office makeover, closet makeover, cloffice makeover, Shelbee on the Edge

My Cloffice Makeover & #SpreadTheKindness Link Up #205

January 12, 2021 / 80 Comments

I took Friday off from writing content in the interest of taking a mental health day and then I launched myself whole heartedly into a makeover project for my cloffice (closet/office). I began the renovation on Friday evening by moving everything out of the room and finished all but the hallway trim by Sunday evening.

I want to explain this strange little place in our house that has become known as my cloffice. It was originally the entranceway from the front door which would have faced the side driveway instead of the actual front of the house. At some point during the history of our home, this tiny foyer area was closed off and there is now a door on the front of the house which opens onto a covered wooden porch, facing the street as front doors should. We did not make any of these changes. This was the set up when we moved in. I would have liked to have our door in a less obvious area for security reasons, however, with the right security systems uk companies (and other companies) supplying safe alarms, it’s less of a concern of mine.

But this weird closet space just sort of sits in the middle of the hallway between our living room and dining room. The former owners did not use it for anything, but my first reaction when I saw it was that my desk would fit perfectly inside of it with some room to spare.

Since there are only three actual closets in my entire house, we have become rather creative in finding ways to better utilize the space we do have. I love old homes. Ours was built sometime in the late 1890’s or early 1900’s but we have yet to find evidence pinpointing the exact year. If you have ever had difficulty learning more about your home or how to better insure your investment, visit here.

One of the biggest problems with older homes for modern day folks is the lack of closet space. So we have been finding ways to create more…like my closet room and my cloffice.

Are you considering a closet or office makeover? You can find lots of great inspiration and decorating ideas online at places like Office Monster. Their blog offers a multitude of creative ideas to liven up your office space or maximize your closet space which will help you enjoy every corner of your living space. But makeovers and renovations can cost a lot of money which is why I do a lot of the work myself. However, for the really big, expensive renovation projects, companies like SoFi offer fixed rates on personal home improvement loans, so that you can get started on your next project sooner rather than later.

So now let’s to get the evolution of my cloffice space.

When we first moved in, my husband added two shelves with hanging rods on either side of the cloffice. This is where I store my coats and most of my blazers. And then I am just nestled in between all of my coziest things while I work at my desk!

When we added the first set of shelves, we never bothered painting anything because we were still renting the house. In typical Shelbee fashion, my cloffice became a disaster after a few years and needed to be completely cleaned out. I did a thorough cleaning of all the things two weeks ago and then got the grand idea that it was time to start painting our entire house. We purchased the home two years ago after renting it for two years. And it needs all sorts of home improvements which we have been putting off for a multitude of reasons irrelevant to this post.

Because painting an entire house is a huge project (I have done it before, 8 months pregnant, when I spent 4 consecutive weeks painting literally every surface in our new home at that time), I figured I would start small.

My cloffice is likely the smallest space in the house at approximately 8 feet by 4 feet. I knew I wanted a pale shade of mossy green for the walls. Archie chose a color called Jade and it was perfect. I decided to keep with the white for the trim. Once we had finished painting the cloffice, we realized we had plenty of paint left over to continue the work into the hallway. I still have to paint the hallway trim and door frames but that can be done on Saturday morning. And we have plans to replace all of the flooring as well. But that is much bigger than a weekend project. So we will focus on painting for now.

Once the paint had dried, Jeff added a third shelf where I could store some handbags. It really helped to clean up much of the clutter that I had accumulated on the floor in the back corner of the cloffice. Unfortunately, I did not take any photos of my cloffice before I cleaned it. But I did snap a few of the plain walls before the patching and other repairs took place.

I have to admit that while I needed a mental health weekend, this project was the perfect thing for that! I felt super productive and accomplished for the first time in about a year, so there is much to be said for improving our surroundings….especially when we have essentially become prisoners in our own homes. At least we can do things to make our prisons more pleasant!

Next up, after I finish the hallway trim, I will be making my way up the steps and into the upstairs hallway. Because those will be easy enough tasks as well. We don’t even have to move things out of the way, just some taping, spackling, and painting.

