Finally getting to the Catalogues!

Now that the kids are back in school, I’m finally have the chance to go through that big stack of catalogues that I’ve been saving. I just finished The Container Store shelving sale catalogue. (Don’t you just love the Container Store?) I was intrigued by the Elfa ™closets and how they compare to ours. (It’s that type of curiosity that has earned me the moniker “The Closet Lady” at many job sites!)
I pulled out my laptop and started my design software. I took a good look at the Elfa ™ closet – (specifically the green one.) It’s a pretty closet – it has wire shelving with birch veneers, short hang and medium hang. Elfa ™ is wall-mounted – the system is supported mainly by a rail is installed on the wall. Vertical standards hang from the rail and the rest of the system hangs from the standards. It is a similar product to ClosetMaid’s Shelftrack ™ system.
Since we sell an all-laminate product (no wire shelves for us!), I realized that I could design a closet that functions the same way but would have laminate shelving and supports. The Container Store’s wire closet retails for $748.74. Our laminate closet’s price is $652.25. And the best part? Our price includes installation!
I was surprised – not only is our closet about $100 cheaper –a whole lot of service is provided for our price. First of all, we come to your house to measure your space. We design a closet to fit your needs – after taking a look at your stuff and discussing it with you. Once we finalize the design – Ardent takes care of all of the details. We worry about all the pieces and parts - making sure that all of the material arrives in your home on installation day! (No return trips to the store, how nice is that?)
Come installation day, we carry everything up the stairs (or down the stairs, down the hall, up the elevator, whatever!) While we’re installing – you can enjoy your day. There’s no need for you to spend your precious spare time trying to put all those parts together. We even vacuum after we’re done!
And did I mention that our closets are LESS expensive?

Good Press is Hard to Get!

I’m playing to rave reviews.
One of my closets was described this way in the Reston Times newspaper:

“The closet is so glamorous, in fact, that their daughter brings friends over to tour it.”

I’m so excited! Okay, so they don’t mention my name or Ardent Custom Closets (even if you look closely.) You don’t get much press in the closet business . Pick up the newspaper’s home section or a style magazine, who do they feature? Kitchen Designers. Architects. Builders. Interior Designers. Do they ever mention the closet designers?

Not that I’m bitter, or anything. I’ll take all the press I can get. And this article counts!

This article, “Creating a Home They Always Wanted”, features one of my clients on Towering Oak Way in Reston. Their newly renovated home is part of the Seventh Annual Reston Home Tour. The Reston Home Tour features several homes in the Reston area. It is scheduled for Saturday, October 18, 2008. The tour is presented by the Reston Historic Trust to benefit the Reston Museum. Tickets and further information can be found at the museum’s web site: www.restonmuseum.org.

So go ahead, spend a few hours on Saturday enjoying the Reston Home Tour. It supports a good cause and you can celebrate the hard work of all those kitchen designers, architects, builders and interior designers. And one very happy closet designer.

The Big Romantic Gift: The Closet

A big laugh in the Sex and the City movie came when Carrie was asked should Big buy her a really big diamond, and she says what she really wants is “a really big closet."

The gift of a closet isn't a toaster: it's a life change. That’s why there's been been a surge in closets as gifts in our area, particularly celebrating key life events, for example, a big birthday, moving into a new home, having a baby, getting a promotion.

Clutter is a distraction from what’s important in life. The gift of an organized closet is not just shelves and hanging bars, it’s what it represents. A functional closet is a gift that gives more energy every single morning.

So, is an organized closet the perfect gift for you? Here are five clues:

#5 You travel for business.
Being able to see and grab coordinating outfits to throw into your travel bag will be a joy.

#4 You’re losing weight.
The thrill of weight loss is often accompanied by a downside: you can’t fit into any of your clothes. You deserve to celebrate by buying new things, but let's keep your new things nice by hanging them properly. That's a the final goody we provide with our awesome closet re-dos: we organize and re-hang your things after the closet's done.

#3 You always seem to be running late.
Tired of hearing frustrated sighs from your spouse downstairs, while the clock ticks well past the appointed hour of your friends’ dinner party? No doubt, you’re looking for the shoes -- you know you have them! -- which match the dress, and now where’s the purse and I know I had a strapless bra somewhere. It's not YOUR fault; it's your closet!

#2 You always seem to be wearing the same outfit.
You like that color or style and forgot you already have nearly the same outfit somewhere in your closet. Several of our clients have discovered four or five dresses or blouses so similar you couldn’t tell them apart. Worse, many still had tags attached!

#1 And the most obvious clue-- drumroll please -- the big pile.
Do you constantly have a heap on the chair in the bedroom or atop a dresser or amassed on a single hook in the closet or bathroom? That big pile doesn't mean you’re not organized, it’s saying you’re busy and need a closet to keep up with real life.

So, let someone know that a practical gift is the dreamiest gift for you. Give 'em my number and, on your next gift occasion, prepare to swoon!