so bring the shelves *most* of the way out (and put the trim on the inside BEFORE you install the shelves--shelves are usually the "afterthought")

The access to the top shelf is a problem, true.

What if you made the bottom half of the closet 16 inches or so, and the top half 12 inches?

It would mean that you couldn't STAND that close to the upper shelf, and that your step ladder wouldn't be that close, but you would *probably* be close enough.

And don't plan on keeping too much up there on that top shelf. At least, not anything you want often.

Oh--one other "top shelf of the closet behind the header" idea--I found that SHORTER boxes are easier to use up there. I put my DH's out-of-season clothes in two under-bed boxes, and stacked them. before that, I had really struggled to get a full-height box in and out of that closet, but once I switched to a short box, I found it would slide between the shelf (and its contents) and the header much more easily (of course, I needed some EXTRA room above the box so I can tip the box...)

The inside of the door would be a great place for one of those multi pouched shoe holders that you can stash shampoo etc in. On the back of our linen closet we have a towel bar. We use it to hang a couple of extra blankets. It would also be a great place to hang a tablecloth(not in my life!)
The person who built this house also left enough space between the floor and the first shelf to fit a large plastic bin which could also be used to store out of season items.

Just for inspiration, this is my dream linen closet. (I forget where the jpg is from, thank you to whomever!)

-Lena

Deeper is better. My contracter put in a small linen closet about 16" deep, but could have made it a bit deeper, and I wish he had, because most large bath towels, the typical way I fold them, don't fit well even on a 16" shelf, if the shelf comes all the way to the door--so the edges of towels and sheets kind of drip over. Then, if you fold or roll things tighter, they take up more vertical space, so take that into account when planning shelves. Since towels stack pretty well, it can be more convenient to have fewer shelves, otherwise it takes acrobatics to insert them into closely spaced shelves. Blankets really need 24 " or so. I would take some of the linens you plan to put there, fold them just the way you usually do, and take some measurements, adding an inch or 2 to that.

I thought I resurect this old thread rather than start a new one. I'm planning the linen closet in our newish house. The insides measure approximately 37x37, so I can make the shelves pretty deep. If you have that much space, how deep would you make the shelves? I was thinking a few at the bottom at 24" and then the rest at 16". I'm thinking of using the extra depth (that isn't taken up in shelves) on one side with one of those clip things that holds a mop or broom and maybe on the other side come up with some hose management for the built-in vac (what a PITA that thing is, it's huge). What do you think?