Nursery Closet Details: Part I [DIY shelves + drawers + rods]

As my blog’s traffic has started to increase, so have the number of emails I receive. Although it is coming up on one year since I revealed Simon’s Nursery, it is still by far, the main attraction. The Pegboard Gallery wall and the nursery closet have created most of the buzz, thanks to Pinterest and a feature at IHeart Organizing last month. Both sites have really given my blog a boost and I am so very thankful.
The readers I hear from sometimes write in with super sweet notes telling me how his nursery is the inspiration for their soon-to-be little one’s sleeping quarters. Talk about humbling! Many other readers have questions about something they have seen and need more information and quite often, it is pertaining to the closet details…

…”How did you hang your large shelves?” “Where did you find that shoe storage organizer on the bottom right?!” “Do you still like the PAX unit today?”…

After realizing I probably need to get some more info out there, I decided it might be a good idea to revisit the closet in a 2 (possibly 3) part mini series, where I will dish on some of the closet components – How we painted it, installed the DIY closet system and the deets on the accessories and labels. I do my very best to reply back to the emails in a timely fashion and I DO love hearing from all of you, but I am hoping to cover enough content in this series so you all don’t have to go searching everywhere, scouring all of my posts and then end up having to email me because you can’t find something. My apologies!

Let’s start from the beginning. Here is what the closet looked like before:

The first thing we did was empty the closet and remove the old wire shelving. The next step was patching the screw holes in the drywall. We waited 24 hours and then sanded down the patches to try to create a flat, smooth surface for painting.

Oh and then we removed the doors in hopes that the closet would come out looking so good we wouldn’t need to hide anything away! Next, we tested a couple of paint samples and then selected “Can’t Miss Lime” by Valspar and applied 2 coats.

The entire closet was built around the IKEA PAX Wardrobe frame. What we loved about the PAX system is the ability to pick and choose what interior organizers would work best for our needs. I knew I wanted to store bibs, burp cloths, swaddle blankets, etc. in the closet and then have shelving for storage bins and decorative accessories, too. The frame size we chose is the 19 5/8″ x 13 3/4″ x 93 1/8″ and we purchased 4 KOMPLEMENT drawers and 3 KOMPLEMENT shelves to fit inside the frame.

After this middle unit was assembled and installed, we built out to the left & right of it. We determined we wanted 4 shelves (longer version of IKEA KOMPLEMENT shelves) and 4 clothing rods outside of the middle unit, so we needed support blocks to hold them securely in place. We bought 1″ x 3.5″ pieces of plywood and cut them down to measure 23 1/4″ long. They were painted to match the walls and then were drilled into the sides of the closet – 2 on the left and 2 on the right.

We purchased the 39 3/8″ x 13 3/4″ shelves which we cut down to be 35″ in length. These shelves rest on top of the plywood support blocks on the “wall” side and on the frame side, we inserted the white clip / pegs that came with the shelves, which fit into the pre-cut holes on the underside of the shelf. Then we drilled the screw into the outer side of the frame.

The clothing bars are actually 1″ dowel rods from Lowes which we spray painted white and cut down to fit in between the side of the PAX frame and the wall itself. They are held up by these rod holders, which we drilled into the frame and support blocks on the wall.

This is what it looked like after all of the parts were assembled and installed.

You’ll notice the trim – ick! It has since been painted and is now white, bright and wonderful 🙂
After the main components / foundation of the closet was successfully assembled and installed, then the fun began. Since the “after” has already been revealed in other posts, I will leave you with some shots of the closet in all of its bright & cheery glory.

If you have any questions or comments, please leave me a note! I do have to say, Simon’s closet, our recently spruced up linen closet and our pantry are the only three closets that actually stay clean & organized.

It might have something to do with the fact I put forth the time and effort on the front-end to purge, design, create and organize the space, so I know just how it is supposed to look like when it is in tip-top shape. So even if it does get a little messy, it is a quick fix to get it back to an eye-pleasing and organized state. Give it a try. You’ll be surprised how a little bit of work in an itty bitty space can make such a big impact.

Part 2 of the Nursery Closet Details mini series focuses on the organization & labels you see in the photos above. Every little thing has a home [and a label :)] and that’s just the way I like it.

Have you tackled any closets lately? What are your tips and tricks for keeping them neat & tidy?