Recently we have started to get more of a ‘just do it’ attitude with our home. Just get rid of things, just hang things on the wall, stop waiting for the perfect time. It is still a slow process, especially finding time with the kids, but we really feel in general we need to ‘live in the now’ as much as possible.
A while back I bought some shelves to hang in our entry way, but we have not hung them until now because the wall needs to be painted. However, they have been sitting in the garage for too long now, and we decided why are we waiting, let’s just get them up. Normally, painting first makes sense but finding time to paint with the kids is hard so instead of waiting for that perfect moment we decided to just do it.
I wanted to hang shelves in our entry way because it is a small space, and digging things out of the closets every time wasn’t the most convenient thing when already struggling to get the kids out the door in time. Although having lots of jackets and keys and other objects that find their way to the shelves might not be the prettiest option, it sure beats them ending up on the floor.
To make this project very economical we took two unfinished shelves and simply painted them black. At this point I am thinking of an earthy grey stone color for the wall, when we get to it that is ;-) I was able to buy the unfinished shelves at Michaels with one of the many coupons they send out all the time. When I was there I noticed there was a lot of neat kid’s furniture and doll houses you could finish yourself if you were so inclined.
We decided on hanging two shelves instead of just one because between hats, bags and coats the hooks fill up quick. Here are a few pictures.
A while back I bought some shelves to hang in our entry way, but we have not hung them until now because the wall needs to be painted. However, they have been sitting in the garage for too long now, and we decided why are we waiting, let’s just get them up. Normally, painting first makes sense but finding time to paint with the kids is hard so instead of waiting for that perfect moment we decided to just do it.
I wanted to hang shelves in our entry way because it is a small space, and digging things out of the closets every time wasn’t the most convenient thing when already struggling to get the kids out the door in time. Although having lots of jackets and keys and other objects that find their way to the shelves might not be the prettiest option, it sure beats them ending up on the floor.
To make this project very economical we took two unfinished shelves and simply painted them black. At this point I am thinking of an earthy grey stone color for the wall, when we get to it that is ;-) I was able to buy the unfinished shelves at Michaels with one of the many coupons they send out all the time. When I was there I noticed there was a lot of neat kid’s furniture and doll houses you could finish yourself if you were so inclined.
We decided on hanging two shelves instead of just one because between hats, bags and coats the hooks fill up quick. Here are a few pictures.
The pictures are pre-filling them up ;-)
We wanted the shelves to be very sturdy for a couple of reasons. One, in case the kids pull on them or tug on the jackets hard, and two because sometimes the bags, especially the diaper bag can get heavy. For this reason we screwed directly through each shelf and into the studs. Sounds like I know what I’m talking about, but I can’t take the credit. That is what the nice people at Home Depot told us to do.
The shelf crossed 3 studs so we decided to use three screws for each one. Two would have probably been more than fine, but we looked at each other and said “3!” Better to be safe than sorry with the kids!
It is really convenient having these shelves by the door, and is nice to be able to easily set things down we are carrying in the door: drinks, mail, keys.
In the end I am really glad we stopped waiting for that perfect moment and just got it done!
Do you ever struggle with waiting for the perfect moment, instead of living right now?
We wanted the shelves to be very sturdy for a couple of reasons. One, in case the kids pull on them or tug on the jackets hard, and two because sometimes the bags, especially the diaper bag can get heavy. For this reason we screwed directly through each shelf and into the studs. Sounds like I know what I’m talking about, but I can’t take the credit. That is what the nice people at Home Depot told us to do.
The shelf crossed 3 studs so we decided to use three screws for each one. Two would have probably been more than fine, but we looked at each other and said “3!” Better to be safe than sorry with the kids!
It is really convenient having these shelves by the door, and is nice to be able to easily set things down we are carrying in the door: drinks, mail, keys.
In the end I am really glad we stopped waiting for that perfect moment and just got it done!
Do you ever struggle with waiting for the perfect moment, instead of living right now?
