The garage has become an integral part of many houses in the last 50 years. They are a main entryway into the house, and the door can have a huge affect on the overall look of the house’s facade. Upgrading your garage door can add great style and value to your home, and upgrading your garage interior can help you to feel more relaxed and organized in life. While your garage door and interior may need a makeover, there are ways to do that yourself and make your garage look classy and distinguished without costing much at all!
Making Over the Door
Gel Stain: This is quite easy and will completely change your door in an afternoon. Give your door a good cleaning and then apply a coat of gel stain. You can just use a simple brush. Try to complete it in one afternoon and you might want to apply a glaze on top for protection. Here is an excellent example: Garage Door Stain Makeover.
Carriage Doors: With some simple hardware (or wood made to look like hardware), a traditional garage door can be made to look like a carriage style door to great effect.
Faux Windows: If your door has recessed rectangles, you can paint the top row to look like windows from afar. Fill them in with black paint or use faux window stickers and surround them with trim. If you already have windows in your garage door, you can add thin strips of wood to separate them into panes and create a classier look.
Making Over the Interior
Break up your (likely intimidating) job into three steps.
Step One: Clear out the clutter. Get rid of everything you can. Erin Gentry, Associate Public Relations and Consumer Engagement Manager at Rubbermaid. “Be brutal when you are sorting. Get rid of anything you haven’t used in the past year.” Try to separate items you’re getting rid of into piles: toss, recycle, donate, or sell.
Step Two: Make a Plan. Before putting the garage back together, take the time to plan your attack. Do the walls need new paint? What items should go together – based on task or interest or accessibility? What items should be easiest to access or closest to the outside door? And don’t forget to think vertically! Getting items off the floor greatly increases your usable space.
Step Three: Choose Solutions. Now that you have a plan, you can put implement it. There are many cheap options to organize your garage the way you would like. Tall cabinets can use vertical space and may have locks for toxic items. Racks can help get things off the floor – and may even attach to the ceiling. Shelves are great for easy access. Hooks are incredibly versatile and cheap for hanging whatever you’d like. And labeled, stackable bins are a classic of organization.
With a little bit of stain and a few hooks and shelves, you can affordably create a seemingly entirely new garage in no time at all!
