The great wardrobe rescue – #homeimprovementhero ‘how to refit a wardrobe interior’ with Money Supermarket

If wardrobes could cry, mine would be shedding big salty tears.

As wardrobes go, it’s got a very reasonable capacity. It’s got nice doors. It’s got a great room to live in.

So you may be wondering, why is it so sad?

This is why:

You see, although it has quite a lot of available space, it just isn’t utilised very effectively. With only one rather saggy shelf and a single hanging rail, it’s been subjected to a complete hodge podge of alternative storage solutions that simply don’t work to the best possible effect. Which, in turn means that the room the wardrobe is inhabiting is also in a bit of a sorry state – hosting an ever growing ‘laundry mountain’ and of course the ‘volcano of randomness’ which every so often spews forth stuff that needs a home, but no-one is quite sure where.

BUT happy days, Mr Wardrobe! (I don’t know why I feel he is male, but he somehow is).

I have been equipped with £50 – thanks to Money Supermarket! – to put a smile on those droopy looking doors! The aim of the #homeimprovement hero challenge is to improve the look, feel or functionality of a room and I think a wardrobe rescue mission will definitely do that!

And here is the journey to fulfilment (if you are a wardrobe):

1. Find a human (unless you are a magic wardrobe, like that one that leads to Narnia). Get the human to do the following:

2. Obtain large sheet of mdf, and have it cut into premeasured sizes – thank you Mr Nice B&Q man – I could have done it myself but it’d take a lot, lot longer and probably have turned out wonky.

3. Pray that measurements calculated are correct…

4. Cut a hole in the top of one of the long bits, with a coping saw (a skill learnt back when I was doing CDT at school!). This is so that the clothes rail can continue through the mdf thingy.

5. Dig out some little plastic blocky bits, and some screws. Arm self with power drill and screwdriver bit. Assemble them into some absolutely awesome shelving.

6. Stand back and admire handiwork. Realise wardrobe is quite dark.

7. Attach LED lights to bottom of wardrobe shelf. Poke repeatedly to ensure they will not fall on head on subsequent occasion. Admire handiwork with added lighting.

8. Turn attention to sadly languishing doors. Affix childproof mirror to left hand side door, using sticky dot things found in kitchen drawer. (Two reasons for using childproof mirror – firstly, if I headbutt it at any point (highly likely to occur unintentionally) it won’t shatter. Secondly, it’s very light and won’t cause the door to fall off it’s hinges).

9. Place small wooden spice rack underneath mirror, using no more nails and also, perhaps ironically, some nails. Add some little IKEA hooks things for hats. (Not actually SPECIFICALLY for hats, but that’s what I’m using them for).

10. Place pre-prepared net of string on other door, using existing little round hook things kindly left by previous wardrobe owner (for scarves and things, of course!). Add two large colourful hooks from IKEA for bag holding duties.

11. Replace stuff and things into wardrobe.

12. Squeal with joy at the resulting splendour.

TA DA!

And here’s what it cost:

• Giant sheet of 18mm thick MDF from B&Q – £20 (with free cutting into less giant bits, hooray)
• Countersunk 6 gauge 3.5 x 25mm single thread screws – £5.38
• White fixing blocks – £3.28
• No more nails permanent strip – £5.48
• Nails – free from innermost depths of garden shed
• Mirror A3 size from eBay – £4.65
• Spice rack from eBay – £3.70
• LED stick and click lights from eBay – £2.99
• IKEA brightly coloured hooks – £4.50

 

Total: £49.98

And that leaves 2p to stick in the piggybank towards my next DIY mission!

Did you take part in the #homeimprovementhero challenge? I’d love to see what everyone else got up – leave a link below and I’ll take a look!