Hallways in small apartments are a narrow or small square space, in which it is not easy to fit the outerwear and shoes of all residents. At the same time, the place near the door is the “calling card” of the house, where guests and acquaintances are allowed. Therefore, it must be both functional and neat. A corner wardrobe in the hallway is furniture with which you can save space and create all the conveniences. What parameters should you use to choose a closet for a small or large hallway? This is what our article is about.
In a small space, it is better to put a hinged modular set in the hallway
Types by shape
When choosing a cabinet for the hallway, determine the type of installation. It can be modular or built-in. Modular can be assembled into blocks, taking into account all the things that need to be put in the hallway. In this case, parts can always be swapped, updating the situation. Built-in models do not have a back panel: the furniture merges with the wall. They save space and are ordered according to personal projects, taking into account the parameters of the hallway.
Modern types of cabinets in shape:
- Triangular. This is a corner model that does not accommodate side panels. All elements, including shelves, are attached to the walls of the apartment. The sections meet diagonally, resulting in a triangle. This form allows you to smooth out corners and covers some uneven walls and flaws in the architecture. Looks good in small and square-shaped hallways.
- Radial. A non-standard model, reminiscent of a triangular cabinet, but with rounded doors. The facade can be concave or convex, and also have a combined shape, including asymmetrical. Concave models have an attractive design, but at the same time a high price.
Concave façade - Trapezoidal. Suitable for installation in a large corridor, since the shape of the model is quite complex: it contains side walls and many internal compartments. Such cabinets are large, since they still need to have enough space to accommodate a hanger for outerwear.
When choosing the type of cabinet according to its shape, look at the furniture store catalog: there are standard options. When ordering furniture for a separate project, specialists will make calculations based on the dimensions of your hallway, create new drawings and diagrams, and indicate the exact size of the furniture, taking into account your wishes. Made from the best durable materials in stylish colors. Parameters: 40x40, 50x50, 60x60 cm. The classic depth is 30 cm. The parameters in the catalog are indicated in centimeters, but sometimes they can be found in millimeters, for example 600x600 mm.
Recommendations for selecting furniture
Nowadays, the range of furniture in stores is so wide that you can choose any options that suit your apartment in style, color, functionality and other parameters. And where then should you start choosing furniture?
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Useful recommendations to solve the problem:
- take measurements. This is where every design project begins. Then all the data must be put on paper or a special program. This can be done even without drafting skills. It is only important that the plan of the room is before your eyes;
- think over all the furniture elements. Look through the photo design of corner hallways to have a clear idea of what you want. Choose a location for your closet in advance. Show this on your plan;
- You don’t need to buy many pieces of furniture for a small room. Sometimes less is more. Ergonomics and comfort are important here. You should start building a furniture composition with a corner cabinet;
- choose a suitable furniture façade. While looking through the options, select the ones you like and show them to the consultant in the salon. This way they can offer you suitable furniture much faster.
Read: Kitchen hallway - 77 photos of ideas for a perfectly combined interior
By door type
Doors for cabinets are made from particle boards, as well as wood, glass and mirrors. For small hallways, designers come up with ideas for installing furniture with full-length mirrors. Leather, bamboo and rattan are also used as façade coverings. The decor can be stained glass painting, drawn images, photo printing. Frosted painted glass and translucent plastic enhance the richness of the hallway colors.
The door mechanism is:
- Swing. The most common system in which the canvas opens forward. The door is hinged and attached to the frame. The advantages of this mechanism: low price, as well as ease of use of shelves in the open position of the door. But at the same time, the hallway must be rather large so that there is free space for opening.
- Sliding. Such doors are created according to the principle of compartment doors. They do not open outwards and do not require much space. The mechanism works so that the canvas moves sideways. The cost is much higher than that of a swing door. The closet can be narrow or wide: there will still be a significant saving of space in the hallway. The rail system is located both at the bottom and at the top. In a cheap model, the mechanism may fail over time.
Expert opinion
Bashir Rabadanov
Technologist at the furniture company Woodband
In wardrobes, a significant proportion of the internal space is occupied by doors. Take this into account when planning. Typically, the useful depth of the cabinet is reduced by 9–10 centimeters.
