Posted by Azra Rakovic
A Night in Support of the AIDS Foundation of Chicago
Closet Works is proud to announce that we are participating in the 41st annual Chicago Pride Parade to be held Sunday, June 27th. Closet Works will sponsor a float in the parade, as well as host a fundraising event to benefit the AIDS Foundation of Chicago.
Attendees at this weekend's fundraiser are asked to make a minimum $5 donation at the door to support the vital work of the AIDS Foundation of Chicago. In return, all attendees will receive a $100 credit towards a new closet installation.
Brice Cooper, former host of HGTV’s "Design on a Dime" will host the fundraising event. Closet Works will match donations made during the evening, up to a total of $5,000.
In addition to the event’s fundraising efforts, Closet Works is offering the opportunity for up to five individuals to ride on the Closet Works float during the Pride Parade for a donation of $100 or more but you have to come to Cocktail for a chance at this great opportunity!
Posted by Azra Rakovic
After an incredibly long day of wandering up & down aisles at KBIS (McCormick Place in Chicago this year) seeing what was “hot” for kitchen & bath design, meeting some celebs (Curtis Stone who actually made me think about turning on my stove! ha ha) and tons of networking, I ventured back to the Merchandise Mart for their events & new trends… Luxe Home Showrooms had the biggest event so here is where I started...
The Luxe Design Center, a wonderful showcase of various vendors, had some of my favorite new sightings (and friends) of the day… Closet Works was one of the best surprises! As someone who consults & coaches my design clients on the “evils of clutter” & helps them to then organize their remaining stuff, I was very intrigued...
As I was walking around the showroom, I came across Closet Works & Azra Rakovic, who was “manning the booth”. She was kind enough to chat with me while I meandered around (and my subsequent 3x walking past the booth!). As I shared with her the details of my design company & our philosophy of Integrative Lifestyle Design where we design “healthy spaces” for our clients, she shared with me the efforts that Closet Works has done to become more eco-friendly. And, as I write a lot about organizing your inner pack rat, (i.e. you can't seem to get your stuff organized - no matter how hard you try. Is this describing you?) learning a great way to have a neat closet and care about the environment at the same time seemed very intriguing!
So NOW I can state that guilt-free organization rocks as you can now organize in a GREEN manner without running around all over town trying to find eco-friendly products! Check out Closet Works and explore their storage and organizational systems. Everything is made from GREEN products that have certified as Environmentally Preferable Products by The Composite Panel Association. From the mini-LED puck lights used so you can see what colors you’re trying to match & no formaldehyde melamine used, the CPA certification covers Closet Works' shelving, stains, and adhesives. Very impressive! So, not only does Closet Works design beautiful, custom closets to keep you neat & organized, but they do so with Mother Nature in mind!
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
DeAnna Radaj is the owner of Bante Design LLC, an integrative lifestyle design company, which fuses Eastern and Western design/lifestyle philosophies. She is a nationally recognized speaker on healthy home design, color therapy/theory, psychology of clutter for adults and children, and a variety of business topics for the individual, small business owner and entrepreneur. Visit the Bante Design Web site for a list of all workshops and appearances at www.bantedesign.com.
Posted by Kristina Ferrigan
Once in a while, I will offer tips to people on how to organize their closets or their wardrobe and they’ll comment that it’s probably pretty easy for me, since I must be a pretty organized person to work for a
closet company. I’m sure they think that we’re all super neat freaks and spend our days refolding our sweaters so that they look just right. Well let me tell you, I am the absolute opposite of this person. We only do that in our showroom or for photo shoots. At home, I have no time to just sit and go through my closet (who does?) and my husband claims that I have a folding disability. In fact, I am so bad at folding, that I am not permitted to fold his clothes. But I’m supposed to be all about closets, right? Turns out, closet systems work out even better for messy people than the super organized. It’s actually one of the things I love best about closet systems. If the space is a very well planned and organized structure (which is what we’re truly passionate about) it makes the day-to-day usage a snap, even for the folding impaired such as myself.
So if you have always thought that
closet organizers are for the super organized, you’re right – they work really well for people who eat, sleep and breathe organization. But the best part is that they work even harder for those of us who really need help getting and staying organized.
Posted by Azra Rakovic
Whether you’ve decided to stay in your home and do a remodel or take the plunge and buy a home – odds are you’ll be addressing storage issues.
Almost every American home has them, and homeowners define them as very important, according to research conducted by the National Association of Home Builders, which indicates that two of the most important things to home buyers these days are “built-in cabinetry and cleverly hidden storage spaces.”
So if you’re about to embark upon the journey to organization Mecca by getting
custom closets – here are some things to look for if you’re comparing designs and bids:
Hanging OutAre the closets designed with a Hanging System or a Floor Based System? If the panels don’t touch the floor (such as the closet in the picture on the left), it’s a hanging system, which is more economical and easier to install. Floor based systems look more like built-in furniture. They also offer more flexibility for future design changes because the structure is already in place.
