Thanks jamieeap, I think we'll most likely keep it but just wanted other opinions. Furthermore I'm from the Midwest and not sure how many winter coats would fit in that small closet. The slight angle of the powder room also worries me that it's going to feel too narrow walking into the room.

You could put two rows of hooks in the back of the closet to hang the coats. It would take up less room than the traditional rod/hangers. I had our builder reduce the depth of our guest coat closet so I could do just this. I am not a fan of hangers, hooks are just easier.

A few things without seeing the rest of the house. I know you didn't ask but I'm offering anyway. ;)

1. The closet size is fine. I like conell's suggestion although I have a 21" wide closet for jackets. However I am in FL so our heaviest jacket is a leather jacket.

2. Your bathroom angle is only 3'1" which if you're fine is no problem. However if you ever need a walker or have to maneuver on crutches, then it can become quite a chore to try and maneuver there. With a wheelchair it will be almost impossible.

5. Your office is very small and with only 1 window may feel very dark and closet like. I'm wondering if you stole a foot from the foyer if you might solve both the office problem and the problem with the angled powder room.

When we have more than a couple of guests, they are escorted to a bedroom to deposit their coats and shown where the powder room is to freshen up. Our 'guest closets' have been a royal waste of space -- or full of out-of-season family coats!

I dislike the angled entry to the powder room here. I'd skip this (phone booth) closet.

Eh, the whole thing looks pretty tight and "forced".

This is kind of like Goldilock's hallway: Four doors in a row, all of them different. A pocket door, a 32" door, a 30" door, and a 24" door. Throw in a couple cased openings, and this hallway looks like a search for something that's sized "just right".

Yes, the closet is too small.

I agree with the above poster that hooks might be more practical than a closet. Who actually hangs guests' coats in a closet anyway? Admittedly, I'm a lifelong Southerner who owns few coats ... but typically IF people bring their coats into a friend's house, those coats are tossed onto a bench in the foyer or laid on a bed.

I like the idea of stealing some space from the foyer. However, I'd prefer to move the pocket office to some other spot in the house so that the laundry, half-bath and closet could be comfortable sizes.

I would lose it as well, for all the reasons stated above. Hooks really are more convenient. We actually removed a coat closet in our ski house in favor of more living area and hooks in the foyer. The only coats we've ever not hung on the hooks there are my mom's and my long cashmere coats. Those either go in our BR closets or on the guest room bed (and the only reason we don't hang them in the foyer is because they are dog hair magnets - white husky fur and black cashmere don't play well together).

Thanks for all the suggestions. What would you think if there were hooks by the area listed as furniture space by the side of the stairs? Or just having a coat stand in that area? Or moving the coat closet to the hallway right of the foyer and stealing space from the closet of the mother in law suite?

That closet is already 11 ft long, taking 3 ft from it wouldn't be so bad would it? Only thing I don't like about that is that there would be three doors adjacent to each other that hallway.

The house would be 5000 Sq ft and right now that small guest closet seems out of place to me

How "final" is your plan?

If you are considering hooks, would you be up to considering re-configuring that whole space so you you would have a walk-through mudroom/coat area where the gallery is (widened)? Try to use the space under the stairs. Reserve space for guest coats. You could move the laundry to the current mudroom area and then the office could have 2 windows.

Good luck!

If you have 5000 sq feet, I think your front area can be better utilized than having a powder room where you can barely squeeze through, an office that is really just a glorified closet, a laundry area where you have to do a zig and a zag and a minuscule coat closet. My coat closet as I said is that small, but I'm in a condo that is under 2000 square feet in SW Florida.

How about posting the downstairs plan and seeing if there's a better way?

Well happy new years everyone...I guess I am aging when I'm looking at my floor plan on New Years eve rather than out at the bars :)

Welp here's the entire first floor (don't be too harsh :) ). Was posted previously but there are some minor changes from previous post.

Cpartist,

1) The office in the gallery section is only a small office for the wife to jot down notes, pay bills, write down memos. Primary office will actually be in the library room that is right of the foyer.