Advantages of the sliding mechanism:
- Silent door operation.
- Use of fabric from any material.
- Profile - made of steel or aluminum.
- Durable rollers made of metal or Teflon-coated plastic.
- High reliability.
Sliding wardrobe in the hallway with a pattern on the mirrors.
At the same time, the mechanism also has its drawbacks.
It requires periodic maintenance - cleaning the rails from dust, foreign objects, and dirt so that the roller can move freely along the guide. Otherwise, the canvas will not work correctly.
Sliding facades
If you've settled on sliding doors, consider the types of sliding systems.
Hanging
The simplest design. It became popular due to the low price of the mechanism. The elements are mounted to the ceiling or attached to the top of the cabinet. The fasteners are made from the inside, using special rollers. Guide corners are installed below. In this case, there must be a perfectly accurate placement on the floor. Doors of this type can cause a lot of trouble. They are mainly made from particle boards, which can sag in different directions over time.
With overlay profile
In contrast to hanging doors, overlay doors were created that do not sag and do not create inconvenience. The design is more successful and stable, but at the same time it weighs a lot. Along the edges there is a profile that strengthens the door structure. The main rollers with bearings are placed at the bottom. Additionally, upper wheels are installed that support the canvas. The disadvantage of such doors is that if a foreign object gets into the rail, the door leaf may warp or jump out.
Support sliding system for cabinet doors
Framework
The most durable and less prone to sagging. In addition to horizontal reinforcement, there is also a vertical profile. The rollers contain mini-tendrils that prevent the system from falling out of the track, deforming or breaking. Steel and aluminum are used in the manufacture of the profile. Therefore, the panels become more rigid, but do not become heavier. The profile has the following qualities:
- Wide choice of materials: you can use not only standard chipboard, but also wood, glass structures, and mirrors.
- Large selection of colors, including different textures: plastic, metal and wood.
- Versatility. Such doors are installed not only in the closet, but also in the bathroom, and in any room to cover the opening.
Coplanar
Such doors look solid, creating an ideal monolithic facade. The canvases are installed so that they are on the same level and do not overlap adjacent elements. There are no frames here, and the structure can be assembled with your own hands from several canvases, the dimensions of which reach 2 meters in width. They are quite large in weight - up to 70 kg. They are considered high-end and fashionable in the market. Coplanar systems are expensive and require specific cabinet dimensions. For example, for the PS40 from Cinetto, its width should be no more than 3600 mm.
All valves in coplanar systems are located in the same plane
Materials
When choosing a wardrobe for a small hallway, do not ignore the materials used in its manufacture. After all, the service life of the furniture, as well as the design, depend on their quality. The body is made from the following popular materials.
Chipboard
It is a frequently used material due to its low price. There are both laminated and veneered boards made from glued wood chips. Surface protection allows you not to react to mechanical damage, high humidity and weather changes. When purchasing, make sure that the surface is not damaged: the destruction of the protective layer leads to the fact that moisture can penetrate into the material. As a result, the chipboard will become unusable.
Laminated chipboard is a cheap material, but sensitive to humidity and temperature
MDF
The quality of MDF is better than chipboard. Such boards do not contain formaldehyde resins, which can be harmful to health, and do not evaporate toxic substances. MDF can be processed in all possible ways. The material is quite durable.
Tree
Wooden furniture is the most fashionable and expensive. The main advantages of such models are absolute safety from an environmental point of view, maximum strength, and a beautiful, rich appearance. The types of wood used are cherry, oak, walnut, and beech. The only defects may be external imperfections such as rough surfaces, knots and small cracks. But varnishing will correct this and eliminate all unevenness.
Identification of room features
The main difficulties in corner hallways may arise with the arrangement of furniture. After all, even if you do not place the furniture in a straight line, it should still look organic - as a single ensemble. If all modules are correctly combined, the hallway will be spacious, functional and aesthetically attractive. And the modest size of the room can be made its advantage.
