Our annual Great Garage Makeover Contest Sponsored by The Daily Herald is always a hit, we get some terrific entries from some fabulous folks, over 3,000 entries in all, but only one can win.
Congratulations to Stephanie Piszkiewicz, our 2019 winner. She is currently enjoying her completely renovated garage, with $5,000 worth of improvements. An avid gardener, Piszkiewicz needed her garage to be functional and keep her gardening tools and supplies easily accessed, her car to fit, and the flooring to be updated after over 50 years of wear-and-tear.
“The job that Garage Store did in my garage was a drastic improvement,” said Piszkiewicz. “This house was built in 1963 and I bought it from my parents last spring. They had lived here for decades and the garage needed work.”
Flooring Update
The garage floor was significantly damaged after over 5 decades of use and road salt. In her entry, Piszkiewicz explained, “I can sweep leaves and debris from my garage, but fine particulates just stick around. Blowing out the debris only makes the dust airborne. Getting a smooth, sealed surface to sweep out would make me so happy.”
The garage floor was repaired and coated with a textured gray flake system with a UV-stable top coat finish.
“I had a choice of several colors for the floor and chose flake gray. Then they did pretty significant grinding of the floor; filled some divots and did the several-step coating, which includes a vapor barrier. The process took about three days and it is gorgeous,” she said. “To win the floor alone would have been worth entering the contest. I would do it again in a heartbeat.”
Storage & Organization
“My old, warped peg board currently holds some of my tools, but not nearly all of them can fit on the board,” she continued. “And as a shorter person, I have greater difficulty reaching the permanent shelves in my garage, so I tend to leave things where I can quickly reach them: the floor. Cabinets like yours would elevate my driveway salt and windshield washer fluid, lower my WD-40 and marking spray paint, and contain my odds and ends while putting everything within easy reach. No more lugging around a step stool to reach the shelves in my garage!” Piszkiewicz explained in her entry.
After painting the walls, a Gladiator Gearwalls storage system was installed. The system includes hooks, baskets, and a large powder-coated, moveable, steel cabinet for storing gardening chemicals, automotive items, etc.
The Garage Store crew also spray painted the rusty I-beam, center post, and installed new vinyl baseboard trim.
Beyond the Makeover
Piszkiewicz purchased her home from her parents last spring. Thee house was built in 1963. The Makeover didn’t just get her items organized and the flooring repaired. It allowed her to clear out 56 years’ worth of clutter and accumulation left by her parents.
“It is so gorgeous in here now that I could hold a party here,” Piszkiewicz said.
Call the Garage Store Professionals
Garage Store has been helping homeowners reclaim their garage, transform their spaces and create new “rooms” in their homes since 2007.
Whether you need a full makeover or a bit of a tweak, Garage Store can help. Solutions range from $300 to $10,000 for a total garage makeover.
“We can custom design your garage to meet your needs and budget. As our T-shirts state, ‘It’s not just a garage. We create it. You enjoy it,’ ” Melchert said.
Garage Store is the Chicago regional designer and installer of Gladiator GarageWorks powder-coated steel cabinets, made by Whirlpool, which come in silver, red or white. They also carry hooks, baskets and shelves for the Gladiator Gearwall system, as well as ceiling-mounted bike pulley systems, custom overhead storage racks, and car lifts for stacking and storing vehicles.
