Was your New Year’s resolution to get more organized? If you can’t seem to ever find what you’re looking for in your closet, it may be time to design the closet of your dreams. Interior designer and owner of Kimber Watson Closets, Becky Watson has a passion for not only building functional closets but designing them to be high-end, beautifully crafted works of art.
Graduating as a CIDA-accredited interior designer from the Art Institute of Pittsburgh, she got her start doing design updates and rearrangement in commercial spaces before moving to Nashville and diving into a role at a large closet company. After mastering closets, she began working for a builder doing custom kitchens, closets, bathrooms, and high-end renovations, gaining experience in the construction world, which helped her learn the crucial role of interior design in construction. Watson took her knowledge and skills into a position at Troubadour Golf & Field Club in College Grove, where she served as its interior design coordinator.
“I come from a background of interior design that specializes in both closet design, kitchen and bath,” she says. While working at Troubadour, she was also asked to design closets and soon realized that she was ready to turn her passion into a full-time business. “I had designers reaching out to me because they knew my background was in closet design,” says Watson. “I call these spaces full scope bespoke dressing rooms. Designers, architects, and builders have continued to reach out for closet design and fabrication and I thought ‘I could totally make a living doing this.’”
So when a high-profile country artist reached out for a custom-build, it was the perfect catalyst for to launch Kimber Watson Closets in November of 2022. “My background of being an interior designer working with a design build company has really given me that confidence and knowledge to do full scope projects,” she says. “A lot of closet companies specialize in designing modular closet systems which is great, but we go a step further providing full scope projects from the floor to ceiling and we can even put your items away for you.”
For Watson, luxury and customization is key. From the smallest details to the biggest designs, she wants to make sure that her customers’ closets are built to their exact needs and dream visions.
After inputting some initial information into a questionnaire on the website, a potential client will receive a call to discuss ideas before Watson comes onsite for a consultation. This includes measuring the space, accounting for all inventory, and seeing what things they’d like displayed and showcased. For example, she’s had one client who wanted specially lit display areas for wedding and vow renewal dresses, while other clients have wanted to showcase a model boat and a wine collection in a small refrigerator. “We are working on a project where we are fabricating steel glass doors instead of wood and aluminum. The sky is the limit,” says Watson.
After creating a 3D-design through an architectural CAD, she’ll present a plan to the potential client and from there they’ll begin picking out materials and then will obtain pricing. Watson doesn’t just keep a small selection of options for clients to choose from, rather once she learns their taste, she’ll go to slab yards and fabricators to individually select every sample. Once they’ve reviewed samples and chosen what they’d like to move forward with, cabinet drawings are created, and final decisions are made. From that point it is a 14 to 16 week turnaround time for the complete build and installation.
“It takes about two weeks or even longer for an installation, which just speaks to the workmanship and the quality of what we offer,” she shares of the amount of time they are in a client’s house. “Again, other companies might take two days to install a large closet. If your wall is out of alignment, we’ll cut the wood, so it’s aligned with the wall as opposed to putting up trim to cover gaps. It’s a very time consuming and labor-intensive process, but the outcome is beautiful and worth it.”
Using only the best materials is of utmost importance for Watson. “We care about the quality. Therefore, we want the really nice materials,” she explains. “We prefer not to work with melamine as that requires a camlock system that leaves the mechanical elements to tighten the system exposed." Instead, they use high quality wood for their millwork custom-builds with the most popular being Rift Sawn White Oak and Maple and even have had interest in steel, glass doors.
If a client is already working with an interior designer and/or architect, she likes to come alongside and help make a cohesive design with her build. She says that for many interior designers, their goal is to make the client’s home a “sanctuary” and since they don’t have time to do things like inventory, they bring her in for her specialty in-closet design. Watson will have the interior designer bless the layout and base her design off the materials the interior designer is already using to make sure that everything seamlessly flows together throughout the space.
From start to finish, Kimber Watson Closets brings a custom approach to any closet design and build.
KimberWatsonClosets.com
