It’s not too late to organize your Garage!
Our garage has been an ongoing project since we moved in. The previous owners were in a hurry to move, so they told us they would be leaving all the tools, etc, that were in the garage. We naively and happily agreed. Hindsight had us questioning that agreement. Sure, we gained a few tools for our DIY collection and found a few treasures, but we also had to sort through 25+ years of someone else's junk!!!
We did round 1 of this last year when we had a big garage sale and got rid of what I thought was “anything we didn’t want”. We kept some stuff and ultimately collected more as we renovated and sorted other parts of the house. Needless to say, this spring our garage looked worse than before AGAIN! Organizing the garage further was not on my to-do list this year, but it had to be so that we could make it functional and livable again, and so I began round 2 of garage purging. We rented a dumpster and tossed all the old, broken cabinets and random shelves that were everywhere. Then I got to work organizing it in a way that WE would use it. Sure, the old cabinets were “useful,” but they were disorganized and scattered all over. This may be a big reason that most people hold back from a renovation - what they have is ok, and they feel bad getting rid of it or wasting it. Well, let me be the voice of reason - If it’s not working well for your family, GET RID OF IT! Renovate your home for YOUR FAMILY!
The current layout was not working for our family, and we also have different things to store than the previous owners.
I split up the garage into zones - sports, woodworking/tools, and lawn-care/misc. I started with one side and deemed it the Sports side, where we would store all our bikes, sports gear, and kids’ toys/balls, etc.
I gave the walls a fresh coat of paint because they were nasty, and then ordered these bike racks on Amazon. These were game-changing! They get the bikes up off the ground and fold them to the side so we can still park in there and move around. They are super sturdy and easy for kids to use, too.
Here’s the before and after! I never thought a garage makeover could make me happy, but wow, does it ever! :)
If you had wished to organize your garage this summer but never got to it, you still have time! I’ve linked all my garage organization products below!
On the other side, I painted again and then got rid of more cabinets and switched it for a pegboard so that all my tools could be visible so we are not digging through every cupboard looking for things. I purchased the pegboard from Home Depot and cut it to size to fit above the drawers. Then, I found this pegboard kit on Amazon.
It was more of a “make-under” for this garage because it really took shape when we got rid of all the extra stuff. Not it’s simplified and perfectly organized!
Can Just say EWWWW! The power of fresh paint will NEVER cease to amaze me!
SHOP GARAGE ORGANIZATION!
