Closet without door. Yay or nay?

last month

Just had a chat with a closet designer and apparently built-in closets without sliding doors are all the rage at the moment. Not walk-in closets, but just regular bedroom closets. He says the room will be bigger and it's similar to just having built-in shelving. All of his customers are going for the doorless-built in look. What do you guys think?

no doors

yes doors

Comments (23)

Lisa
Looks like a cheap hotel. Find another closet Consultant. Very trendy but why?
last monthlast modified: last month
njmomma
Not a Pro.

I do not think it looks like cheap hotel. I think it looks very nice.

I also think if you can keep your closet looking that neat go for it.

I would not be able to do that and it would drive me insane to keep it so neat.

So, I guess I vote for the doors, but not sure if I would do mirror doors. Hope that helps.
last month
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Donna B

here is another pic. It's kind of cool?
last month
Denita
Agree with njmomma about using doors, but I wouldn't use mirror doors at all. It is the rare person that can keep the closet pristine at all times so doors really come in handy when you don't have everything perfectly lined up by color and size and type.

I would use nice panel doors that slide to allow full access. This happens to be for two doors but for a larger opening you could go with 3 or 4 doors for easy access.

bypass doors - Google Search · More Info
last month
michoumonster
I love the built-in look, but only if you have doors and drawers covering all of the openings and just a few open shelves. it is hard to keep looking nice if you are not a tidy person. something like this is really nice
last month
Denita
^I'm smiling a little bit. I like that pic you posted. It does look very nice. But it also reminds me of the homes built in the 1950s and 60s in my area with the built in closet below and storage above, Funny how things come back around again :)
last monthlast modified: last month
vinmarks
No. The pictures are not realistic. Few people will keep their closet looking like the ones in the picture. Each hanging article of clothing is perfectly spaced. Everything is perfectly folded and there's hardly anything in the closet. Every article of clothing in the picture is either white, tan or gray.
last month
denkyem
If you are a super tidy perfectionist who knows they'll keep it perfect, sure. For me: never! One of the primary purposes of my closet is to HIDE clutter. I agree about not loving the mirrored sliding doors though, I find that look a bit dated. I'd do either hinged or sliding cabinet doors.
last month
denkyem
Actually we are working on a custom wardrobe design for a tricky space, and we might end up turning a small section of it into open shelving out of necessity-- but if we do, that will be exclusively for my husband to use. He can be trusted to keep something like that neat, I cannot!
last month
jmm1837
I think that open closet image is pretty unrealistic: where are the rest of the clothes and shoes?
last month
Lars
where are the rest of the clothes and shoes?

Hillary Farr got rid of them.
last month
littlebug zone 5 Missouri
No doors on the closet? You’ve got to be kidding me. How can I arrange mine like Fibber McGee?

Seriously though,I don’t believe I will jump on this trend.
last month
Donna B
The closets were for my kids and I'd rather they hide their clothes, as you can imagine, it's not going to be the most organized closet. They prefer to roll their clothes into balls so we'd want that covered as much as possible.
last month
bpath reads banned books too
The sample closets work only if all your wardrobe matches all your decor, and you have only 3 jackets, 3 pairs of slacks, and 3 dresses. A few blouses. Everything the same color. No Saturday sweatshirts, no run-to-the-store cardigans.

I have reach-in closets. They have doors. We are happy. Also, I hide Christmas and Birthday presents in there.
last month
Missi (4b IA)
I'm planning to open my daughters closet up completely, to the ceiling, and the sides, and I'm not planning to put a door on it. The closet is kiddy corner from the bedroom door, you'd see it for a split second walking past her room, and only if you were directly looking into the bedroom. You'll see it when you're in the bedroom of course...but she's 16, who cares? I don't live in a magazine or Pinterest. My desire is to utilize the space I have in a small house, rather than having things *out*.
last month
aliceingardenland
Here are some questions to consider. Are all of your clothes and shoes in the same color palette? Does the color palette clash with the room? Can you keep your closet this neat? Do you have pets that would enjoy napping with your clothing? Do you have another closet to keep things that are not pretty in? Personal choice for sure, but I need doors.
last month
aliceingardenland
I see you posted this would be for your kids and they tend to roll their clothes up. Maybe you could do this and have them keep their clothing in baskets on the shelves. Depending on your kids, it may actually work since they won't have to open a door to put things away.
last month
dallasannie
If you don't live in a photo shoot, put doors on the closet. I would love to have such a small and perfectly matched and arranged array of things. But, I don't. I bet that you don't, either, and that you never will. Nor, will I.
last month
A E
I'm not sure what is up with the trendy open shelving, doors off, even in the kitchen, but they serve a purpose. As for the bedroom, I can understand wanting to remove the doors as I have 2 bedroom closet doors that are insanely problematic and make 1/2 the closet useless as they open in (like wth, right?) But I agree that unless they are super tidy, frankly, I feel they're an eyesore to leave open.
last month
raee_gw zone 5b-6a Ohio
Do you have pets that would enjoy napping with your clothing?

I had a cat that would manage to open the linen closet door (which was only the upper half of the wall) and get onto the shelves, even the very top one. I had to put a latch at the top of the door to keep her out of there!

I have too many unattractive (garden grubbies, athletic shoes) and oddly shaped things in my closet -- and I don't want to see them or anything else when I am not getting them out to use.
last month
redoredone
Put doors on the closets!!! ANY kind of door is better than no door. Just because it's a current trend does not mean it's a good thing.
last month
Jean Strauser
Oooops. I voted No before I read completely. I meant Keep the doors and No to removing them, hehe.
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Zee M
It does look OK from the pictures - but real life doesn't always work like that. I prefer to be able to hide my clutter on days when I'm not up to organizing my closet. I'm conflicted. If you like the doorless closet, go for it, as long as attaching doors is an option in the future.
last month

Closet without door. Yay or nay?

Comments (23)

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