Let’s face it – most of us have a lot of clothes. Coming up with ways to cleverly store them – particularly in small built in wardrobes, which are notorious for having a lot of hanging space but not much shelving or drawers – is key to ensuring that you don’t adopt a floor-drobe mentality. Whilst redesigning the wardrobe so that there is ample storage for all your possessions is definitely the best solution, knowing how to manage your hanging space is a must.
• Install a second rod
We very rarely need much full length hanging space – they’re great for some maxi dresses, jackets and suit bags but that’s about it. One way to make the most of your space is to install a second rod either above or below the existing one. If you are designing your wardrobe’s internals, ensure that there is a section with dual hanging rods. This will provide ample room for smaller garments, like skirts and shirts.
• Invest in matching hangers
Believe it or not, matching coat hangers can actually help you to use your space more effectively. Not only will they make your wardrobe look really nice and organised (as everything is coordinated), they will also ensure that every millimetre of the hanging rod can be used. When you have mismatched hangers, it often leaves awkward and ugly gaps where they don’t quite fit together along the rod – gaps that could be filled.
• Invest in cascading hooks or tiered hangers
Another way to make the most of your built in wardrobe’s hanging space is to use cascading hooks (which link multiple coat hangers together so they take up less room on the hanging rod) or tiered hangers (which work similarly, except they have grips and are best used for pants and skirts). This will allow you to group items together, as well as ensure that full-length hanging space isn’t wasted (as they’ll extend lower).
• Relocate smaller items
If your problem is that you don’t have enough hanging space (rather than having too much of it), we recommend relocating smaller accessories elsewhere. This could include scarves, ties and other items that are traditionally hung but don’t necessarily have to be. Roll ties up and use a drawer divider to keep them separate. Add some hooks to the door for your scarves or place them on a single hanger if you have a lot.
• Consider an ergonomic design
No one wants to crawl around on their hands and knees to find items at the bottom of their wardrobe or put them away, so why choose storage solutions that place items at knee height? By designing the space ergonomically, things will be far easier to find and you’ll find it easier to keep your robe organised. One way to achieve this is by placing your hanging rods lower and including shelving above them.
We hope that the tips and advice we’ve shared above have given you some good ideas on how to manage the hanging space in your custom made built in wardrobe. Some general tips before we leave you include – keep out of season (ie summer/winter) clothes out of the way, remember that you’re more likely to wear something if you can see it, and don’t forget the backs of deep shelves and high-up places when it comes to storage solutions.
Spaceworks Design deals with storage cabinets installation in Sydney including built in robes, cabinets, entertainment media units, home office fit outs, modular wardrobes etc.