bedrooms with bays/1930s house - how do you organise them?

[Namechanger355]

Am frustratingly trying to fit my clothes into my wardrobe but it keeps popping open - and then I just leave it open all night (gives me a fright whenever I wake up as I can see clothes that look like monsters)

For those of you who have bedrooms with bay windows/1930s bedrooms, how do you organise them? We will do a loft conversion at some point but not enough money yet.

We have alcoves which aren't massive. The bay should be a great space but can't put anything high in front of them. I don't even have much stuff!

Grateful if you could tell me where you put you:

1. toiletries and make up
2. bedding/towels
3. Shoes
4. clothes (underwear/tshirts, hanging items, jumpers, dressy and casual)

Thanks so much,

Sideboard to use as a dressing table in bay window that stores make up and toiletries.

A very large sliding wardrobe across one wall, with a built in chest of drawers one one side and hanging space in the other. Baskets for jumpers and shoes on shelves in wardrobe.

Side tables with drawers each side of bed. Divan bed with 4 drawers to store bedding and towels.

Not all 1930’s houses will have same room some rooms, mine may be large

• same size rooms

thanks, our 1930s is a fairly standard 3 bed - one master with bay, one other double and the box.

thanks for your tips

Could you build a seating/storage area into the bay under the window?

Alternatively;

• bed with storage under mattress, use this for shoes and out of season clothes, handbags etc
• built in wardrobes so can maximise space as these tend to go to the ceiling so much higher than standard wardrobe
• shelving for jewellery, accessories, small storage boxes of bits and pieces
• hooks on wall for coats, jackets
• storage ottoman end of bed
• regular wardrobe clear outs, with out of season clothes going into vacuum bags/attic
• hallway storage for shoes, ikea have some slimline ones
• ikea have those storage units you can put the baskets into (not sure of name) could you put one along the bottom of the window

I have 2 built in floor to ceiling wardrobes on the wall facing bed, hanging space in one and shelves on the other. Both have deep shelf at top and I store suitcase, non seasonal clothes, perfume, deodrant, jewellery box etc there. Shoes, boots on bottom shelf. I'm very minimal now and don't have tons of stuff, that makes huge difference. Bed has storage drawers, keep towels & bedding there. Other bedding in the other rooms. Bathroom has storage sink unit with 2 big drawers, make up and toiletries are in there. Bedside tables with storage space and drawer, medication, phone, rings in the drawer, book on the storage space. Between the 2 wardrobes I have a wide 6 drawer unit with underwear, pyjamas, use 1 drawer for random bits and bobs. The bay is just space, used to have a chair there, another time a big storage box but hate clutter so got rid.

House one: fitted wardrobes in the alcoves, mirror above fireplace. Large chest of drawers in the bay. I had shutters on the bottom half of the sash. Room for an occasional table and bookcase. There was an alcove on the landing and I had another fitted wardrobe there.

House two: fitted wardrobes in the alcove, as above, mirror over fireplace, run of wardrobes on the other side of the room, cupboards under a window seat in the bay. I had the understairs cupboard professionally sectioned and sliding panels that opened. There was room for coats at the back and drawers for shoes, book bags, etc at the front.

House three: No bay and probably worked best but no character.

This house: cupboards under window seat, fitted wardrobes either side of the bed, chest of drawers x 2, two small chairs and table. Walk in wardrobe.

Bedding in a drawer. Towels in the airing cupboard. I tend to hang all clothing. Chests of drawers for undies, nightwear, scarves, swimwear, handbags, etc. One drawer has shallow boxes with stuff like meds and first aid bits, nail polish, etc.

Toiletries are in the bathroom. All my make-up is in a small make-up bag: foundation, powder, Mascara, concealer, lippy, blusher, a brush. That's it.

I'm wondering how many toiletries/shoes and how much make-up you have if there's an issue.

Toiletries and make up - bathroom (we have a LOT of built-in storage in there for that reason!)

