Too bad the duck isn't on the back wall. Right now that nine inches is lost space. I really don't see how it is functional. I would just forget it is there. If you store heavy boxes in the closet, what are you going to do with them when guests come?

I think I would just get a foldable luggage rack and not modify the closet at all.

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Thanks houssaon. When guests come, which is soon, we'll put the boxes in our closet.

Just a thought, if you're feeling indecisive about how many shelves you want, maybe have them be adjustable? for that matter, perhap just go with something like elfa, where you can move them freely, or remove them to get into that nook.

BlueberryBundtcake, removable shelves would actually be ideal. I asked the carpenter about that but there’s something about the dimensions of our closet that would make that difficult. Unfortunately Elfa shelves would not provide the support we need for those heavy boxes we want to store there.

houssaon, that’s a great photo but we barely have enough space for the bed. If we got a luggage rack it would have to go in the closet.

It sounds like the heavy boxes you’re willing to move from closet to closet to accommodate guests are dictating the type of storage. Is there any way you can rebox the contents so they can live in one, or more, spaces permanently? Like under a bed or on the floor of a closet? Elfa can hold a surprisingly large amount of weight and it’s flexibility is great as it can change functions as your needs change.

I would put shelves in the entire back shelves ...and see what you can put there by emptying the boxes to give everything a place , and it looks as if you have wall space in your bedroom ...couldn’t you build a closet there to hide the rest ? Or under the bed ...try and unpack the boxes and make room all around the house for storage of these items. ???

Buy folding two luggage racks to fit in the closet for guests to use. You can fit a dolly for hauling heavy boxes around in the 9 inch nook.

IMO if the heaavy boxes fit in your closet leave them there and leave this closet as is . I think there really is no way to do this for what you want unless the shelves go right to the front of the closet and then there is no space for guests to do anything. Maybe look at a bed with under the bed storage and put all the stuff from the heavy boxes there .

Thanks everyone for your comments. It sounds like y’all prefer the aesthetic of leaving the closet as is with luggage racks and I do understand that. But this closet is the best and only “permanent” storage spot we have available for those heavy boxes. These are bankers boxes (12”x 10”x 15”) with handles. Many of them have two people’s lifetimes of photos, genealogy research and other stuff we want to easily access, not stash under a bed. I was hoping to find a shelf solution that could double as horizontal surface for guests. When guests come the boxes can be moved somewhere else - I’m not too concerned about that since it will be seldom and temporary. Maybe it’s not possible to do that with this closet though. I do like the storage bed idea. That could be useful for guests.

These are bankers boxes (12”x 10”x 15”) with handles. Many of them have two people’s lifetimes of photos, genealogy research and other stuff we want to easily access, not stash under a bed.

I live in a house with no storage space so feel your pain. Just yesterday, I vowed to find a more permanent solution for the box of pictures we keep moving from room to room. Might be an obvious question, but are your banker's boxes made for archival storage? I don't know how many boxes of stuff you have but I echo Donald's idea of exploring alternate ways to store and access these treasures in your home. For example, digitizing and or displaying photos? Album or book format for the genealogy research?

If you move the shelf up, are you able to access it? As it seems that the outside wall would make it difficult to do so. And moving the rod up, would it be easy enough for a guest to reach up and grab the hanger? I've used this closet organization system in 2 homes and have been able to optimize my closet space. Though you aren't looking to purchase such a system, you may glean some ideas that will help you find a solution. https://www.easyclosets.com/

Elfa can hold a fair amount of weight when properly installed. Bankers boxes are probably 40-50 pounds, which means elfa shelves could probably hold two per shelf, but if that makes you nervous, consider metro shelving ... still adjustable (albeit a little less conveniently unless you get something like their qwikslot line), and it can hold hundreds of pounds per shelf (metro lines are rated for a bit more than intermetro lines, but both are quite strong). Metro is free standing, but you could probably anchor it to the wall if you wanted to.

If I were a guest, I wouldn't use the drawers of a storage bed ... though, I'm also not the type to take my stuff out of my luggage; unless I'm staying for like six months, everything stays in my bag except maybe toiletries.

I find the items stashed under my bed are very readily accessible. If you don't wat this stuff under a bed, that's fine, I just don't agree with the rationale that it can't go there because it needs to be easy to access. I keep my arts and crafts supplies under my bed (ink, paint, colored pencils, fabric, yarn - okay okay, I have yarn elsewhere too, but the skeins under my bed might actually be easier to get to than the ones in the closet), and we always joked with my mum that her bed would never collapse with all the quilting fabric under it.

