A Closet Makeover

I have to show you what our master bedroom closet looks like right now, because it totally makes me smile:

It's a sneaky place to add colour, and I'm loving it.  Originally I was going to leave the bedroom closet completely untouched until we saved up a little cash for new doors and a new closet organizer, but when we took possession of the lakehouse I noticed the mirrored sliding door was cracked - something I'm not sure was cracked during home inspection.

We removed the doors right away because I was paranoid about the crack expanding, shattering and showering me with shards of glass while I slept.  Unrealistic?  Likely.  But enough for me to break out the tools and banish the doors.  But then I was left looking at this:

We figured we might as well go ahead and replace the closet organizer and paint, even if we haven't even begun to look at new doors yet.  But it wasn't as simple as that, because when we removed the shelving system our worst fears were confirmed: the hardwood flooring had been installed around them.  This was already pretty evident, but a small part of me hoped I was just looking at it wrong.  I think I just couldn't wrap my brain around it, because it took more work to do the fitment fussing than it would have to just remove the closet organizer (which was half hanging out of the wall anyway), install the floors properly and hang the shelves back up. 

Luckily, the previous owner left a box of unused hardwood flooring in the garage, so Handy Hubby pried out the offending boards and installed new pieces - see this post for his tutorial on that. 

For all his efforts, the closet colour choice was his: Fiesta Orange, by Glidden. 

I rolled on three coats of CIL paint and primer in one and, because the trim has all been painted out white to match the walls, I thought it would be fun to paint the closet trim orange to match the walls as well, instead of having a skinny white border running above the floor.



I'd like to hang my vintage Hungarian posters in the bedroom, and I think the orange Hubby picked is an exact match to one.  Fun!  Now I'm shopping for a closet organizer.  And then new closet doors.  Oh, and a light fixture for inside the closet because blech:

Szuka is team-orange too, seeing as her favorite toy is the same hue.

How to Cover Pipes in a Bathroom

You might have noticed the half bath change involved a tiny bit more than just wall paint.  We fixed a few issues as well.  Our heating system was converted from electric baseboard to radiant hot water by a former homeowner (thanks!!) and the system is fabulous.  No dust, like forced air, and super inexpensive to run - I'm sad to leave it!  The only sign of the transformation is in the main floor powder room, where pipes run up the corner wall.  The pipes were originally hidden with a wall-papered metal cover, which I painstakingly stripped, primed and painted (not so thankful for that, former owners).  You can see the wallpaper in the half bath transformations. 

I thought it looked fine, but the gap between the cover and the wall, plus the small hole at the ceiling, irked our realtor and my Dad, so I figured it would bother potential buyers too.  Seeing as my Dad was always vocal about this flaw, I handed the task to him to fix!  It's dangerous to critique something around the townhouse.  At the same time we addressed the pipe cover, we figured we might as well fix the eyesore of a cover hiding the converted heating system along the baseboards too, because the one in here was the worst of all of the ones we have in the townhouse.

The fixes turned out to be really simple and make me wonder why we lived with things like this so long!  To make a smoother transition between wall and pipe cover, I found some wood coving at Lowe's, which my Dad glued in place with extra strong construction adhesive before we gave it a coat of primer and paint.  Then he used a small drywall patching kit to fix up the ceiling, which was also primed and painted over.  Boom.  Done!  Because I'd already primed it with metal primer, Dad just painted over the metal cover and now it all looks seamless.  Painting the ceiling the same colour helps everything blend in.

The baseboard heater cover just needed a light sand, some metal primer and then an application of the same latex paint we used for the walls (which we applied with a tiny foam roller). 

WOW does it ever look better (and newer!).

Our little house is solidly built and has been lovingly updated and renovated, but I think any little flaw like these, even though they are just cosmetic, might have made home buyers nervous so I feel good that they were addressed.  In case you missed it, see the other updates made to this powder room here.

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Impromptu Doorknob Installation

The "After"

Last week, when I blogged about how to make a pair of simple (but pretty) earrings I pined for some home-related DIY.  So I guess I caused this:

My mom to left run an errand and, as she departed, she called out to me to come lock the door behind her.  Before I could reach it, she knocked on the door.  I giggled, because she and I both knew it was unlocked.  But when I opened the closed door I saw her standing there, holding the doorknob.  My dad had refused the change the weathered doorknobs, even though my mom repainted the door, because they were "still good".  Not anymore.

Yesterday we headed to a local lock shop and picked out a nice sturdy new knob - nothing fancy.  If anyone needs a step-by-step guide for installing a new knob read on for instructions, courtesy of my handy Hubby (he's my guest-blogger today!) . . . and scroll down for photos of the new knobs and a glimpse at the outside on my parents' home.

How to replace a doorknob (by Hubby)

First things first, remove the old knob.  Use the proper screwdriver (probably a Phillips, or "star" head) and remove the two screws from the inner knob.

Pull off the inner knob and you should see something like the photo below.  Note: the outer knob may fall off at this point.  That's fine, just don't let it fall on your tile floor. (Bang. Crap.)

Pull off the outer knob and you are left with the inner hardware.

Remove the two screws from the escutcheon plate around the latch . . .

and pull out the latch mechanism.

Here are the components that came in the box with the new doorknob.  Not all parts are used for all installations.  The manufacturer includes parts for different needs (eg. different shaped strike plates).

Most door latches are adjustable.  Before purchasing new hardware, measure the distance between the edge of the door and the centre of the knob and confirm that the new hardware will fit.  In our case, it was 2-3/4", which is a standard dimension.

Put the escutcheon plate on the new latch.  For our installation there is a plate that is slid on from the left (see image below) and one from the right.

Slide the new latch into the door in the reverse of the removal and put the new screws into the escutcheon.  Ensure the latch is installed so the door can shut, but don't shut it yet.  Slide the outer knob into the outer side of the door, through the latch mechanism.  The outer knob is the one with the screws in it.  This puts the screw heads on the inner side of the door.  This is for aesthetics on non-locking knobs, and security on locking knobs.

Slide the inner knob onto the mechanism of the outer knob and push the screw heads through the inner knob.  This is usually achieved by sliding the knob onto the center pin and then twisting the knob slightly so the screw heads can slide into the proper slots (sorry, I didn't take a photo of this).  On some knobs you will have to remove the screws completely from the outer knob before installation, but everthing else works the same.

All you have to do now is tighten up the screws and check for proper operation of the mechanism.  Make sure it all works before you shut the door for the first time.  This can save a bit of hassle.

Thanks, Hubby!  Now for some pretty after photos:

All finished.

Although the doorknobs to the two backdoors were replaced with plain silver knobs, we tried to find a fancier one for the front, one that matches the vintage 1950s knobs inside the house (because the front door opens onto the living room).

Original knobs, installed by my great-grandpa (he built the house.)

New front door knob.

P.S. Hubby did not replace the strike plates on the door frame because they are still in good condition, but the knob comes with new plates and screws if needed.

How pretty is this cinnamon coloured door with the pale grey exterior?

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