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Wardrobe or Dressing Room?

Kelly Collier-Clark

ONE ROOM CHALLENGE WEEK TWO



DESIGN DEVELOPMENT

If you're reading the House of Clark blog for the first time, welcome to the party! In between client projects I'm always up to something in my home.


I am wrapping up week two of the One Room Challenge (ORC) on a high note with a tentative plan for the remaining six weeks. Most importantly, the design development is pretty solid now. Keep in mind the design for this space has been thought about for well over a year until I decided to pause with temporary clothing racks on the side of the room where the ceiling slopes. The foundation was taken to the point of being on brand with my aesthetic with a fresh neutral color pallette and functional in housing my wardrobe.


Said Fresh, Neutral Foundation…


Pressed Pause (Boring, but that’s why we’re here.)


DESIGN DETAILS


As promised after doing an Instagram poll I'm sharing a sneak peek at the wallpaper selection that will be entering the room (shown in the photo at the top of this post). The plan for the wallpaper is still trending for it to be installed in the walk-in closet inside of the room that's currently my shoe closet. Super grateful to my friends over at Mitchell Black for gifting the wallpaper of my choice. It’s part of their designer collaboration collection by Forbes Masters. The Boulder Beach Wall Mural will add a nice pop of black + an element of inspiration daily. Also shown in the design board is a texture shot of Mongolian hair; a detail on a special piece of furniture that I finally pulled the trigger to purchase. Aside from being a lover of wallpaper; I live for all things hair on hide and/or animal print textiles.


One important detail I needed to make a game time decision about as mentioned last week was deciding how I wanted this room to function (or not). The obvious is that my wardrobe of clothing, shoes, and handbags all needed to be in the room and well organized. To finish designing fully I've had two options; to create a walk-in wardrobe room or a full dressing room. The difference may not be obvious to all, however there is a difference.


Dressing rooms tend to have funiture of some sort for sitting or lounging, a vanity in some instances, and adequate space to get ready. Most wardrobes are simply for storage whether it's a large walk-in closet or a room. I've opted for the dressing room.


If you've been around since my first walk-in wardrobe room designed in spring 2020 you know I'm an advocate for maximizing all spaces in my home. In this home space, nor closets are scarce (thankfully). I’m still planning to get the most bang for my buck in taking over an entire level housing a room with two closets inside. The room itself is 240 square feet, the shoe closet is about 80•ish square feet, and the smaller closet for “overflow” is about 42•ish square feet. Side note: My husband has his own wardrobe room that I created last year while he was away. Not related but related. For those who think men don’t need their own wardrobe spaces; I believe they do if there’s space for it. Last year I used the dark black-brown PAX units remaining from my previous dressing room and created a wardrobe/ workout room for him. The other pieces were given away to a family member. He just announced that he's adding a "couch". I’m sure my working on this project had no influence (Ha). I actually love that for him.


ABOUT THE ROOM LAYOUT



SO- I decided to go with a galley style layout. Having a space that's rectangular in shape with a window & baseboard heater on one end and the entrance on the other end makes this the most functional option. It will require some customizaiton for using PAX wardrobe frames on the sloped side of the room, but it will be worth it. Semmetry was impossible to achieve with the wardrobe heights with the ceiling being lower on one side of the room, but that’s my personal preference. The next best thing is having the same shelving type maintaining the same depth and style. There are other options at IKEA and other retailers, but I'm most familiar with the PAX system. There are probably hundreds of hacks on the world wide internet for this closet system, and I would venture to say it's extremely popular for a good reason. It's one of the most versatile retail systems with different depth, width, and height options with a line of accessories to further customize. Clearly I’m a fan for life. During week two I had my contactor come to give his estimste for the custom work on my wish list as shared in an IG story. Estimate still pending and fingers crossed!


THE LIGHTING PLAN


Every room needs a lighting plan. My first priority is always to determine if the placement in ceiling lighting is good. Next I’ll note if ambient, task, accent, or other types of lighting will be used. The best types of lighting for a dressing room are typically down-lighting or pendants. These are likely most favorable, because they provide general light to illuminate the entire room. I've finally narrowed my top selections for lights, and I'm excited about securing another collaboration for this project. Details to come soon!


Over the next week I need to discuss work needed with my electrician for the new lights. The previous fixture at the top of the steps was installed off-centered. It's not noticable much, but I can't un-see it. I'm hoping to have it corrected. The other two lights located inside of the larger part of the room are spaced a bit wide. I've added flat LEDs to mirror a recessed lighting effect last year. It's about 10 feet between the two. Proper spacing is 4 to 6 feet for standard recessed lighting in most rooms. My top selections for this area are both small in diameter. One is six inches and the other is eight in diameter.


Stay tuned to find out which size I'm going to use, the pop of quiet luxe the lights will add, and more progress updates. Until next week, see a snapshot of my timeline plan below:


WEEK ONE- Design Development


WEEK TWO- Design Details, Space Planning, Purchasing Phase


WEEK THREE- Design Phase Completion, Purchasing & Procurement


WEEK FOUR- Purchasing & Procurment continues (+ Fall Vacation)


WEEK FIVE- Trade Work and Assembly


WEEK SIX- Trade Work and Assembly Concludes, Install Begins


WEEK SEVEN- Wardrobe Organization and Room Styling


WEEK EIGHT- Final Finishes/Reveal


Be sure to peep my stories and the highlight on Instagram and the main ORC blog to  learn more about ORC semi-annual event + how my fellow participants are doing. Check out last week's post to see how this project started. Special thanks to the ORC founder & host, Linda Weinstein and the official media partner Apartment Therapy.


xx,

Kelly


“The race is not given unto the swift, but the one who endures until the end”. — Living word





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