Unicorn Hideaway
Our girl has a small room, so small that a standard twin bed takes up more than half of it. We knew when we purchased our home that we'd have to make the most out of the space and since converting closets into a useable space is sort of my jam, H's closet was destined to be something more than just a junk closet. Yep, it housed everything from luggages, toys that weren't being played with and lots of documents and loose paper. Also, I am a hoarder, can you tell?
For this particular closet makeover, I chose to use paint, my handy husband built us a safe and structurally sound bench. Suggestion: If you were to use wallpaper, it would be ideal to wallpaper first and then build the bench. After some issues regarding incorrect shelf sizing, I decided on particle board for the second set of shelves which I actually like it better since it was a smoother surface and better to write on.
Here's (mostly) everything painted after my husband built the bench, I still had that small strip under the bench. He originally had the wood stained but after seeing it in the space, we decided to paint over it. I used Sherwin-Williams' "Tame Teal", a beautiful colour that is calming and a colour that will transition with her throughout the years. We used this same colour for her walls and we love it!
Purchase Details
(Note: Details only include things we bought specifically for this project)
Pink faux fur rug, Homesense for $25
Sherwin-Williams' "Tame Teal", Sherwin-Williams for $7 (sample size)
Unicorn string lights, Dollar store for $4
Butterfly decals, Dollar Tree for $1.25
Wood supplies, Home Depot for $30 (all together, some pieces we had already)
Pink pen holder, Dollar store for $2
What we already had
Unicorn basket, Homesense for $15
GRL PWR pillow, Chapters on sale for $10
Sequin unicorn pillow, Toys R Us for $30
Unicorn print, Chapters on sale for $7
Faux Fur blanket, Chapters for $60
Sheepskin, Costco for $100+
Pink mirror, gifted, NA
Unicorn stuffy, gifted, NA
Since the bottom shelf was intended to be H's desk, I knew that we'd run into H possibly drawing on the desk and low and behold, 2 minutes in, she had already drawn on it! Haha. Since we had extra pieces of wood, I decided to use it on top so she didn't have to worry about staying in the lines LOL. She was super excited to be able to write her name on it!
I love repurposing old things we have laying around the house! I used an old Frozen cup she got as souvenir at Disney On Ice a few months back as a marker holder, I also found an old LED light that belonged to C that was too bright to be used as a night light, it is now H's closet light! She picked out the toys and books she wanted on the top shelf, all of her old favourites.
You guys know how much I love to DIY so I found a way to do it for this project. I got the idea when H was drawing, she kept showing me beautiful art pieces and I realized, she had no where to put them! At first I thought of buying a memo board but remembered I had some old canvas art pieces and all of the supplies I needed to make one. This project took me a whole 20 minutes!
What you'll need
Square canvas, or whatever size you want it to be
Paint or fabric
Ribbon (I used white ribbon)
Gems (or buttons, rocks, whatever your heart desires)
A glue gun/refills
Pictures or art
Directions
First, you'll need to paint or cover your canvas in fabric. A lot of DIYers use a staple gun to keep fabric stable but I don't see why hot glue wouldn't do the job!
Position ribbon across canvas. I zigged and zagged!
Add gems (or what have you) to every point that meets. I added more gems because H wanted more AND they helped keep the photos in place.
Wait for everything to dry and add photos/art.
Hang on wall!
Repurposing old items we have and creating new ones!
Look at what a fresh coat of paint can do! Literally a blank canvas, ready for me to DIY!
She was so proud that she helped me make this!
Happy I had enough ribbon and gems to make two of these!
I really LOVE the finished product and how easy it was to create.
H now has a space for photographs and her art!
I hope you guys enjoyed H's new Unicorn hideaway. She certainly does! She's asked every day when she gets to sleep in her "new room". Hah!
H's clothes are currently folded Marie Kondo style in her makeshift drawer, her giant dollhouse. We used every room to sort out her leggings, jeans, sweaters and shirts. It's worked pretty well for us and keeps everything semi-organized. Since we've completed her closet, I have decided to buy some white baskets to go above (where her Unicorn basket sits) and to organize her shirts, sweaters, leggings and everything in between in this way so she can go back to playing with her dolls. I'll update this post once that is complete so stay tuned.