Designing Your Dream Closet With California Closets

This post is in collaboration with California Closets. All opinions remain my own. 

Can someone pinch me? No, seriously. I really feel like I'm walking into a dream every time I step into my master closet. In fact, I'm not sure I've stopped smiling ever since California Closets finished the install (which took them all of a day and a half by the way). Join me on a peek inside my master closet and looking back on the process of designing it from start to finish.

Many of you know that Eric and I tackle a lot of renovations and home projects. It seems like we're always taking on something. So when we decided to tackle a full home renovation, I knew the master closet was something that needed major help. It was a standard dark closet with white wire racks that lacked any type of character. For me, I always knew having a dream closet was something I envisioned. Let me backtrack for a second. Eric and I have lived in older homes, I'm talking 1820's historic homes that had no closet space what so ever. If we wanted any type of closet space we were converting other rooms or building a closet just to have some storage space. It's just not very common in older homes to have a lot of closets. Having the opportunity to have any type of workable space to maximize our potential and achieve what we hoped for was a huge blessing.

I'm all about natural light in our home and making sure I had that in my closet was no exception. We put our heads together to figure out how to achieve that daylight shine I was longing for. We thought about cutting into the house to add in a window but that would have resulted in losing part of a wall that would have been valuable closet space. Luckily our attic is right above the closet and Eric came up with the idea to add in a skylight and vault the ceiling. In that moment I might have fallen in love with that man all over again, because, all the yes to that!

We began demo on the closet and getting it prepped for dream closet goals. Adding in that natural light and opening up the ceiling made a huge difference. After all of that was said and done, it was on to the fun part—the design phase! I've always been a huge admirer of California Closets and the work they do to transformer spaces. I was so excited to work with designer Leigh Heagney to take this blank canvas and turn it into a space that was perfect for me. Leigh came out to our house, took all of the measurements, and listened to my thoughts and opinions. She used her expertise to come up with a design that met my expectations and then some. Leigh communicated with us through the whole process and made sure any questions, concerns, or changes were properly conveyed. It's amazing to know that each design is 100% custom to fit your needs and your budget.

I was so anxious and could hardly wait for install day. I'm always reminding my boys to have patience, but I had to remind myself a few times because of course I would have loved to have everything happen over night. Remember, before it arrives at your house they are building it custom so there was a few weeks in between before it was time for install. When the installers arrived it might as well have been Christmas morning for me. It all felt like it happened so fast. They prepped the space, brought in the materials, and went right to work. By lunch time I could already see the closet coming to life and of course I had to sneak in there to get a glimpse.

Before I knew it, that special moment came and my closet was done. When the installers cleaned everything up and showed me the finished design, I may have hung out in there for a little while doing a happy dance. It was everything I could have imaged and more. Throughout the process your designer will provide you with a digital design to really allow you to get an idea of what it will look like when it's done. It's a great resource to have and was so helpful, but there's still nothing like seeing it all finished and being able to experience it in person.

I knew from the start I wanted a space that was light and airy. We went with a Chic Gray color for the walls and the finish on the closet details is Dove. I really enjoyed learning more about the products California Closets uses and how they aim to provide environmentally sustainable options. 

I wanted a space that was functional and allowed me to have plenty of storage options yet created a getaway for me. Ok, maybe I did let Eric have two shelves to put a few things in here because sharing is caring, but it's still very much my closet ;) Being a boy mom of three I have my fair share of, well, all things boys. I wanted this to reflect more of me and have a feminine feel to it. I couldn't pass up on the chandelier and adding in a bright runner along with having a way to display some of my handbags and my shoes. I also love how I now have easy access to my jewelry and can keep certain things tucked away in drawers.

After using my closet for several weeks now, I'm not sure there's really anything I would change about it. I know it might sound silly, but it's kind of empowering to be able to get up on a stool to reach for some of my things on the higher shelves. I keep joking that I want to get one of those library ladders and slide around my closet with it.

I'm so thankful I get to start my day in here every morning. From picking out my outfit, doing my hair, and sitting down to do my makeup. There can be crazy mornings where my boys woke up on the wrong side of the bed and it just feels like it's going to be one of those days. But when I come in here, shut my door, turn my music on, and get myself ready, I know I have another chance to have a different perspective on the day. 

