IKEA Walk-In Closets: With or Without Doors?

Walk-in closet customers aren’t as open as you’d think!

As certified IKEA designers we’re seeing IKD customers obsess more about their IKEA closet design than their IKEA kitchens. How could that be? Well it actually makes sense. People associate the closet as their own unique space that reflects their personal style. And it’s a space that people need to keep them organized. A kitchen is (typically) shared so there is compromise involved. Today’s home owners are even listing each article of clothing they own on an inventoried spreadsheet! And the shoes — dozens and dozens — need yet another spreadsheet. So closets really need to be organized. How would you decide what you want to fold and what to hang? Do you want to see your wardrobe or only have it seen when you need it? We enjoy that level of design detail and we want you to as well. (This is why we recommend using a design checklist for any IKEA project). It also distinguishes our professional designs and provides a custom element to every closet space.

“Prior to our new IKEA closet we were spending entirely too much time sorting and finding outfits every day. I needed to just see what I own and access my clothes easily! I knew early on I wanted a walk-in IKEA closet. I also loved the idea of combining hanging clothes with plenty of drawers. The symmetry appealed to me. Plus there’s use for every level. It’s very practical. There aren’t clothes awkwardly hanging on the bottom so it’s aesthetically pleasing as well,” says Sarah from Lynwood, WA.

With a budget of approximately $3,000 Sarah selected IKEA’s PAX wardrobe system along with a variety of items from IKEA’s KOMPLEMENT series to establish a new open IKEA closet without any doors. These products included closet organizers along with a clothes rail; pullout trays; shoe shelves and pullout storage bags, among others. Of course you can certainly add doors to your walk-in closet as well. This is exactly what John from Schaumburg, IL, did with the IKEA closet designed for his master bedroom. John actually customized his IKEA PAX wardrobe system to accommodate the tall cabinet units—which feature IKEA HAGGEBY doors —and to create a built-in, furniture-style look. He was able to accomplish this for well under his original budget of $4,000.

Whether you decide to include doors or not in your IKEA walk-in closet, there are many practical benefits. A professional closet design saves you time during your morning (or evening) routine; it provides extra storage options (including for highly valuable items) and simple cleanup. IKEA closets also provide privacy as a secondary dressing room; conceal clutter and add resale value to your home. That certainly checks a lot of boxes! Both Sarah and John’s IKEA closet designs are great examples of successful and affordable walk-in closets that will make you and your home look as good as possible.

Let’s take a look!

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No Door Walk-In Closet

When your life feels unorganized the best place to start is your closet.

“We desperately needed a his-and-hers approach to our walk-in closet. We were always bumping into each other in the morning and getting frustrated by the lack of organization and “a system” we had for getting ready.It did not start our days off in a relaxing way! After I did research online I realized that a new IKEA walk-in closet was the solution,” Sarah says.

Working with IKD designer Albert, she opted for a custom closet design without any doors.

Using the IKEA PAX wardrobe system (in white) as its foundation, the design features three 39″ (w) x 23″(d) tall cabinet units that completely fill the space on either side. The narrow, galley-stylespace (which is approximately 37square feet in total) is a holistic mix of storage shelves, drawers; and hanging and shoe storage.The space was specifically designed to fit three big IKEA units and there is roughly 36″ of free space available on either side.The closets almost reach the top of the 96″ceiling.

Project Numbers

Storage is paramount here. Her closet features the KOMPLEMENT Series organizers, including a hanging space with clothes rails; stacked drawers with pullouts for her pants; accessible shoe shelves to the left and upper cubbies with open shelving to hold Sarah’s purses or other folded items.

A Caesarstone quartz bench top with a 30″ (w) mirror atop— provided by Sarah — was another important stylistic element which provides a convenient sitting area to put on shoes and creates an elegant feel.

Built-In Closet With Doors

John’s walk-in closet was all about reducing clutter.

“Our original closet was a mess and it made our bedroom look like a mess. It became clear: We needed to have a walk-in closet with doors to get the space looking organized. Our IKD designer did a great job taking advantage of an awkward space that we poorly utilized for way too long,” he says.

(Designer’s Note: What John described for his closet area is not uncommon and one of the main reasons to select doors for your walk-in closet design!)

Working together with IKD designer Frank, they selected IKEA’s SEKTION kitchen system (yes, SEKTION works in closet areas) along with IKEA’s VEDDINGE white cabinet doors and drawers and IKEA GRIBBOL brass pulls. Combining the brass pulls and wood shelving along with the white doors creates a very natural, integrated design theme.

“This 89-square-foot closet space really presented some unique challenges. It’s an L-shaped layout and the nearby staircase presented an obstruction. We needed to include viable storage options plus a small desk/vanity in this small space beside the staircase. The design also required two floating shelves,” Frank says.

Since there wasn’t enough space for full-depth IKEA tall units an IKEA cabinet hack was in order. So Frank took 90” (h) IKEA VEDDINGE tall units and modified them from 24″(d) to 15″ (d) along all the walls. He was also able to fit in a desk/vanity area next to the staircase with two floating wood shelves above the desk. This creates a unique, dedicated dressing area. Combined with the tall cabinets (which reach the 96″ ceiling) it also creates a very organized and built-in look with plenty of storage options.

In total John’s closet design features six cabinets and five panels for a cost of only $3,724!

Project Numbers