In looking at all the different options related to closet storage, one comes across many similar terms used to describe both similar and dissimilar items. One area of confusion comes across in the terms describing a portable closet, like the kind discussed on this site, and then what’s formally known as an armoire, or wardrobe closet.

A wardrobe closet is made as very nice, solid items, just as much a piece of furniture with aesthic appeal as they are an item with utiliarian purpose i.e. storing clothes! This is in obvious contrast to the portable closets discussed at Portable Closet Guide, which are light weight, mobile items, and certainly not a big piece of wooden furniture like most antiques armoire furniture can rightly be described as.

So what does it mean when an item for sale is described as “portable wardrobe closet“? Usually, it’s much more of a portable closet than a wardrobe closet. The differentiation can be seen starting with the materials it’s made out of. If it’s solid wood, it gets a few points on the armoire scorecard, but if it’s anything else, it’s more likely to fall in the portable closet family. I think the real kicker though is to look for what makes – it doesn’t make it – actually portable. A solid wood closet described as portable wardrobe closet isn’t very portable if it’s got no wheels, no handles, and weighs 40 or 50 pounds, even if it does stand just about 3 feet high. But that’s probably as close as we can get to a middle ground between the two, and for some people, that’s just the item they were looking for.

This really gets into what it is people need the closet for. If the function needs to be something more useful – i.e. it holds clothes but doesn’t look pretty, or at least, jaw dropping – than a portable closet is a better solution. If the function is to have a solid wooden closet that looks great and holds clothes, a wardrobe closet is the solution.

One of the most interesting experiences for a freshmen college student is the upheaval of leaving home and suddenly sharing a dorm room with a stranger. It’s not nearly as common in todays generation for siblings to share a room as it was for their parents generation, and for many people, this is likely the first time they’ve had to share their personal space with someone else.

Not only are they suddenly living out of what very well may be a smaller room than what they had at home, but someone else is living there too! An unfortunate side effect to this can be a serious lack of closet space for both roommates.

An easy and economical solution to this closet storage space issue is to buy a portable closet for the dorm room. Now, obviously, this means it’s going to take up some amount of space that’s there, but in order to make more space, you’ve got to leverage the space that you’ve got to work with. And this is exactly what a portable closet will do!

A portable closet in this setting will provide the student with additional storage space for their wardrobe, including shirts, sweaters, pants, dresses, and depending on the design of the portable, room for socks, underwear, bras, and even dirty clothes (think of it as a built in hamper or laundry bin).

Portable closets are lightweight and designed to be – you guessed it – portable! This means they’re perfect for a college student who is living in a dorm now but likely will be moving into a apartment with some friends or fellow students in a year or two. This portable closet will not be wasted – it will easily be moved into the new apartment, and function exactly in the same way giving the student more room for clothes!

For the years between 18 and 25, students tend to move. And they tend to move a lot. This means the portable closet will get a lot of use in these children’s bedroom, no matter if they’re in a dorm, renting a whole apartment, sharing a bedroom, or renting just a room in someones house or a small studio apartment.

If there’s someone in your life whom you’re trying to think of a gift for and they fall into this age range, a portable closet is a great gift that will benefit them for many years, no matter where they’re living!