a few weeks ago i decided to get an ikea wardrobe for my bedroom. my current closet is 2 feet deep and a triangle. it's the worst. i have to use kids hangers for half of it because that's all that will fit.

i went to ikea by myself and got all the pieces. this was my first mistake. i'm a very independent lady but those pieces were huge! the wardrobe is almost 8' tall - so the panels are almost 8' long. i should've stopped when i put them on my cart. that should've been a red flag - almost half of the box was hanging off the edge of the big ikea flat carts. but i pushed forward (and sideways and diagonal - we all know how well those ikea carts go straight). then i got to my rented suv. the boxes went from the door of the hatchback to sitting on the dashboard. another few inches and i wouldn't have even been able to close the door.

but again, i soldiered on. then i was home. and had to carry these very heavy pieces up to my second floor apartment. i ended up having to take all the pieces out of the boxes and carrying them one by one. when i had my last few pieces in my hand a nice guy walking by with his daughter saw me struggling and offered to help. at this point i didn't need it, but it was really heartening to know that there are still nice people around.

then i put it together. things were slow going but not bad. everybody seems to hate putting together ikea stuff but i actually kind of enjoy it. as a matter of fact i was so into the whole construction project that i didn't realize that i had the wrong size doors until i had one fully attached.

now, in my defense these doors are exactly half the size of the side panels. so while i may not have read the inventory labels very well, it did make sense as the boxes were stacked that two of the door boxes equals the closet box. this was a whole new mess. i had to rent a car again to return the two small doors and buy two full size ones instead. and carry them all, all over again, by myself.

but now comes the reason this post belongs on here. once i had the wardrobe put together, it felt a little plain. so i found a beautiful henna design online, made it giant and cut it out of contact paper. i loved this idea because it would keep the light and semi reflective surface of the mirrored doors without leaving a giant mirror taking up half my room (i'm not a huge fan of full length mirrors and only bought those specific doors because they were the cheapest).

i really love the way it turned out. it took so much time but it was totally worth it. it still works as a mirror when i need one (now when my roommate bogarts the bathroom in the morning i can do my makeup in my bedroom). i also bought doors for the shorter wardrobe because i knew there was going to be a shelf on the top and it was either going to be hidden or visible. plus this meant i had less trouble getting the new doors in the car and up the stairs!

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in the closet