off all that I could then I used wood filler to get a smooth surface.

This picture is after the 1st coat.

The whole process took a lot of time and patience. Fill, let it dry, sand…apply some more, let it dry, sand. It probably took 3-4 applications to get the side perfectly smooth and ready for paint.

REMEMBER, paint will NOT cover poorly patched or repaired areas…if anything it will highlight it. So take your time and do it right!

After patching, puttying and caulking, I primed the entire outside of the cabinet with primer, sanded it smooth with 220 grit paper and then wiped it down with a tack cloth.

I then spay painted it with a flat black paint. Remember, light coats…2-3.

The paint I used SAID it was primer and paint in one. As you may know, I do not trust that and will ALWAYS apply a good primer before paint…always.

I stripped the drawers and doors (using this process) and I used my new favorite tung oil finish to seal them.

I added new shelving support using some leftover walnut I had from my office feature wall project. I wanted good solid support since it would be holding glass shelves and china…glue and nails!

(This is solid natural walnut…no stain…just an oil finish!)

I moved it in the house before I added the glass or hung the doors…just made it lighter and easier to move…okay, RELATIVELY easy…this sucker is big!

So, my original plan was to put it in my office. But it covered too much of the feature wall I worked so hard on. I moved the Drexel server into the office and put this cabinet in the dining room.

The final touch was the hardware. My original plan was to find some simple tear drop hardware. While looking, I found these precious little ginko leaf designs on Etsy.

Back story…years ago when my kids were little we lived in a house that had a HUGE old ginko in the court yard. I have the loved these trees ever since. Kind of quirky but with a story.

I added a LED light inside the cabinet…simple!

Now I have a place to display more of our family china.

Rather than fill it with all the china I have stored away I selected a few serving pieces of each set. I like to use antique books as risers so I picked a few up at a local flea market.

The only things I purchased were the candle lantern and a fake plant. I know, fake plants are suppose to be “faux pas” these days…I don’t care…I can’t keep a real one alive and it looks lovely.

I love to decorate this room for every holiday so I can’t wait to doll this piece up for fall in a month or so…then Christmas.

I think it will be just stunning!

Painted bathroom litter cabinet...

I keep a list of projects I want to do on my refrigerator. Repair the irrigation line on the norths side of the house, wainscoting in the dining room, paint the trim, trim tops of windows and doors, paint the bathroom cabinet, add a flower bed around the backflow…and on and on it goes.

When something gets done, it gets marked off…when I think of something I want to do, I add it to the list!

It keeps me focused on what I want to get accomplished…eventually! And being able to check a project off my list feels amazing! (Sometimes if I do something that wasn’t on the list, I add it just so I can mark it off)

I’ve managed to get a few things done this week. The flower bed around the backflow is done. The dining room wainscoting is done (will share next week) and the littler box cabinet in the master bath has been painted.

Why did the litter box cabinet in the master bath need to be painted since I just painted it you ask?

Last year I painted the bathroom cabinets and in my opinion the two kind of clash…so it has bothered me for the last year.

So I wanted to paint the litter box cabinet but couldn’t decide on a color.

Last week I was cleaning out some drawers and found a little dish my daughter in law got me as a gift. I have no idea why it was stuck in a drawer, but it was my “inspiration” for the cabinet.

I have three cats…I would have more if Brian would tolerate it. My children know me well.

Anyway, I love pink. When I finally decorated my home office, I added a tiny bit of pink. I try not to over-saturate my house with pink because there is a guy living here, but I do like to throw it in there from time to time.

Pink…

Since I had already done all the sanding and repair and priming and all the other fun prep work before I painted it the first time (HERE I did a fairly decent tutorial for turning a cabinet into a littler box), all I did this time was remove the hardware, scuff the finish with 220 grit paper, tape off the inside and rolled and brushed on my new favorite paint…the BM waterborne alkyd.

Better than my “go to” white…not as stark as black. Shined up the brass hardware again and walla!

Love!

Check. One thing down, a dozen more to go! But that is okay…being able to check one thing off the list feels amazing!

The Pantry Makeover....

It has only been a little over a year since I “froo-frooed” my kitchen pantry. I love it and have found all the little storage elements I added to be very helpful. I have managed to keep it fairly organized.

After living with this space for a few years, it is time to reconfigure it and install new flooring.

First things first….find my inspiration. Same song, second verse…cruise the blogisphere and Pinterest and see what trips my trigger.

Once I had an idea of what I WANT, it was time to take some measurements and draw everything out on graph paper…inspiration + space = ”the plan.” Drawing the space to scale gives me the ability to play around with the elements I think I want on paper before I start sawing and nailing. It also gives me important measurements for cabinets, flooring and shelf material.

I wanted base cabinets to hide rarely used appliances (food processor, grinder, etc), dutch ovens, crock pots, etc.

I wanted a cute counter top for the flour/sugar jars, toaster and can opener.

Lauren’s pantry was most similar to my layout so I looked closely at what she did….

