Here's my closet (not so neat looking now that all clothes have been put back in...still not enought space so shoes and some clothese are in piles...I need to purge!)
Use the dresser in our main bedroom for T-shirts etc

I used the Closetmaid system from Home Depot. Easy to install and flexible to make changes. Now...if I could just get DH to do his closet so I can have some of his space too,lol:)

This was my closet in FL. (sigh) I miss it...

All the components are Elfa, which is on sale right now. You can build a system slowly, as your budget allows, and you can take it with you if you move. It is flexible, so you can move it from one room to another. I confess, I am an Elfa junkie!

I also bought a bunch of the Container Store shoe boxes because I like things to match. (ref: Palimpsest's thread on kleenex boxes) You can see them on the right. This closet had been staged to sell, so it is not stuffed to the gills.

Sadly, my current walk-in closet is so small, I can't even get a picture of it. I should probably call it a sidle-in closet. :o( But I have Elfa in there, so I am really maximizing what little space I do have. No bureau in my bedroom, just more of those hanging drawers.

Even if you don't want to use the Elfa, the Container Store website has lots of great pics for ideas. And tons of organizing accessories. So much fun...

Here is a link that might be useful: CS

We were fortunate, our builder told us mark the walls how you want the ventilated shelving and we will put it up the way you indicate;
His;

I can't really add anything to the discussion since I don't have a walk-in closet. I'm just ogling your closet spaces.

lisa mocha, I'm in love with your wallpaper! And demifloyd, I have total shoe cubby envy.

Great closets ladies! Drooling here.

Here is what ours looked like shortly before it was complete and before I dusted. The last is close up of the trim.
All pictures are clickable thumbnails. I have no current photos, but I think you can get the idea from these...

{{!gwi}} {{!gwi}} {{!gwi}} {{!gwi}}

I don't have a picture of my closet, but I can tell you that I used the Elfa system from CS for my DD in a former home. I brought in the dimensions and the closet designer designed it for free. Rubbermaid also makes a similar system as does Closet Maid. The best part of these systems is you can add and reconfigure as your needs change. It is a track style system. Once you have the main horizontal track screwed into place you can add just about anything from bars for hanging clothes to shelves and baskets.

Hope this thread goes on for a couple of weeks. I'm running right upstairs to straighten my closet so I won't die of shame after seeing some of those pictures!

It's 6 ft wide x 11 feet long. One long side has a single rod for long hanging clothes, but I put cubbies under the rod for about 6 feet to hold (most of my) shoes and purses. The 11-foot shelf over the rod holds the rest of my purses and serves as my drug store (extra toiletries essentially).

The other long side has double rods with a mostly-empty shelf. On the 6 foot wall opposite the entry door, there's built-in shelving from the floor to about 7 feet up.

Here's the embarrassing part...it's full of just my stuff, along with the double dresser in the MBR. But...I don't have to change out for the seasons for the first time ever!

We had a closet very similar to yours - one row of wire shelving. I HATE the wire shelving -- you can't slide hangers more than a couple inches without hitting a "divider" and if you fold a sweater and lay it on the shelf, it gets the little indents in it from the wire.

So we had a custom closet company out to give us their design and a quote. We just about choked at the price (upwards of $1200 for an 8 x 8 walk-in -- and really the shelving was only going on 2 walls because the other 2 walls are the closet door and a window.)

So we took their design, tweaked it a bit, and went to Lowes. We bought the Closetmaid Completions sets - Lowes no longer sells it, but Home Depot now has a Closetmaid line that is very similar. It is white lamintate over particle board and was pretty reasonably priced -- at the time, there was a "buy $250 get a $75 Lowes gift card" promo going on -- we broke our order up into 2 chunks and each one came to just over $250, so net out the gift cards and we spent less than $400. For that we got two whole walls that consist of a center divider of drawers and shelves and clothing bars extending from each side. We also got an extra narrow tall shelf next to the window. I love that the clothes bars have no dividers and I can slide hangers from one end to the other. We have belt and tie racks and hooks hung from the sides of the center dividers. And one side of the divider has an extra row of shelves under it (so only a short area for clothes hanging above) while the other side has a full length hanging space (for me at least) or 2 rows of hanging bars for dh.

I'm sure I'm not explaining it well, so I will try to take a pic tomorrow. We have been very pleased with how the closet turned out. We can fit SO much more than we could with the wire shelf setup that you have now. We've had the pieces in for 6 years now, getting daily use, and they are holding up great! (And lest you are skeptical of the whole laminate over particle board, that is the same material the custom closet guy was quoting at over $1200!)

We are planning on putting a similar system in my daughter's reach-in closet asap -- she is coming into her tween years and her clothing is rapidly overflowing her dresser and ending up all over the floor. Actually, if you look at the closetmaid "starter kits" for reach-in closets, that is basically what we have - one on each side of our walkin closet, with some extra shelves and drawers thrown in.

