Sliding wardrobes: design and types of construction

Built-in and free-standing wardrobes are gaining more and more popularity due to their functionality and spaciousness in a relatively small size. Such a storage system can safely replace hallway furniture, a dressing room in the bedroom, or become a universal storage system in a one-room apartment. The richness of the choice of facade finishing is not only interior decoration, but also the opportunity to emphasize its style. It makes no sense to buy the first “compartment” wardrobe that comes across with a nondescript design and endure inconvenience for years if there is an opportunity to order built-in or ready-made, satisfying in all respects.

Sliding wardrobe with mirror

Black built-in wardrobe

Varieties of wardrobes “compartment”

This type of cabinet furniture is produced for the bedroom and living room, hallway and nursery. They differ in shape, size and finishing materials. Sliding doors on rollers, displaced along a special guide or “rail” – a distinctive feature of the “coupe”, but often there is a fixed block of the facade. There are two-, three-, four-door options. Inside can be modular filling to rearrange shelves and drawers. A spacious and comfortable wardrobe is a modern alternative to obsolete cabinet furniture. It will harmoniously fit into any environment, if you choose the right design of the compartment doors.

Built-in wardrobe in the interior

Red large wardrobe in the interior of the room

The built-in wardrobe takes up the entire space of the niche, which was allocated for a fixed module. It does not have a ceiling and back wall, only a shelf frame and a facade, sometimes there are side shelves on the end wall. A solid ceiling construction is done for a decade, or at least until the next renovation. They are made to order or assembled by hand.

Advice. If there is no preference for the choice of the facade, choose mirrored doors that expand the space and do not require matching any style.

Main disadvantage: the built-in wardrobe cannot be taken with you when you move..

Mirrored wardrobe in the design of the room

Sliding wardrobe in the interior

A self-contained compartment can be rearranged to another room if the doorway allows. For this reason, sliding wardrobes of the original design are made low – for ease of transportation and rearrangement. If desired, on-site can be supplemented with removable mezzanines, but they should also be 10 cm below the ceiling to be able to be installed and disassembled.

Main disadvantages: A low cabinet looks ridiculous with high ceilings. It is bulky and difficult to move around the apartment. The dimensions of the cabinet may not correspond a little to the corner or niche in the room where they wanted to put it, so it is important to accurately check the dimensions.

Classic wardrobe in the interior of the room

L-shaped wardrobe in the room

Advice. For a tighter fit to the wall, you will have to remove the skirting board.

A corner sliding wardrobe is an ideal opportunity to make the most of the small free space in a small room. This form is in demand in the hallway and children’s room. A compact wardrobe holds a lot of things or an entire seasonal wardrobe with shoes.

Oval sliding wardrobe

Built-in wardrobe in the hallway

Corner models fit:

for a narrow corridor;
for a walk-through hall with a free corner;
for a square room with large windows and small walls;
for a small rectangular living room;
for a small bedroom – the bed can be placed almost close to the sliding wardrobe doors.

The main disadvantage: it is difficult to get to the very corner of the cabinet, so you need to choose models with a good internal layout.

Advice. Choose the option when a wardrobe bar with tremples (hangers on hooks) goes deep into the corner, so that it is convenient to move clothes.

The diagonal corner or radial cabinet has a slightly convex front. Such “coupes” are more complicated and more expensive than linear models, since it is difficult to fit the curvature of a convex door to a round guide. But these structures have the maximum internal volume and a beautiful facade. Most often these are designer wardrobes..

Small wardrobe with mirror

Sliding wardrobe with wood pattern

Main disadvantages: Expensive and difficult to repair, but this is the best design of a free corner with maximum spaciousness.

Sliding wardrobes with open sections and side shelves on the end part are universal. They provide extra space for frequently used items, but seem much more compact than completely enclosed ones. There are corner and linear models where open shelving and sliding doors are combined.

Sliding wardrobe with a picture

White mirrored wardrobe

Perfect option:

for a small apartment;
for a teenager’s room in the study area;
for a work shop or study.

Flaw. You have to constantly monitor the order on open shelves, often dust off and review the filling..

Sliding wardrobe with dragon pattern

Sliding wardrobe design

The main advantages of the wardrobe

This is a multifunctional cabinet furniture with an attractive design of a sliding door, which has a lot of “pluses”:

sliding doors do not take up space in a narrow hallway or bedroom;
in a spacious room, you can make a deep built-in wardrobe, and in a narrow corridor, install a compact wardrobe with transverse bars for outerwear;
if you have a spacious wardrobe, you can get rid of old cabinet furniture in 2-3 rooms;
it is easy to put things in order for the arrival of visitors, where each thing has its own place behind the compartment doors;
cleaning is easier, especially if the facade is treated with a dust-repellent compound.

The modern “coupe” will ennoble the modern interior and give it laconicism and elegance. Sliding wardrobes are also used for zoning space in a spacious room – as a partial wall.

Beautiful wardrobe in the room

Sliding wardrobe in the hallway

Materials for the manufacture of the base and finishing of facades

Cabinets are made from the same materials as other cabinet furniture. The design of the wardrobe doors varies.

