Category: DIY

Closet Update: An Ikea Komplement Add-On

Back when I finished my walk-in closet in 2022, I truly thought I was done and had the closet of my dreams. You can read all about it, including how much it cost, here. Well, after living with it for about 4 years AND after moving to a mostly remote job… I started to realize it could use a little tweaking.

Here is the section that I was looking at for some edits:

I had it organized with summer dresses on the far left, skirts in the middle (summer at the top, winter at the bottom), and then winter and formal dresses on the right. Also, that basket at the bottom of the left cubby is my “stuff that needs to be donated to the thrift store” pile.

Over the years, my work wardrobe has become much more athleisure heavy. I was using a dresser in my bedroom to store my t-shirts, bottoms and sweatshirts. However, between the gigantic oversized drawers that made it hard to organize and the fact that it’s over 20 years old and one drawer keeps falling apart… I was looking for a better alternative.

I decided to combine my dresses into one area and utilize the now empty space in a different way.

I purchased the following from Ikea to add to my closet for the update:

Building the drawers was pretty straight forward, however they are quite fussy and you need to have everything EXACTLY lined up or they won’t fit onto the contraption for the final step. There was a lot of cursing and a smashed finger which resulted in quite an impressive blood blister, but I got it done.

Tips for if you do it on your own: have an electric screwdriver handy, as well as a flathead and a hammer. Also, don’t be like me and put each drawer together while sitting on the ground and contorting yourself like a gremlin. It would be much smarter to build them on top of a soft bed/comforter so that you can stand while doing it.

Here is the finished project:

I left the hanging bar at the top for my nicer camera-appropriate athleisure toppers. Then, I utilized the four drawers to better meet my needs.

  • Drawer 1: t-shirts
  • Drawer 2: long sleeve t-shirts
  • Drawer 3: hoodies/sweatshirts
  • Drawer 4: joggers/sweatpants

I love the new set up and it seems to work much better for my current life and needs.

And yes, I do feel like my dress and skirts sections are packed a little too tight for my comfort. So, I am working on yet another purge to narrow it down to just the items that I fully love.

Disclaimer: This post contains no affiliate links.

Quick DIY Fix for Tiered Skirts That Fit Weird

I thought I had shared this tip before, but I did a quick look through my previous posts and didn’t see it… so I wanted to make sure this idea gets ejected from my brain in case it helps someone else. Okay, so you know how I love, love, love a good flowy skirt? Obviously. And I find myself drawn to those tiered skirts of the mid-90’s because they are just a fabulous kind of boho chic.

However, sometimes the top tier is a bit rude in how it fits my tummy.

At some point over the last few years, I realized I could just CUT THE TOP OFF.  So, instead of having a too-tight top tier, I cut the top tier off entirely and then reattach the waistband to the next tier (which has more room).

I did this previously with a Laura Ashley skirt

And I just did this again with a newly thrifted Kerri Rosenthal skirt. I thrifted the skirt for under $10 and when I did my online research after the fact, I found that it retails for $328. Sure, I could have listed it for sale to try and make some money off of it, but I LIKED the skirt. And the whole idea of thrifting is to buy things to wear and keep them out of a landfill, right?

So, I grabbed my trusty scissors, chopped the top tier off and then reattached the next tier to the existing waistband. I didn’t even get my sewing machine out, I just hand sewed it. After I got everything in place, I then chopped the interior slip a bit shorter (so it didn’t stick out) and did a quick running stitch by hand for a new hem. That was it!

And now, I have a gorgeous flowy, cotton and lace skirt that fits my body well. For $10 and a little elbow grease.

Creating a Floating Fairy Forest Hanging Terrarium

I shared back in February 2025 when I first went to a local shop for a Preserved Moss Art Frame Class. Well, I saw that they were offering a new Floating Fairy Forest Hanging Terrarium class, so I signed up to make one with my friend Lindsey.

Lindsey is my green thumb plant goddess friend, who has helped me keep my ever-growing assortment of indoor plants alive at my house. So obviously she’d join me for a plant class, which came with a side of shopping the store afterwards. And tacos and margaritas. Which were not part of the class, but were very much needed.

Back to the class — each member of the group received the glass hanging terrarium, an assortment of soil, charcoal, stones, mix to add for drainage, three little plants (one we got to choose), and some adorable little mushrooms, green rocks, a lamp post and a string of lights.

Then they walked us step-by-step on how to add everything into our terrariums. Everyone was super nice and I totally wanted to bring home a bunch of new friends with me, but I’m shy in groups and I feel like it would be weird to ask new people to be my friend. The class was super fun and I really liked watching how everyone chose to combine their items,

I’m so happy with how mine turned out! When I got it home, I tried it in a few different areas in my house and ultimately decided on our master bathroom.

I feel like it gets good light AND good humidity for all the healthy terrarium needs. Now cross your fingers with me that it flourishes and grows!