We took a quick break from our bathroom remodel, to get some perspective before putting on the finishing touches. During that break we tackled a quick and easy project - our hall closet.

In a tiny hallway type area, just off our foyer we have a small coat closet. It is about 24 inches by 34 inches with 8 foot tall ceilings. On the right side of the closet there is a large wooden box in the closet that forms a low shelf. It houses our A/C intake vent and cannot be removed. Prior to this mini makeover, the closet had a single hanging bar for coats, and a shelf that was so deep only Firebeard could reach things on the back of the shelf without a step stool. Soon after moving into this house the closet was regulated to storage closet status, because it was so impractical to use, and I began to research alternatives.

In a previous post I shared the inspiration for our hall closet makeover. We were inspired by several of the beautiful and functional coat closet makeovers on pinterest, particularly those that used hooks for hanging coats and bags rather than hangers. We put that inspiration to use, and here is the result.

What was involved in the transformation?

Preparing the flooring for hardwood

We are slowly replacing the flooring in most of the house with engineered hardwood, so we decided that since we were already doing some work in the closet we would do some of the prep work for the new flooring. We pulled up the carpet (but didn't cut it out), removed the tack strips and baseboards, and cleaned the sub floor. The carpet stayed peeled up while we painted and was laid back in the closet when we were done to help protect the subfloor from wear and tear until we can install the new flooring. We decided not to reinstall the baseboards since we would need to pull them back out when it was time for the new flooring.

Painting

We tried a couple of different colors in the closet before settling on Soft Mint by Behr. In the tiny dark closet most of the mints we tried looked too dark. Soft Mint is a really pale mint, but in the dark closet it looks much more vibrant than it does on the paint sample.

All of the trim, the shelf, and the ceiling is painted in BM Simply White.

Adding Support and Reducing the Shelf Depth

I wanted hooks installed along two walls in the closet, so we added an extra board along the back wall to screw the hooks into. We were able to nail the additional board into the studs, so the hooks, being screwed into the board, will be able to hold more weight than if we had simply used a molly to screw them into the drywall. It also adds an additional measure of support for the shelf.

We reduced the depth of the shelf by about 6 inches, so that I could reach the back of it. It also makes it easier to step into the closet to hang things up.

Installing Hooks

The hooks, which are gold colored metal with a pretty decorated ceramic ball at the top, were from World Market. I found them for only $2 a piece.

We decided to install the hooks on only two sides of the closet, leaving the right side of the closet (where the box for the air vent juts into the closet) free. This gave us room for 5 hooks, each spaced about 6 inches apart.

Adding Mini Shelves

On the right side, above the air vent box we decided to install mini shelves to hold small items like sunglasses, and mail. We used Ikea's Bekvam Spice Racks ($4 a piece), which we had originally gotten for a different project, but didn't end up using. They were a great size for the closet, because they are only about 4 inches deep and don't project very far into the tiny room. We painted them BM Simply White to match the rest of the trim in the closet.

We had a hard time finding anchors that would fit the built in hangers on the back of the spice rack. We finally found that 50 pound EZ Anchor drywall anchors fit perfectly.

The Door

We decided to add a few special touches to the door as well. The edge of the door was painted in Folk Art Chalk Paint in Vintage Mustard. I love the little peek of color when we open the door.

We also decided to try our hand at painting the hardware rather than replacing it. We used Rust-Oleum Universal spray paint in oil rubbed bronze. If the finish holds up pretty well, we will use the same technique for the hardware in our hallway, and I will create a tutorial.

Finishing Touches

Now:  Clean, neat, and a place for everything. — Now: Clean, neat, and a place for everything.

We added a basket for shoes at the bottom of the closet, and a small basket for dog things on the "shelf" formed by the air vent's box.

At the moment we have a small basket on the upper shelf holding umbrellas and rain jackets. I'm hoping to find two taller baskets that can fit in the closet side by side to make better use of the space.

We have left the baseboards out of the closet for now, since the new flooring will be going in soon.

Let me know what you think in the comments.