Such a wonderful feature!

Can you just clean up the inside and do something different on the doors? Paint, new hardware, etc.

(My apologies if I read the question wrong.)

Just some general examples, as I don’t know how you’ll be decorating:

I love old houses — how old is yours? Are you in England or another European country? I don’t see wardrobes like these in the US. :)

I think get some good organizers for the inside and then just paint the whole set of doors the same color as your walls . I have to say old closets are not great for good storage but if you want to keep them then that is my advice. Maybe add some nice long stainless pulls . For me I would remove them and do Pax from Ikea some much better storage and still put together to have a real custom look . BUt I see some really pretty ceiling medallion crying for a fabulous chandelier so the iron bed not so much but maybe as aguest space you could do this room a bit less modern I like my guest room often to be very different than the rest of my decor . If you decide to keep the iron bed then maybe some nice black hardware.

I love to resuse, but those look like a tear-out to me. I'd rather build a set of closets with updated hardware (more than a rod and shelf) and tailored to the space, so that you get as much storage as possible out of that, especially with the change of depth around the chimney.

I would re-organize for utility and wallpaper the insides and otherwise decorate the room around them without touching them. Refinish floors without putting a plastic finish on them, invest in a truly beautiful chandelier and find the right bedding and rug. I would decide the window treatments last.

i would go with a color palettte like this, especially the flame on the floor

fun considerations

maybe this rug?

or maybe a solid rug with very textured bedding and this chandelier?

peel-stick wallpaper for the interior of the cabinets

one or 2 of these at the end of the metal bed instead of a bench...

or ....

you could paint everything gray!

I see the cool radiator under the windows & the very tall baseboards - what a treasure this house must be. How ’up to date’ are your going to bring this house? Are you meaning plumbing & wiring so up to code or more than that?

Please don’t replace it with something from Ikea. This kind of charm is irreplaceable Do what you can to make it work for you and you’ll never regret it. I envy your journey

Radiators placed under windows were specifically a response to the 1918 flu epidemic and the prevalence of TB in shared housing to allow people to crack open a window even in the midst of winter to lessen the risks of contagion indoors by enabling ventilation. Don't renovate them away. They are still life savers.

I would retrofit the interiors for more than just hanging but I would keep the doors intact. Update them with paint.

Nothing is going to "update" those doors and overall structure. You can pick a different palette and even paint them all one hue but they are always going to look "downdated" unless you take them down

Then I guess the thousands of suggestions where people are told to "update with paint" are all wrong, then.

Unless the OP has very deep pockets, which they may have, we don't know, most modern updates are not going to be as well tailored as those are. Melamine on particle board may be an update, but it's not an upgrade.

Point to palimpsest! I agree! Updates are generally a good thing but rarely do they keep or restore the charm and integrity of what they replaced.

If this were an apartment in Paris we would all be oohing and aahing.

I would not remove them, and would do just as Jilly suggested!

KW & palimpset: Read my previous posts? I didn't say take them down. I actually said don't touch them. Keep them as is. I think they are wonderful.

My point is that you can't "update" this built-in structure with paint. The age is in the design.

I think the painting suggestions make them look -- well, pointlessly painted. If the doors can't be cleaned, then maybe it's necessary. But just to try to do away with age?

Just to be clear: Don't paint them. Clean them, don't paint them. Wallpaper on the inside. The "old aesthetic" is what makds them wonderful. If you'd bought the house and they were already painted baby blue or standard white chances are you would have junked them as notthing special.

I love these wardrobes and hope you keep them; paint the doors and update the interiors. Get some lovely hardware (please not stainless) if needed that will harmonize with the vintage vibe. Create some space for hanging clothes if needed. What a pathetic travesty it would be to replace them with something contemporary like a Pax wardrobe- please- just NO! Anyone can have IKEA; you have something special here.

IMO we now need some feed back from the OP I understood the modernization of the house was what was being planned . BTW I have hot water heat rads all under windows house built in 1957 I have no clue as to this comment about TB.

I like them as they are too, color and everything. But if properly painted in different colors, it would not ruin them or downgrade them.

( By someone who knows how to paint, not a weekend DIY job, or some painter who hires people who paint because they don't know how to do anything else and aren't very good at painting either. Which is a lot of "painters" these days )

Wow, thank you all for your creative ideas and feedback!

For some context on the house: we are modernizing everything which includes new wires, new (cast iron) rads, new plaster, new floors…

The look of these wardrobes I don’t want to keep - and seems an easy enough job to repaint & refinish the doors and add new hardware.

To be clear my main concern is how to “clean up the insides” - if the rest of the room is fresh & new I don’t feel like we’ll have the right access to update the walls and floor on the inside of the wardrobes without removing them first since they were just built on top of everything…

@Jilly I do love that example from Browson Design and Build (Lucy Williams’ house) - definitely in my moodboard!

Funny how the IKEA pax is so polarizing! I do recognize that these old closets aren’t the best use of the space, do feel that starting again might be the best way and @acm appreciate the sentiment that it maybe futile to reuse these 🙃

Don’t worry, the bed was a temporary IKEA bed we used before the renovation, it will probably end up in a guest room somewhere! Love the ideas to add the poofs @mytwo cents

Here you go, one set of painted cabinets, a pretty brass bed and a rug! :) just playing. (I would clean them and paint them, at least initially, to see if they could be saved. )

@jean need your skills to do this to all my rooms! 😄

Thanks Anna! The other thing you might consider is to remove the current crown molding and build up the top to fill in to the ceiling, getting rid of the space above. Then put the crown back.

Remove the molding and paint a high gloss wall paint with several coats.

Leather Covered Doors (can substitute leather with vinyl for same effect)

Painted Black Matte Finish

Low Luster Paint

Upholstered Doors

High Gloss Paint