Another Day, Another Project

When we moved into our house 3 years ago, I was so thankful we had 2 bathrooms.  Mine upstairs and a very small one downstairs for Michael and Elsa to share.  It wasn't until we adopted the boys that I recognized something would have to change.  There just wasn't enough space for 5 kids in there...so I decided to make the most out of the space!

The two towel bars weren't being used and would never accommodate 5 of anything, so I set off to figure out a better use for the space.  I had this old shutter (or cabinet door...I'm not really sure what it is) and I loved the "roughness" of it and decided it would become the base of the whole project.

The color was a bit off so step one included a wipe down and some paint:

Placing it on top of a formula can allowed me to paint the face and all sides at once.  The back was left alone as it would never see the light of day again!  I waited a few hours for it all to dry and started measuring out exactly where I wanted each jar to be.  I used zip ties to secure the jars so a bit of drilling needed to take place first.

I chose to drill two holes for each jar, about a half-inch apart.  This way I could thread them up through the back, around the jars and back through the second hole, so the connector would be hidden from view behind it all.  Then it was easy-peasy-lemon-squeezy to tighten the jars into their permanent place, locking them in for good!

Next I anchored it to the wall using hollow wall anchors.

I love these!  Before this week I had never used them before, but now I've hung up numerous things because of these bad boys.  Start by marking where you need to place them and drill a hole to insert them into.  As you tighten the screw, it draws the far end towards you and locks it securely into place.  Once the screw is tightened to it's fullest, you can easily remove the screw and the anchor is ready for use!

My hooks didn't arrive until the day after I started the project, and I actually found it easier to accurately measure where I wanted them with the shutter/cabinet door already up and anchored on the wall.  I used painters tape to attach them so I could step back and eyeball it to see where I wanted them.

I moved them around quite a bit before I was happy with the placement, and then it was super easy to screw them all in while they were still taped up.  Why have I never used the tape trick before?!!  It made doing the project alone a lot easier.  Before I knew it, it was time to step back and be thrilled with my new space!  Room enough for 5 toothbrushes, 5 tubes of toothpaste and 5 towels...and the best part it doesn't even take up that much space!