Design Your Dream Space

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Whether you are designing your own closet system or receiving assistance from a professional closet designer, consider these simple planning steps before getting started.

Are you in the midst of planning your woman cave? An escape place? An area that makes selecting your wardrobe simple? A space that makes it easy to get ready for the day? Share your vision with your closet designer, and let this concept be the driver throughout the entire design process.

Start by taking measurements of the inside of your closet to determine how much space you have to work with. As you sketch, be sure to include any obstacles, such as light switches, outlets and windows.

Depending on who is using the closet, you will want to determine how much space you and your partner will need. Is it divided 50/50? 60/40? 75/25?

When designing a new closet system, the hanging storage is planned first to ensure there is convenient access to items that are used frequently. Account for how much of your hanging clothes is short height (shirts, shorts and skirts) and how much of it is long height (dresses and pants). If you have a lot of shorter items, a double hanging system will be your best friend. Use vertical space to your advantage by hanging items from two or three rods instead of a single rod.

If you have a lot of folded clothing, consider the different storage options that make it simple to get to the items that are worn most often. Open shelving units make it easy to see everything in your closet, or you can include drawers to tuck away your belongings, creating a dresser inside your closet. Top shelves are ideal for stowing seldom-used items.

A versatile organizer with adjustable shelves and hanging rods makes it simple to change or rearrange your closet system whenever you like.

Take count of your shoe collection and note how many you plan to store in your closet. Whether you have two pairs of shoes or 50, there are simple ways to keep them organized and easy to find. Straight shelves can be moved up or down to accommodate different shoe and boot heights, and slanted shoe shelves provide an easy-to-see view of all your footwear. Alternately, you can choose to mix and match slanted and straight shelves in your closet design.

Having a hamper in the closet can save trips to the laundry room and help to keep your space looking clean and tidy. If you're sharing your closet, consider whether you want one or two hampers to separate your laundry or your light and dark clothes. Sturdy wire baskets with full extension glides work great as hampers, or you can choose a tilt-out hamper to conceal clothes neatly behind a door. As you prepare to design your dream closet, remember that functionality and versatility are foremost. Although there are almost endless ways to configure a closet, choose the layout, features, and style that will serve your daily needs and make it easy to maintain a beautifully-organized closet you'll love for years to come.