Freeland Custom Woodworking: A Custom Closet Remodel

My most recent project to be completed is the remodel of a custom closet in an high-end home. The room is roughly 20 x 14, with two doors, leading into the master bath and the hallway, and a large window. When I first looked at the job it contained poorly a constructed melamine panel system which was falling apart, as can be seen from these 'before' photos.

My competition for this job were a well known local 'custom' cabinet firm and a national closet firm. Both had bid the job using wood-grained, vinyl veneer, pre-fab panels. Considering the prices being given, the home owner felt at the very least real wood should be involved, so she called me.

The existing layout was a U-shape, with a central dividing wall running most of the length of the room. The majority of the hanging area was 'tall hanging' rather than double hanging. Under the window was a low counter with a series of flip down doors giving access to inconvenient deep shelves. Above the counter were two shoe racks, which were sagged under their own weight. The entire system appeared to be the work of a DIY home owner, which we know was not the case. Given the size and quality of the home, I was shocked at the poor quality closet.

My final design was this one:

I eliminated the U-Shape in favor of two islands of hanging racks, using double hanging in all but one area, nearly doubling the hanging capacity. In addition the shoe racks were replaced by 16" deep floor to ceiling adjustable shelves, which can be used for shoes or clothes or storage. Under the window a bench was added with deep drawers for more storage and a comfortable place to put on one's shoes. Three dressers were also added, Each with four drawers and a counter top. All the units are floor to ceiling with a fixed shelve 10" from the top.

This island design allows window light to flow through the entire room, while also giving 3 paths of movement, each with 32"-39" of clearance, making the whole room more open and flowing for two people to use at the same time.

The closet is built with Birch plywood, with birch edge banding and drawer fronts. The drawers are maple plywood with dovetailed joints (which I will detail in another blog). The edge banding was used to reduce the costs.

This photo shows all the shelves just prior to staining. Due to the size of my shop, staining had to happen over the course of a a couple weeks in shifts.

Though the design and elements were simple, the number and size of the parts meant a lot of work. More than 45 sheets of plywood were required. All but two of the tall panels had to be stained on both sides. Each island consisted of 10 pieces which fit together like a puzzle with less than 1/2" to spare in ceiling height (after assembly the units with shimmed up to the ceiling). The total time to pre-fab everything was around a month, mainly due to limited shop space and staining capacity. Installation took 3 days (plus on day to tear out the old closet).

Due to the size of the panels everything had to be pre-finished and assembled in place, which meant planning and preparation were key. These photos show each of the walls as they were completed, and one of the islands (the room was too divided up to get a clear photo of the islands after both were installed) (That's my assistant Mike Stone.)