Give a boring dresser a quick new look by sticking your favorite vintage-style poster right on the front. This design idea can be completed in an afternoon and the results are amazing.Three great garage makeovers:
The sports garage
Before: With bikes strewn everywhere and all sorts of equipment teetering in hampers, the garage had that oh-so-familiar anarchy vibe. Without an organizing system, the children left their gear wherever it landed.
After: Now every sport has a home base. Baseball bats live in a wooden holder, lacrosse sticks in a proper caddy – and bikes and scooters have their own parking spots. Off-season items, like ice-hockey sticks and snow shovels, hang from ceiling hooks, freeing up space.
To buy: Tubtrugs buckets in orange, $17 each, Amazon.com; large tint stacking drawers in orange, $17 each, ContainerStore.com; Rubbermaid Deluxe Tool Tower (holds lacrosse sticks), $40, Amazon.com; Cedar Creek tool holder (bats), $93, Walmart.com; Benjamin Industrial pendant light, $128, BarnlightElectric.com.
A clever bike wall. Orange paint brightens the mood and is an undeniable reminder to hang up your bike (the younger kids use the bottom racks). Rubber floor tiles are safer, softer and better-looking than concrete. Aura Exterior paint in Electric Orange 2015-10, from $60 a gallon, BenjaminMoore.com for stores; Andrew Lang Cycloc racks, $100 each, Amazon.com; Interlocking floor tiles, $4 a square foot, Swisstrax, 1-866-748-7940.
Nooks at work. A zone for each sport makes it easy (dare we say fun?) to put things away. The space between wall studs is a natural for rackets. FastTrack vertical ball rack and fishing-pole holder, $20 each, multipurpose hook (holds tennis rackets), $9.50, mesh baskets, $21 each, and horizontal rails, from $10 each, Rubbermaid.com for stores.
Surprise storage space: The spot under the stairs is ideal for golf clubs. Simple stands keep scooters vertical. Helmets hang from chalkboard hooks labeled for each child. Hooks, $15 each, SundancecCatalog.com; RazrRak scooter stands, $10.50 each, Tornado ladder hooks, $13 for two, Amazon.com; wire barrel, $20, Spacesavers.com.
The gardener’s garage
Before: With bulky equipment (wet-vac, riding mower) pointed this way and that, the garage was hard to navigate, and finding small items (hammer, nails) was almost impossible. Blank walls begged for purpose and personality, and garden supplies needed attention.
After: To cozy up the sprawling space, the garage was carved into zones – potting station, sitting area, tool depot, seasonal storage on shelves. Bulletin boards hold project plans. The painted window frame and pegboards, plus the wooden bench, add warmth.
To buy: Elfa Utility Garage shelving system, $1,161, ContainerStore.com; 14-drawer cart, $650, Craftsman.com; utility wagon, $183, Kohls.com; Melodi pendant light, $13, Ikea.com for stores; accent paint: Green Tea Latte C142, $31.50 a gallon, Valspar.com for stores.
A pegboard brings order to odd shapes. Awkward items look artful when suspended. A rolling organizer has slots for tall tools and pockets for gloves and snippers. It moves from the garage to the yard, eliminating trips for forgotten gear. Rolling Garden Tool Organizer, $83, plowhearth.com; pegboard, home-improvement stores.
Gardener’s dream: A real potting bench is as easy on the eyes as it is on the back. Extra pots are corralled in crates and bins. An Oscar the Grouch-style can hides bags of soil. Potting bench, $189, Gardeners.com; vintage grape crate, $28, ShopTerrain.com; Wright’s Peak Chicken Coop bin, $395, SundanceCatalog.com; Knodd bin with lid, $15, Ikea.com for stores.
Mini mudroom. An accordion hook holds a spare jacket and hat. Nearby, a wall-mounted tool holder marries an unlikely array of objects in vertical bliss. The slip-resistant mat catches gas spills from the riding mower. Zinc Zig-Zag hook, $38, ShopTerrain.com; Elfa system, $120, ContainerStore.com; dry-mate garage mat, $145, StacksAndStacks.com; wall paint, Gentle Rain 790E-2, $32.50 a gallon, Behr, 1-800-854-0133 for stores.
The crafty garage
Before: Flea-market furniture finds took up valuable real estate and didn’t fare well. (The once-white sofa was no longer white; wood tables were starting to warp.) Long-outgrown toys and bikes were junking up the tight space as they waited to be given to friends.
After: With some items cleared away, the garage’s rustic charm shines through. A craft table on a wipe-clean synthetic rug is lit by the previously blocked window. (The lantern above adds a soft glow.) And there’s plenty of storage space for project materials, garden tools and more.
To buy: Stainless-steel table, $200, Target.com; modern stools, $145 each, SundanceCatalog.com; water-hyacinth baskets, $10 to $20, Pier1.com for stores; PS red cabinet, $100, Ikea.com for stores; luau lantern, $200, Oxo.com; basic mat, $199, PotteryBarn.com.
Necessities on display: A tape measure, a hammer and a flashlight enjoy places of honor on a can’t-miss-it shiny pegboard. Wall Control pegboard, $74, Amazon.com; Oval Dual Beam flashlight, $34, WalkingLights.com; dry-erase bamboo wall panel, $70, shop.threebythree.com.
Stand-alone shelving. The old wooden walls couldn’t support a heavily loaded storage unit; sturdy freestanding shelves were the answer. Garden supplies live in easy-to-tote baskets; bins hold cleaners and other overflow from the house. Broder shelving, $288, Vessla crates with casters, $7 each, Ikea.com for stores; Flax Large Eyelet totes, $13 each, BedBathAndBeyond.com.
Easy access. The super-light kayak, which previously lived on the lawn, is hung low to be within reach. When it’s time to head to the farmers’ market, a preloaded wagon is easy to find. Malone J-Dock Hybrid Kayak hooks, $42 for two, Amazon.com; Whitmor Woven totes, $13 each, BedBathAndBeyond.com.
