I am generally pretty happy with how our house turned out. It is about 3550 sq ft traditionally styled house. The only thing that I am kicking myself about now is the fact that while the house is perfect for the four of us, and could very easily handle another child (or 2!) I stupidly didn't plan for the fact that we had promised our dd a dog when she turned 10. Just didn't think about it in the design process, stupid, stupid, stupid. We do have a nice mudroom/laundry room near the back door with cubbies, lockers, sink, closet...it is perfectly designed for the 4 of us. It is NOT perfectly designed to accomodate a large dog crate and assorted dog paraphernalia. We are actually going to get a smaller breed than I really want due to this. We "could" expand the room...but who wants to take that on after just finishing their dream home? Plus, it would involve additional foundation and square footage as we cant rob from the adjoining room or garage. We'll make it work, but it is annoying that it could have been perfectly designed from the get-go. Sigh...

I don't have a walk-in but I love having a spot on the wall in my pantry (a plug) to hang my little dyson stick vac. The rest of my cleaning items (steamer, vacuum, brooms etc) are in a place a little more remote but it's handy having the vac hanging on the charger since that's the one I use at least every day. I would also keep a convenient spot for my step ladder, even though I'm not exactly short, it's still handy to have near the kitchen. My current house is an old farm house [it completely lacks storage] so the few little closets I do have end up storing lots of random stuff so I have drawer for batteries, flashlights, extension cords, tape, random household tools/nails (so I don't have to go out to the detached garage to hang a picture or change the batteries in a kid's toy.) Not saying that is ideal persay, but depending on your situation and floorplan just something to consider. Oldbat's pantry is gorgeous, but I think I'd go insane when nothing was ever put back in it's proper spot! LOL perhaps it's just easier on my anxiety to just have it a free for all to begin with!

It sounds like you made really good choices. I was in your position a year ago and we moved into our house 8 months ago. We also used California Closets and I was very happy with the experiences. Having your shoe shelves be non-angled is very practical in case you want to use that space for storing other things in the future (which you couldn't do easily with slanted shelves). I also upgraded to the soft-close dovetail drawers, which I love. The only thing I sort of regret is letting my designer talk me into a few frosted glass door fronts. She wanted it to feel more open and for me to be able to "display" beautiful handbags, etc. but the reality is that it's a closet and not a display space and I would rather have had totally concealed storage. I am happy with the accessories I chose: a jewelry drawer, safe, tilt-out hampers, ironing board that tucks into a drawer, full length mirror, pull-out rod and belt rod. For my kids' small walk-in closets, we got full-length mirrors (that fold away) and pull-out hampers. For my youngest daughter's (10 years old) closet, I did not pay close enough attention to the height of the hanging sections. One section is too high for her to reach so I ordered extra shelves to put in that area until she gets taller. Same thing for the drawer sections. She can reach the top 2 drawers to open them but she isn't tall enough to see what is in them. I also wish we would have been able to have pocket doors for the smaller walk-in closets but our room design did not allow for this. For the benefit of other readers looking at closet options, yes, CC is pricey but they really do handle EVERYTHING from the design to the installation and the clean-up. I wanted/needed help to design our spaces to maximize storage space and could not do that without the help of the designer. I did look at The Container Store's custom system (not elfa) but when I went to the store to open drawers, see the finishes, etc. to get a sense for the quality, they felt flimsy compared to CC. I did notice, however, that they have recently revised their custom closet offerings so maybe they have improved.

The very first thing I would do is look at lots of inspiration pictures, to define what you are drawn to/reflecting your style - how do you want room to feel. For instance, pictures below reflect one “look”. Then start accessorizing and go slow for your budget/sales, etc and choosing the right pieces. Make sure floor plan is definite. Suggest moving tv to shorter wall; couch and large art will become the focal point instead of tv. This arrangement also makes sense for conversation/more practical seating. Functionality: lower/longer console, coffee table, side table/lamp and/or floor lamp. Decor - drapery, art, plants, layering, cushions. I think the rug is the right size and is a great neutral from which to accessorize from.