Bedding and towels - will have storage cupboard in box/third room but have taken the wall down so this is now a large landing.

Shoes - those in use/season in shoe storage unit by front door. Out of season in shoe boxes in bottom of wardrobe

Clothes - fitted wardrobes in both alcoves, one each. Mine has incorporated drawer section with short hanging above, DH has chest of drawers in bay window.

Out of season coats will go in the new cupboard on the landing.

Fitted wardrobes are floor to ceiling so out of season clothes are stored in the very top section

Thanks so much for these ideas

honestly not many toiletries or shoes (10 max) but just such limited storage in this house. Partly because the under stairs has a loo.

thanks again

In our master I have shelving on either side of the window, a window seat, and drawers under the seat. Something like the first pic on this link https://www.recommend.my/blog/16-bay-window-ideas-with-lots-of-storage/

In our guest room we have an ‘open closet’ type of set up like the second pic

We have built in wardrobes where the alcove would have been (previous owners took out the chimney 😔) then the bed on the door wall, dressing table to the right of that against the wall opposite the bay. Drawers under bed. And in the bay I have a 4 draw kallax on its side with a blanket and cushions on to make a window seat and boxes in that can be used for shoes etc.

That’s beautiful 😍

We have a 1930s semi. Clothes in built in wardrobes in the alcoves (they stick out more than the alcoves). Sheets and towels under bed. Toiletries and makeup in bathroom drawers. Shoes in a big box thing in the hallway.

Shoes and bags are the things I find most problematic to find a place for/ easily accessible.

I have a classic 1930s master with large curved bay and a fireplace. Large enough but not huge.

I have put in deep fitted wardrobes in alcoves up to the ceiling, mirror over fireplace. Bed is against opposite wall facing fireplace. My cosmetics go in my side table / cupboard by my bed. Towels and bedsheets are stored in easy access storage bags / containers in my ottoman bed which can hold an impressive amount and is really easy to use (it is really great!). I also store my big winter jumpers and spare duvet/pillows etc under there.

There is a curved radiator under my bay so no dressing table or drawers there, but want to get a small bench or pouffe for that space when I find the right thing. I’ve painted the rad same colour as the wall so it sort of blends in. I want to find a nice bureau or chest of drawers for opposite wall to the bay. It would be handy as a make up space and to have a little bit more storage in the room.

I think the key to organisation whatever the space is to declutter - only keep most useful things or the things that you love - and keep it that way with a “one in, one out” policy as much as you can.

We had wardrobes built into the alcoves (they come out a bit past the chimney breast as the alcoves aren't that deep), they go all the way to the ceiling so there's plenty of space. The top shelves can be used for bedding etc. and there is space for shoes and bags built in. They were definitely worth the investment, added so much storage and are great use of the space.

Chest of drawers between them, against the chimney breast (there's no fireplace). The bed has drawers underneath too. If we needed more storage I would buy an ottoman for the bay window.

Oh, I totally get your frustration with the wardrobe situation! When you're dealing with alcoves and a bay window, space can be a challenge. Here's how I've organized my stuff in my bedroom:

1. Toiletries and Makeup: I've got a small vanity table in one of the alcoves, and that's where I keep my toiletries and makeup. It's handy because I get some natural light from the window for doing makeup.

1. Bedding/Towels: I use under-bed storage for bedding and towels. It's a lifesaver! You can get those under-bed storage bins or bags, and they slide in and out really easily.

1. Shoes: I have a shoe rack near the door. You know, one of those stackable ones that doesn't take up much space. It's not in front of the bay window, so it doesn't block the view.

1. Clothes: For clothes, I've used a wardrobe with sliding doors. It's a great space-saver, and I've even added some shelves and drawers inside to keep things organized. Instead of rods, I used a wall mounted hangers like this with adjustable hooks on the inside of the wardrobe for hanging items.

It's not a perfect solution, but it's working for me until I can afford to have a bigger wardrobe. Hope this gives you some ideas to make your bay window bedroom a little more manageable! 😊