Children Move Out…

Baby Boomers Turn Their Empty
Bedrooms Into Closets

Are you one of the baby boomers whose child grew up, moved out and you converted their bedroom into… a fabulous, custom closet?

If you are…no guilt necessary.

While there are no hard, cold statistics on just how often it happens, designers will tell you, it’s a quiet phenomenon taking place across the country.

“Discriminating homeowners have moved from desiring a large ‘reach-in’ closet to the walk-in closet, to dressing rooms,” explains veteran designer Scott Richter, also a principal of Richter Design Group in Libertyville, IL. “If the kids have moved out and the homeowners are staying in the home and remodeling, quite often the empty child’s room nearest the master bedroom, becomes a dressing room. Because today’s home are 50% larger than homes built just 20 years ago, if my clients are building a new home, custom cabinetry in a dressing room is almost a foregone conclusion.”

Today we’re putting more thought into the form following the function of each room. Hence, our kitchens are liad out differently because we are now gathering in them, our bathrooms mimic spas, and logically it follows that we desire our “closets” to function as dressing rooms.

“I’ve been creating spaces and working with custom cabinetry for years. I know how to get the most storage and organization from a space. When designing a dressing room for a client, I want to know about their habits and their storage needs,” assesses Richter. “The experience of the space will draw from, and build on, the individuality of the homeowners. A well organized space creates a relaxed and welcoming atmosphere - not one of rushed despair,” Richter explains with a knowing smile. “This is a space which deserves a lot of thought and planning.”

For that reason, custom cabinetry designed to the needs of the homeowner, specifically to their morning routines, and it may be just that much more difficult to leave for work in the morning!

For more information on Wood-Mode, America’s leading manufacturer of fine residential custom cabinetry for more than 60 years, and their Custom Wardrobes cabinetry line, available through Richter Design Group.

Richter Design Group
(Father & Son): Pat Richter & Scott Richter
215 East Park Avenue, Suite B
Libertyville, IL 60048