A fantastic wardrobe takes care, attention, and proper maintenance to look good that’s why fashionistas around the U.S. turn to custom closet companies like ours for their storage solutions.

DC is slowly putting an end to suits-only, grey-and-black apparel. From Carla Sanchez to Tanvi Rastogi and Moonlight District to Vivi, we’re developing an impressive cohort of trendsetting fashion bloggers, Instagrammers, and models that are changing the face of street style in the district. This change is incredibly welcome, especially for those of us who thrive on beautiful wardrobes and the impressive closets that house them.

As every fashion-lover knows, a fantastic wardrobe takes care, attention, and proper maintenance to look good on the street and the Instagram feed. That’s why fashionistas around the United States turn to custom closet companies like ours for their storage solutions. If you’re looking to invest in a custom walk-in closet, we’ve got some insider tips to help make the process easier. Follow the steps below to evaluate your space and your existing wardrobe, design your custom shelving, and add embellishments. With the help of a great custom closet designer, you’ll be able to create the ultimate boutique-style dressing room worthy of any fashion blog.

Step One: Evaluate Your Space

Whether you own a one-bedroom condo in Logan Circle or a spacious townhouse in Michigan Park, you have a choice to make. You’re not stuck with a lame walk-in any longer. Is your current master closet the size of a pocket pantry? If so, it might be more your style to reconfigure a spare bedroom into a full-size, luxurious master closet.

The following questions will help you lay the groundwork for your upcoming renovation, no matter which room you choose:

• Are there any structural challenges to your space? (Does your closet have odd corners, beams, slanted ceilings, or permanent fixtures?)

• How do you feel about islands, peninsulas, or protruding shelves in this space?

• Walking into the space, where do you want your eyes to land first?

• How do you need to divide your storage space, and at what ratio? (Are we splitting space between spouses, collections, or seasons?)

Step Two: Examine Your Collection

Next comes a difficult but enlightening step. Take a look at your beloved wardrobe. Determine which elements are most important, most worthy of display, and most needing to be hidden away somewhere out of sight. If you’re hiring a great custom closet design company, the design expert will do their own thorough assessment of the items you plan to store. However, these questions can help stir your imagination and get you thinking like a designer before they even cross the threshold into your home:

• Which section of your wardrobe are you most proud of?

• What articles of clothing do you want to see front and center?

• Do you rank your clothing categories in order of personal importance or frequency of wear? (suits, gowns, shoes, jeans, after-hours wear, work clothes)

• Which items do you need to keep but don’t want to see every day?

Step Three: Cabinetry Design

When you’re ready, getting a custom design is the easiest step of all. Most closet design companies offer a free, no-pressure design consultation—a meeting where a designer evaluates your space and discusses options with you. The best will actually perform this service in the comfort of your own home.

They’ll make their own precise measurements (saving you the hassle of a wasted afternoon) and evaluate the actual number of shoes you need to store. No need to clean out, clean up, or organize—you’ll get the best result by leaving every sweater and sundress exactly as it is. That way your designer can see exactly where your organizational challenges are.

Finally, the experts will draft up a sample design (often in full 3D for your viewing pleasure) so you can see exactly how a custom closet system would look in the space. Together you’ll play around with layout ideas, finish colors, custom LED lighting elements and hardware, and you’ve got a plan of action.

Step Four: The Construction Phase

This is when you’ll be really thankful you chose to invest in a custom closet system as opposed to a DIY or store-bought product. From high-quality floor-mounted cabinets to adjustable shoe storage elements measured down to the millimeter, custom closets are far superior to anything you could pick up off the shelf. Our installation process is no different.

Here’s what this looks like. At Closet America, we send an installation expert directly to your home to efficiently and perfectly meld your new closet system with your existing space. Unlike other providers, we don’t contract these services out. We work hard to guarantee you get a highly qualified, experienced, and well-informed team member doing your installation. We leave homes more beautiful, organized, and cleaner than we found them.

Step Five: Fill Your Shelves

Finally! You’ve reached the moment where you get to fill those gorgeous, empty shelves with your prized clothing items, accent with statement pieces and decor, play around with lighting, and perfect your plan for future organization. A great custom designer will help you accomplish all these steps, lending their professional expertise to create a truly stunning luxury dressing room. Together you might discuss:

• Organization scheme: Would you prefer to organize everything by color, a la Eva Longoria? Or by occasion, fabric type, or length?

• Statement pieces: Who doesn’t want a chandelier in their closet? A statement light fixture can make a really stunning addition to a boutique dressing room. Alternatively, depending on your space, you can add a chaise lounge, a flashy full-length mirror, an art piece, or a statement floor rug.

• Featured displays: Deck out the custom accessories you chose to incorporate into your closet. Choose which particular garments will hang in places of honor from valet rods. Arrange handbags to be spotlighted in the glass-front cabinets.

• Accent decor: Finishing touches bring a truly boutique feel to your new custom closet. Try arranging scarves, jewelry, framed photos, or small decor items to add a level of detail and care to your dressing room.

Get DC’s Best Custom Walk In Closet

Walking among the cherry blossoms during Saturday brunch hour, you’ll see plenty of style-conscious fashionistas rocking the sidewalks like their own personal runway. If you’re an aspiring or established guru in their number, you know each of these perfectly put together ensembles comes from a closet—and that some custom creations come directly from the Closet America portfolio. Combine your thoughts from steps one, two, and five, and you’ll nail down the look you want your closet space to embody. We’ll handle the rest.

If you’re interested in giving your wardrobe the Closet America treatment, your next step is simple. Schedule your free design consultation today to set up a meeting with a local design expert. They’ll meet with you in your home, anywhere from Colonial Village all the way down to Navy Yard, and get started on crafting the most luxurious dressing room you can imagine. We’ll help you keep every designer and vintage statement piece in your collection in its place, perfectly, for years to come.

Lead image source: Unsplash user Pete Bellis