coastal delaware

Five Common Mistakes to Avoid when Designing your Custom Closet

As the premier custom closet company in Coastal Delaware and Maryland, we’ve designed and installed hundreds of closets for our customers. Over that time, we’ve seen a lot of closets that quite simply don’t make sense. Hence the need for our clients to redesign them! Fortunately for our clients, we have a team of expert designers to leads them through the design process from start to finish to make sure their closet functions for them. If you’re ready to get started on a custom closet project with us, check out these five common mistakes to avoid! And then give us a call to guarantee they don’t happen with you project!

Not Making The System Adjustable

Your mix of clothing will change over time, so you’ll need a system that can evolve with your wardrobe. Installing an adjustable system eliminates the headache of not having the right makeup of space as you add in new clothing. If you’re going to invest in a custom closet, you want it to function for you over the long haul!

Not Making the Shelves Deep Enough

Shallow shelves can leave to a sloppy look, with clothing and shoes hanging out over the edge. Avoid this common mistake by ensuring that your shelves are deep enough to fit a range of clothing and shoes.

Not Tailoring Your Closet to Your Needs

There is no one-size-fits-all closet! Which is why you need to do some inventory before designing your custom closet to make sure you’re incorporating the best components for your wardrobe! Maybe your work attire takes up the most space. Maybe you have more shirts than dresses. Maybe you’d prefer hanging your clothes instead of stacking them up. Our closet designer will run through all of this during the design process to make sure your closet functions for you!

Not Adding Adequate Lighting

Lighting can often be overlooked in closet design, but it’s essential to create a space that functions as good as it looks! It’s hard to get dressed in the morning if you have to search for things in the dark. Try installing a focal chandelier in the center of the closet to make a statement or go more subtle with recessed puck lighting to show off purses and accessories, LED lighting to illuminate your wardrobe behind glass doors, or ribbon lighting above closet rods to provide more functional light.

Not Having the Right Type of Shoe Storage

Not all shoes storage is the same! Cubbies can hold informal footwear such as sandals, flip-flops, slippers, and sneakers. Angled shelves with shoe fences can prop up your pumps and dress shoes. Flat shelves at ground level are best for everyday shoes to make the transition easy. Feeling overwhelmed? That’s why we’re here to help!

Small Budget, Big Results: How to Design a Stunning Closet Without Breaking the Bank

Many of our clients who are designing closets for their second homes want to increase the functionality of their closets but on a tighter budget. They’ve designed their closets in their main residence with us and love the results! So they’re looking to get a similar feel at their beach house or second residence but spend less. Enter our top tips for designing a stunning custom closet on a budget!

Create a Feature Wall

If you can’t afford upgrades like textured woods or laminate designs on the entire closet, try working them into a feature wall instead. It’s a great way to incorporate an upscale look while staying on budget. Another option is to use a floor-based unit on the feature wall and a wall hung closet on the other walls to make the custom closet more budget friendly.

Identify the Most Important Elements

List out the closet elements that are most important for your wardrobe—be it shoe storage, drawers, shelves, hanging space, etc. Don’t feel the need to bring in some popular custom closet features if they aren’t essential to your wardrobe and your life. For example, some people opt for an island in their closet to store jewelry, accessories, and pull-outs like hampers and ironing boards. But if you’re not a big accessory person, that may not be for you!

Add Décor

Accent décor like a bench, upholstered chair, or ottoman can instantly make your closet feel more luxurious. It’s a budget friendly way to make your closet look more upscale—and it’s extremely functional for getting dressed. Adding lighting is another fairly inexpensive way to make your closet look more high-end!

Do you have a second home that’s in need of a better closet system? Contact us today!

Five Steps to the Perfect Closet this Fall

Fall is here! And with it comes all of our favorite sweaters, jackets and boots. While you might be anxious to bust out your warm-weather favorites, your closet may not be ready to store them. Fall is the perfect time to simplify your life with a closet that works for you. As the premier closet designer in Coastal Delaware and Maryland, we’re here to help! Check out our five closet must-haves that will make your wardrobe transition from Summer to Fall seamless.

Shelves

Shelves are perfect for stacking cozy sweaters as we move into the cooler months. Don’t be afraid to use up as much vertical space as possible—especially for reach-in closets. This will allow you to stack your sweaters all the way to the ceiling for maximum storage.

Full-length wardrobe cabinet

You’ll obviously need one of these for dress storage but you may need to add on another for jacket and long sweater storage. Your everyday jackets probably have a home in the coat closet, but you may want to store dressier jackets and long sweaters with the rest of your wardrobe. So be sure to include ample full-length storage when planning your new closet.

Drawers

Drawers are so multi-functional for intimates, accessories, loungewear and beyond. But we especially like them for hat, glove, and sock storage during the transition to Fall. Try putting the drawers in your closet island to keep all your accessories centralized.