How many "heavy" boxes of memorabilia do you have to store? I think digitizing pix of the important pix would be helpful. Once that's done, sort through pix and make envelopes for the families featured in the photos, giving them to them. I did this, and everyone was thrilled to see some pix they didn't even have themselves. If the room is that tight, there is no room to pull out drawers or rolling bins from under the bed. How long do your guests usually stay; overnight or two weeks? Personally, I would prefer to hang up my clothes than access them from luggage. We don't know what you're using as bedside tables, but something with drawers for their items might be helpful. These would work with your bed. How much space is there for them? May we see a photo of the bed and tables?

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Perhaps you aren't familiar with lift-up beds.

https://www.ikea.com/us/en/p/malm-storage-bed-black-brown-90404817/

Elfa shelving is strong…put the heaviest box on the floor and adjust the other shelves for normal storage.

Is there a door on the closet? Perhaps the middle shelf could have a fold up shelf panel that would allow it to be folded up and out flat into the room a little, to serve as a luggage rack when needed. It could be closed/folded down when not needed. Then you wouldn't have to move the boxes.

If your boxes are 12 wide x 10 tall, build in shelving with a partition spaced for them. You could split the closet vertically with a divider 18" to 24" inches deep, 14 inches from the right side giving enough width for comfortable access to your boxes. You could space shelves 12 inches apart and get 5 useful storage spaces. Or, just build two shelves and leave the remaining space for hanging short clothing.

Another choice would be to build a shelf 12 inches off the floor, about 20 inches deep, and slide the boxes underneath as a permanent home. I like to space shelves for the items to be stored so it seems to me that the shelf spacing would be 11 to 12 inches high and 13 to 14 inches wide so just enough room to comfortably slide in the boxes and nothing else to get in the way.

If you prefer adjustable shelving, get heavy duty standards and mount on studs in the back wall. There is a large selection of brackets which will hold the weight of your boxes. If you are concerned, go with 16 or 18 wide shelves so just one box per shelf. I am guessing the boxes don't weigh more than 50 pounds each so most common storage systems will work for your closet

I have not read through all the comments, so if your dilemma has been solved, I apologize for the intrusion.

My limited understanding is that this closet would serve as a guest bedroom closet, occasionally - and box storage closet, generally.

So the dolly idea - to stack boxes and be able to roll them in and out of the closet - would seem convenient. And I would get a dresser with casters, or one on which casters could be installed - and keep that on hand to roll into the closet, when you need it for guests. Easy solution - and, in my opinion, a nicer look than just shelves.

Below, primarily shelves:

Below - with Dressers:

All you really need is something slim like this one below. You could place it on the right side of closet and a folding luggage rack on left side. And I would keep the rod, so clothes, etc. can also be hung.

For your purposes, I don’t think I would have shelves built in.

Happy 4th of July and thanks for this great feedback! I still haven’t decided what to do with the closet. It’s tempting to do nothing since the guests arrive in 3 weeks. The cabinet maker will want to know the plan in the next couple days.

I’ll try to respond to some of your questions. First, the plan all along has been to sort, reorganize, albumize, digitize and appropriately gift to family these photos, genealogy research and memorabilia. The planned shelves are meant to be a “staging area” for that project and is part of the reason we need easy access. Lay the stuff out on the bed when there are no guests, computer down the hall, etc. I’m a librarian with archives experience so I’m good with the preservation aspects.

There are maybe 20-25 of these boxes. In between guest visits we’ll gradually pare them down, get them out of the bankers boxes into smaller, uniform containers that will be easier to move when guests come. We don’t want to stack the bankers boxes on the floor and move them out of the way with a dolly as a permanent solution.

freedomplace1, thank you for your thoughts and sending those pictures. I agree a dresser is a nicer look than shelves, and if creating a nice guest bedroom look was the main goal I would definitely go for it. But my hope was for shelves for the permanent archives that could become a horizontal surface for a guest suitcase occasionally.

Lyndee Lee, I appreciate your shelf ideas and will pass them to the cabinet maker to get his feedback. I honestly don’t know whether there are studs and I need to find out. That seems important!

HU-592188739 there is no door and I had exactly this same idea of a fold down or fold up shelf in the middle and thought it would be ideal. I’m going to ask the cabinet maker. That type of set up would need studs for sure.

