Are you frustrated with the lack of organization in your existing closet? Do you struggle to find what you’re looking for each morning? Is there a pile of clothes and shoes on the floor of your closet? Do you wish you could open your closet doors to find a well-organized arrangement of your clothes, shoes and accessories?

If the answer to any of these questions is “yes,” it’s time for you to consider a custom closet design. Before you reach for your phone to schedule an in-home consultation with a designer or organizational expert, you must first take inventory of your needs and consider all the options.

Here are a few things you should consider when designing a custom closet:

• Purpose – Are you planning to redesign the closet in your master bedroom, your arts and crafts closet, or the closet that stores your children’s toys? A bedroom closet should be designed with rods for hanging pieces, and shelves for folded clothes or shoes. For your bedroom closet, a good rule of thumb is to plan for 70 inches of vertical space for dresses and full-length clothing items, 45 inches for shirts and jackets and 35 inches for folded trousers and ties.

A craft or toy closet should have plenty of shelving for baskets and drawers, with little or no need for rods to hang items.

• Size – Empty your closet and measure the width and height so you know just how much space you are working with. If your remodel will include adding space, have accurate measurements of the total space available for your closet redesign.
• Existing and future needs – Do you have a collection of shoes that need to be organized in your closet? Do you have a fetish for accessories, like bags, scarves and jewelry? Is there enough space to hang all of your clothes? What about future needs? You want to be sure you not only design a closet to house your current collection of shoes, clothes and accessories, but you want to leave space for any additions to your wardrobe.
• Budget – Know your budget, and plan to stick with it. Even if you are working  with limited resources, there are ways to fulfill at least some of your most pressing storage needs. Prioritize your needs so you know what is of most importance to you. Your custom closet consultant will work with you to accomplish your goals within your budget.

Once you have considered each of the above factors, it’s time to schedule an appointment with a design consultant. Keep in mind that they may suggest solutions to your storage needs you have not considered. Keep an open mind and be flexible. The professional design consultants at California Closets will work with you to accomplish your custom closet goals.