Varying Height Shoe Shelves

Don’t make the mistake of keeping all your shoes shelves the same height. You’ll want to incorporate some taller shelves to accommodate boots during the transition to Fall. This may seem like a no-brainer, but we’ve walked into plenty of closets with boots crammed in a corner on the floor because there wasn’t proper consideration!

Seating

Seating is instrumental in any closet, but we find it especially important during the transition to Fall when you’re working with boots that are harder to put on. You can do something built-in like a bench or bring in seating as a decorative accent with chairs or ottomans. Either way, you’ll thank us!

The only thing left to do is start planning your custom closet! Contact us today to set up your in-home consultation.

Why Customers Keep Coming Back to BCD

At Behind Closed Doors, we not only take great pride in our product but our customer service as well. That’s why so many of our customers are repeat customers and so many of our referrals come from personal recommendations. As such, we’re going to take this opportunity to share the Top 3 reasons our customers trust us time and time again with their closet and home storage needs!

1.Quality

When it comes to quality custom closets and cabinets in Coastal Delaware and Maryland, there’s no other name but BCD. We design, manufacture and install all of our custom closets, cabinetry and storage solutions, ensuring quality products as well as a quality experience. Just ask our recent customer Stacy:

“Without hesitation, I recommend BCD. We did a home office and garage with them. Leatie was great to work with, allowing us to use design features we wanted from our former home, and making sure she tweaked them in a way that worked. She listened to us to make it happen the right way. The install team was professional, clean, and very mannerly. They were a pleasure to have in our home.”

2. Superior Service

We are always striving to give our customers the best experience possible. From design to fabrication to installation, we are here to listen to your needs and bring your closet or home storage needs to life as efficiently as possible. Recent customer Debbie had this to say about our customer service:

“We recently had our closets done. From the beginning design through installation, everything was done professionally and on time. It’s refreshing to deal with a company that delivers excellence in all aspects of its service. You will not be disappointed with these folks.”

3. Timeliness

We know how important your time is, which is why we’re dedicated to delivering quality home storage solutions in the timeliest manner possible. We offer a range of products to fit your desired timeframe—from cabinet lines that offer a quick turnaround to fully custom designs. Recent customer Karla had this to say about her experience with us:

“I was at the end of my renovation project where I took my beach condo down to the metal studs. After a couple attempts to hang poles in the closets, which ended in closets collapsing and damaging the drywall (which they gladly fixed), I contacted BCD to design and install my closet system. It was not an overly complicated design, but it was a straightforward process right up to, and including installation. Everything happed exactly as scheduled and planned, which is amazing enough, but I coordinated my general contractor to be there, and he was equally impressed with the quality and service. Great job!”

Add your name to the list of satisfied customers! Contact us today to get started on your closet or home storage project.

Five Signs it’s Time to Upgrade your Pantry

Are you debating whether now is the right time to renovate your pantry? Check out our list of Five Signs it’s Time to Upgrade your Pantry below to see if you check all the boxes!

2022 07 15 0001 — Photo Credits: Lindsey Meek, Vanguard Studio

1.It’s a mess

The No. 1 sign that it’s time to upgrade your pantry is clutter. You can add in baskets, bins and other storage containers all you want, but the simple fact is if you don’t have enough space, the only solution is to install a better functioning pantry. Period.

2.You can’t find anything

We’ve all been there—you’re staring into your pantry searching for something you know is there but it’s eluding you due to clutter and chaos. If you’re relying on builder-grade shelves that are most likely too tall to fully take advantage of the space and provide sufficient storage, then you’re in need of a solution that will make your life easier—a better functioning pantry! Think varying height shelves to accommodate all sizes of items you need to store, pull out drawers and shelves for easy access to deeper items, racks to organize spices and oils, and cabinet dividers for large plates, baking pans and Tupperware.

3.You don’t have enough storage space

When we say you don’t have enough storage space, we mean you don’t have enough usable storage space. Most builder-grade pantries neglect to take full advantage of vertical space, leaving you feeling like there isn’t enough room for everything you want to store. With our storage solutions, we’ll be able to customize a pantry that takes advantage of your entire space so you have more room. Pro tip: we recommend storing lighter items up in the higher shelves and cabinets and heavier things down lower to make getting them in and out easier.

2022 07 15 0002 — Photo Credits: Home on Poplar Creed, Stacy’s Savings

4.Getting things down is a workout

If you’re forced to store larger items like crockpots and icemakers way up high or on the floor, you’re in for a workout every time you have to get them down. Customizing the height of your pantry shelves is one of the best features in a new pantry, as it allows for easier access to those larger items.

5.You dread unloading the groceries

You know your pantry isn’t functioning properly if you absolutely dread unloading the groceries. When there’s proper storage, you get excited—even giddy—about putting all of the new items in their place. But if your pantry is a hot mess, adding anything else to it can cause a lot of anxiety. Solution: let us help you install a better functioning pantry!

We are the leader in storage solutions in Coastal Maryland and Delaware! Contact us today to schedule your in-home pantry consultation!

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