FINALLY, the BIG, GIANT, ENORMOUS project that I've been working on since, I think, the first week of January is finally complete! Woohoo! Holla Back! And Amen! I was so excited to build this, but by the end of it, it had become a thorn in my side. May I present to you the NEW toy storage system!...
Yes, I built that baby! I found the plans for it on Ana Whites website which is fabulous! She has plans for every type of furniture you could imagine. I used the Open Base Cubby plans, the Hutch with Doors plans, and the drawer for the open base cubby plans (all a part of her Cubby Collection). Its the do it yourself knockoff version inspired by Pottery Barn. Since Westen's 1st birthday 2 years ago we've been using those cubes from Target that hold the little canvas bins. You know the ones. Well, in 2 years we have 2 kids now at the toddler age and our cup runneth over, if you will. Even when the toy room was "cleaned up" every bin was overflowing and toys still ended up on the floor. I guess you could say this isn't a true BEFORE picture...it's more of a in the process picture, but since Christmas and Westen's birthday (2 days after Christmas), this is pretty much what our toy room looked like on a decent day...
Imagine it on a bad day!!! Okay don't - you may scream! You can still get the idea - the canvas bins, the magnitude of toys (and yes this is after we'd weeded through some... twice - once before Christmas and once after), the chaos and eye sore this space was. And it's open to our living room and kitchen. Uuuggghhh! It made my husband and I cringe every time we walked by. I just kept telling him it's gonna get worse before it gets better...just wait til I finish the new toy storage.
I had researched some toy storages before Christmas because I knew we were going to need something new. Our previous one was no longer working. You can see my inspiration here which is from Pottery Barn. I found Ana's plans and read over them many times to determine whether I thought I could do it or not. In the end I decided to give it a shot. I printed her plans and started with just the open base cubbies. From some money I was given at Christmas I decided to purchase the mini Kreg Jig along with 2 KREG right angle clamps- tools that ended up being EXTREMELY helpful throughout this process and that I know I'll be using plenty more (What?? Some girls like clothes...I like DIY projects:). This tool made these babies more sturdy than what I could've done without them. Google KREG JIG to find out more about it. Anyway, Ana's plans in hand I headed to Home Depot (who around here anyway, will cut lumber for projects- not to only fit in your car like LOWES). I used 3/4 inch MDF and they cut it all to size for me for the open base cubbies. I decided to start with just one piece of the system to not get overwhelmed. And this was my first time using MDF (which Pottery Barn uses as well).
I worked on these everyday while the kids were napping, so about 1 and a half to 2 hours a day. From the moment I walked out of their bedroom, until I heard the sounds of little pitter patter feet, I worked on these. The first week, I completed the cubbies minus the drawers. The next week, was kind of busy and I was only able to work on them like 2 days. Each week after, I steadily worked on this project...a hutch, a drawer, another hutch, another drawer, doors, drawer slides, hanging doors, etc. Plus, on a side note, Home Depot makes the cuts as best as they can, so I did spend some time working with the inaccurateness (maybe I made that word up, but you get it). I had to trim a little her or compensate a little there, but still...I don't have a big truck to haul giant sheets of wood home in, so I'm thankful they made those cuts. Moving on...Then there was the painting and waiting and painting and waiting. I used Cottage White by Behr with the primer added in and I don't know if the choice was wise. The color is great but it took 3 coats for each piece. It was A LOT of painting. Then 3 coats of sealer for each piece too. This project took some serious blood, sweat, and tears, but I've gotta say...I am in LOVE with the finished project...
Now, let me also just say this baby is not perfect. The doors don't hang perfectly straight and there's a bigger gap around them than that at Pottery Barn. Also, the drawers are a little wonky. They don't open and close perfectly so the little guys may need a tiny bit of help with them but I can certainly manage that. When we finally put the toys away in them this week, EVERY toy had a place and there was still some available space. I certainly don't mind helping with a drawer to have my toy room look like this.
For a little extra sprucing up, I bought this rug from Target and since everything was truly cleaned up and we had half a toy room to work with now, we finally put up Westen's easel that he got for his birthday 6 weeks ago. I know...terrible. Anyway, how about a before and after...
BEFORE
BEFORE
AFTER
And another one, because I'm just giddy about it...
BEFORE
BEFORE
AFTER
I'm seriously so happy to be finished with this, but instead of cringing I smile every time I walk by it. Ana's website is the bomb dot com (sorry couldn't resist) and I look forward to sharing some more projects inspired by her. Oh, and I almost forgot one of the most important things about this project!! Again, please check out my Pottery Barn inspiration photo which costs a whopping $949. That's without shipping and handling. I spent under $250 on this and that was with a couple lessons learned along the way that would save me next time should I ever build these again. You can do the math on that! Have a great weekend!
Linking up to...
Miss Mustard Seed's Furniture Feature Friday
Linking up to...
Miss Mustard Seed's Furniture Feature Friday
Best DIY Projects of February @ BeneathMyHeart.net
March Before & After Party @ThriftyDecorChick
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