I can make some temporary space for about half of the bankers boxes on a linen closet floor. The rest are stacked to the ceiling in a hall closet that will be converted to open shelves for a different purpose. Leaving them there is not an option.

I’m going to look at storage beds. There’s no IKEA or container store where I live (Hawaii) so that flip up bed and the Elfa system probably won’t be possible - shipping costs are a killer.

Since most of you seem to favor the closet rod I will keep it. I may raise it up higher - not impossibly high but we could always provide a stool 😉

I would drop the doors and hanging rod and sink a couple of semi-custom cabinets in that spot at the exact depth you need. Bottom portion could be drawers. Top portion, adjustable shelves for your treasures. You could always add a hook somewhere in cases a guest needs to hang something.

Or get a tall platform bed and stash the treasures below it.

I apologize for not reading carefully enough to catch the quantity of boxes. With that many boxes, storage can be a challenge. Your wall is a substantial surface so if there aren't studs, it must be cinder block or poured concrete. Although the hardware is different, there are methods of attaching shelving to different materials. If you live in a condo, there may be restrictions which apply and I am sure the association will be happy to talk to you about them.

Rubbermaid has a couple different shelving systems available. Check out their website for some good ideas

I am not sure how reasonable it is to move 20-25 boxes of stuff in and out of a closet, so that the closet can be used on occasion as a guest closet. If your main focus is using this closet for box/archive storage, I would consider perhaps just using it for that; and maybe just hang some pieces like this on the back of the room door for guests.

It does not sound like there is much space in the room, itself, as you describe it. I am not sure if you posted a pic of the actual room. If there is any room at all for a nightstand, you could also consider using a slim chest like this, in lieu of nightstand.

And perhaps a floor lamp. and/or some wall sconces, in lieu of table lamps; plug-in wall sconces are also available.

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I would get some very nice/comfortable/plush hotel style bedding for guest bed. Whites. Maybe a nice framed poster for the wall.

https://www.williams-sonoma.com/m/products/monogrammed-white-hotel-bedding/

If there might be any room for a slim bench at foot of the bed, guests could also possibly use that to rest a suitcase, etc.

https://www.wayfair.com/furniture/pdp/foundry-select-gore-upholstered-bench-w003098948.html?piid=989208650

So I would try to make it as comfortable as possible. And I would just organize it with the understanding that there is no guest closet in the room, and if the closet does not have a door, cover it with a screen perhaps.

Keep the closet for yourselves and your project. Use one of these for guests.

Thanks all so much for helping me think outside my own box with this closet. After carefully reading all your suggestions and ideas I spent the day hauling out these boxes, consolidating and relocating them temporarily to the floor of our linen closet and other nooks and crannies and moved a few albums to bookshelves. I managed to reduce the number by two without much effort - so progress! A couple people asked for photos of the room so I will post a few. The high 4 poster queen bed (it had some of the boxes stashed underneath before today) will be replaced by a king platform bed since most of our visitors will be couples. I know it’s a lot of bed for this small room but I’ve seen pictures of small rooms with low, wide beds and they actually made the room feel bigger. There won’t be room for bedside tables - I’m leaning toward a couple floating shelves instead and I really like the wall sconce idea. As you can see we do have a narrow bench (there’s storage inside) that will still fit at the foot of the bed since a king bed frame doesn’t have to be deeper than a queen. A small suitcase and can fit on the bench.

As you can see there’s not a lot of wall or floor space for a leaning clothes rack although some of those are very compact and I really like them. We had bifold doors removed from the closet and there’s no plan to replace them. I measured the current height and depth of the top shelf and how much we need - think we can easily raise the shelf and the rod 3” if we end up keeping the rod.

I spent a chunk of time learning more about how shelves are attached to walls, required support for different weights and materials, etc. and weighing my boxes. I know my cabinet maker plans to use cleats but not what they will be attached to. Now I can be more confident asking questions.

We have a smallish, high round pedestal table that I may be able to stick in the closet for the upcoming visit and buy more time to consider our shelving needs. I have been so inspired by all your kind suggestions, ideas and photos. It’s so helpful to get outside opinions!

If you were keeping that tall bed, the possibility for more drawers for guests would be even better since bedside tables should reach mattress height. I do think the posts make the room look tighter, so changing beds is a good idea. Not sure I'd go for more than a queen though. How many of your guests have king beds at home? I'd rather have room to walk around a bit myself.

Is that space in the closet some nice space put shoeboxes unless you like to have shelves.