Want that custom closet without the custom cost? Check out this DIY Walk In Closet Installation and cost breakdown and see how we saved $7000!
Creating a Functional Walk In Closet
When we moved into our home 15 years ago, it was a blank slate. I adored having all the space and that walk in closet was a dream. I have always had a passion for clothings, shoes, accessories and all things pretty so having a large space to put those items was a dream come true.
The closet is builders grade plain with those wire shelves and unfortunately not as much storage as I would have liked. It wasn’t that there was not space, it was that the space itself literally was built to only hold clothing with no thought on shoes or even undergarments. I really wanted to create a space with great functionality and more personalization so I decided to jump in.
DIY Walk in Closet Installation
I was certain this was going to be a horrible experience. Working in a small room, with no windows that is awkwardly shaped was not at the top of my fun list. For quick reference. Our closet is an L shape with the long arm of the L being 10 foot across exactly and the short leg being 8 foot exactly. Before we could do anything we had to remove everything from the closet including the builders grade wire shelves.
After the shelves were removed, we patched holes and prepped the walls and trim for paint. The paint color we chose was agreeable grey which is sort of a brownish tone gray and we paired that with a white trim. Since we do not have a ton of light in this space, I wanted to keep the paint color and trim bright, but I also wanted the contrast of the white closet system to pop.
Once paint was completed, we began the walk in closet installation. We purchased 2 of the dotted line grid systems that we knew we could adjust to fit our space. On my husbands side we placed one tower with shelves and drawers and 1 hanging section. For my section of the closet we placed 1 tower and then 3 hanging sections.
To combat the shoe storage we purchased bookshelves. I stacked two tall towers and then we hung a 3 shelf bookcase on the wall. We used bins from Target to place the shoes in for my husband and I as well as stacking boots in the tower shelves.
FInal touches came with organizational pieces, like acrylic shelf dividers and a headband holder. I also purchased bins to organize my socks and underwear and jewelry organizers. The space as a whole is a billion times more functional and the closet installation was incredibly simple. Yes it took time, but that is more because I had SO many items that I had to sort through to decide what I was keeping and donating.
Custom Closet Installation Cost
I initially contacted one of those custom closet companies. I was certain I would be able to collaborate with them, but unfortunately even with a collaboration, the price was still $8500.00 and that is just not in the budget. Instead, I decided to begin watching sales and looking to piece together that custom closet.
I purchased mainly from Wayfair, Amazon and Target and between those three stores, I was able to create the custom closet of our dreams. Check out the list below with links (some affiliate) to purchase along with the price I paid (prices & stock may have changed).
- Wayfair
- Closet System (purchased 2): $356.10 each ($712.20)
- Amazon
- Acrylic Shelf Dividers (4-pack): $12
- Furinno Bookcase (purchased 2): $25 each ($50)
- Headband holder: $8
- Felt Hangers (purchased 1100 hangers total over a single year): $45 pack of 100 ($500)
- Chandelier: $35
- Chandelier Light bulbs (G9): $16
- Lowes
- 3 Shelf Bookcase: $45
- Target
- XL Wave Storage Bin (Purchased 9): $9 each ($81)
- Medium Wave Storage Bin (Purchased 9): $6 each ($45)
- Medium Narrow Wave Storage Bin (Purchased 4): $5 each ($20)
- Mini Y-weave storage Bin (Purchased 3): $3 each ($9)
- Miscellaneous
- Jewelry Organizers from Shein: $25.00
- Paint & Supplies: $50
- TOTAL: $1608.20
For contrast, this is a screenshot of the space and the plan they wanted to do from a leading corporation. You can see that we saved over $7000 and that doesn’t include the hangers, paint, lighting, storage bins and organizers which was a large sum of the money we spent and also space…we ended up with more by building it ourselves.
