Shared Kids Closet Design Reveal with Rolling Library Ladder

I am sharing the reveal of our shared kids’ closet design! This walk-in closet has some really fun features and loads of desperately needed storage, so let’s take a look!

If you have ever lived without functional closet spaces in your home for over a year, you are going to completely understand my over-the-top, enthusiastic excitement over finally finishing our closet spaces.

This closet is one of many spaces in our new pole barn home that we built ourselves from the ground up.

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The Kids’ Closet Space

The first thing you’ll likely notice in this closet is the incredibly high ceilings!

We decided to keep the closet ceilings as high as the rest of the 12 foot ceilings throughout the home.

We wanted to create as much vertical storage as possible and use every square inch of it!

This obviously means that we would have storage that was unreachable without a ladder.

Rolling Library Ladder

I want to tell you a bit more about this ladder before I dive into all the other details.

This closet space was big enough and felt like the perfect space to add this rolling library ladder. It really is a functional element with a fun design!

When I was searching for a rolling library ladder system, I came across Rockler.com over and over. I loved how their ladders looked and that they were customizable.

I reached out to them and was thrilled that they were willing to send me this ladder for this space.

We selected a 9-foot ladder with satin black hardware and a track system.

Their ladders come to you in a kit which you assemble yourselves. I snuck in and captured Mr. TIDBITS while he was putting it together.

Because we were attaching it to the shelves he already built in, he needed to create a block of wood to attach the hardware to, which he then attached to the shelves themselves.

Then he continued to follow the handy instructions that came with the ladder kit and assembled the ladder sides and steps and metal supports.

What I loved about this ladder was that it came in unfinished wood, so you can stain or paint it any way you want.

I needed to see it in place before I made that design decision and I love how the light pine wood looks in here.

We are going to keep the natural wood look and just use a clear coat to protect the wood.

He thought putting it together was very straightforward and the process went very smoothly.

We are so pleased with the track system and how smooth the wheels and slides work.

The kids love climbing the ladder and sliding across to find the toys and books they want to grab.

I would probably worry more if I had little toddlers in the house, but since my kids are bigger I feel pretty comfortable with letting them climb up and down.

Drawer Units

We installed two tall and narrow drawer units for clothes storage for each kid. These are actually lingerie dressers that I found on Amazon.

We just removed the top off and installed on the wall. This was a big money saver!

If you’ve ever priced out closet systems, they are pretty pricey. They can also be difficult to fit into non-traditional closet spaces.

By just getting tall dressers and changing them up a bit, we saved money and didn’t have to build drawers from scratch. And still got a nice custom closet look to the space.

I really like the slim drawers for kids so they can designate a drawer for socks, undershirts, underwear, and all the separate items.

At the side of these drawer units we placed the hanging closet rods which for our small wardrobes we keep is plenty of room for the 2 kiddos.

I also thrifted this $10 dollar storage cabinet and painted it. Worked out perfectly here!

I thought about attaching it to the wall and raising it up like the drawers, but I am not certain I’ll keep it here forever, but for now, it works perfectly to stash some toys, bags, and more.

Mirror

The kids really wanted a mirror in here, so I found one with a door and storage inside which will prove very handy for all their jewelry, church ties, and so on.

Storage Shelves

Then we just went all the way up with shelves that the hubs built and installed, using up every bit of space as possible.

We had a little too much fun mixing and matching different baskets and bins that we already had and then bought some coordinating bins to fill it up completely.

I had the kids help me fill them. They are really good at remembering where their things are located.

We had a lot of fun filling them and placing them around in a random manner.

I sourced these baskets and boxes in a number of places so I will link to as many as possible on this my CLOSET SHOP PAGE.

Library Shelves

One of our favorite features in here is the vertical library shelves for all our kids books!

We really needed somewhere to store those and I didn’t want to take up precious space in their bedroom.

This narrow wall space in the closet was the perfect solution, as not much else would actually fit here.

We did something similar in our hallway closet if you saw that space we did earlier last year.

Now that we have 2 of these bookshelves we can have our kids’ books all in one place and my husband’s and I’s books in another.

You’ll also notice I painted this bookshelf in a darker blue/gray which pops against all the white.

It feels so good having this space done and I hope you enjoyed seeing this closet space! I hope you’re walking away with ideas for how you can customize and build your own closet spaces.

Be Sure to Check Out Our Pole Barn Home:

• European Farmhouse Kitchen
• European Farmhouse Master Bathroom
• Homeschool Room
• DIY Multi-Purpose Storage Closet
• DIY Faux Fireplace Mantel
• Ikea Havsta Cabinet Hack
• How to Create Textured Walls