We just redid my husband's closet using Elfa components from the Container Store. He is 6' 6" so his shirts are extra long. They pointed that out that's why the top rod on the side with the double hung rods are so high. We wanted to leave enough space underneath for some drawers.

He loves it! We did one wall at a time which helped our budget.

If you click on the link below, you'll need to scroll through the next two pictures to see all the shots we took.

Here is a link that might be useful: My husband's closet

The closet design company that gave us a quote wanted $3500 to make and install the closet design I had created for myself using the easyclosets.com website. I couldn't see paying that much, especially since they weren't actually designing anything. So, DH and I built the organizers for our shared master closet ourselves over a three-day weekend. The total for the materials was just a little over $400.

We each have double hanging space, 3/4 hanging space with shoe shelves above and long hanging space with a deep corner shelf above. The back wall is adjustable shelving for sweaters, jeans, whatever. I bought collapsible linen-covered boxes from Lowes to use as drawers on a few of the shelves for underwear, socks, scarves, belts, delicates, etc. I store seldom used items in boxes on the top shelf that runs above the entire system. I don't have quite enough shoe space - or perhaps it's just that I have too many shoes - but the closet holds all of our clothes so we don't have to store and swap out seasonally.

DH's side:

My side:

These are some beautiful closets!
I will post a picture later of a real closet...
A hundred shoes, a hundred handbags, lots of clothes and a small walk in!

It would take too long to make mine photo-ready and I'm in the planning stages for redoing it, so I won't post a pic of it now. But, inspired by your great thread, I started another one for closet ideas we all can use. This is one that I found over on the Closet Factory website. I like how the closet's corner.
Lynn

We redid our walk-in closet at our last house. The closet empty was 8 x 10 feet. Home Depot sells melamine boards already pre-drilled and also solid ones for shelving. They come in white and also some wood colors. They also sell the drawers in different sizes that come with the drawer slides. It was easy. Less than $200 in materials and custom designed by me. California Closets wanted $2700 to do the same thing.

That looks really good Lynn, but I don't have the space for such a lovely closet! Wish I did.

Mari, I don't have the space for that kind of closet either . . . but I sure wish I did, too ;^D What I like about it is the creative way they used that corner space. Over on the closet thread I started today here, Beagles posted another closet pic with an idea she'll be using that's totally awesome IMO: there's a revolving shoe tree fitted into the closet corner. I'd never seen one used like that and LOVE it!
Lynn

We had a closet company do our master closet after renovating our bath and adding space to the closet. I love not having shoes on the floor anymore. We use cubbies for our shoes. (More than one pair to a cubby).

We just kept a janky looking step ladder in the closet to reach the high shelves. It is light weight and unattractive, but usually ends up with some of my DH's clothes draped over it.

(the janky stepladder!)

We chose this little movable drawer desk piece for under the window. It is open in the bottom to let the closet vent breath.

For my kids' closets (just one wall) I looked at HD, Lowes, Efla, Ikea, and a few others. The best low cost smooth rolling drawers/baskets was HD. The center piece has solid shelves and one side is a single bar and the other side is 2 bars. There are other pieces you can buy including a corner unit. You can put solid shelves on top. I believe it's called closetmaid selectives.

When we moved to this house in 2005 there was a huge master closet with one shelf of wire shelving going all the way around the room---that was it, in a 10 x 13 closet!

We had a cabinetmaker come in and do a custom design that included cabinets and hanging bays that are 2 ft. deep. The standard closet hanging bays are 18 inches, and that means one shoulder of shirts, dresses and jackets is projecting into the closet and gets dusty. Making the units this deep cut down on our floor space, but it was fine when everything was put in---still room for a parson's chair to sit down on.

kswl, now that's a closet! Very nice.

kswl...I agree...that's a great closet!! Would love to have that space! (sigh...it' bigger than my guest room;))

Love the tennis balls stored next to the sneaks! Never thought to keep mine in the closet like that. LOL Kept mine on the laundry room shelf so I could grab them on my way out to the garage.

I am drooling but what I see from looking at these closets is that I have way too many clothes. Mine looks so much more cramped. I think I need to declutter!

May I ask a question, what makes Elfa better system than for example Closet Maid?

Closet? What's a closet? I only wish. There is only one closet in my house, and it is off the livingroom and is more of a what we used to call a "coat closet". I recently purged it and now can at least walk into the cramped space without falling over something. No clothes in there since the plurge, just items I have no where else to store, i.e. the sweeper, ironing board,ect.

