28 
House 
& Garden 
C O M M O D I O U S CLOSETS 
Four Designs and Many Suggestions for Built-In Closets—How to Arrange the 
Shelves and Compartments Using Glazed Chintz Covers 
AGNES FOSTER WRIGHT 
The lower shelves oj this linen closet are for quilts, spreads and blankets, each in a little cover 
of glazed chintz held in place by tapes. A sorting shelf slides out above the blankets. Table 
linen, towels, pillows, etc., are above this. A complete description will be found in the text. 
Designed by Agnes Foster Wright, decorator 
I T may be because I 
was born in New 
England, but I have a 
passion for “regulat¬ 
ing.’' I am never hap¬ 
pier than when arrang¬ 
ing and rearranging 
closets. Doubtless the 
custom is not restricted 
to New England wo¬ 
men. Perhaps women 
everywhere consider reg¬ 
ulating closets a house¬ 
wifely indoor sport. 
But—if you have no 
closets! Or if the clos¬ 
ets are pigmy small! 
^^'hat then ? There is 
only one solution : build 
closets in. On these two 
pages I am suggesting 
some designs. 
Simple Construction 
These, of course, must 
be adapted to the avail¬ 
able space and to the 
amount of things one 
has to put away. Two 
of them are designed to 
be built by a local car¬ 
penter. There are no 
tricks to them, and 
after a simple expla¬ 
nation the carpenter 
should Ije able to grasp 
the design. It would 
be well, however, to 
stay at home while the 
work was being done 
and keep an eye on it. 
Even ten-dollars-a-day 
carpenters are not in¬ 
fallible. Before the job 
is finally handed over 
to you, see that the 
workmanship is right 
—t hat sliding doors 
actually do slide on the 
brass gutters and roll¬ 
ers, that the let-down 
fronts do let down and 
that the inside cabinet 
work is acceptable. 
Woods and Finishes 
Of the woods to use I would suggest white 
wood or white pine, or, if one does not mind 
the expense, birch. The clothes compartments 
may also be lined with cedar. Inside the wood 
can be given a coat of filler and then shellac. 
The outside can be stained or painted to suit 
the color scheme of the room. Personally, I 
prefer paint with some little colored decora¬ 
tions on drawer fronts and doors. The color 
for these can be taken from the curtain fabric 
used in the room. 
The first is a glazed chintz closet for linen. 
It can be built in the hall or against a sloping 
ceiling where there is a cut-in by a dormer. A 
base of 6" raises the first shelf from the floor 
and keeps it from floor dust. This first shelf 
holds comfortables and quilts, the second 
Ijlankets. Each of these is given a dust-proof, 
glazed chintz case made to tie in the middle 
with tapes and extra flaps edged with box 
pleating to snap with elastics. Each case 
should be large enough for a pair of blankets. 
The illustration on this page shows the doors 
of the closet going down full length, but, if 
one should desire it, these two blanket shelves 
could be made separately, with drop fronts and 
the doors started above the sliding shelf. This 
would mean that the blanket compartment, 
wdiich one does not use so often as the linen 
shelves, would be closed against dust most of 
the time. However, I 
prefer the design as 
given, with full-length 
doors. 
Above the blanket 
compartments is a sort¬ 
ing shelf made to pull 
out 6". This can be 
covered with the glazed 
chintz. 
The Upper Shelves 
The shelf immedi¬ 
ately above this should 
be used for dish cloths, 
iron' holders, cheese¬ 
cloth and cotton and 
the linen mending bas¬ 
ket. On the next shelf 
would be kept table, 
luncheon and tray 
cloths and large and 
small napkins. In the 
design these shelves are 
18" deep, 40" wide and 
9" apart, giving plenty 
space for the cloths. 
I'he next shelf up holds 
the large and s m a 11 
bath towels, face towels, 
hand towels and guest 
towels. Double a n d 
single sheets, plain pil¬ 
low cases and guest 
pillow cases occupy the 
next shelf. On the top 
shelf are kept extra pil¬ 
lows, stores, muslin 
curtains not in use, and 
various other articles. 
These shelves can be 
covered wi t h glazed 
chintz of a small ribbon 
pattern, tacked d o w n 
over the front edge. 
The edge is then cov¬ 
ered with a 1" box 
pleating tacked on. The 
glazed chintz can be 
laid on the shelves just 
as one does heavy pa¬ 
per, without seaming. 
It will not fray. The 
panels of the doors are 
covered inside with this 
same glazed chintz, 
giving them an attractive appearance. 
Another Design 
The second closet is designed for a large 
bedroom or dressing room, or a hallway close 
to the bedroom. It has three sections and, if 
one wishes, these three can be built separately 
and placed in different parts of the room or 
hall. Together it is 7' high and IS' long. 
The first section consists of two 3' 3" closets, 
one for the man’s clothes, the other for the 
wife’s. A narrow top shelf can hold sweaters. 
Below that are attached a rod or rods on which 
the coat hangers can be suspended. The inside 
{Continued on page 78) 
