DIY Industrial Closet Makeover on a Budget

Learn how to build simple shelves and industrial style iron pipe rods in this DIY closet makeover on a budget. I transformed a basic walk-in closet into a stylish modern industrial storage space with some inexpensive building supplies, paint & stain, plumbing pipes and some fun accents.

Disclosure: This post is sponsored by Brookfield Residential. As always, all of the opinions here are my own.

I’m so excited to be partnering with Brookfield Residential here in Edmonton this year for some fun, functional and easy DIY ideas that you can re-create in your home. Over the next several months, I’ll be working on DIY projects in some of their gorgeous show homes all over the city to give YOU ideas on what you could build in your own home to add to its function and value. In case you missed it, last month I shared how I built a simple and functional DIY entry hook wall at the Dawson show home and you can read all about that here.

This month, I worked in the lovely Cadenza show home in the Chappelle Gardens community in South Edmonton. From winding recreational trails to fun events at the Social House, Chappelle Gardens is all about connectivity and community. It’s the perfect place to raise a family with Donald R. Getty School nearby, a community garden, and lots of space to play.

The Cadenza is a duplex with front attached garage, it has a unique split level entry option and a fantastic kitchen island. I love how the home is decorated in a modern industrial style, and that’s what inspired the theme of walk in closet makeover.

The closet is attached to this cozy master bedroom. I love its huge window and rustic industrial style.

If you’re local, make sure to come see this DIY in person and enter to win $500 towards making your own DIY project with Brookfield Residential! You can find all of the contest details here on Brookfield’s DIY site.

Here’s how the closet looked BEFORE with its simple wire shelving:

Now, watch my YouTube video below to see how I made over this walk-in closet in the Cadenza’s master bedroom, or follow the step-by-step written instructions below:

How to create a DIY industrial closet on a budget:

To begin, I wanted to add some more storage to the closet so I transformed a very inexpensive pine dresser with stain, paint, and some DIY drawer pulls. I found the dresser at Ikea, and before I assembled it I stained all of the drawer pieces with a weathered-look stain and painted all the rest of the pieces with a charcoal coloured chalk style paint.

To create the leather pulls, I purchased a leather belt at the thrift store, cut it into 5 1/2 pieces and punched a hole on the top and bottom of each piece with a leather punch. Then, I folded each piece into a loop, threaded a brass bolt through the two holes, and attached it to the dresser drawer by securing it with a nut. It was such an easy DIY that gave this dresser a fun detail!

Next, I removed the original wire shelves, filled all of the screw holes in the wall and used a laser level to mark where I wanted my new shelves and brackets to go. I painted some wooden Ikea brackets with white spray paint, and mounted them to the walls with long wood screws (over studs, which I marked with a stud finder) or drywall anchors (for the brackets that didn’t land on studs). Then, I screwed some melamine shelving to the brackets.

To create some unique, industrial style clothing rods I found some black iron pipe at Home Depot in various lengths along with elbow fittings and floor flanges to create the rod shapes. I cleaned the pipe, put it together, and then screwed the DIY rods in place beneath the shelves with wood screws.

To store little things like necklaces and scarves, I installed some modern black hooks to the wall in a couple of different spots. You can never have too many hooks in a closet!

Some art and a faux plant on top of the DIY dresser add some style – these feather prints were a free download, and you can find them right here!

Another simple but useful addition is this wire shoe rack I found at Ikea, it nestles perfectly between the rack and bench that were already in this space to add even more functionality.

It’s so satisfying when you can make a space look custom and stylish with inexpensive materials. It usually takes some creativity and a lot of elbow grease, but I think the results are worth it!

I’m so happy with how this industrial closet makeover turned out, and I hope this project has inspired you to create something similar in your closet!

Learn more about the Brookfield Residential Cadenza show home right here and if you’re local, make sure to come see this DIY in person and enter to win $500 towards making your own DIY project! You can find all of the contest details here on Brookfield’s DIY site.

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