Whether you live in a tiny Columbia Road townhome or a mansion in Howard County, custom closets offer solutions to all your bedroom storage problems.

You can find a gorgeous Colonial townhome or house in Columbia in basically any color you want. You can get anywhere from 1 to 5 bedrooms easily, along with a huge range of square footage. Columbia offers a truly diverse choice of real estate, and it’s easy for your family to find the perfect fit in a home. What’s not always so easy is getting the kind of bedroom storage you really need. All of us struggle with storing our clothes in too-small closets, master walk-ins that don’t have nearly enough shelf space, and bedrooms with so little storage we end up commandeering the closet in the hallway.

Thankfully, custom closets provide a solution for all of the bedroom storage problems Columbia residents face, whether you live in the tiniest townhouse on Columbia Road or the largest mansion in Howard County. When custom organization is the game you’re playing, walk-in and reach-in closets both offer enough space for some really creative storage options.

Walk-In Closet Design Strategies

The master closet can be the best storage space in the entire home—or it can be the most underutilized. It all depends on how well you’re maximizing the space. One of the first aims of custom closet design is to reimagine each space in such a way that the usable storage volume increases. Basically, local design experts come directly to Columbia to make your walk-in closet bigger, without moving a single wall.

Custom closets are the best way to upgrade your bedroom storage simply because you can get exactly what you’re looking for. You can have the celebrity-style closet of your dreams or a simple and functional space with very little effort and absolutely zero trips to the big box stores of Congressional Plaza. Here are a few of our favorite design ideas for this space:

• Make a plan for shoe storage. Whether you want a row of shelves close to the floor or an entire wall of shoes, adjustable angled shoe shelves are a sophisticated way to store your collection.

• Add an island or peninsula. Yes, these particular projects eat up a little square footage. But if your walk-in closet is big enough, an island adds an incredible amount of space for additional cabinets, drawers, or shelving—plus an extra working surface.

• Use multiple hanging rods in sections. Your designer will evaluate your existing wardrobe with you as part of the closet design process. They’ll be able to help you decide exactly how much hanging space you need, using however many rods you choose.

Unique Reach-In Closet Options

Reach-in closets sound basic, but have the potential to be anything but. Every custom reach-in closet is created with a particular configuration of shelves, rods, and drawers that will best suit your home. With perfectly optimized storage in each of your bedrooms (including the spares), you’ll be surprised how much additional closet space you “miraculously” have in what once was a cramped Columbia home.

When you’re working with a reach-in closet, you’re limited by floor space but not by creativity. The following strategies are some of the best ways to maximize space in a small closet:

• Include customized accessories. It’s not just the master closet that gets to have all the fun! Include a velvet-lined jewelry drawer, a belt rack, or a pull-out laundry hamper. These high-quality accessories take up very little space but pack a big punch.

• Put shelves up to the ceiling. OK, maybe not literally—but reach-in closets do typically have a lot of unused space above the existing top shelf. Adding more shelves at custom heights further up the wall can double, or even triple, the amount of shelf space you currently have!

• Minimize the hanging space. Most of us don’t need a full-length hanging rod in every closet in the home. Many clothing items actually store better flat or in drawers, and hanging rods take up a lot of room. Consider using double hanging rods, or just a single rod below waist height, and filling the rest of the space with shelves.

Columbia’s Most Popular Custom Closets

With both the reach-in and walk-in closets in your Columbia home organized, beautifully designed, and ready to work for your family, you’ll have a truly revived storage situation in your hands. With the help of a closet design expert, high-quality materials, and a few creative design ideas, it’s easy to finally gain the storage space you always wanted.

Get started on your custom closet adventure by scheduling a design consultation with Closet America. One of our designers will come directly to you in Columbia to discuss your current bedroom storage situation, take detailed measurements, and create a design that fits exactly what you’re looking for. We’re eager to help you get more organized and to have everything in its place, perfectly.

Lead image source: Unsplash user Logan Nolin