Antique Cupboard with a Clever Secret

But first, let me start out by clearly stating: THIS IS NOT A POST ABOUT HOW TO CLEAN AND ORGANIZE YOUR CLOSET! (Ha Ha… as you’ll see real quickly further down…)

No, this is about an antique cupboard with a clever secret…

It’s a handsome piece I found when we were renovating our 100 year old house. It was either find a huge cupboard like this one or build a utility closet, because I needed a place on the main level for the vacuum and cleaning supplies.

I found this cupboard on Craigslist for $100… it was in great condition, just with a really bad coat of old paint… That was easily fixed. (it also had a makeshift dresser inside it, which we had to remove in order to have room for the vacuum.

By the way, to have the contractor build in a closet would have cost upwards of $500 with nothing fancy at all! I loved this option… so much better looking… and still lots of storage!

(Ha… see what I mean about this post not being about a clean closet?)

But it sure does store a lot of stuff… with a couple shelves across the top as well as along the right side, making use of that tucked away cubby area. (we added the shelving to it)

But on the left no shelves…

Why???

Well the hinges are a clue…

Yep, that’s right! At some point a former owner actually carefully changed the left panel into a door!

So now both ‘doors’ open wide for easy access…

Wow!

(and I’m not saying ‘wow’ because it looks a little messy… 😉 maybe you are though… I was saying ‘wow’ because of all the stuff I can store inside this cupboard)

I can keep my ladder, tools and cleaning supplies in there and not have to struggle with getting them in and out, thanks to the hinged panel turned door.

What a smart idea to do with an old cupboard/wardrobe! Change one of the panels into a door and create a huge opening for the closet.

OK, enough of looking into my not so wonderfully organized or ‘staged for photos’ closet interior… let’s look at the outside again, because it is kind of charming.

So for $100 and less than a pint of paint, our breakfast room has the much needed utility closet, but in the shape of a charming antique cupboard with a clever secret door, no less.

Oh and one tip about installing it…

When we were installing the cupboard and baseboard after a huge renovation in the breakfast room, (check out the posts with the breakfast room renovation here) we, (our carpenter) attached the cupboard securely to the wall, and actually cut the baseboard to butt up to it, instead of go behind it… that way the cupboard back is totally flush against the wall without a gap in the back.

Here are more closet and storage ideas:

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This post is linked up at the following other sites: Design, Dining and Diapers, French Country Cottage, Too Much Time on my Hands, The Charm of Home, Designer Trapped, My Thrift Store Addiction, Posed Perfection, Savvy Southern Style, From Evija with Love, A Pocketful of Posies, DIY Dreamer, My Repurposed Life, Cozy Little House, A Stroll Thru Life, Home Stories A to Z, Yesterday on Tuesday, StoneGable, My Uncommon Slice of Suburbia, Coastal Charm, Between Naps on the Porch, It’s that DIY Party, Skip to my Lou, Redhead can Decorate