Have you thought about your coat closet lately? As you are reading this, what is the current state of your coat closet? You may even be drawing a blank, so let me remind you what the coat closet is. Its typically that small closet in or near the foyer or hall to your main living area. Its purpose is to store larger coats that you can grab on your way out of the house. More importantly, its also there to house guest's coats, jackets and sweaters when you host an evening of any sort.

To me, a small coat closet has the potential to be a real jewel box. It can be a bit of a surprise and serve as a pick me up each time you or a guest opens the coat closet in the foyer. Since its closed off, you can be wild with color, texture and pattern. You have the freedom to depart from your home's established design, or stick to the established design and be liberal with a lot of strong design elements in one place. Also, coat closets are tiny compared to other rooms in the home- so it doesn't really take much to punch it up.

Here are my guidelines for a smashing coat closet:

-The coat closet is an etiquette. Not only is it for your coats, but those of guest's when they arrive. This means keeping it clear of other household junk! Leave room for your guest's stuff.

-Invest in two dozen quality hangers. Wood hangers not only look classy, but they are bulky enough to properly hang a heavy coat or jacket. Toss the plastic. Use the wood. Be sure to leave plenty of empty hangers for your guests. As an added touch, have your monogram or family crest hand painted on the hangers. If you purchase cedar hangers, there is no need for a cedar block.

-For your female guests, provide a safe place for their handbags. Have you ever been to a gathering where the women tuck their handbags next to a remote living room chair or pile them in a heap on the guest bed? Don't make your guests do this. Its uncomfortable for a woman to leave her bag in a random place. In your guest closet, provide hooks or commission custom millwork for cubbyholes. Your female guests will marvel at your thoughtfulness and praise you as a genius. (As a tip for cubbyholes, each one should be big enough for a typical handbag or tote. You can even vary the sizes to ensure you have big enough cubbyholes for large and small bags alike).

-Paint or use a fabulous wall covering. You can be as "out there" or as conservative as you wish, but do finish the walls. Good suggestions are a dark or vivid color, a busy or textured wall covering, classy millwork or a combination of these options (for instance, wall covering on the bottom 3/4 and coordinating paint on the top 1/4 with a chair rail moulding where these two finishes meet).

-If you have the wall space, think about a pocket door. If your coat closet is gorgeous and organized, why not leave the door open? The pocket door allows you to close it off when you aren't hosting an event or when you don't want to see the inside.

-Install a flush mount or semi flush mount light fixture. Think about how you want the light to come on. Do you want to pull a chain once you open the door, or do you want the light to be on when you open it? You can create a new switch next to the outside of the door, or even think about a motion sensor. Either way, you need to be able to see once that door is open.

-If you need the shelf space above the rod, finish off the edge of the shelf with a moulding. Put large bins or baskets on the shelf for other items such as hats, gloves, or over sized bags. Or, you can remove the shelf if you want to.

-Consider replacing the rod with a metal rod in brass, chrome, brushed nickel or a wood grain and stain. Or, paint a standard issue rod a coordinating color to mesh with the wall covering.

Knock your guest out with a highly functional and gorgeous coat closet. For a small investment in time, materials and labor-- you can create a gem of a space with fantastic design and decor features that will receive rave reviews from your guests for years to come.