This armoire is my only bedroom closet. A small dresser holds out of season clothes.
{{!gwi}}

This old and battered chiffarobe is in my bathroom. One side for towels and supplies, the other side for seasonal clothes, in other words what I wear daily. The drawers hold
underwear,sleepwear,socks,makeup,ect. This piece actually holds alot. It's my intention to refinish it someday (as well as get the subway tile on the wall behind the sink!)
{{!gwi}}

Hey everyone! Sorry I've been missing. I've been without internet for the past few days and still don't have it. I'm not at home right now.

These are some super nice closets! Thanks for posting photos and thoughts. I'll be back hopefully soon to respond better.

Mine is not fancy but meets my needs. Pros were going to charge up to 4 grand. Supplies are all home depot and labor by a grunting and not so happy husband. It's 17 x 24 it's for extra clothing otherwise I share one with hubby in the master bedroom
http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?pid=6336145&l=0c912e1625&id=731258670

Here is a link that might be useful: Closet

how do I post a picture,in response the link i provided has pictures of my closet.
www.facebook.com/photo.php?pid=6336145&l=0c912e1625&id=731258670

Sheesharee, my DH and I are just getting ready to finish the built-in storage in our two closets, which are about the same dimensions as yours. We are doing L-shaped storage, that is, along two walls, so there's enough room to comfortably stand/dress in there. We're doing built-in stacks of shoe/sweater shelves, with double hanging bars on one wall and singles on the other. The empty wall will have hooks for robes, belts, etc. Each closet will also have a rolling laundry hamper we can easily roll down the hall to the washer/dryer area. I carefully planned it all out depending on the measurements of what we each need to store. It will probably end up costing us about $250 in materials by the time we're done. I'll try to post some photos once the main component are installed, and then later (hopefully by next weekend!) when it's all painted and has clothes in it :)

We have been living out of piles and remote closets and basement boxes for over a year now since we had to gut this part of the house due to a mold problem and bathroom renovation. It's been so frustrating not knowing where stuff is. I am sooooooooooo looking forward to having nice, organized closets!

Another idea: if you don't want to go the totally custom route (I am not sure what your building skills are like) and build all these boxes and shelves out of plywood, consider using Ikea bookshelves as the skeleton. In my DD's smaller closet, we installed one tall, skinny Billy bookcase (like $35??) in the middle, and then added shelves and clothes rods. You can buy white melamine shelving at Home Depot and then you'll just need to make wood cleats for the shelving to sit on. You can buy extra Billy shelves for the Ikea bookcase than the ones it comes with, so you can make lots of short shelves for shoes. Here is a pic of DD's closet, below. In your closet, you could put them in the corners, then add shelves and clothes rods between. I would have done that in mine, but we have radiators along the baseboard so we had to build sturdier cases that could be mounted right to the wall :(

You can even buy cabinet doors that install on the Billy bookshelves if you want a fancier look!

bharensi, here is your pic:

kswl - I would think I'd died and gone to heaven to have a closet like yours! That's absolutely fabulous......puts our little walk-in to shame. I love the lighting, and the space for everything.

Thanks nanny,we have had California closets in other houses and got used to that wonderful organization. We got a cal closet quote for this one that was really high ---- and custom cabinetry was a viable option. I admit, I do love it!

schoolhouse, that armoire is stunning.

This is my son's closet, just a simple bifold closet:

And ours:

This is of course during construction. We actually added another level of cabinets above and put doors on all of the cubbies on the opposite side (where you see the hanging shelves) under that sits a huge dresser now. What I love most about this closet, and would do in any other, is that the hanging clothing is protected by glass doors. You can see in a bit to see what you need, but the doors keep dust out, and hide the clutter of a closet. It also serves to keep the cats from sleeping in our cloths.

Our upper rods are 3" from the ceiling (aprx) so we had to add the bars that pull down (it has a hanging rod that points to the floor that you pull out and it lowers the cloths to an easy to reach height if that makes sense. It was originally designed as an accessible option for people in wheel chairs). It allows me to stack two levels of shirts in the door cabinets which is heaven :)

Well, I have been inspired to clean my closet so that I could take some pictures. Our closet is quite large - almost 11 x 11, but just had the basic builder rods and shelves. I supplemented with inexpensive DIY shelves for shoes from Target and Sterlite drawer units. I also made an island cabinet that holds laundry baskets and clothing and our ironing board on top. We removed the legs from the ironing board and made legs a few inches tall that we screwed to the top of the island.

My side of the closet:

DH's side:

And for anyone who thinks that women have a problem with shoes collections, here are just some of my son's shoes!

Thanks Terriks for posting my picture. I'm posting the rest .....

Here is a link that might be useful: My Closet part 2

bharensi, did you know that all you need to do is copy and paste the HTML code from Photobucket to put your pictures right in your post? Like this:

P.S. Your closet is Ginormous!!