a place for shoes

I have always wanted one of these locker/cubby style benches. Now i finally have one. But I didn't get it at Pottery Barn, I made it. Well, I had a lot of help from my dad, but we had a good time putting it together. I got the pattern from knock off wood.  We modified it a little bit and used 1x12 pine boards for all of it. Dad thought it would be more sturdy since the boys will be crawling all over it. You really should check out that site though, I have tons of ideas for my next project.

This is where the boys put their shoes. I had the green carpet tiles already (I got those at flor.) I think the tiles will help keep it a little cleaner in there, since I can pull them out and shake them. The baskets I found at Target. They just happen to fit perfectly on the bottom. They hold hats and gloves right now.

Each boy has their own cubby. I painted the back of each cubby with chalkboard paint. I'm going to write their names in each one, but chalkboard paint has to cure for three days before you write on it. There will also be two hooks in each cubby, giving them a place for their bookbags and coats.  Mom found me some hooks, but I haven't seen her yet to get them!

Of course, we have to have a place for Matt's tractors. These tractors are really irritating to me. No one can play with them. They have boxes that we can't get rid of because they're not worth as much money without the boxes. So not only to I have these tractors around that I have to dust, I have to store the boxes too! But I digress....



Really though, I am extremely happy about how this all came out! It's a great place for the boys to put their things and I think it looks good too! The whole thing cost me about $100. I purchased the wood, screws, and a countersinker for the screws. I still have screws and of course the countersink for next time. The paint was $7 for a quart at home depot. I honestly don't know how much the chalk board paint cost me. I just bought it because I knew I wanted it. The baskets were $12 at Target. So for about $150 I got a great looking cabinet!