Drop Zone

Here's the coat closet when we moved in...

The whole area was narrow and dark.  There was no light around the far corner of the closet, which leads to the garage.  Also, my kids are not "open-closet-door-remove-hanger-hang-up-coat-close-closet-door" kind of kids.  Are anyone's?  I wanted something bright and open, with lots of hooks and shoe bins.  So, we removed the closet wall and had a new light box installed just inside the garage door:

Just 19 short months (and about four actual days of work) later, here's the after:

I used the same wall planks from Home Depot that I used in the powder room.  I think repeating this element helps tie the downstairs together.  The large hooks were an inexpensive option from Lowes, and the little key hooks are from Menards.  The outgoing-mail box is from a vanity set I found at Target.  I decided against a built-in bench in favor of a free-standing bench.  I thought it would be easier to clean the floor if I could just pull the bench out.  I found a perfectly-sized option at Crate & Barrel:

The shoe bins are from the Land of Nod outlet, and the baskets are from The Container Store.  I used the same wood corbels for the shelf that I used with the countertop in the kitchen (someday I will get those photos posted):

I found this cute light at Shades of Light:

I think technically it's an exterior light, but who cares?  The downlight helps to mask some of the unevenness in the ceiling from where it was repaired after we took the closet walls down.  Lesson learned:  I should have taken the whole ceiling down and replaced it rather than piecing in.  Upside:  the new light is cute!  Also, no glass globe means no dead bugs to clean out.

I love the way this project turned out.