Read: Banquette in the hallway - an overview of all types, 75 best photos of banquettes in the interior
You can also emphasize the flight of your design ideas with the help of finishing. It should correctly emphasize the dimensions of the room, hide its shortcomings, and match the style and color of all the objects located here. And the shades and style of furniture can be selected from catalogs and photos of a corner hallway from the Internet. The most popular are the classic options.
The material from which the furniture is made is also important. You can choose more expensive furniture made from natural wood; solid wood is used for its production. More modest in price, but not attractive, hallway options can be selected from MDF or chipboard. Such furniture is covered with melamine film or made of PVC. The film imitates wood and looks decent. The most modern type of materials is eco-veneer; outwardly it is almost indistinguishable from solid wood.
Filling
The convenience of a dressing room depends on its interior. Corner cabinets are considered the most spacious and multifunctional. They contain not only outerwear, but also hats, various accessories: gloves, bags, umbrellas, clothing and shoe care products, handkerchiefs, etc. Shoe boxes are installed below.
Don't forget the shoe racks
The richer the cabinet contents, the more convenient it will be. It should include:
- Shelves. These are the main parts of the cabinet, which can be located on the doors or inside. They store things, bed linen, hats, and necessary household items. Separately, you can purchase additional shelves and retrofit the cabinet. The shelves located at the end are used for folding cosmetic bags, phones and keys.
- Barbells. Hangers with outerwear, dresses, jackets and other things are hung on them. They are transverse and longitudinal. Transverse ones are installed in narrow cabinets. There are also lowering and stationary brackets. We especially highlight the retractable ones, which create additional comfort.
- Hooks for attaching bags and umbrellas, for hats.
Mesh blocks, shoe racks, key holders and baskets can be in the closet, but not necessarily, since these are additional elements that can be equipped with the wardrobe after purchasing the main frame. This also applies to lighting, which can become the “highlight” of the hallway, but is not necessary. Illuminated lamps are usually installed along the contour of the cabinet or highlight its main parts and components.
Colors
When choosing a cabinet, you need to take into account its appearance so that it completely matches the wallpaper, the design of the walls, ceiling and floor in color. If you lose sight of this point, you can seriously make a mistake, and even the most functional furniture will constantly “hurt your eyes.” In a bright hallway it is better to place an equally light cabinet, since dark shades will create disharmony. Good models from the Ikea brand are produced mainly in light pastel colors.
White corner cabinet Pax from Ikea
The dimensions of the room also play a role. If the hallway is very small, then the closet should not be dark, otherwise it will reduce the already miniature space. If the corridor is decorated in a classic style, then a cabinet with a wood-look facade will fit in. At the same time, wooden frames and other elements made of such material in a single color are hung on the walls.
All shades of wood are often used, in particular the color wenge. Light, uniform colors and animal prints are also appreciated—zebra stripes are in demand.
Corner wardrobe in wenge color with lighting and decorative inserts on the facades in the hallway
What to avoid:
- Do not buy models with several bright colors on the facade. Such a cabinet will make the hallway colorful and overly saturated with shades. This is not the only item in the room, so you need to approach colors selectively and with taste.
- Avoid flashy, overly bright colors. Even if you really liked such a wardrobe in the photo, in reality it will attract a lot of attention, which will not be beneficial to the interior of the dressing room.
- The combination of old-fashioned copper-colored handles, curls next to new materials, like translucent blue, green or pink plastic, metal is not very successful.
Dark red color looks interesting in the hallway
Fashionable shades for the closet: lilac, rose quartz, blue, mustard, silver, beige, dark red, peach, blue. White and black shades in combination are still in fashion and are ready to complement any style, bringing something fresh and at the same time strict.
Selection of corner cabinet
Almost every hallway has a corner closet. Sometimes it can be replaced by a bookcase with open shelves, but choosing a cabinet is much more rational. It is usually equal in height to the modules on one and the other side, has one or two doors and is equipped with a mezzanine or a hanging bar.
Read: Built-in hallway - overview of advantages, tips for use. 110 photos of built-in hallways in the interior.
Even a small corner hallway allows you to place a maximum of things in the corner closet. Often its doors are finished with a large mirror, which makes the piece of furniture itself almost invisible, translucent and bulky.
