Right now is the perfect time of year for a shed makeover. The weather is getting cooling ,but not too cold yet to make working outside pretty pleasant. Don’t do like I did and save this project for the hottest days of the year! Looking back at the pictures I can barley believe that this is what it used to look like!
When I was buying my house I knew I was going to have to deal with the big ugly shed. I also knew with a little shed makeover it could be turned into something really functional for me. I thought this shed makeover was going to be quick and easy (reminder to future self, no diy is EVER ever quick and easy), but it was worth all the effort.
At first I had dreams of a Pinterest worthy shed makeover complete with decor…it was going to be my home away from home. Again, totally WRONG. I’m not sure why I thought I needed a home away from home in my backyard. When I got in there are started really making a plan I realized I needed to ditch the Pinterest dreams and make it super functional.
Empty Out Your Space
I started my shed makeover by removing EVERYTHING from it. Lucky for me summers in the PNW are super dry so having all of my shed stuff out in my yard wasn’t a big deal. Taking everything out really lets you get a good idea of what you have and how to best organize it.
Prepping to paint
Once everything was cleared out I got to vacuuming, and vacuuming, annnnnd vacuuming. I spent a long time vacuuming, there were a lot of cobwebs. Using a vacuum attachment with a brush was super helpful with cobwebs and other dust bunnies that were more stubborn. I found the attachment at Lowe’s it was a universal attachment so it easily fit on my existing shop vac. It is well worth taking your time to do a good job vacuuming. Your paint will go on so much smoother.
Once everything was vacuumed I got to priming. I used Kilz all purpose primer. It came in a two gallon bucket which was only about $25. This step was super necessary as my shed is older and therefore had a lot of dirt that no vacuuming was going to get out. The first coat of primer I got on as quick as I could. It looked awful, and I was really regretting my decision to paint the shed.
The next coat looked a little more promising so I powered through. After two mental breakdowns, a few weeks of priming (yep you read that right…weeks), and a decision not to paint the ceiling (best decision ever!) it was finally time to paint. Pro tip–when you are painting pop in some ear buds and catch up on phone calls or podcasts. Painting is mindless making it an excellent time multitask.
Painting
The paint color I used was Ultra Pure White by Behr in an eggshell finish. While it wasn’t that different from the primer color it made the shed super bright. I actually couldn’t believe what a difference it made when I looked at the before picture. Always take a before picture! You’ll never remember quite how much you accomplished if you don’t.
After I painted all the walls white for some reason I decided to paint only the ceiling beams and wall studs dark grey. This is something I totally should have skipped, it was a pain and totally unnecessary….but also I think it adds a little something something so I guess I’m glad I did it.
Staining the Floors
After the wall painting was complete it was on to the floors. I vacuumed AGAIN, and then got to picking out a floor color. I thought about painting the floor but I wasn’t really sure how that would hold up. In the end I ended up staining it in a dark color.
I broke all the rules ever of staining when I did this. I basically opened the can and poured it all over the floor and then spread it out with a roller and then let it dry for a full day.
In the end it actually ended up looking pretty nice for the $15 I spent on the stain. I really did not want to invest too much into the floors as they are floors of a shed and are going to get beat up anyways. I do think though that for my own brain that likes things to be aesthetically pleasing, it was the perfect compromise of affordable, design, and function.
Hanging Shelves
Once everything was dry I started thinking about organization. I had ripped out some shelves from the shed that I thought about putting back but ended up not doing so. Those shelves hadn’t functioned well for me and this was my chance to customize to my needs.
I decided to make some super simple shelves by using 2×4’s and pocket hole screws. All you have to do is cut your 2×4 to the desired shelf length. Mark on the 2×4 where the studs are. Put pocket holes where your marks are and screw them to the walls. So simple!
Building shelves like this made it so easy to customize my shelving. I could make my shelves as long or short as I wanted and as close or far apart as I wanted. This made it possible to build shelves around the items I had to store. For example, I have a lot of paint samples in the 8 oz jars so I built some shelves close to accommodate those and maximize shelf space.
I also had some brackets lying around so I used those in a few places, because why not?
Hanging Lawn Tools
If it hasn’t become clear yet this was a real DIY project for me I didn’t want to buy shelves or organizers to put in the shed, I wanted to do it all myself with what I had. First it kept the project affordable. Really all I bought was primer and paint. Second it made it easy to customize to my exact needs.
I decided to make a lawn tool hanging organizer. This again was super duper simple. I took a 1X8 And screwed it to the studs. Then I took some scrap 2X2’s and cut them down to about 5 inches long. I pocket hole screwed them to the 1X8 a few inches apart. I measured how far apart they needed to be by using the handle of the smallest tool i was going to hang. You could also screw the 2X2 on from the back, but I had just gotten a pocket hole jig and was practicing using it (I was also obsessed with it, they are super fun!).
I also had a few large C hooks that I screwed into the wall to hang extension cords from. I tried spray painting them black, but it didn’t really stick on the rubbery finish of the hook sooo now it’s not aesthetically pleasing and basically ruins the whole look of the shed. KIDDING. They’re yellow now, but what can ya do?!
Wood Organization
For wood organization I got lucky. There was an indent in the back of the shed where it had originally been a door or something and later was closed off. I just screwed some 1x2s across it so I could just slip my wood behind. Look around and be creative with your space. I there is nothing you can make work like this there are dozens of tutorials out there for wood organization.
Peg Board for Tool Organization
We are finally in the home stretch of this shed makeover. Like I said it took me a WHILE to finish this. All while I was working on the rest of the shed I was thinking about how to organize my tools. I wanted to buy peg board from the rebuilding center near me but I never found any, that is until a month after I finished my shed. So I decided to make one. I had seen tutorials how to make them for your house as a decor piece so I figured I could just use it in my shed.
For the board I used some underlayment I was going to use for a different project. Then I bought some wooden dowels and cut them to size. I love that the DIY peg board was as functional as a traditional peg board but it is a little cooler than the store bought version.
Moving it all in
Once that project was done I moved everything in. There is still some room for improvement but I think the space is always going to be a work in progress. I like that there is a spot for everything that I currently have and that makes it a hundred times easier to keep organized. Of course it’s not 100% clean and organized because nothing of mine ever is no matter how hard I try, as you can see in the after makeover picture below. What can I say? My motto is creativity is messy.
So there you have it a full shed makeover. My biggest advice is to get creative and have fun with trying new things. After all it is just a shed and no one is going to notice if things are a little wonky. As long as it is functional and a space you love to create in that’s all that matters!