Here’s a little photo journal of my cloffice makeover…

Cleared out and ready to prep for painting.
Prepping for paint.
When I was a kid, it was a tradition to paint our names on the wall when we painted a room. I like to carry on that tradition because it is silly and fun. The boys’ friends were visiting when we did it, so they got their names on the wall, too! Jeff’s name was painted on the opposite wall from mine but the photo didn’t come out.
Archie was a great helper with this project. Ralph helped Jeff patch the holes in the walls with spackle but I seem to have lost those photos (or maybe I never took any photos).
The paint was applied in two coats.
The third shelf was added and my desk put back into place. My desk needs a makeover, too! I am planning that project for warmer weather when I can move outside to work on it. I am thinking of sanding it down, painting it white and distressing it, and then maybe a little decoupage project for the top of the desk. This desk was a thrifted find about 10 years ago and it is still going strong. I love it, but it has taken a beating over the years!
And then everything was put back into place.

And that’s all there was to it. I believe we spent just around $100 to complete this project.

Have you done any home improvements lately?

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I am a midlife woman, wife, and stay-at-home mother of 2 boys and 2 cats. I have a passion for helping other women feel fabulous in the midst of this crazy, beautiful life.

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80 Comments

  • Jill

    January 12, 2021 at 12:46 pm Reply

    What a cute little space for your desk! I love the color you chose! I think projects like this are therapeutic and you get such a great feeling of accomplishment when your finished! Love how it turned out!

    Jill – Doused in Pink

  • mireille

    January 12, 2021 at 2:07 pm Reply

    What a great little project and one that is super useful! I have been waiting for us to get a larger island for the kitchen for the past 3 years (partly for storage, partly so we can all fit at it since kids and I eat there most nights and breakfast) so decided to at least get a unit for the corner to get rid of all of the corner. I think I found something that I will check out this weekend. It is a farmhouse tv stand that will be able to store all of the crafts and some of my youngest toys. We shall see!
    http://www.chezmireillefashiontravelmom.com

    • shelbeeontheedge@gmail.com

      January 13, 2021 at 11:05 am Reply

      Mireille, thanks so much, my friend! I love your idea of adding a farmhouse stand for more storage space and such. We were just discussing what kind of decor we want throughout the house as we are completing each room. And rustic farmhouse is totally our preference! We have a dresser in our living room because it was too large to fit up the old windy staircase and it has been home to the kids’ toys for the past 4 years. We recently cleared out 5 drawers of toys they have outgrown or forgotten and now it is storage for my spring coats!

      xoxo
      Shelbee

  • Laura Bambrick

    January 12, 2021 at 2:17 pm Reply

    You know I was reading the book Burnout and they talk about taking breaks from stressors and how creative expression like a home project is actually mentally refreshing! It looks fantastic! Love that gorgeous staircase by the way!

    • shelbeeontheedge@gmail.com

      January 13, 2021 at 10:59 am Reply

      Thank you, Laura! Actually, this project all started because I have been struggling so much lately with my mental health. I told my husband that I absolutely needed a project to redirect my mind for a bit. This was the perfect thing for me! I feel cleansed and inspired and motivated and positive about things now! It really is an effective method for boosting one’s mood and creativity!

      xoxo
      Shelbee

  • Niky

    January 12, 2021 at 2:46 pm Reply

    I love your little cloffice project! How resourceful! It turned out lovely and the shade of green you chose is so pretty and soothing!

    Niky @ The House on Silverado

  • Suzy

    January 12, 2021 at 3:52 pm Reply

    I love this, Shelbee!! And you chose green….of course! I wouldn’t expect anything less lol. My whole house is painted green – outside and inside (except for two bathrooms and spare bedroom which are white and my office which is blue). I just can’t get enough of it!
    Hugs
    Suzy xx

    • shelbeeontheedge@gmail.com

      January 13, 2021 at 10:52 am Reply

      Thanks so much, Suzy! I love that your whole house is green! I asked my husband the other day what he would think if we chose different shades of green for every room and he was opposed! I am thinking a light gray is going in my upstairs hallway and possibly living room and dining room. I am not sure yet. I get more overwhelmed with choosing paint colors than any other part of the process! This is why I state a color and then send the kids off to pick the shade!

      xoxo
      Shelbee

    • shelbeeontheedge@gmail.com

      January 13, 2021 at 10:49 am Reply

      Ellie, thanks so much! We need to paint every wall in this house! So I am starting with the smallest rooms first before moving into the bigger rooms that require so much prep work and create so much more clutter in other rooms while working on the project. I enjoy the process of painting and painting prep. I do not enjoy the clearing out rooms and rearranging and all that stuff. You will get to your painting project as soon as the motivation hits!