Plywood MDF goes only to the back wall of cabinets or the bottom of drawers, that is, to parts without load. It is quite an environmentally friendly material, therefore it is often used as an auxiliary – for children’s cabinet furniture.
Chipboard or chipboard is made from larger sawdust and shavings on formaldehyde resin (“halva”). A common material from which most furniture is made or made to order. In terms of strength, it is comparable to natural wood, but much cheaper. However, children and allergy sufferers are not recommended a model in which the surface of “halva” is not completely covered (due to formaldehydes).
Chipboard or laminated chipboard with a decor for any wood texture is difficult to process, the trimming sometimes peels off, revealing “halva”. It is cut mainly on industrial machines. This material is used to make most of the factory cabinet furniture at affordable prices. The design of the “coupe” doors made of laminated materials is outwardly as good as expensive wood.
Natural wood is the most expensive in the manufacture of furniture, especially if it is a rare species with a beautiful pattern of texture. This wardrobe is recommended for an elite interior with natural materials. Classic sliding wardrobes with a beautiful design of facades will survive more than one generation, they can be gifted and inherited.
Veneered wood is an analogue of natural material, but a thin layer is removed there and applied to a cheaper variety. Applies only to the facade and external side surfaces. It costs an order of magnitude cheaper, but looks like a natural wood – wenge, rosewood, etc. Eco-veneer is a synthetic analogue.

White wardrobe

Classic wardrobe in the room

The decor of the facade uses not only natural wood or its imitations, but also other materials, mainly glass and plastic.

Mirrored surfaces are ideal for a sliding door, especially when you want to visually expand a small room. Today not only traditional glass with silver amalgam on the back is used, but also some types of highly reflective colored plastic. The black mirror design of the sliding wardrobe doors to the living room looks original, as in the photo.

Stained glass will add variety to the dull interior of any room. Stained-glass windows can be colored or combined glass of different textures – mirrored, matte, corrugated and rough. Often this is an exclusive, that is, an author’s solution, on which they have been working for more than one week. Such a facade is expensive, but in terms of beauty and nobility, such a “coupe” is not inferior to elite furniture..

Mirror sliding wardrobe in black

Bright wardrobe with mirrored doors and patterns

Decorative glasses are the varieties listed above. A rough sandblasted pattern or frosted glass can be combined with sliding mirrors. Such a wardrobe door design is suitable for classic and modern interiors..

A photo facade or photo print is a relatively new design technique that is gaining popularity. A drawing or enlarged photograph is applied to laminated or ordinary surfaces. The plot depends on the style of the house and the functionality of the room:

baby photos on the closet are a great idea for a child’s room;
landscape will replace wall murals in the hallway with the illusion of open space;
still life is a great idea for a living room combined with a dining room;
luxurious flower is a great idea for a romantic bedroom.

Advice. The easiest way is to fix a large photo, poster, a fragment of a photo wallpaper or a painting panel on the back side of the glass facade of the “compartment”.

Textile decoration is used less often, but it is no less effective. A stationary panel covered with leather or expensive fabric looks noble; you can even duplicate furniture upholstery or curtains. Sliding doors can be glass or mirror.

Natural decor in the design of the doors of the wardrobe also looks very interesting. This is a flexible stone, cork, bamboo, which is very appropriate in a hallway decorated in a recognizable Japanese or other ethnic style..

Opaque wardrobe

Sliding wardrobe in the interior of the hallway

Colored adhesive film for glass or cabinetry can also be used to change the design of a hallway or nursery. Although it is short-lived, it is easy to use, there is a stained glass film for glass, marble and wood imitation. It is better to paste over the fixed parts of the cabinet with it, as in the photo.

Attention! The wide range of finishing materials gives you creative freedom to transform your built-in furniture. It is also an opportunity to combine the old design of built-in wardrobes and new furniture. It is better to touch less unstable materials with your hands and not leave them in direct sunlight..

Combined facades can combine different materials, glossy and mirror surfaces. Elite furniture is made of expensive materials, it is practical and durable. Therefore, do not apply images and experiment with adhesive film or vinyl pictures..

Advice. If you want to modernize the old built-in furniture, it is enough to call the master to replace only the front side (as in the photo of sliding wardrobes), the design of the facades for the hallway.

Tips for choosing a quality cabinet

The more natural and durable materials, the more likely the product will last longer. Sliding wardrobe can serve for decades.
If you want to decorate the room and draw attention to the built-in furniture, get a model with a bright, spectacular facade..
To hide the built-in wardrobes in the interior, choose with mirrored doors or wood decor to match the decor.
The internal content of the built-in model depends on which room the “compartment” will be in and who will use them:

– in the women’s bedroom, the sliding wardrobe fills the dressing room, where there should be a lot of space for hanging dresses and jackets;

– there should be a lot of space in the children’s room for clothes and toys;

– there should be a place for shoes and seasonal clothes in the hallway.
For a children’s room, spacious furniture with a bright facade is chosen, but the main requirement is safety. Parental distrust should be caused by breakable mirrors and materials with a chemical odor that can fade over the years and negatively affect health.

Sliding wardrobes to order are the most functional, since all the wishes of the customer are taken into account. To reduce the cost of work, you can order the base and jumpers in the carpentry workshop, and assemble it yourself. For facade installation services, it is better to contact specialists.

Black wardrobe in the interior of the room

Use original ideas – ultra-fashionable mirrored facades in black, copper or gold shades, supply internal compartments with diode lighting. A plasma television panel can be placed on the facade, but it is important to think over the connection of the wires so that they touch anything, and the door can easily move along the guide. More unique ideas – in our photo gallery.