A walk-in closet is one of the essential and decisive pieces of furniture within a home, and for this reason, it is important to take time and make all the necessary assessments before installing it in the house.
Creating a functional custom closet system is typically not a straightforward task that you can complete quickly with a DIY solution. To build a functional, aesthetically beautiful, and personal design that considers your needs, you’ll need time and, most importantly, avoid common design mistakes that undermine functionality as well as aesthetics.
At the end of the day, you will well spend your money well, and your finished result will be extraordinary, not just “acceptable.” Enlisting a professional closet designer ensures a successful project that results in a closet with the appropriate amount of space for the items being stored.
Here are the most common walk-in closet mistakes you must avoid.
Not Utilizing the Entire Area
A walk-in closet often has ample space. However, most of the closet spaces go unused. Primarily because homeowners are often unaware of the best methods to utilize the space.
Strategically fitting cabinets, drawers, and hanging bars into every available space could be an excellent way to use the available space. Similarly, to fully utilize the walk-in closet, make the most of every inch of wall space. You can even install shelves high off the ground to store less frequently used items and reach them with a short stepladder.
Overlooking the Contents
It’s a common mistake that homeowners usually commit while designing a walk-in closet. People emphasize more on the decorative aspect instead of practicality. Instead of designing a cabinet according to your decorative desire, it’s more important to ask yourself the question of its content.
Homeowners do not clearly define their needs at the start. They do not give enough thought to what they want to store in the closet. For storage to be efficient, you must optimize the space.
Therefore, before giving shape to your walk-in closet, determine first about the content. You can then optimize the storage space according to the need. For instance, vary the column widths or shelf thicknesses according to the weight to be supported.
Missing the Measurements
When designing a walk-in closet, measurement is the key. Unfortunately, you might overlook this aspect, committing one of the biggest walk-in closet mistakes. The result is a closet that does not fit in the intended space.
Subsequently, while designing the walk-in closet, it’s essential to check the measurements several times during the design phase to avoid the slightest error.
It is better to waste a few minutes to measure than several months to redo your furniture. Also, make sure to leave a gap of about 3 cm from the top and sides to leave a margin that allows fitting in the furniture properly.
Lack of Adequate Lighting
Lighting is crucial in a closet, yet it is sometimes disregarded. Aside from the obvious benefit of improved visibility, you can use lighting in various ways to improve your closet experience.
Further, this can aid in the finding of goods that have been moved to less accessible locations of the closet or drawers. The lighting in this room should be enough to illuminate the area brightly. Besides storing your clothes and accessories, it’s the room where you will be applying makeup, putting on jewelry, or just doing a final check before heading out the door.
You can use puck or strip cabinet lighting to illuminate glass shelves and cabinets with either glass doors or solid doors for aesthetic or functional purposes. You can also use lighting to set the tone of the room. After all, this is your closet! Collectables, purses and wallets, shoes, and jewelry, for instance, can be displayed stylishly through intricate use of lighting.
You can usually install several types of low voltage Led bulbs (which consume very little electricity and do not generate heat) without the need for an electrician, depending on the available outlets in your closet.
Not Customizing the Environment
Functionality is essential, but the eyes want their part too. Will you enter an unorganized, messy space? Certainly not. A Walk-in closet is a place you will use a lot to dress up for occasions.
Accordingly, the area should be pleasing and welcoming. People often do not customize the walk-in closet and make it a cold, dull place. It’s vital to choose an aesthetically pleasing furnishing and impose on both furniture and accessories. To spruce up the environment, a modern walk-in closet should include glass and aluminum partitions, metal clothes rails inside, and a few other frills.
Further, to add some extra glamour, you can also have floral patterns and bright colors, a large full-length mirror, and also an armchair or a sofa.
Not Considering the Organization
Avoid having a beautiful closet to look at but impossible to manage, although that is often the case with many homeowners. The reason is not taking into account the interiors of the walk-in closet and how everything will fit.
Consequently, when selecting the design, also take into account the options offered. These should reflect on the number of drawers, shelves, and rods to be installed. Making sure your closet organization is perfect is a good step while designing a walk-in closet.
Besides, you can integrate some ready-made shelves and accessories later and make necessary arrangements if needed.
Having a Rigid Layout
While designing a walk-in closet, people do not take into account the change of needs with time. As time passes, the situation changes in homes as well. Hence, ignoring flexibility is one of the most common walk-in closet mistakes.
It is therefore essential for the closet to be flexible enough to meet the changing needs. The idea is to avoid a system that is too rigid instead of a storage space that is modular and flexible.
The closet should be able to adapt the height of the shelf according to the desired use. Pre-drilled holes with metal cleats could also be a good option for changing the place of shelves as and when required.