      xoxo
      Shelbee

  • Ani

    January 12, 2021 at 4:26 pm Reply

    I love this space! Also, I love the name! We have two rooms that could be considered a den or a living room and they are named ‘the blue room’ (the walls are blue) and ‘the fireplace room’. When I was a kid we had a ‘front room’ (which was really an office), a ‘back room’ (the living room), and ‘the room before mom’s room’ (which was another small office). To me, those names were totally normal, but as I got older I found that most people did a double-take when I told referred to one of the rooms. I hope my kids have that same experience when they get older 😀

    • shelbeeontheedge@gmail.com

      January 13, 2021 at 10:47 am Reply

      Ani, thanks so much! This was such a fun little project that has completely motivated me to do all the projects that need doing around my house! I love that you had your own unique names for rooms in your house! Thank you for sharing those memories with me. My brother, who is 9 years my junior, couldn’t say living room properly and he would run all the syllables together so that it sounded like he was saying “lim” and the living room became known as the “lim” for years and years after that! Oh, the confused looks we would get from outsiders! Haha

      xoxo
      Shelbee

    • shelbeeontheedge@gmail.com

      January 13, 2021 at 10:43 am Reply

      Tina, thanks so much! This color is even more soothing to the eye than I anticipated! I find myself stopping in the hallway frequently to gaze at it! And I feel so satisfied that it is all a product of our own hard work.

      xoxo
      Shelbee

    • shelbeeontheedge@gmail.com

      January 13, 2021 at 10:36 am Reply

      Thanks so much, Sheila! I have never read Epbot before but I just read that post and commented on it. It is very similar to the space I just made over! Thanks for sharing it. Now I am super motivated to paint all the rooms in my house! Which I will, but slowly, one room at a time. Oh, and yes, link ups are not free to host, but it’s not a tremendous expense either! And totally worth it.

      xoxo
      Shelbee

  • Lucy Bertoldi

    January 12, 2021 at 10:21 pm Reply

    Ok…Now it’s for sure you’re my soul fashion sister!!! I love what you did- and boy can I relate!!! The only difference is that in my ‘cloffice’- (and btw never ever heard it called that before!!! And I’m using this term now too- how can I not?!!)- as I was saying my closet is an actual room though lol! When my son moved out, my daughter moved into his room and I inherited hers:)) So it’s pretty big but it’s all racks mostly of my clothes: so an area for my teaching stuff, sewing, computer, styling, makeup…I could actually just close the door and live here (and order take out lol!!) I LOVE what you did with your space!! Oh Shelbee you brighten my day…As I sit here typing away in my cloffice xx

    • shelbeeontheedge@gmail.com

      January 13, 2021 at 10:24 am Reply

      Lucy, you just totally brightened my day as well! We are soul sisters, for sure! My clothing closet is also a bedroom converted with racks and shelves all around. That room I call simply “my closet room” because I don’t use it as office space. I suppose I could call it my “cloom”! Ha. But that doesn’t work nearly as well as “cloffice”! And yes, please start referring to yours as such. It’s a freaking great word! Someday, you and I are going to have the opportunity to visit one another’s homes and see all this fabulousness in real life! I just know it!

      xoxo
      Shelbee

  • Carrie @ Curly Crafty Mom

    January 12, 2021 at 11:25 pm Reply

    Wow! I am blown away by this ‘Cloffice’ and I would have never thought of this… but, what a brilliant use of this space!! I wish we had a spot in our home where we could do something similar! What a great use of a soul day!

    Carrie
    curlycraftymom.com

    • shelbeeontheedge@gmail.com

      January 13, 2021 at 10:18 am Reply

      Thanks so much, Carrie! I was super excited about this space when we first moved into this house 4 years ago! I have spent many hours writing in there, but I feel so much more inspiration will come now that I have freshened it up a bit!

      xoxo
      Shelbee

  • Darlene

    January 13, 2021 at 1:11 am Reply

    Wow, you completed that project in record time, Shelbee! I love Archie’s choice of Jade green–so restful and pretty. It always feels so great to clean something out. I have lots of those projects I need to get started on. Thanks for the inspiration!

    xx Darlene

    • shelbeeontheedge@gmail.com

      January 13, 2021 at 10:17 am Reply

      Thank you, Darlene! Archie was like a magician in Lowe’s when I directed him to find me a light mossy green color. Within seconds, he came running over to me with the Jade sample and I was sold! It is perfect. Now that I finished this project, I want to continue until the whole house is painted! But I must take it one small project at a time so I don’t get too overwhelmed. I do have a lifetime to work on my home!

      xoxo
      Shelbee

  • Gail

    January 13, 2021 at 4:59 pm Reply

    I love posts like this. Ingenious use of the space. Love the color chosen, very calming. The hubster has been helping to reconfigure all the tech in my home office and I could do with some shelves. Very thrilling to be a featured favourite, thank you!

