by Jennifer Aniston made headlines last week when she won Drama TV Star of the Year at the People’s Choice Awards for her role on The Morning Show. But it could be argued that the buzz was less focused on her victory, and more focused on the revelation of her gargantuan home dressing room.
Instagram post of the Friends star strutting down the red carpet at her $21 million dollar mansion in Bel Air ahead of the awards offered a glimpse of a space the size of a studio apartment, replete with lighted shelves of neatly folded cashmere sweaters and racks of dresses on matching hangers. . “Dream closet” – as her fellow actress Elizabeth Tulloch said – was the general consensus.
Of course, neither space nor budget is an obstacle for an A-lister to make his clothing store look like a Bond Street store. But on this side of the pond, dressing rooms are also becoming more “non-negotiable” for wealthy property buyers, according to Will Watson, partner at specialist agency the Buying Solution. “Master suites” with adjoining bathrooms and dressing rooms can add value, especially against neighboring properties. The Hamptons estate agency notes how developers are incorporating them where possible, creating personalized havens that replicate the feel of a high-end retail experience.
While a walk-in wardrobe caters for clothes, a dressing room takes function to the next level, often including a drawer-filled island to store valuables such as jewelery and watches, as well as a hair and make-up station.
Designers Neville Johnson, where prices start from £3,000+VAT for fitted wardrobes, have noticed a spike in clients referencing images from social media (model Rosie Huntington-Whiteley, who posts outfit selfies from her wardrobe enclave wood in London, as well). as she set up a marble in Malibu, no doubt many programs of inspiration). At premium maker Neatsmith, customers are investing the same amount of spending as a luxury family holiday into their wardrobes, with elevated extras such as recessed LED lighting and mirrored doors.
In the suburbs, boxes of boxes are being handed over easily to make the bedroom “friend” (a chair that is forever burdened with clothes that are not ready for the laundry basket) a thing of the past. But the cost of going specialist can be prohibitive.
Enter Ikea’s customizable PAX system, which has been “hacked” (or tweaked to look 100 times better than its flat-pack roots) by market-conscious renovators, who share their innovations on social media. One such is Shropshire-based Chelsea Stonier, who was originally quoted £32,000 for the oak-fronted floor-to-ceiling joinery she wanted for her dressing room.
For less than a fifth of that price, she got the look thanks to PAX and custom wood veneer doors. Even more cost-friendly – although not so easy on the eye – are open doorless units. A London fashion editor who ran out of funds at the end of her renovation spent £1,250 on carcasses, using Ikea’s virtual planner, and paid £455 to a pair of craftsmen she found on Taskrabbit to build them and boards remove bulky skirts for a neat store. suitable. “That was the best money I spent,” she says.
Here, we detail all the best tips from those who have carved dressing rooms – minus the celebrity price tag.
How much space do you need?
William Durrant, owner of Kent-based kitchen and joinery specialist Herringbone, recommends a minimum walk or door clearance of 85cm (33in). For small spaces, he recommends leaving the wardrobe doors completely open so you don’t have to give them enough space to swing open. The beauty of custom joinery, however, is that anything is possible, so narrow doors can be created to enclose whatever is hanging around, if desired.
Think about your upbringing
Ultimately, the main issue here is open (also called “naked”) versus closed. Content creator and writer Lisa Dawson inherited an Ikea fitted wardrobe in a nook off her bedroom in her Grade II listed house in York. But in the end she put them out: “They didn’t take full advantage of the space, and because I couldn’t see everything there, I would forget a lot of things.”
Her solution, after putting the area in the same botanical print as her bedroom, was a pair of scaffolding poles (prices on The Metal Store’s website start from £4.20) to use as rails in the alcove: “There they press into the wall and they don’t budge,” she testifies.
She then hired a local carpenter to create two tall shelving units out of MDF, which are affixed to the wall. While some people say exposed clothes get dusty, she found that constantly moving them around on the rails (and her daughter raiding her supply) did the opposite.
But a guest bedroom that doubles as a walk-in could benefit from an enclosure. Stockport-based influencer and veteran Sophia Barrese learned lessons from the messy open railings of her former home. In her dressing room, thanks to doors with diamond-shaped panels and rattan inlays, sprayed in Red Earth Farrow & Ball, her clothes do not cannibalize the space; and she can still pop a sofa bed in there when people come to stay.
The inner works
Rails versus drawers versus shelves… You’ll probably need a combination of all three, but what you need to store should dictate how you divide your wardrobe space. High rails are a no-brainer for long dresses – but don’t forget jumpsuits and dungarees too, as well as out-of-season coats. Men’s configurations often require shorter hanging room as trousers and set suits half the length of a frock, leaving room underneath for wide drawers.
Custom slanting shelves work well for those with shoe collections; and while modular options (like Ikea’s PAX) don’t have the sleekest interior finishes, the beauty of Stonier is that it gave her the flexibility to convert a tall unit into extra shelves for her “trainer-obsessed . ” husband. And don’t forget external details: a horizontal rail on the outside of a cupboard, or strategically placed hooks, will provide a moment to air out garments as you put together your next outfit.
Making every inch count
Going from floor to ceiling is the best way to maximize the space. Barrese’s top-corner area has fitted wardrobes, and after finding that drawers ate up valuable space in her previous project, she rates simple shelves for knitwear.
Controversially for some, Dawson hangs up her sweaters, which makes her industrial-style rails work even harder – and frees up space on her shelves for denim. Chimney breasts are a common issue to work around in older British homes; Stonier hid hers with 14-deep shelves, perfect for shoes and sitting flush with cupboards
How to keep costs down
Getting rid of doors is an obvious way to cut costs, but in Barrese’s case, the doors were non-negotiable. Their initial estimate from Cheshire Bespoke Joinery was solid wood used throughout, but the price was almost halved when MDF was specified for the carcasses instead (the exposed ends and doors are all solid oak). It’s proof that providing honest feedback can lead to a happy compromise, rather than ghosting craftsmen when the price isn’t quite right.
Labour-intensive drawers can be replaced with cheaper options; Durrant recommends anthracite metal chests of drawers.
Barrese and Dawson are basket fans: Dawson keeps underwear, accessories and swimwear in large baskets purchased at HomeSense, perched on her fitted shelves. A freestanding chest of drawers is also evident: Stonier created a custom island from two Ikea Hemnes drawer units placed back to back, the legs removed, and side panels added (the opulent marble top was a budget-busting move, but elevates the overall effect ).
If an element of DIY is easily achievable, take it: Dawson painted her shelves herself for a cohesive look, and is estimated to have spent around £600 on the whole project. And then there is lighting; if the room has a natural light source, you can get out without fancy additions.
