Linen Closet

Project #1 in my new house: Painting the linen closet. When I moved in, it was completely usable but not pretty.

Before: Bare drywall and particle board

While I guess I could've just put my stuff in and then I'd be closer to unpacked but I decided I needed to paint it first. So that's what I did. And that probably explains why there are still boxes everywhere.

I had to trim the boards down a bit. The fit of the shelves was really tight before the paint. As in use a hammer to get it out tight. I was rather confused for a bit. Apparently the closet is not quite square. Who builds a closet that isn't square? By square I mean 90 degree angles, not L=W. Because lots of closets aren't squares. Usually they are rectangles. Why am I still typing?

So I trimmed off about 3/8" off the boards. By I trimmed, I mean I had J trim with the table saw at work. The boards are square (90 degree angles) so they don't fit 100% perfect but oh well.

After: 3 coats of primer and 2 coats of paint later.

Yes, that is a fan that was blowing on the closet to help it dry. No, it didn't bother me enough to move it and retake the picture.

Lesson of the day: Buy decent paint. Bought a quart of Kilz Casual Colors Semi-Gloss Interior/Exterior paint at walmart for $5. Used it as is since I was going for a crisp white. The paint has no coverage. I may end up repainting it again with better paint eventually but I give up for now.

And when you do that many coats of paint, they take forever to dry. Especially in the summer and the humidity is through the roof. As in 48 hours+ with a fan blowing on it and it is still a bit tacky.

Also, it's a pain in the butt to paint the inside of a linen closet. The closet goes up another couple feet or so above the door frame. And I wasn't going to just paint the back and sides even though no one will ever see the inside of the wall above the door. The door is too narrow for a step ladder so I stood on a bar stool inside the closet. Every time I moved, I'd get paint in my hair or on my arm, etc.

Oh well. At least it's painted and I can put stuff in it now. On to the next project.