Turns out, the closet was the problem

so I purged that too!

Perhaps my most controversial purge decision yet… I demoed the only closet in our kiddo’s soon-to-be bedroom. :scream: In my defense, (American) closets are just an opportunity for hoarding junk :teddy_bear: :package:, and this particular closet totally crushed the flow of the room. :face_with_spiral_eyes:

Jump ahead to see the argument for axing the closet, before and after pictures, construction process, and all the artsy details!

Why axe the closet?

In the original layout, the main door opened into a wall. :no_entry: The swing-open closet doors crushed the square footage, and replacing them with sliding doors made accessing the closet frustrating. I also cannot stand having your back to the main door when at the desk. We can do better. :muscle:

Kid Bedroom

In the new layout, the bed is tucked against the east wall into a darker corner of the room. :sleeping: :moon: The view from all other seats is also much better! There is still the potential for underbed storage, and I found a great dresser for clothes. :shirt:

Kid Bedroom

While planning this room, I discovered Cliff Tan’s “Feng Shui Modern”, which validated what “felt right” and provided a fantastic framework for spatial arrangement! :lotus_position: :yin_yang: :relieved:

Before & Afters

I wanted the room to vibe with our newly redecorated living room. Mission accomplished! :rocket: :yellow_heart: :blue_heart:

Kid Bedroom

Kid Bedroom

And here’s the side with the (former) closet. We moved our clothes into a custom wardrobe upstairs in the new master bedroom. Our kid’s clothes are in his new dresser! :shirt: :jeans: :necktie:

Kid Bedroom

Kid Bedroom :point_up: And yes, those stars glow in the dark!

The Process

Step 1: Soundproofing. The walls were empty/thin enough to hear someone rolling over in bed between the bedrooms. :ear: We added Rockwool soundproofing insulation on the leftmost wall (bordering the kitchen), followed by 1 lb mass loaded vinyl and finished up with new plaster. The other interior (drywall) walls got cellulose blown-in insulation. :hear_no_evil: :shushing_face:

Step 2: Floor patching. Matching the hardwood to patch the floor was the most annoying. Luckily, contractors who demoed the upstairs closet to make space for our wardrobe pulled up some of the hardwood that we were able to patch in here.

Kid Bedroom

Step 3: (Re)painting. Turns out, plaster needs to cure before it can be painted, and special primer needs to be used. Even high quality painter’s tape will still rip off paint if the first paint coat doesn’t cure long enough! …Ask me how I know… :roll_eyes: :woozy_face:

Kid Bedroom

The Details

And now for the little projects that make this space feel special for my :boy:! :blush:

Bulletin Board

Of course a kid’s room needs a bulletin board!! The basic wood frame was too grown-up for a 6-year-old (in my and his opinion), so I painted it with red acrylic paint and sealed it with polyurethane. :art: :artist: How fun!

Kid Bedroom :point_up: An aside, a sturdy workbench is WAY more functional for art projects, crafts, and Lego building than a traditional desk. You can also adjust the height as kids grow and eventually use it for homework and/or a computer.

Glow-in-the-Dark Stars

NGL, the ’90s had something going for it design-wise: glow-in-the-dark stars!!! :star: :star2: My kid loves them. Putting these up is not for the faint of heart, though… you have to stick adhesive putty on each one individually… :unamused: :face_exhaling:

Kid Bedroom

Camouflaged Utility Covers

I’ll admit… this was extra. :shrug: I used Samplize peel-and-stick color swatches to cover the switchplates and cable covers in Benjamin Moore Lucerne. I didn’t need to sand/prime/paint anything, and we can easily change up the color (if ever needed).

Kid Bedroom

Ah, so satisfying… :lotus_position:

Kid Bedroom

Kid Bedroom

This decision was functional as well as aesthetic. The extension cord tangled up in fitted sheets, the bed frame, or under our robot vacuum until I installed the cable cover and wall-mounted the outlet block. :electric_plug:

Hanging Planter

Apparently this fantastic color is vintage 70s, which I’m starting to realize is my favorite decade for design. 🪩 :man_dancing: The macramé hanger was shorter than I expected, so I drilled holes through some wooden craft balls and strung them onto the hanger to lengthen it.

