Woman Sharing One Room With Her Daughter In Her Mother’s NYC Apartment Had 48 Hours To Empty Two Closets Not Painted In 50 Years And Found Her Grandfather’s Old Tools

Susan Parker

2 hours ago

Imagine having 48 hours to completely empty two closets that have not seen a coat of paint in about 50 years, while living in one room of your mother’s New York City apartment with your daughter. That was the challenge Geraldine Bien set for herself, and she took the whole thing on camera.

The apartment is on the Upper East Side, and space is tight. Bien and her daughter share one room, her mother is in the next room, and everyone’s routine depends on the small space, so there is no spare room to work in. Bien also co-parents with her ex, and one of her kids is downtown for part of the week, which is why the work had to fit between trips.

Two Closets, One Big Problem

One closet is shallow and was made for linens. The other has always been known as the art closet and has housed all kinds of things through the years, mostly art-related. The trouble, Bien explains, is that the linens had ended up in the art closet along with dirty brooms, mops, tools and art materials.

Her plan was to clean both closets out and have them painted, not only to maintain the walls but because fresh paint gives a clean slate. She says she is doing it now so she never has to do it in an emergency.

The 48 Hour Clock

The schedule was strict. The painters were due to arrive in 12 hours, and in that time the closets had to be cleared completely. Because they had not been painted in roughly 50 years, they needed at least a couple of coats, and the paint needed a full 24 hours to dry. That left 12 hours to put everything back in an organized way.

To really see what she was working with, Bien emptied both spaces entirely rather than shuffling things around. Even the hooks she had installed in an earlier project came down before the painters walked in. Her daughter pitched in, handing items along and helping sort through bags of Christmas lights and colored paper.

A Box Of Her Grandfather’s Tools

Somewhere in the middle of the clearing, Bien found her grandfather’s old tools in a cardboard box that was totally ripped and falling apart. It clearly could not handle the weight of the tools. She picked up a black box that fit all of them, and she says it was cool to see them again and to give them a designated spot.

It is the kind of discovery that makes a big clean-out feel worthwhile. Old tools tucked in a battered carton are easy to lose or damage, while the same tools in a sturdy box with a proper place on the shelf can last another generation. Bien admits it is not easy going through a closet like this, but, as she puts it, somebody needs to do it.

Why She Hired Help

Bien got help painting the inside of the closets, which she says she could not have done herself in such a short amount of time. She had a message for others in her age group: if you are past 50 and have always done everything yourself, you know the feeling of wanting to power through. At a certain point, she says, her body was talking louder and louder, and she had to listen.

She calls hiring a luxury but also truly money well spent, and a new category of taking care of herself. It is a useful thought for anyone who has been stubbornly doing every household job alone. Paying a painter for a day can protect your back and your schedule, and it can finish a job that would otherwise drag on for weeks.

Making The Closets Work For Everyone

Bien wanted the closets to be functional for multiple people. If she is not there one day and someone is filling in for her mother, she wants that person to be able to quickly figure out where the sheets and towels are and where other supplies are kept.

When she first brought up switching the linens back into the linen closet, her mother was adamant that Bien not do it and wanted everything to remain exactly where it was. Over time, Bien had to restate her case for supporting the changing needs of the apartment. She reassured her mother that projects they wanted to work on together could easily be brought out to the table from a few more feet away. Bien says her mother has shifted quite a bit in the last year and has become more flexible than she ever thought possible.

In the end, the art closet is only needed for a broom, a mop and some cleaning supplies. The linens went back to the linen closet, stacked by size along with some other medical supplies and paper towels, easy to understand at one glance. Bien also folded in some supplies that always end up on the daybed. She says it feels good just to take care of things, put them in order, make them clean and nice, and maintain them.

Lessons For Your Own Closets

Bien did not paint the third closet, which sits right in the hallway doorway. It would have caused too much inconvenience, and she had nowhere to put everything at once, so she decided to bite off what she could chew. Closet space is precious in New York City, where she says ample closets make life seem possible, and she notes the apartment has three closets in the hallway plus a broom closet.

Her approach offers a few ideas anyone can borrow. Pick a deadline that forces a decision, and tackle fewer spaces so you can finish them properly. Empty a closet completely before you decide what goes back, because you cannot judge clutter you cannot see. Give every item a home that a stranger could find, and use the right container for things that matter, as she did with the tools. If a space needs painting, do it while it is empty, and let it dry fully before anything goes back in.

While the paint was still wet, Bien stepped out of the apartment for a bakery run. When she got back, she was ready to prep long-term storage items and organize the supplies that would return to the closets. It is a calm finish to a stressful two days, and a reminder that a clean slate can be a gift to everyone who shares a home.