Have you ever taken an enneagram test? Which personality type are you? Me, I’m an “achiever” followed closely behind by the “perfectionist.” How this plays out in my every day life is I am maddeningly picky about updates to our home. It also comes out in my photography.

Now, I’m sure there is a “best” in many people’s mind. As I get older, however, I care less and less about what I assume other people think is best. Which was hard for a long time! I was concerned about what other people thought– the achiever in me. Now, I want what is best in my mind– for my family, my clients, and me.

And, this relates to weddings and wedding photography. I think we can judge the value of our wedding, family, marriage, etc. by what we see others doing. I did! I, yes “Eddie the queen of French chandeliers,” had burlap at my wedding. If my 2020 head was placed on my 2013 body, I would have hosted some crazy personal wedding overlooking Machu Picchu at the Sanctuary Lodge or in the Eiffel Tower’s Jules Verne for 15 people. Something tiny, personal, and intimate.

And, this brings us back to the entrance. Our powder bath remodel closed one of the hallways into our kitchen– don’t worry, we still have FOUR more entrances to our kitchen. The little nook was a great place to organize some of the kids’ craziness– especially, hats, gloves, bug spray and sunscreen, swimming goggles, etc.

I searched all my favorite furniture sites, and couldn’t find anything I liked that also fit the size- the nook has an odd width at 44.5 inches. Most buffet/ servers are 35, 45, 55. This item came the closest.

A few problems, however. It’s only 12 inches deep, for instance. The nook is fairly deep, so at 12 inches, this buffet doesn’t capitalize on the space. Secondly, it had horrible reviews. The sideboard is made of a thin particle board.

Searching some more, I found this piece on Craigslist. U-l-g-y. But, at $80, I had plenty of room to refinish. It is just over 40 inches wide, taller than I could find elsewhere, and because I think it was a TV cabinet for the old tube TVs, it was very deep.

When my husband brought it through the door, I handed him the drill and asked him to remove the doors, hinges, and all the hardware. Uh-oh. We had a furniture design store where we redesigned furniture, and it was great when we were young, but we’ve decided to primarily buy new. Sometimes.

My husband is primarily logistics while I’m primarily design. So, he had a “no” look on his face. He agreed that the decretive little thing on top needed to go…. and slowly all of the hinges, knobs, and magnetic closures were removed.

Chalk Paint

And, here’s where my perfectionist, self-designing side comes out. I couldn’t find what I wanted, so I just made my own. After taking the cabinet apart, I needed to paint it. I learned when we owned the furniture design store that most paints don’t stick to finished furniture. Not wanting to strip the piece, I opted for chalk paint.

Adding to my laziness, I wanted to try Rust-Oleum’s spray paint version of chalk paint– they call it “chalked paint” to differentiate it from chalkboard paint. I picked up the color charcoal. You can see it here.

Finishing

The chalked spray paint gave me the matte finish I liked on the first piece from Wayfair, but it wasn’t dark enough. It’s more of a “fun” charcoal instead of your sexy girlfriend-charcoal. I used a “dark wax” to protect the piece from scratches and to deepen the charcoal.

Finally, I needed to change up the hardware. I LOVE polished brass, and I decided on these cup pulls for the bottom drawer and these goose egg pulls for the doors. Honestly, while I’ll probably use the cup pulls in my kitchen as well (pretty and at an amazing price), the goose eggs pulls aren’t as cool as they look.

First, the goose egg pulls use a brad instead of bolt, so you’ll need a drill to make your pull hole a little bigger. Secondly, they are duller than they appear online. Finally, because of the brad, the egg part of the pull is kind of stuck pointing down which makes it difficult to “pull.”

Art and Storage

I needed storage bins inside to organize everything. While I wanted storage bins with labels, I settled on these because they were the right size. I may have labels made in the future. See the perfection information above.

As for art, I needed a mirror to reflect light in the dark cubby. This Target French Mirror is a perfect size and at under $70, an amazing price.

I brought in gold with a gold-framed Monet print I picked up at an estate sale. Meh, I don’t know if I’ll keep it here, but I like the gold!

Finalized everything with a bit of creamy texture with this pitcher. I will probably add pampas grass, lavender, or other seasonal cut flowers and plants. We’ll see.

How Its Changed Our Life

Up-leveling my organization always up-levels my life and mental clarity. Know where matching gloves are, by kid, means we can run out the door on time, I’m not yelling at my kids for missing gloves, and I’m not frustrated by tracking down 6 left handed gloves.

How About You?

So, how about you? Let me know one area of your life or home where organization was more than organization— it also made your life easier.

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