Kid Bedroom

Vintage Macrame Hangers

:point_up: From Vintage Unscripted, 1970s-style macramé plant hangers.

Dresser/Wardrobe

But where will he hang his clothes!?! :scream: Since I demoed the closet, I needed some way to store our kid’s clothes.

Step 1: Set the bar. Our son’s clothes were previously stored in labeled Ikea Trofast bins, which were intuitive for him to use and fantastic for promoting independence. I needed something just as organized. :shirt: :jeans:

Kid Bedroom

Step 2: Find a solution. I searched forever for smallish furniture with hanging space (they’re called “chifforobes” or “gentlemen’s chests” if you were wondering):

Chifforobe from West Elm This one is from West Elm and way out of budget.

Step 3: Now find it within budget. I finally found exactly what I needed on FB Marketplace from a wonderful woman living one T stop over!

The original furniture was from the 80s, so I thoroughly cleaned it :soap:, used Paraffin wax to smooth the drawer slides, and modernized the look by adding black handles to match the nightstand I bought.

Kid Bedroom

Step 4: Arrange clothes! The cabinet has a pull-out rod for hanging clothes, and I added a couple of hooks to the door for hanging sweatshirts.

Kid Bedroom

Kid Bedroom

I also found perfectly-sized clothes bins to separate the drawers.

Kid Bedroom

I discuss the pros of file-folding clothes in my post about our (grown-up, built-in) wardrobe. My kid likes to access his clothes like this, but he’s working on being able to put them away, too…

Kid Bedroom

All in all, a pretty (fun)ctional new, big-kid room! :star_struck:

Cost

Materials Cost (+ tax/shipping)
closet demolition, floor patching, soundproofing walls (Rockwool + mass-loaded vinyl), plastering $4440.00
wall repair, priming, painting in BM Bare (top) and BM Lucerne (bottom) $1700.00
Gabrietta 2-drawer nightstand $294.84
workbench as desk $273.99
Arlo Home 8’x10’ area rug $259.20
Zinus mattress $191.24
olive green swivel office chair $150.86
Quince Indigo Blue duvet cover $142.72
Zinus metal bed frame $113.68
3 patent prints $86.60
wall-mounted full length mirror $84.99
Big Joe bean bag chair $84.99
custom hem and curtain trim $80.00
2 full sheet sets $70.10
clothes drawer organizers $69.04
blackout ochre shades $65.82
clear fillable side table lamp $53.74
3-pack gallery frames $53.11
blackout curtain rods $52.04
3’x4’ bulletin board $49.82
paint sample sticky sheets $46.88
wardrobe (FB Marketplace) $35.00
rust macrame plant hanger $34.59
Loloi Not Named rust/multi throw pillow $33.60
laminated world map $31.82
mattress protector $30.70
2-pack queen/standard pillows $28.68
glow-in-the-dark stick on stars $22.74
handles for wardrobe $18.05
cable covers $18.03
10’ extension cord $14.86
2-pack pillow protectors $8.60
anti-tip furniture anchors for wardrobe $8.49
poster-hanging command strips $7.35
red thumb tacks $6.62
wooden craft beads $2.41
Ikea fake potted fern (already had) 0
red acrylic paint for bulletin board border (already had) 0
water-based polyurethane (already had) 0
white wool rug (SOLD) +$75.00
Ikea Brimnes 4-drawer chests and nightstands (SOLD) +$200.00
TOTAL $8390.20

Setting up our kid’s room was the last big project of our Big Move of 2025! To relocate our bedroom upstairs into the master bedroom :bed:, we built a custom wardrobe :shirt: :dress: and redesigned our living room to accommodate new furniture :couch_and_lamp:. Time for the family to enjoy our new space! :yellow_heart: :blue_heart: :orange_heart: :green_heart:



Shilpa Kobren is the Associate Director of Rare Disease Analysis at Harvard Medical School where she focuses on analyzing genomic sequencing data with patient clinical information to derive insights into human diseases. Shilpa lives in an 1890s urban apartment in Cambridge, Massachusetts with her husband and two energetic toddlers. She retains her sense of peace amid the chaos by creating and iteratively improving systems that optimize daily efficiency in her family's constrained living space.

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