Stay tuned because I'm really looking forward to sharing another space with all of you. It's a room I didn't think I would spend as much time in, but with a house full of boys, I should have known it was inevitable. 

Master Closet Makeover and Organization

Thank you to the Container Store for sponsoring this post. All opinions remain my own.

It's not the easiest thing to admit when you aren't the most organized person out there. It's not that I purposely set out on a journey to be disorganized, but sometimes life happens and those things you wanted to tackle get pushed to the back burner. That's what happened with my master closet.

Let me back up for a second, if you've been following my blog for awhile, then you know my lack of closet space in our home has been a big issue. I can't complain about the size of my master closet, but that's also because Eric built it for me. After opening up some walls, re-configuring our master bedroom, and turning what we think was a previous bathroom into my now closet, I can finally say this space feels like a dream. 

I'm a little embarrassed to show you the before pictures, but here we go. I think my closet really became a dumping ground for so many things. I would keep baskets of laundry in here that needed to be folded, an overflow of my clothes because I didn't have enough hanger space, and would hide things like Christmas gifts and all kinds of random things that would make their way in here. To be honest, I didn't really enjoy going in here because it felt overwhelming, even though I knew deep down it had the potential to be an amazing space.

When the opportunity came about to get things organized, I don't think I could type fast enough that my master closet would be the room I would focus on. I think this was the exact push I needed to really get everything in order. I truly embraced this whole project and ran with it even further than I expected.

I could not be happier with how everything turned out. Now I find myself walking in here just because and really using it as my own little retreat. Of course the boys enjoy playing in here as well and going through all of my stuff. They are seriously too cute and you have to scroll down to see them in my hats. We've even had story time in here on my new bench and it's funny to think that an organized closet can create sweet memories.

In addition to utilizing all of the amazing organizational resources The Container Store offers, I also added in a second clothes rod, shelves, a bench, and found ways to properly utilize what was really just dead space before. I also got a large mirror and did a little DIY project to my jewelry box, and had my sister paint me this awesome picture that hangs above it. I loved the chandelier that I had in there and felt that it gave it a shabby chic feel, but realistically, it was too big for the space and hung really low. We decided to switch it out for a fixture that was better suited for the space and I love it just as much. You know what I also love? My new rug that compliments everything and pulls the room together. 

The Container Store's closet sale is going on through May 13th, with hundreds of closet organization essentials (many of my favorites here) for 25% off.

I was able to maximize this space far beyond what I thought was possible. Before, I used to have my sweaters and dress pants just folded on some of those smaller shelves. My shoes were pilled up and stacked on top of each other because I could only fit four pairs across on one shelf. My top shelf had purses randomly tossed up there, next to my hats, and I even found a few pair of shoes up there as well. Now, my lovely hat boxes are the perfect spot for my hats and save me a lot of shelf space. I also love these purse bins that have freed up so much space for me and I love how organized they are now.

I can't say enough good things about these huggable hangers. They have been space changing in my closet and I love that they also have cascading mini hooks that you loop through the top of the hanger and you can hang multiple pieces cascading down. This has been perfect for my cardigans and skirts. I was also able to free up so much more shelf space by using the sweater organizers with both three compartments and six compartments.

Now let's talk shoes. I realized I have a lot of shoes, and some of them that I haven't worn in years. I'm not so sure my days of strutting around in six inch heels will be happening very often. This was a great time for me to go through things and find a lot to donate. I wish I would have come across these stacking shoe bins sooner. I doubled my space on some of my shelves that I could previously only fit four pairs across. I also love these clear shoe drawers and was able to fit two pairs of my flat sandals in them maximizing my space even more.

I think what I realized throughout all of this, is that you don't necessarily need a huge space to feel organized. It's about maximizing and really organizing the space you already have to work with. In my closet, I still only have two clothes rods, which may seem like a lot, but in reality, it's not. This pushed me to think about ways I could still organize things that maybe didn't need to be hung up and could free up some more hanger space for me. That's when these store baskets really came in handy and were a great solution for that. I also love how they look on top of my shelf and add some dimension to the room. 

I will say that having things organized really changes the way I view things. We're hoping to tackle even more projects and find ways to make things more functional. It makes life so much easier when there is a place for your things and you actually know where to find them. Dare I even say this might help me be more motivated to get my laundry skills in order. Maybe I'm getting ahead of my self here, but we're working on baby steps.