Choosing a dresser for shoes in the hallway

Furniture in the hallway not only creates the first impression of the apartment and its owners. It is important to take into account many nuances here so that it is not only beautiful, but also as functional as possible. Since often even modern hallways do not have a lot of space, a chest of drawers will be an ideal option for shoes - it is more spacious than a regular cabinet, but smaller than a rack. And modern options for filling and appearance will suit any requirement.

There are a huge number of dressers in furniture stores. At the place of placement, they can be:

• free-standing;

• angular;

• with additional details - a mirror, shelves or one or two compartments for accessories (umbrellas, keys or, for example, shoe care products).

In addition, the chest of drawers may not act as a separate object, but be part of a set of hallway furniture.

By the type of opening, several types of dressers are distinguished.

• With pull-out elements. Individual drawers or part of a chest of drawers with a built-in storage system can be pulled out. Thus, the shoes are easier to arrange inside, and access to all, even the most distant corners, will be facilitated.

• With folding shoe compartments. This allows much more pairs to be accommodated while maintaining ease of placement and retrieval.

• With hinged doors and internal shelves. Furniture with this type of opening is cheaper, but will require more careful internal organization.

• With open niches. This option, in contrast to closed shelves and drawers, makes it possible to ventilate and remove excess moisture, but is less aesthetic, since everyone who enters will see the contents.

Since the chest of drawers is intended for installation in the hallway, and shoes will be stored in it, it is important to pay attention to the material from which it is made. It must withstand constant stress, be resistant to moisture and dust, and be able to quickly restore cleanliness.

Only racks are made entirely of metal, and barrels and containers, which look more like safes, are also remade for furniture. However, the latest fashion trends are bringing more and more metal parts into the design of the chest of drawers we are used to. It could be some part of the product.

• Metal frame (frame). In addition to an interesting, stylish look, the chest of drawers will delight you with its strength, shock and scratch resistance, as well as moisture resistance.

• Frame for facades into which MDF can be inserted, plastic or glass.

• Internal filling. Metal shelves (with holes or in the form of a mesh) will not suffer at all from the shoes, they will provide ventilation inside. In addition, they are easily washed from dirt.

• Fittings. This includes handles, feet, pull-out guides, hinges and other attachments.

External metal parts can be matched to the color of the facades, or you can choose a more contrasting, attention-grabbing option. The variety of internal details is not so great, but there are also varieties here - for example, with or without glitter.

Metallic elements can be:

• glossy;

• matte;

• with colored plating or imitation for gold, brass, bronze.

Probably everyone understands that there is nothing better than natural wood furniture - it is not only environmentally friendly and durable, but also has an excellent look, texture and color. However, the proximity of the front door, as well as dry, not always perfectly clean shoes, create moisture, ingrained dirt, temperature changes and drafts. And this means that the chest of drawers can crack or warp, lose its outer gloss. To prevent this from happening, it is necessary to choose a wooden chest of drawers with processing, and also carefully take care of it and its contents.

Since a chest of drawers for shoes can be quite bulky furniture, hard woods are needed for its manufacture - oak, beech, ash, birch. If you need a cheaper option, aspen, alder, linden, cherry, pine will do. The color of wood, depending on the species, varies from dark to light brown, with reddish and yellowish tints.

If there is no way to go to a furniture store, you can find a convenient plastic chest of drawers for every taste in almost any supermarket that offers household goods. It has a lot of advantages:

• resistance to water and dirt;

• ease of cleaning;

• light weight (can be delivered, installed and moved without assistance);

• large size range;

• low cost (even in comparison with chipboard products).

The design of plastic chests of drawers can be different - from simple to original. The plasticity of this material allows you to give the chest of drawers almost any shape. The mass is dyed in production, and then monochrome models are obtained, or a drawing is already applied to the finished product (with low quality, the image can be partially erased during use). To ensure ventilation of the shoes inside, fronts with grates are preferred.

It is believed that a classic chest of drawers should be higher than the curbstone, but lower than a pencil case or wardrobe. In addition, modern manufacturers, due to the desire to stand out and offer customers something new and unusual, often create exclusive models that cannot be clearly attributed to one or another group. Therefore, it is possible to give only approximate restrictions on the different parameters of the chests of drawers.

As for the height, its lower border should not fall below 85 cm, otherwise the furniture may fall under the definition of high, but still pedestals. Here, the height of the boxes or doors is of great importance. A chest of drawers 89-100 cm high can already accommodate 4 drawers in which the shoes will be installed horizontally or at an angle. For vertical storage or shoes with shafts, you need to increase the height of the compartments or reduce their number - in this case, the chest of drawers can reach 130 cm.Along the upper border, some manufacturers allow 160 cm, but in this case it will be difficult to use the upper drawer, there may be a niche in its place ...

The width of a classic product should be approximately equal to the height or slightly wider. However, there are deviations here as well. Models from 60 to 100 cm are considered narrow.If this parameter increases, then for convenience it is better to make not one drawer, but two. If the width is between 110 and 130 cm, drawers can be combined with hinged doors by placing them on the sides.

If the compartments are no more than 32 cm deep, it is more convenient to equip them with special shoe holders. The usual depth of drawers ranges up to 50 cm. Using deeper ones is less rational and inconvenient.

The process of choosing a future chest of drawers is quite exciting. The main thing is to choose the best option among the variety that will correspond to a number of significant features.

• First you need to decide on the purpose of the chest of drawers. It can store only seasonal or absolutely all available shoes. This can be a storage place for baby pairs or shoes for the whole family.

• Much depends on the parameters of the hallway. In a narrow room, shallow and not too high models are suitable so as not to clutter up the space.

• When choosing a manufacturer, it is necessary to take into account customer reviews. In addition, some factories have their own dimensional grid and are not always able to manufacture furniture exactly to the customer's size.

• The furniture purchased must match the surrounding interior. If the hallway is decorated in a classic style, the plastic chest of drawers will look quite simple. So a model with carved, curly facades will not fit into the high-tech style.

• Most often, a light covering of walls, floor and ceiling is chosen for the hallway to compensate for the lack of natural light and expand the space. In this case, furniture can also be light or, conversely, contrasting (to match the color of doors or decor). It is worth remembering that the white color in the hallway, although it looks stylish, requires neatness and constant cleanliness.

• When it comes to a large family with small children and pets, it is better to give preference to more practical materials. A shoe rack made of MDF can fit into both modern and classic interiors, and the anti-vandal coating will help keep its appearance for a long time.