2) Main laundry is on the second floor. First floor is for my mother to use and for wife and I to quickly wash any kitchen towels or other small articles of clothing. I know some of you will comment why it isn't then incorporated in her suite...well grandma refuses to have it in her suite area and this way rest of the family can use it too. Initially the w/d was to be a stackable but didn't occur to us until late in the floor plan process that grandma is barely 5' tall and would have a slight issue using a stackable. Therefore architect changed it to current layout and didn't make any other significant modifications to keep his cost down.

3) I'm not ecstatic about how entrance to powder room is curved but I don't think it's that small is it? I know I am from the Midwest where the average waistline is more generous but I would assume we'd still be able to comfortably walk through a 3' walkway :) The wife and I just wanted a powder room that is just cozy enough to use. Have seen powder rooms that are quite large and I always felt it was inefficient use of space. Maybe my thinking is wrong on this.

Anyways back to the guest closet, would welcome any other suggestions. My family would never use this closet though if that would make any difference since we have a mudroom that is 15' X 7'. I've also seen some pictures online of a Harry Potter like closet under the stairs that looks kinda cool. What do others think of this?

One thought, maybe swap the location of the laundry room and the office. The office door would then be more isolated from the kitchen and the laundry room sink more accessible from the garage. It may give you more design options for the closet and powder room.

One additional thought, what if you used the "furniture space" directly across from the bathroom door for the closet? I am not sure what furniture would fit there.

What if you combine the laundry and wife's little office? Each room looks uncomfortably small as drawn. If combined, that leaves a more pleasantly sized space that is multifunctional. It also would allow some space to be given to the bathroom. (The bathroom and office/laundry could also be switched. The little closet wouldn't effect the closet/laundry as much as the smaller bathroom.)

Wifey does not want to change location of office. She'd like to keep sight line of kitchen and dining area to keep eyes on kids when they are eating. Also we don't want to combine the office and laundry. Always felt it looked weird to us that you could have notes and documents on one side and laundry clothing laid out on the other side. Besides laundry room will primarily for grandmother's use. Wanted to keep our things more separate from hers so that she can freely come and go in the room and lay out things the way she wants.

The office in the gallery section is only a small office for the
wife to jot down notes, pay bills, write down memos. Primary office
will actually be in the library room that is right of the foyer.

I wouldn't want a separate office for these small tasks -- I think the things I'd want would always be in the wrong places. As for jotting down notes and memos and paying bills, that accounts for about 15 minutes a week for me. And as for watching the kids eat, how's she going to do it from a separate room across the "gallery"? I'd say sit down and eat with the kids ... and if this is all you need to do in this small office, consider instead a small desk area to the side of the kitchen or in the mudroom.

Main laundry is on the second floor. First floor is for my mother
to use and for wife and I to quickly wash any kitchen towels or other
small articles of clothing. I know some of you will comment why it
isn't then incorporated in her suite...well grandma refuses to have it
in her suite area and this way rest of the family can use it too.
Initially the w/d was to be a stackable but didn't occur to us until
late in the floor plan process that grandma is barely 5' tall and would
have a slight issue using a stackable. Therefore architect changed it to
current layout and didn't make any other significant modifications to
keep his cost down.

Hmmm ... I'm 4'11" tall, and I can reach a stackable. If she needs use of the machines, why not move the laundry and half bath over to area that's near her space /marked library ... and move the entire office /library space to what's currently three choppy rooms -- you could then have more library shelves under the staircase.

I'm not ecstatic about how entrance to powder room is curved but I
don't think it's that small is it?

I think the half bath space is fine ... it's the curvy path that I don't like -- it seems contrived and forced by the closet.

Before I even comment on the powder, etc I just looked at Grandma's space. Are you really putting in a tub/shower in her bathroom? Is it one of those walk in tubs? Because if it's not, don't expect Grandma to be able to get in and out of the tub especially as she ages. If anything she needs a curbless shower!!!!!! Notice how emphatic I am about that?

Also if laundry is primarily for Grandma, then it needs to be closer to where Grandma is. She may not want it in her suite, but that doesn't mean she should have to shlep baskets across the house to do her laundry. Unless you or someone else will be doing her laundry for her.

You are adding a suite for Grandma but not considering that as Grandma ages, she may need to have her space handicap accessible. Even if she's perfectly healthy now, who knows what will happen?

I like mrspete's ideas. I think it would work much better than trying to fit in contrived spaces that won't get used as they are now.