Creating a Closet

Mission: Organization : Episode MSO-103 -- More Projects »
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Joyce LaPorte lives with her daughter Kristin and son-in-law Fred McCoy in a suite they've created for her out of their two-car garage. Everyone loves the living arrangements, but LaPorte's room needs a major makeover.

She loves to shop for clothes and furniture, and both are taking over her living space. Not to mention the fact that there are no closets.

The wall, a past design experiment gone wrong, is painted similar to Neapolitan ice cream. LaPorte tried covering it with wallpaper, but now it is peeling and looks awful.

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The large headboard around the bed takes up a lot of space, so it is decided that only the bed frame will stay.
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All of LaPorte's clothes hang in the basement and are beginning to take over Fred's home office.
Decorating duo Gina Pierantozzi and Doreen Naughton, known as The Redecorators, step in to help with the makeover. They explain that the first step to organizing is to sort through what you've already got and decide what you really want to keep.

LaPorte trims down her closet and is also able to toss out some knickknacks from her bedroom. She agrees with the Redecorators that the china cabinet full of odds and ends is taking up too much room and should be removed from the room. She plans to display just a few of items, rotating them periodically throughout the room.

The Redecorators devise a redesign plan, including a dramatic solution to LaPorte's space problems--flip-flopping the furniture and making an expansive new wall-storage unit the focus instead of the bed. They decide to implement it while LaPorte is at work so she can be surprised by the results when she gets home. First step: strip that half-wallpapered-half-Neapolitan wall and apply a coat of warm-colored paint.

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Closet designer Stephanie Malin devises a plan for a customized closet along the longest wall of the room. The 40-foot space features hanging rods at various heights, shelving for folded items and lots of shoe cubbies and other storage baskets.
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A thick silk fabric in a soft muted color was chosen for the drapes, which conceal the wall-storage unit. The drapes are pinch-pleated for a neat look and hang an inch from the floor so they don't drag when moved. Just a simple pull from LaPorte reveals her new closet.
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The room is complete after only six hours. The team hurriedly places some of LaPorte's items into her new closet so she can get the full effect when she sees it. Then, the curtain is closed until her arrival.
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LaPorte is thrilled with her new room! Wall-to-wall furniture was replaced by a defined, comfortable living space. A panel of shears has been hung to separate the bed area from the room entrance. There's also a cozy loveseat and living area opposite the bed.
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About a month later, LaPorte has kept her closet, as well as the rest of her living space, neat and organized. She is happy to have a home for all of her belongings, and her favorite part of the closet is the shoe cubby.
The home office, formerly filled with a portion of LaPorte's closet, is all Fred's again. Seems as if the mission is complete.
Wynthrop Peach # HC-55 paint color was used.
Resources
paints--Benjamin Moore
Benjamin Moore Paints
Website: www.benjaminmoore.com

Plush Velvet slipcover, square flanged pillow
Sure Fit
Website: www.surefit.com

painting
Jerzy Galecki
Phone: 215-771-6781
Guests
Gina Pierantozzi
Interior Decorator / Owner, The Redecorators
Website: www.redecorators.biz

Doreen Naughton
Interior Decorator/Owner, The Redecorators
Website: www.redecorators.biz
Also in this Episode