Things are slowly coming along. I've purchased a headboard, new bedding, and I've found a couple of art pieces I like that are very similar in colors to the inspiration picture. I haven't been able to find a one piece roman shadebig enough but I have found a black out shade at Ikea that I would probably dress up with panels if need be. My last big decision now is paint color. Any thoughts? Here is the inspo pic (top) and the 2 art pieces I'm considering for above the bed. I know I need to keep it light since the room is so small but I don't want it to be too boring either. I dont even know where to start.

I think my closet plans fall into the range of "real people". Most of us don't have Oprah-sized closets or the number of shoes owned by -- is that Mariah Cary? Most of us -- even if we had the space -- wouldn't install a custom island topped with granite. After all, as lovely as these spaces are, they're closets. Here's my inspiration picture -- though at 7' wide x 8' long, my new house closet will be a little bigger than this one: Specifics that matter to me -- obviously, you'll have way more space and will be able to have more: - 3' of walking space down the middle of two aisles. - A pretty light in the middle of the space ... and maybe a couple canned lights on the edges. This is, of course, not important in terms of function, but I want a bit of fancy in the closet. - Since I am only 4'11", I will shorten my hanging clothes area. I want matching hangers. - Plenty of folded space -- we are on the cusp of retirement and won't need lots of dress clothes. Plus we want no dresser in the bedroom, so we want space for EVERYTHING in the closet. - A couple built-in drawers for unmentionables. - Space for roughly 30 pair of shoes for me, 10 pair for him -- plus several pairs of boots for the two of us -- but our footwear doesn't need to be showcased as if they were something special. - A few attractive baskets up top for "boxing up" traveling items, purses, out of season items, etc.... and a planned space for a step stool since I want to access those baskets. - My inspiration pix shows wallpaper on the back wall, but I'll probably paint something pretty with a stencil. I have a round mirror, which I plan to repurpose on the back wall ... and I want a shelf underneath it, which can hold jewelry, etc. - A fluffy rug in the middle of the closet. - A valet rod on each side of the closet for "hanging out" church clothes. - One narrow "open locker" at the doorway on each side ... with a couple hooks. This will be for clothes that we plan to wear again ... a once-worn nightgown, workout clothes, or jeans. This'll keep them separate from the "completely clean clothes".

Our property is some what pie shaped, with the widest part towards the east end. It is also wooded with most of the trees on the south side. So the best views will be to the east. We plan to place the house running from the northeast to the southwest to let more light in. The garage will be about 20' from the north property line. We've actually worked with a architect in the past, but they have since closed up shop. It was a struggle as they couldn't get what we were after; an front entry that doesn't open into the living room (i.e privacy) , a not so open floor plan and finally a plan that doesn't looks like every other house. I'm curious what are the other problems you see?

I do think some things should be considered that has already been mentioned. How are furniture going to make it up the stairs and into the rooms. It seems the stair railing will need to be open all the way so one can lift furniture above it to make sure to be able to get it upstairs. If the elevation is driving the knee wall then it might be time to consider changing the elevation to make it more usable space. What is the roof pitch? Maybe a steeper pitch to get more space. It seems as the closet is now that it could all fall under the 6'8" height that is the height used to count as square footage in an appraisal. If the bath and closet was split as suggested above I'd make the bath shorter and just have dead space in the area where the height is too low or use it to install some deep drawers that are stair stepped in depth that can be used to store toiletries, towels, and toilet paper. Then in the closet I'd use that space for deep drawers too with stair stepped shelves above it to store foldable things and/or shoes on the shelves. I wouldn't actually use the low wall space where you have to bend over other than for built in storage.