Wardrobes & Storage

Wardrobes have come a long way from being just a shelf and pole providing poor storage and sagging in the middle! Now a good designer can incorporate everything from double hanging spaces, drawers, and sliding shoe shelves to pull-out mirrors, laundry baskets and even an ironing board.  Storage is critical for all the things you collect over the years and are convinced you need to keep. Not to mention they are becoming an essential item

Wardrobes
Today, reach-in wardrobes are most common in children’s and guest rooms, while most new homes are being designed with walk-in-wardrobes in the master bedroom, with enough space to suit your lifestyle and needs. There is an increasing trend in luxury homes to have built-in wardrobe furniture where clothing, shoes and accessories can be displayed.

Where budget allows, there’s nothing quite so good as a custom designed wardrobe: a good designer will ensure that every inch of space is put to use, providing as much room as possible for storage.

A storage supplier that uses New Zealand–made materials and quality accessories is likely to give you greater design flexibility, and if you want to add to your wardrobes later on you can be certain of a product match.

Wardrobes should fit your tastes and needs, rather than the traditional ‘one size fits all’ approach. So spend time with a designer to come up with wardrobes that are ergonomic and stylish, fit with your planned room décor, and suit your requirements for tomorrow – not just today.

 

Here are some key design issues.

Plan the overall shape and size of wardrobe as early as possibly – certainly before you decorate the room. Colours and shelving options can come later if necessary.
Pick a shape – e.g. L-shape, galley style, etc. – that will make the best use of your space.
Think, too, about how you’ll arrange the rest of the bedroom furniture, so as to get the best ergonomic flow. There’s nothing worse than a wardrobe door that can’t be fully opened because there’s no room!
Do you want separate storage for each type of clothing – evening wear, work wear, casual wear, shoes, belts, etc.? And what about spare bedding?
How much long hanging space will you need for coats, long dresses and dressing gowns?
Do you need built-in drawers to minimise furniture in the bedrooms?
How much shelf space will you require? And if you’re sharing with your partner, will it be a straight fifty-fifty split of the space?
What budget range are you comfortable with?
What depth should your wardrobe be? For example, at a 300mm depth, folded clothing will overhang the shelving and hanging items will project.
Where will you store your shoes? On the floor, shoe racks, sliding shelves, or a shelf around the base?
Consider features such as pull-out trouser racks, tie or accessory drawers, hide-away mirrors or laundry storage.
Doors (if required) can incorporate a mirrored panel or be coloured to match your décor. Another option is curtains.
Hinged or sliding doors? Hinged doors enable full access, but sliding doors may be necessary if space is at a premium.
Check how the system is to be attached to the wall. Solid mounting rails, preferably two, will ensure solidity and minimise unsightly gapping.

Storage
Storage is critical for all the things you collect over the years and are convinced you need to keep.

Some points to consider:

Access to the roof cavity using pull-down attic doors can give a huge amount of usable space otherwise being wasted, or consider trapdoors to under floor space for things like wine cellars.
Cleverly designed and located cupboards are incredibly useful. Look for opportunities during the design stage and add them wherever space and budget allow.
You can never have too many cupboards!