This week, I’m focusing on finishing my studio. I made progress over the weekend, but it’s not finished yet. I didn’t expect it to be. I haven’t even started reupholstering the desk chair, and I still have a lot of organizing and cleaning to do. So I won’t be blogging about my studio this week, but know that I’m working hard behind the scenes to finish it. And I’ll let you know as soon as I have something interesting (or finished) to share.
Meanwhile, last week I received a comment on a post that I haven’t been able to get out of my head. The comment was in reference to my plan to convert our current (guest) bedroom into a combination closet and exercise room. The commenter said:
“Can I make a suggestion? Before you fully commit to the idea of using part of what will become your bedroom closet as a workout space, consider other possible solutions for that space. Your workout space needs to be able to be separately ventilated, for reasons of built-up moisture and for Matt’s comfort while he works out, and also because over time your clothes will just absorb and retain that high school boys’ gym locker room smell. Everything will start to smell like cheap gin and dirty, sweaty socks, and it will quickly become permanent. I urge you to reconsider this idea if you don’t want everything you own to smell like the inside of a teenager’s sneaker. There has to be another space you can cheaply convert or expand without going into debt in order to have a workout area.”
Of course, she wasn’t the first person to suggest that. Several people urged me not to combine a closet and a workout area for that very reason, but I couldn’t find anywhere else to put a workout area. So I abandoned the idea and settled for the fact that I would have to have a combination closet and gym.
But the idea of having that whole room dedicated to wardrobes and storage space really appealed to me. I imagined a nice walk-in closet, with IKEA Pax wardrobes not just on one wall, but on both. And then I could have more storage space in the middle. Something like that, not in terms of style (I use IKEA Pax), but in the way it is organized, with storage space on both side walls and also in the middle of the room…
Photo by American Tradition Builders, Inc. – Find closet ideas
But we have to have a home gym or workout area of some sort. That’s not even a negotiable issue for us. Matt needs to use his Theracycle every day if possible, and while I don’t need Any piece of exercise equipment is good to have. I have more incentive to exercise if I have several different options, so I want to keep it if I can.
Once again, I looked at the floor plan to see if I could find a solution. I see two options.
Option 1:
The first option is to combine the closet and laundry room into one room. I know, I know! I can already hear some of you yelling at me. “Kristi, I suggested that!” I feel you. I know many of you suggested it and I didn’t like the idea at the time, but I’m starting to come around to it.
First, it would make things a lot easier. That room has a pier-and-beam foundation, so running plumbing to that room for the washer, dryer, and water heater would be quick and easy. Converting the pantry into a laundry room would be much more difficult and much more expensive because it has a slab foundation.
Another thing in favor of this idea is that it could be done sooner rather than later. That is, as soon as our new bedroom is finished and we move in, and as soon as I start converting the guest bedroom into a closet, I could move my washer, dryer, and water heater into that room as well. I no longer have to wait for a laundry room.
With this plan, we free up the pantry to be our workout area. The downside is that the room is only 7′ x 12′. That’s not a lot of space, and there’s no way to expand it. That size is set in stone. But it’s enough room for my new smaller treadmill, Matt’s Theracycle, my trampoline, our set of free weights, and a couple kettlebells. Another downside is that it will be right next to the kitchen. That seems awkward.
Option 2:
The second option that occurred to me was to build a completely separate small building in our backyard. It could be near the end of the house where the bedrooms are, around here…
I went to the website of the company that is building my shop just to see what I could do. If we keep it under 200 square feet, I don’t need a permit from the city. Then I came up with this cute 12′ x 16′ sloping shed that would cost around $9500.
It’s 192 square feet, so we could build it without the city getting involved in the process. And it’s nice! We certainly have plenty of room for it on our one-acre lot. The downside is that Matt would have to go outside to access it. That’s fine most days here in Central Texas, but I wonder what will happen on rainy days or really cold days.
So those are my thoughts so far. As I work in the studio this week, I’ll continue to mull over these ideas. I really like the idea of my closet not having to share space with exercise equipment and sweaty people. I know that’s not ideal. I may have to live with that for at least a short while, but now that I’ve considered other options, I feel more convinced that I’d like to find another home for our exercise equipment.
Addicted 2 Decorating is a place where I share my DIY and decorating experience while remodeling and decorating the 1948 home my husband Matt and I purchased in 2013. Matt has multiple sclerosis and is unable to do physical labor, so I do most of the work around the house alone. You can learn more about me here.
