What do you do when you need more storage and office space in your two bedroom patio home? Well, if you’re frugal like my cousin Terry, you go thrift shopping and score a great deal on this piece to make a repurposed tv armoire project (for office storage).
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If you take a close look at this gynormous piece of furniture, you may think that a couple of strong young men may be able to easily pack it into one of the 2 bedrooms. Well, even if we had said young men, this monster was too large to make the turns into the small hallway to get it into the bedroom.
What’s the answer? Like a good magic show act, we’ll saw this little lady in half!
In order to make the job a little easier, we enlisted the help of another pickup truck.
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With a little adjustment, the armoire rests on each of the tailgates, allowing enough room to make a nice cut allowing the armoire to be in two pieces, and more easily managed.
We began by removing the doors, shelves, and trim. Then I started sawing up one side with my small Ryobi circular saw.
Then I cut the other side. If you look closely you can see that I cut it right below the permanent shelf.
Here is the bottom half of the monstrous armoire—divide and conquer!
Although the top half of the armoire is still large, it too is more manageable.
There were some repairs that needed to be done to sturdy up the bottom, with some creative clamping. Terry and I make a good team. Do you remember when she helped me install the barn door?
We added a cross brace to help reattach the top to the bottom.
Terry added some trim on either side that will mask the seam when the two pieces are put back together. The top is resting on makeshift furniture dolly, allowing me to easily move it around by myself. I have it taped and papered ready to head to the paint booth.
I have the two large doors resting on top of the bottom portion, allowing me to paint it all with my well loved and much used HomeRight Finish Max 
I used my usual paint technique. A couple of light coats of DIY chalky paint primer (made from Behr semi-gloss), then a couple of coats of the Behr semi-gloss as a top coat. It’s my favorite way to paint.
Here’s a nice close-up of the great paint job. I recommended that we not paint the inside of the armoire. I knew Terry would be giving this piece a work out in her home office and that the slick surface would be difficult to get a “manufactured” finish that would last.
The armoire was moved into the home in two pieces, making turns around corners with no problems.
Now the former tv armoire is now an “office in a cabinet”, making it invisible when not in use. It’s the perfect office solution for a small space. Terry added a shelf to the wall where there wasn’t a back on the armoire.
It was a big job, but when you work on a project for family, it doesn’t really matter. So, if you’ve been wanting a large piece of furniture in a tight space, have you ever thought about cutting it in half?
gail
Related content:
Kids Art Center from a Small Armoire
Hi, there! Iām Gail, the author and mastermind behind My Repurposed Life. Iām obsessed with finding potential in unexpected places and believe that with a little hard work and imagination, any old thing can be made useful againāmyself included! I hope youāll enjoy the journey and pick up a few tools along the wayā¦ literally!
Jennie
Ok, I love this idea. Iām wondering if making the bottom into a file drawer or drawers. Making the doors as the front of each drawer. Not only for documents, but I keep my good card stock, prints Iāve done with Lino blocks Iāve cut, and patterns. In a file cabinet.
Gail Wilson
Maris,
It was a behr color, but I think they discontinued it. I got a paint deck last month, and I didn't find it in there. It was beluga. I typically do a couple of coats of semi-gloss with the plaster of paris, then a couple of coats of the semi-gloss without the plaster of paris.
Thanks for your sweet comment.
gail
Sue
I really like the projects, but most of your projects are not for the "novice" . A lot of people, including myself, aren't skilled in this level of carpentry.
gail@myrepurposedlife.com
Sue,
Granted, this is one of my more difficult projects, but did you know I have over 300 Easy projects listed on the blog? You can see them here: https://www.myrepurposedlife.com/category/easy/
I hope you find something there to inspire you to think outside the box!
gail
Phyllis
Do you paint the chalk paint primer on by hand or with the sprayer? If you spray, does it clog up the sprayer?
gail@myrepurposedlife.com
I spray 99% of all of my furniture projects with my HomeRight Finish Max including ASCP, and DIY chalky paint made with Plaster of Paris. You can see more details here: https://www.myrepurposedlife.com/2014/02/paints-to-use-in-your-finishmax.html
I strain all of my paint, you'll see that in the post I've linked to above.
gail
Cynthia - Clockwork Interiors
Speechless!! If there was an award for ingenuity, you'd win the prize hands down!! RESPECT for your mad skills and BRAVERY! š Not to mention the beautiful makeover! IMO, black paint makes everything look more current and expensive. And lastly, jealous that you have a spray booth! I was spraying doors outside today and don't even want to know how many little bugs are on them! haha
Paige @ Little Nostalgia
LOVE! I think using an old armoire as office storage is just brilliant.
Catherine
Great job Gail--great REuse of something most people have been
ditching for years now! Hmmmm. . . ; D
Catherine
Bernadette
The cabinet appears to be made of particle board laminated with fake wood grain. I wouldn't have guessed that, with the right treatment, it could look so good.
Pam
LOL.....you would wear me out watching you! Although I think you and I would have a blast! Great job lady...great job.
Karen C
Wish I lived near you so I could apprentice with you and learn. I'm so impressed with all your work.
Mindi
This is brilliant! What I want to know is how you got such amazingly straight perfect cuts? Just awesome. Can I be like you when I grow up? Lol! I love that you and Terry make such a great team it is always fun to do projects with family!
gail@myrepurposedlife.com
Mindi,
Do you have that saw? It is so easy to operate and control--so the straight lines were easy. I'm not so good with a large circular saw. š
gail
Tracy Shudo
This was a great tutorial with the use of the two trucks, brilliant I would say. Just found your site and will be using ideas' Thanks for sharing Tracy from Vancouver Canada
gail@myrepurposedlife.com
Thank You Tracy! Welcome to My Repurposed Life!!! I hope to inspire you.
gail
Laurel Stephens
This is fantastic! We bought a big armoire last year that came in two pieces just like you created. When we moved it to do our floors recently we were SO thankful it was in those two pieces. It would be impossible to move otherwise. You are SO SMART!
gail@myrepurposedlife.com
I had no idea any of those monsters came in 2 pieces! That is fabulous!
Bliss
I swear you don't know the words; can't, won't, or doesn't fit!
terry hayes
Thank you for helping me with this project. I really needed the organization and space and it turned out just like I envisioned. It is so much fun working with you, tossing ideas around and watching how you work. I know we will do lots more projects.
gail@myrepurposedlife.com
I'm so happy that we worked on this project together! Thanks for checking out the blog and leaving a comment!
Tracy@www.bluridgevintage.com
Now this is some added work space that is invisible. This will remove lots of extra office equipment that really doesn't need to be out and cluttering up a nice space. Gail, another great project that you have mastered for us. Great thinking on separating the two pieces and hauling that beauty in. You and Terry do make a good team and work on some really great projects together.