Drawer DetailsHow many drawers are included – are the slides full extension, self-closing or 75% extension - are the boxes wood, melamine (white or matching color) or metal? And how deep are the drawers?
Accessorize and GlamorizeWhat accessories are included – and how many - and are they basic or deluxe. There are lots of closet accessories on the market that function but have minimal beauty (meaning that the hardware and mechanisms are not concealed). Here's a
downloadable PDF of all Closet Works accessories.
Height MattersIs it an 84” high system, a 96” high system or something custom?
A Pretty FaceAre the fronts on the doors and drawers flat, edgebanded melamine or Thermofoil, decorative (such as Raised Panel or Shaker Style). Thermofoil adds to the price but looks better and there’s no chance of the edgebanding ever coming off because there isn’t any. And do the designs include any other decorative touches such as crown, base or fluted mouldings.
Is any element custom in size, color or shape? That adds to the costs and doesn’t lend itself to doing an accurate, apples-to-apples comparison.
And last, but not least, how do you relate with the sales person/designer? As my colleague Joyce Hardison from Ventura, California so aptly put it "You need to be a well informed consumer. You need to know what to look for - how to compare designs and what's in the design."
And we both agree that being comfortable with the person who's in one of the most intimate environments in your home is just about as important as having enough space to store your shoe collection.
Posted by Azra Rakovic
Who amongst us doesn’t walk in the door and “dump” stuff?
Be it your keys, your coat, your cell, your blackberry or the grocery bags – most people walk into their house and set something down.
So a great tip for managing this activity and not ending up with a chaos-filled entrance to your home is to create what I like to call “The Dump Zone”.
This kind of space is really helpful in areas like mudrooms, entryways and master closets. If you plan ahead in your closet design, you can incorporate things like hooks for keys and outlets to plug in electronics that need to be charged.
Ladies – if you change out your handbags frequently and store your purses in your closet – consider a drawer that allows you to “dump” current contents and easily put them back in to your next purse of choice. A basket on a dresser or a top drawer that’s deep enough works great to serve this purpose.
And group some items together in smaller bags that fit inside your purse (combine things like personal grooming items in a zipper pouch and receipts in an envelope) to make it even easier.
And consider organizing mobile devices like this portable shelf with key hook from www.cpdocks.com. As is often the case, the right tool for the job makes everything so much easier. And should you need help with ideas to make your life easier, set up a design consultation with one of our expert design consultants, because at Closet Works, we’re extremely passionate about being extremely organized – and we love sharing our passion with people who want to make their lives easier to live.
Posted by Azra Rakovic
The “location, location, location” equivalent in your closet are the spaces that are easiest for you to access. So think eye level and able to access within an easy arms’ reach.
For example, if your closet design is set up so that you keep your shoes on shelves, the ones in the middle should house the shoes you wear the most.
You can change them out by the season (if you happen to live in a climate with seasons).
Lesser-worn items should be stored on the upper and lower shelves so you don’t have to bend down or reach up (or get on a ladder if you’re my height) to access things you use all the time.
Dressy party shoes on bottom.
Heavy snow boots on the top (please – because that means we won’t have enough snow in Chicago to need them very often!).
Casual sweaters on the middle shelves – über-casual painting shirts waaaaay on the top shelves.
And if you need a space planning “agent” – make an appointment with one of our design consultants to help create real estate nirvana in your own custom closet.
Posted by Azra Rakovic
Design it as a "Hybrid" - have the closet designed so the perimeter of the room (the hanging and shelves) is in melamine. Have the island and drawer/door fronts fabricated in wood that is stained to match the melamine. That way, what you see the most of (the fronts and cabinetry) is also the most beautiful and luxurious.
Use Pre-Finished Wood - you can get a wood closet for a smaller investment if you use a prefinished wood like cherry or maple. These are typically only available in clear finishes, so your choices are limited, but you avoid the cost of custom finishing.
Select Your Own Pulls/Knobs - Pick the most wonderful, gorgeous handles you can afford. Handles function like great buttons on suits - they elevate the look. Spend big here. I promise that you won't regret it. What's big? Up to $50 (or so) per pull. You touch these everyday and there's luxury in touching something that feels wonderful.
Slide In & Out - Drawer slides are the most unseen (hopefully), under appreciated elements of storage. There's no satisfaction quite like that derived from a smooth-moving drawer. With just a gentle push, you get a quick shot of luxury. And not having to worry about closing the drawer because it does it on its own...aaahhh! Life just got easier.
Know Thyself - know what it is you like about the pictures you've torn from those magazine pages. That way a good designer can guide you on which are expensive to duplicate and which aren't. If the unusual rod used on the Italian system doesn't matter to you (it's the grain of the wood that you like) then there's no point in spending a lot of money on that element. Simple looking details are often involved and expensive to fabricate and install.
