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No closet? No problem.
Don’t get hung up about it
BY KATE COHEN

When divvying up an apartment, the only thing worse than getting the smallest room is getting stuck with the one that doesn’t have a closet. Sure, the converted dining room might have charming Victorian moldings or huge bay windows, but neither will look very attractive when hidden by piles of clothes and ever-important "stuff" (which Mom might refer to as "junk"). Never mind; clear a path to the door and learn to love your non-closet living.

Step one: find a place for everything that used to hang in your real closet. Try a garment rack, which is easy to find in a variety of heights and styles at places like Bed Bath & Beyond ($19.99–$39.99), Economy Hardware ($24.99–$89.99), and Target ($49.99). If the sight of your clothes hanging exposed on a rack makes your room seem too much like a thrift store, hide them with a folding screen, like the Sona Screen Frame ($129.99) at BB&B, which, as an added bonus, also holds 15 photos. Or, build a garment rack from steel shelving ("baker’s rack"), sold as individual pieces ($4.99–$89.99) at Economy Hardware and Tags, or as a kit ($149.99–$199.99) at Hold Everything. If wire shelving looks too industrial next to your vintage-lace curtains, get a canvas slipcover ($79.99–$129.99), typically sold alongside the steel-rod materials. The shelving’s flat top means this makeshift closet can hold even more, like wicker baskets with canvas linings ($9.99–$24.99) at BB&B or canvas storage boxes ($24–$34 for a set of two) from Hold Everything. These stores also offer a wide variety of hanging canvas organizers for things like sweaters and shoes. Bed Bath & Beyond offers the best deal on these space savers ($19.99).

Those with slightly bigger budgets can splurge for furniture, like Davis Unfinished Furniture’s armoire ($299.99), which is sold alongside a host of shelves, cubes, and dressers that can all be stained to match. Economy Hardware has a similarly impressive collection of unfinished pieces in a variety of woods like pine, maple, and oak. And check out the solid-wood furniture at Crate & Barrel. The Villagio set has a distressed country look, and the armoire ($1199) matches the mirror, which matches the dresser, etc. A trunk from Pier 1 Imports ($200–$250) can be a catchall for anything that doesn’t fit anywhere else.

Finally, if there’s still too much stuff and not enough room, try bed elevators ($14.99) from BB&B. These sturdy plastic feet are kinder to stubbed toes than cinder blocks, and they’ll add another five inches between the floor and your box spring — plenty of room for under-bed storage containers like Rubbermaid’s wheeled storage box ($12.99), available at Target. Then, if non-closet life still leaves you with too much unstored stuff, Goodwill will happily accept your donation.

Where to get it:

• Bed Bath and Beyond, various locations, www.bedbathandbeyond.com.

• Crate & Barrel, various locations, www.crateandbarrel.com.

• Davis Unfinished Furniture, 238 Elm Street, Somerville, (617) 776-4221.

• Economy Hardware, various locations.

• Hold Everything, various locations, www.holdeverything.com.

• Pier 1 Imports, various locations, www.pier1.com.

• Tags, 29 White Street, Cambridge, (617) 868-7711.

• Target, various locations, www.target.com.



Issue Date: August 22 - 29, 2002
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