The lion, the witch & the wardrobe

The wardrobe before enhancements.

This is the wardrobe that got me started -- minus the lion and the witch (although my husband may disagree about the later.) This piece of furniture arrived in my house as an ugly piece of utilitarian particle board. It was something my son-in-law picked up on a construction site. Apparently a hotel was renovating and had the good taste to toss this piece in favor of something nicer. At the time of its arrival my daughter and son-in-law were staying with us and closet space was at a premium, so as plain and drab as it was, the storage it provided was priceless.

The wardrobe after I spruced it up.

Shortly thereafter, my daughter and son-in-law found a home to rent. Rather than take this monstrosity with them they thought it would be nice for me to keep...you know, for the closet space. Acknowledging it actually was a useful item of furniture, I decided I had to figure out a way to make it fit in with my aesthetic.

My husband was putting crown molding up in the bathroom and it gave me an idea. With a little paint, some lovely wood appliques and molding strips I could make this look like a wardrobe I'd actually want to have in my house.

I was so excited by how well this project turned out I was inspired to do more.