Like Lauren, I knew I wanted to use 12” wall cabinets as the bases. However, I decided to build my shelves a tad differently.

I liked the look of the shelving featured HERE….

Unfortunately I couldn’t find any wall cabinets to use as base cabinets…at least none that are affordable. It’s a pantry. With the cost of materials THROUGH THE ROOF I have to be conscience of the cost of this little project.

I wasn’t real keen on open base cabinets but Lindsey built some really awesome bases…

She posted a great tutorial on building these base cabinets…pretty much exactly the way I built mine!

So all this got worked into “the plan.” Again, a fluid plan, but a plan none the less.

First up…the flooring. The flooring was the original tile and I decided to use the same tile I used in the laundry room. Tiling over the tile in the laundry room worked well so I decided to do that again.

I wanted to reset the shelving and build some additional “shelf towers” so I removed all the existing shelving….

I wanted a new light fixture so I found one I kind of liked. HOWEVER, it came with Edison bulbs. Kind of important since you can see the bulbs through the glass but I just don’t like the light…just too “yellow.”

One morning I woke up thinking “I really don’t like that light.” So I got up, took down the new one and put the old one back up. Again, it’s a pantry…functional is more important that pretty sometimes. Maybe I’ll eventually find something that is both pretty and functional…way down the bottom of the list at this point.

BTW, in case you want to see what “projecting” looks like around here….

I patched and painted the walls white (my new fav, BM Chantilly Lace), grouted the floor tile, then started building the base cabinets and adding the new shelves. I preprimed and sanded all the material so all I had to do after it was assembled was caulk and putty holes. A light sanding, wipe with tack cloth and it was ready for paint. Prepriming and sanding BEFORE you cut and install will save you a MAJOR dust storm in the house.

AGAIN, I am not going to go into a long drawn out tutorial…just so many great tutorials out there.

Some people go to the lake during Memorial Day weekend. I build shelves.

The countertop. I like wood since it is not an actual food prep space.

If I wanted to splurge I would have built walnut counters or even a butcher block. But again…it’s a pantry!

The question then is if I go with a less expensive wood do I stain it with a dark stain or just leave it natural.

SOURCE

I love the dark stain but I worry it is running it’s course. But you know what, I don’t care. I love the darker stain and since the walls and cabinets are white, dark it is! I decided to use the pine “project board” from Lowes, stain with a “brown mahogany” and then apply a couple of coats of polycrylic. (Remember, polyurethane has a tendency to yellow over time)

Floors done, walls painted, cabinets and shelves built and painted, top on. Now the hard part…letting it all sit and cure before I load everything back in. IT IS IMPORTANT PEOPLE!!!! Let your paint and finishes cure before you go all decor-crazy on it…otherwise you will scar and scuff and will have wasted all your time and money!

You may notice I actually gained a couple of shelves on the right and middle walls just by reconfiguring them. I also changed the upper shelves on the left to 10” and 8” deep shelves instead of the 12” that were there. I didn’t need the depth and it seemed to “open” up the space a tad.

I could have carried the top all the way around on the right and still had dog and cat food storage under it…but I needed a few shelves 14” tall so I decided to do a separate “shelf tower.” Perfect for taller items like the stacked storage containers, cereal boxes and wine bottles. All the other shelves have a 10” clearance which is ample tall enough for most of my stuff.

Right side….

Left side…

I love that we added an outlet in this pantry…perfect for the toaster and can opener so they don’t take up real estate in the kitchen.

I think my Kitchen Aide mixer would look cute in here but I like it on my kitchen counter. If it were in here I would have to haul it back and forth to the kitchen…it’s too heavy and I’m too old!

I was a bit bummed that I couldn’t originally find cabinets with doors but honestly I like this look better! While dutch ovens and crock pots aren’t really display worthy, the open shelves keep the room from feeling so small and claustrophobic. Believe it or not this space is only 5 x 5. Tiny but mighty!

I have no doubt that at some point I will add a backsplash…not sure whether it will be tile or wallpaper or something else…but something to give the space a little color and character. Right now I am worn out just getting to this point!

Last year I added glass to the pantry door. I LOVE it and I’m glad that is one chore I don’t have to do now!

The important thing I want to share is that reworking a space can make a huge difference. I now have a pretty pantry that works beautifully as an extension of my kitchen. Remember, I don’t have a lot of upper cabinet storage in my kitchen so this pantry is super important!

On a scale of 1-10? For me, not difficult because I have the tools and the know-how. For a novice DIYer, probably an 8. But there are a ton of tutorials out there for how to build simple shelving or how to use old cabinets to create a space like this. The first thing you have to do is find “inspiration” for the space you actually have and work from there. It is doable…YOU CAN DO IT!!!!!

On a blog board I am on someone said she was afraid to do something like this because she was afraid to mess up.

Don’t be afraid to “mess up.” That is how you learn…watch tutorials and read blogs. There are so many great resources at your fingertips these days.

Use them…and JUST DO IT!