Walk-in closets that will make you swoon with envy

A bedroom turned massive atelier in King City

The owners of this King City house value their storage so much that they were willing to transform an entire bedroom into a majestic walk-in closet. She’s a teacher and he’s in construction; they wanted their dressing room to double as a private retreat, where they could enjoy stress-free morning routines, painless packing and the occasional conversation away from their kids. They hired Jane Lockhart to spearhead the interior design. She hid laundry bins underneath a Cambria quartz island, and installed wall hooks for showing off scarf collections, cubbies for clutches, drawers for displaying jewellery and a makeup table. To give the space character, she sourced swanky furnishings from Elte, added patterned wallpaper and a coffered ceiling, and bought a statement gold light fixture from Union Lighting. With two large windows that provide tons of natural light, the space could easily pass for a parlour or family room—and even house extra guests in a pinch.

A his-and-hers boudoir in Mississauga

Interior designer Elizabeth Metcalfe worked with an architect for nearly two years on this 10,000-square-foot Georgian home in Mississauga’s posh Gordon Woods neighbourhood. The owners are married empty nesters who frequently travel abroad, and they wanted their new home to look like their favourite European hotels. One of the owners designs her own evening clothes, so she wanted a significant portion of her side of the dressing room devoted to gala-worthy gowns, with special hooks on which she can “audition” outfits. Her husband has lots of golf and tennis gear, so Metcalfe filled his side with more drawers. Since the dressing room is open to the rest of the master suite, she hid the closet areas behind silk-panelled doors. The real showstopper is the sheer height of the space: the vaulted ceiling is 20 feet high, with intricate plaster detailing and a skylight that showers the room in natural light.

A footwear-themed showcase in Rosedale

While designing this Rosedale closet, architect Brenda Izen focused the entire concept around the owner’s massive shoe collection. At the centre of the space is a backlit floor-to-ceiling “show shelf,” designed to make every pair of stilettos pop. Elsewhere, she lined drawers with velvet to properly store sunglasses, added a brass ladder on which to hang scarves and installed an acrylic grid to hold rolled-up underwear like in lingerie shops. Izen didn’t want the design to take the focus from her client’s clothing and accessories, so she kept the look clean and minimalist. The floors are white oak, the closets are made of lacquered wood and the details are all brass. Izen had the ottoman custom-made from black velvet and brass, and sourced the geometric lighting fixture from West Elm. The home is smart-wired, and there’s a separate switch for the shoes—meaning the space is often illuminated by only the glowing back wall, making the designer heels look like the stars of the show.

A boutiquey wardrobe in downtown Toronto

When a local fashion blogger moved into a downtown townhouse, she decided to transform her dingy walk-in closet into a glamorous dressing room. She wanted a design that would meticulously store her clothing, while also displaying her pricy investment items—especially her vintage shoe and hat collections. Proper lighting was crucial: she needed to be able to see all of her pieces during her daily dressing routine. She recruited Elaine Cecconi of Cecconi Simone to create a boutique-like space. Cecconi installed two walls of stark white closets, minimalist shelving units and a sizable mirror, making the accessories on the shelves look like objects in an art gallery. An oversized sliding door connects the space to the bedroom, allowing the closet to blend in seamlessly with the rest of the townhouse—and expanding the otherwise cramped living space.