The dressing room is the best way to enjoy an orderly home, where everything is in its place, without multiplying the storage units that take up too much space. The dressing room allowsoptimize space and to reserve a place of choice for his wardrobe. At a time when refined interior decoration is popular, we understand that the dressing room is on the rise. It gives the distinct impression of living in a more spacious dwelling. But to benefit from a tailor-made dressing room worthy of the name, it is better to take the time to reflect before embarking on its development.
Where should the dressing room be placed?
It all depends on whether it is intended for a couple or whether it must accommodate the personal effects of all members of a family. In the first case, it can be arranged in the bedroom, if it is spacious enough. If, in addition, the room communicates with the bathroom, then we have a real parental suite. In the second case, the dressing room intended for adults and children rather finds its place in a space accessible to all but that no one occupies. In this case, we choose the smallest of the bedrooms, for example. Ideally, the dressing room intended to accommodate clothes should be placed in the sleeping area or near the family bathroom.
If we do not have a real room to be transformed into a dressing room, it is then necessary to consider occupying a space that would need to be optimized. It can be the underside of a staircase, the loft of an attic area, the end of a long corridor, an alcove, a storage room or why not a corner of the mezzanine. The main one is to not waste any square meter and therefore, to take advantage of any nook that seemed useless until then.
Designing a tailor-made dressing room: assessing your needs
Assess your needs is essential to create a made-to-measure dressing room capable of meeting expectations. The volume of clothes to be stored is of course decisive, as is the number of pairs of shoes. We know for example that a folded T-shirt has a thickness of 3 cm while that of a folded sweater is at least 12 cm. It’s better not to pile clothes too high if you don’t want to compete with the Tower of Pisa! This is why the distance to be observed between two shelves should be 30 to 35 cm and 50 cm is an acceptable depth. As for the depth of the dressing room, a minimum of 80 cm is required to be able to accommodate the hangers…
Create an ultra-functional tailor-made dressing room
A dressing room is not just a closet where you pile up clothes and accessories on shelves. Its layout is much more subtle than that. It must consist of very specific areas so that we have a minima :
- Of drawers sufficiently large and which can be compartimentés thanks to accessories for dressing rooms that can be found in interior design stores. The drawers are essential because they accommodate all the little things such as Madame’s leggings and lingerie, Monsieur’s boxer shorts and socks, scarves, gloves, belts and other small fashion accessories…
- Many shelves : we store folded clothes such as sweaters, T-shirts, shirts, shorts, polo shirts, nightgowns and pajamas… They are inseparable from racks with modular shelves which allow you to arrange your shelves in your own way.
- of a specific shelving for shoes and boots, small jewelry boxes, boxes, baskets and other storage lockers to classify all small objects in order to find them easily.
- Of wardrobes of different heights: the highest tall for long coats, dresses and long skirts, the most basses for shirts and blouses that you don’t want to fold, short skirts and dresses, trousers, jackets, short coats, tuxedos… We have a whole range of ultra-practical rods, single, double, liftable, folding, retractable, foldable, telescopic… enough to set up a star wardrobe!
If you have a dressing room of at least 6 or 7 m², you can absolutely reserve a space there for the vacuum cleaner, the ironing board, the steam generator and the steamer and another where all the laundry toilet and bed can find its place.
Finally, the highest part of the dressing room can be reserved for storing duvets, pillows for passing friends and anything that is only used occasionally. If you want to occupy the entire height of the room, it is wise to place a running board in the dressing room.
Wardrobes of a made-to-measure dressing room: are there any standards?
In order for the different wardrobes that are fitted out in a made-to-measure dressing room to be as practical as possible but also so that the clothes do not get damaged, it is necessary to follow the rules what the interior design professionals. We must therefore remember the following.
- Only ask resistant rods so that they do not bend over time under the weight of clothing.
- Respect the following dimensions:
- Between 0.80 and 1.00 m from the ground to hang trousers,
- At 1.30 m from the ground for jackets, shirts,
- At 1.60 m from the ground (or maximum 1.80 m) for long clothes so that they do not drag on the ground,
- 1.10 m to 1.20 m between two bars if a double wardrobe is installed.
Be careful, however, to leave enough space between the clothes rail and the top shelf or the top of the dressing room to be able to insert or remove the hangers! We recommend a minimum of 6 cm, but it is better to provide 8 or 10 cm because some hangers have thick hooks.
Choose between closed dressing room and open dressing room
It’s a personal choice, the two concepts being in tune with the times. With a closed dressing room, the clothes are protected from dust and completely concealed. The room in which the closed dressing room is located therefore immediately seems tidier. There are several solutions to close a dressing room, namely:
- Great rideau on a rod: it is a decorative element in its own right. Plain or printed, it sets the tone. It can be changed according to the desires or the seasons.
- The sliding doors: with a mirror is even better if you want to visually enlarge the room. Practical, they slide noiselessly and effortlessly and do not take up space.
- The hinged closet doors: they are more cumbersome than sliding doors.
- The concertina doorsor folding doors : they are mainly used in confined spaces, but they are less resistant than other doors to many manipulations.
The open dressing room has its charm too, but it implies that everything in it is perfectly tidy, that the clothes on the shelves are folded and aligned to the nearest millimeter and that those in the wardrobe are preferably sorted by length. And to obtain an even more aesthetic effect, you can opt for storage by color… The open dressing room is therefore rather the solution that suits hyper-tidy people and does not tolerate any missteps. Better if the clothes are not piled up so that the dressing room without a door has somehow the look of a small chic boutique. This, of course, involves choosing decorative storage baskets and other lovely hat boxes, and you can even display the prettiest pieces of your collection (designer bag or pumps, etc.).
It remains to install LED lighting systems as judiciously as possible so that there are no shady corners in the various shelves, drawers and wardrobes. And if you are lucky enough to be able to reserve an entire room for your dressing room of more than 10 m², you can easily install a Psyché mirror and a small storage pouf or, better still, a sofa design, enough to have a real fitting room at home. The dream !