    • shelbeeontheedge@gmail.com

      January 13, 2021 at 5:22 pm Reply

      Thanks so much, Gail! I am such a novice with home decor and renovations (and photographing the progress) that I am always hesitant to share these projects. But it was fun to do this time! I have been looking at some more places to add shelves throughout our house as well! My hubs had a massive bookcase built for me in our first apartment. It was a floor to ceiling corner unit that covered two entire walls of the living room. It was gorgeous and I miss it so much! I hope you have a wonderful week!

      xoxo
      Shelbee

  • Midlife and Beyond

    January 13, 2021 at 7:39 pm Reply

    Love this update to your home Shelbee. A great office space where you can work and love the colour you have chosen. It’s so great when it’s finished isn’t it – we are about to start again with the updates (had a little rest over Christmas), I’m not looking forward to the unavoidable mess. Enjoy the rest of your week.
    Alison xx

    • shelbeeontheedge@gmail.com

      January 13, 2021 at 8:35 pm Reply

      Thanks so much, Alison! Honestly, I have been inspired by you and a few other bloggers who were doing small renovations this past year. It only took me 10 months in lockdown to get motivated to start! But I am glad I did. It was such a rewarding project. I am looking forward to the next one (but not looking forward to the mess either)!

      xoxo
      Shelbee

  • Barbara De Mul

    January 13, 2021 at 8:37 pm Reply

    What better way to write about fashion than to be surrounded by it? I had never heard of a cloffice but it makes a lot of sense. Enjoy!

  • Cheryl Shops

    January 13, 2021 at 8:57 pm Reply

    I love your cloffice, and nice choice on the paint color (looks very profesh)! I’ve been on a home-improvement tear—we rearranged the bedroom, office, and living room, and next on my list is replacing the drawer pulls and knobs in the kitchen. Eventually I want to renovate the bathrooms, but waiting to see how bad my taxes are this year first :O
    Cheryl Shops | http://www.cherylshops.net

    • shelbeeontheedge@gmail.com

      January 14, 2021 at 11:00 am Reply

      Cheryl, thank you so much! And I am liking that it looks profresh! LOL I have painted a lot of rooms in my life (my mother was always repainting when we were kids and insisted that we help), so I think I have enough practice to be close to a pro! Haha. This little project was just the beginning of our entire home makeover! We want to redo both bathrooms as well and every single room needs a fresh coat of paint. Eventually, all of the floors and carpets need to be replaced as well but I am going to wait until the kids are a bit older before I worry about floors. I am sure they have much more dirt and mud and damage to bring through our home! Haha.

      xoxo
      Shelbee

  • Grace Liang

    January 15, 2021 at 4:34 am Reply

    Love the makeover to the cloffice Shelbee! The first house I lived in when I moved to America was also built around that time period. For the age of the house, there was a decent amount of closet space (which was surprising) although I do enjoy quite a bit more closet space these days 😉

  • Helen C.

    January 17, 2021 at 7:05 am Reply

    This is beautiful and I personally wouldn´t mind LIVING in my former house´s closet(let´s just say that my current house is the size of my former house´s kitchen!) so I think you can get really inspired in this cute office! I hope you had lots of fun while making it and really enjoy it from now on! Hugs!
    :*

    • shelbeeontheedge@gmail.com

      January 17, 2021 at 11:41 am Reply

      Thanks so much, Helen! It was a fun project and I am so happy with the end result! My current house is much, much smaller than my former house well! We downsized so much when we moved but probably not quite enough! I hope you and your family are well, my friend, staying safe and healthy in these strange times!

      xoxo
      Shelbee

  • Melissa

    January 29, 2021 at 4:55 pm Reply

    Look at you go!! I loving seeing before and after pictures of closet renovation!! I have a feeling lots of new and creative outfit inspiration will be happening in your cloffice! There is something about a space like this that literally turns our creative fashion switch on 😉

    xo
    Mel

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