Watch the Brownstone Boys Transform a Closet Into a Home Office
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Illustration: Julia Abbonizio
Welcome to DIY Diary. Each entry covers a new home improvement project. Here, New York DIY experts Barry and Jordan of the Brownstone Boys turn their spare closet into a stylish work nook.
City living and spare square footage rarely go hand in hand.
That’s why it’s no surprise that Barry Bordelon and Jordan Slocum, the Brooklyn-based couple known as the Brownstone Boys, wanted to use every inch of their 1890s Bedford-Stuyvesant brownstone to the best of their ability. With tenants living on the garden level and the main floor consuming most of their living space, they turned to an under-utilized closet on the top floor to create a multifunctional “cloffice,” or closet-office combination.
“Barry and I have an unconventional way of working, and we like inspiring spaces that are comfortable and cozy,” Slocum says. “So we said, ‘What if we turn our closet that was really abandoned into a cloffice?’”
With their team occasionally working out of their home, the Brownstone Boys craved a comfortable spot where people could quietly get some work done. But they also wanted the option to use the cloffice for storage, whether it’s shelving for books or a spot to hang winter coats. Armed with a bevy of supplies and overflowing with inspiration, they tackled the cloffice head-on. Follow along on their journey as they transform the space:
What the Brownstone Boys used for their DIY office:
For the doors:
Vintage knobs from House of Antique Hardware
For the fabric wallpaper:
For the shelves:
For the desk:
Butcherblock desk
Existing desk chair
For the decor:
Door lettering
Step 1: Creating custom French-inspired doors
The closet’s existing accordion door had a single panel on each accordion. Using an oscillating saw, they cut off the interior panels of the doors, and sanded down the rough edges. The panels were then replaced with textured glass the Boys spotted at their local glass shop in Brooklyn.
“We really love that textured glass that we ended up picking because it had the vintage look, but it also would complement the purple paint,” says Slocum. “I think it just really elevated the overall aesthetic that we were trying to achieve in the room.”
Knowing the room gets a lot of beautiful natural light throughout the day, the Boys wanted the doors to be a color that could create a “dark, moody space.” They settled on Farrow and Ball Brinjal, “the perfect shade of purple meets maroon,” Bordelon notes. After painting the front and back of the doors, they used a cordless drill to add the vintage knobs.
Step 2: The interior walls
Once the doors were complete, Jordan and Barry could delve into the closet’s interior to create the perfect fusion of a closet and office. After pulling all existing items out of the closet, they cut the fabric wallpaper to size for the closet’s interior walls. Climbing to the top of a ladder, they tacked up the fabric for the back wall, and used re-positionable spray adhesive to hold it into place.
“That adhesive truly was a game-changer in this space,” says Slocum, who then used a smoother to keep the fabric tightly against the wall. Next, they rolled liquid starch on the top of the fabric with a paint roller to make sure the fabric stayed straight and stiff.
Starting on the left-side fabric panel, the Boys made sure to match the seam with the fabric next to it. “With wallpaper, you always want to match the corners and the seams,” says Slocum.
Once the fabric was installed and trimmed, they used a small brush to paint the interior baseboards with Farrow and Ball Green Smoke, a color the Boys had previously spotted in a leftover can in their basement. They felt it paired beautifully with the Brinjal shade.
Step 3: The shelves
After deciding to use the same Green Smoke shade for the shelves, the two pieces of lumber were drenched in the color with a handheld stain sprayer. Next, they put drywall anchors into the closet wall to provide extra durability to hold up books and hanging clothes. They drilled brackets from Etsy into the wall before placing the green shelf tiers on top.
Step 4: Adding wall sconces
Looking to avoid the headache of adding new electrical wiring, they chose battery-operated wall sconces to provide lighting. They used a drill to drive holes into the wall, and secured the sconces on top.
“They're LED so you can just charge them up, and they give off really great hues depending on what kind of lighting you want to use for working or at night," says Slocum.
Step 5: The stenciling
To complete the space and leave their mark, they stenciled capital Bs on each of the doors. Slocum describes that personable touch as “the cherry on top of the sundae.” After sticking the adhesives to the glass, they used a smoother to ensure they stuck fully.
“You should make any space personable. Even though it’s Jordan and Barry, we wanted it to be kind of an office setting. So because of that, we added the ‘BB’ stencils for Brownstone Boys,” says Slocum. “It just makes it one of a kind, as anybody designing a space for themselves should make their space their own.”
Step 6: Building the desk
While stripping the paint off a staircase on another job, the Brownstone Boys were inspired by the staircase’s balusters. It was then they realized they could make a desk from the cloffice out of balusters. They cut all the wood pieces to size using a miter saw and nail gun. A butcher block that was stained for a vintage feel served as the desk’s top part, supported below by wood brackets. The balusters were installed in between each bracket “just to give it a nice base,” says Slocum. Casters underneath allow the desk to be wheeled around the space for extra mobility. The last step was adding drawers underneath the butcher block for extra storage.
Slocum cites the construction of the desk as the most challenging aspect of the project since it needs to be able to support the weight of whatever’s on top of it.
Step 7: Personal touches
Once all the foundational aspects were in place, the Boys could furnish the cloffice with their personal touches. A small gallery wall includes fun pieces like a picture of their pug, Zuko. There’s a drawing of one of their first brownstone projects and a photo of Jordan and Barry on one of their earlier dates. Naturally, a sign on the desk reads “What Would Beyonce Do?”
With the space complete, the Brownstone Boys team uses it “all the time.” But it also encourages them to think more about how they use a multifunctional space. It’s all a part of the Boys’ mentality for heading in the new year.
“We just want to be very mindful with what we collect,” Slocum explained, noting that whether the office is being used to store winter coats or provide a peaceful spot to get work done during the day, it’s ultimately a major win. “We love it. It really is a multifunctional space.”
Originally Appeared on Architectural Digest
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