I'm no professional, but I love to see a small, functional space. If you mean placing a closet against the gray wall, which wouldn't interfere with that brown door opening, I'd say sure.

Is the brown door on the left side of the photo the "front door"?

Maybe the closet can go on the other side of the front door.

I am curious what was in that large central closet? I'm only asking because I don't see a pantry. If you need more storage, I would be eyeballing the space next to the peninsula where the pink countertop is. That could be cabinets.

Thanks for commenting! The closet would float in the space where I marked "closet here". There is a hallway/passageway behind it. And yes, that is the front door on the left side of the photo. So you would walk in and immediately see this "column" of a closet.

This space was all closet with doors on one side and a brick facia wall on the living room side for where the previous owners had a wood burning stove. There is a pantry in the kitchen, so no need for that space. I plan on adding some cabinets, including a cabinet for hanging items, in my extra large laundry room at the back of the house.

PS: Don't you just love those pink counters with the oak cabinets? LOL That's the next project!

How about a nice attractive armoire with a finished back . I don't see a pantry but since the kitchen is next on the list I would just wait for the whole closet issue just finish that space and figure it out later The kitchen needs so serious work .

Thanks. That's what I am trying to decide here as I finish this space. I want to remove all of it, but the designer is suggesting a small coat closet. I think it might look silly just floating by itself since it will be small and right when you walk in the front door.

Yes, the kitchen is awful! =) But need to remove the studs from that closet first so I can determine how much space I might have when I do the kitchen.

Is there a reason it can't butt up against the wall instead of floating as a column? That way it would create more of a entryway.

The front door would open right into the side of it if I put it up against the wall. And there is a return air vent and thermostat on that wall. I don't want to get into moving all that.

Can you put it directly across from the front door, with the closet door facing the front door and the side against the wall? It's hard to get a sense of the room you have without a drawing of the layout in this area. At any rate, a free standing column of a closet seems weird to me.

I do see the air return now. The thermostat is not a big deal to move, we moved ours over about 18", but the air return is a different story. Maybe if you posted a floor plan drawing with some measurements, you would get some better suggestions.

What do you actually need to store in the proposed "coat closet"?

There are ways to create a "foyer" with storage by placing a piece of furniture parallel to they gray wall, just to the left of the brown door in the photo. This would give you some storage and a "landing pad" for purse, keys, shoes, right by the door.

This photo isn't exactly what I had in mind, but gives you the idea of placement.

If it were me, I'd probably prefer something about 30" high, with doors that close (like a narrower buffet table) and hide shoes , dog leashes, and a has a top to it, so you have a place to set down your bags so you can take off your shoes and drop your keys.

Why have a closet if it doesn't hide the support beam?

That is the only reason to have one, so it would hide that support beam.

I'm just turning this over in my mind. What if, instead of a freestanding closet, you build something (a wall? a wall of cabinets that face the kitchen!) that starts where the dog bed is, and runs parallel to the front door. It could extend as far as the kitchen extends, towards the sofa.

That could accomplish a couple things: the front door side would now be a foyer, with some art or a mirror on the wall facing the door, hooks for coats. Additionally, a visitor wouldn't walk into the view of the kitchen upon entering the front door. And, on the other side of the wall, perhaps a set of narrow cabinets to match your (future) kitchen cabinets. That would give you storage you probably need.

Thanks so much! I appreciate the time you've spent thinking about this. =) I've decided to take out the entire structure and add additional cabinets in the laundry room.

Here are a couple of armoires that you could place against a wall after you get the kitchen finished to help establish an entryway.

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Open up the entire space and invest in a wardrobe such as the one suggested by ashtonchic.

If you need to keep any posts for structural reasons, just clad and finish the posts.

Thanks! That's exactly what I've decide to do. Tear it all out except the posts and clad those. Thanks again for your comments & suggestions!!

It’s always nice to have a coat closet, small or large, near the front door. If you live where there is actual weather, you could put a rubber boot mat for boots and a second boot mat to catch drips where wet gear is hung or umbrellas are stowed. If you live in a sunbelt area, one rubber mat should do.