closet transformation at the a-frame with The Container Store Custom Closets

Well, hello, hello!

How are you holding up in ye olde 2020, with all of the waves and surprises that this year is bringing us?

You’ve seen the a-frame reveal posts before, but today, it is time to show the final frontier of the unused, unstyled quadrants of the home: the walk-in closet!

The walkway between the bathroom and the pink bedroom of the house has always been a forgotten area of wasted space.

The original closets had janky doors that didn’t glide, and often came off.. and there was a built-in that became a catch-all for tools.

The space measures around 5 x 10′, so there’s significant space to work with when used intentionally.

Enter: The Container Store Custom Closets.

With custom closets that fit any size and budget, their Elfa Décor closet was the option that ended up being right for me. But more on that after the demo story!

First, it was time to gut the original built-in closet.

My contractor thought he would be able to move the vent, but after the demo began, he realized it was an important part of getting A/C to the back of the house, so it needed to stay.

Even with my available space changing, the amazing designer I was working with at The Container Store was patient and supportive as she adjusted the layout to work with the available space.

Once the space was gutted, it was time to put the magic in…

The Container Store Custom Closets have their own installers, which was a huge help and weight off of my mind! They did an incredible job of installing the Elfa pieces quickly + efficiently — while maintaining social distancing protocol and keeping everyone COVID-safe.

My Elfa Décor closet combines the strength + flexibility of the Elfa Classic closet, but has the beauty of wood. Even though I didn’t choose to have real wood in my space, that was an option, and I loved the range of trims that were available to choose from.

Next up, I worked with my forever-partner, Anne Sage, to help me dream up the perfect design in the room to compliment the closet.

We spent hours scouring the internet, looking for the perfect wallpaper that would pair with the existing design of the rest of the house, while also being forgiving, since the walls are not *perfectly* straight.

When Anne came upon the Make Time for Rest design by Morgan Harper Nichols on the Society6 website, it was a done deal. My dear friend Jem was visiting for a few days, and helped me wallpaper the ceiling… how’s that for love?!

Anne’s vision was to elevate the room from a closet to a true dressing room — or womb, as we call it — and so it took much effort to find a vanity that would fit in this tiny corner, but she did it! I painted the few sections to pair with the wallpapered ceiling, and then used a Society6 pillow cover on the vanity stool.