UpCycle Locker Project - Entry Closet

I found a website called http://www.seconduse.com a great site with salvaged materials, funky items and salvaged building materials, cool stuff.  I was dreaming about some glass knobs for some new old fashioned doors we will be putting in our house.  I came across some cool old lockers taken out of McCarver School in Tacoma.   A little online research tells me that the school that opened in Tacoma in 1925 is being completely renovated this summer.  It was a flash of inspiration!  The solution to the problem that loomed for years.

It was driving us nuts…messy piles of coats, shoes, purses, backpacks in the hallway on hooks or hanging on the backs of chairs.

I had exactly 12" of space at the end of my fridge and we could never find the right cabinet, they were all 14-18".  These lockers were 12" deep…the perfect size for organizing before heading out the door.

These lockers were originally avocado green and at some point had been painted the light blue color.  They did not have sides as they were salvaged from a school so I needed to improvise to finish it off.  I ended up getting a couple of pieces of flat wall panel that you would use for board and batten wainscoting.  We had to clean it up a bit and use a hammer to punch out some of the dents.

We used a bit of wood putty to fill in the seams.  I had covered up the locker numbers with blue painter's tape.  The shelves inside the top were missing on two of the lockers so I removed the one and instead added some additional hooks so that we could layer coats and bags and still have room for shoes at the bottom.  Since the lockers are metal I added some little magnetic clips to the fronts of the lockers for our two daughters so we can leave notes and reminders for them.
So far we are loving these!  Our 12 year old is always forgetting items at home so I hoping this helps her organize so she can keep her sport shoes and uniform, instruments, homework and coats all in one place!
Eventually we will add a base to to raise it up a little and have extra storage underneath.  
Here is the final product!

Home Art Studio

I've been picking up subtle ques lately telling me how important it is to have a dedicated art/workspace.  I have an office but it seems to be taken over with bills, paperwork, email and the small edits to projects that fill up day to day.  I needed a quiet, out of the way spot to create.  We have a little shed/forgotten playhouse in the backyard that I've spiffed up for a summer creative spot.  It will need to be rebuilt in the next year or so to be larger, powered and winterized, but for this summer it's a pretty little spot with just the right afternoon sunlight that is coming through the window.  I've already had a great afternoon working on a new painting and rocking out to some tunes!  Live, Work, Create #artformoney #paint #graphicdesign #karimcphaildesign