How to transform your dingy garage into a slick storage area and workspace
From gardening tools and sports equipment to kiddie gear and seasonal outdoor decor, a garage can quickly fill up with chaotic clutter. But with a little DIY elbow grease and creativity, it’s easy to transform the space into a fun and functionally organized area of your home, and give your neighbours a serious case of garage envy. Here's how:
Garage makeover
Consider the garage an extension of your interior
Just because the garage isn’t inside your home, you don’t have to pass up introducing finishes and a colour scheme that act as an extension of your existing interior. Consider drywalling, adding a fresh coat of neutral paint and installing rubberized baseboards to make it feel like an additional room. You can even add personality with a fun accent hue like this yellow to update mundane elements like bike and tire racks.
DIY your own showroom-worthy floors
If your concrete floors have suffered years of automotive oil spills, why not consider a fresh, glossy finish that will transform the entire space? The key with any floor makeover is to invest time in preparation to ensure longevity and durability. Thoroughly clean the concrete, patch any divots and cracks with a fast-patch compound and then apply Moisture Stop to seal the substrate and an etching solution to properly prepare the surface. Once all of the prep is complete, apply a coat of Rust-Oleum’s RockSolid (this one is in colour Silver Bullet) with anti-slip additives to create a marbled glass effect.
Upcycle to make a statement
Consider upcycling a thrifty find into something that offers useful storage and allows you to customize it with colour to make an unexpected statement. This vintage metal catalogue card cabinet was found for $20 on Kijiji, and with a bit of elbow grease and a fresh coat of spray paint, it’s the perfect place to stylishly stash away little garage bits and bobs.
Build a space-saving workbench
A workbench is a great way to add functional surface space to a garage, but if you don’t have the room for a permanent table, consider putting in a folding work station by affixing a stained wood top to a pair of folding wall brackets. This simple solution allows you to raise the table when needed, and then fold it away when you want to park a car in the garage.
Maximize vertical storage space
To help eliminate floor clutter, introduce a slat wall, a peg board and tall storage cabinets to visually display and organize all your garage gear. To add a little fashion to the function, paint and frame the pegboard with some inexpensive trim to transform it into a decorative feature.
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