A closet fit for a queen: DD Fuego’s drag-friendly storage
What DD Fuego wanted
After appearing on Season 18 of RuPaul’s Drag Race, performer, creator, and dragtrepreneur DD Fuego found that space wasn’t really serving her needs anymore. Her arsenal of looks had expanded and she needed more room for a growing wardrobe as well as space to craft even more impressive outfits. Enter California Closets NYC and designer Crystelle Colucci.
“As RuPaul’s Drag Race started airing and my performance opportunities grew, my studio chaos multiplied — more looks for shows, more wigs, more shoes — and less time to organize between gigs!” DD said. “I’ve always been a DIY-er with a disparate collection of shelving solutions that I collaged together. As my design and performance career kept growing, those patchwork solutions for old problems stopped being so helpful. I was so overwhelmed that connecting with California Closets was like hope had arrived.”
“The most surprising thing about the California Closets experience, though it should not have been surprising at all, is how easy it all was. It was just easy. From the very collaborative design process to the install, it was such a smooth process.”
How California Closets designed it
The space not only needed to handle the bevy of looks DD had, but also provide space for her to craft her next head-turning get-up. And because it’s New York City, the space wasn’t without its quirks. Instead of attempting to build on a curved wall, Crystelle reoriented the space for a large freestanding worktable perfect for sewing, sketching, etc. That meant every other flat wall could be maximized for storage. Considering the palette of DD’s wardrobe, Crystelle opted for a creamy white finish to ensure her various sequin and neon items stood out.
“I really prioritized designing a space where DD could create freely,” Crystelle says. “The vanity area really speaks to that, because now she has the perfect ‘YouTube-ready’ backdrop for filming. At the end of the day, it’s not just a storage space but a place that supports all her creative endeavors.”
Crystelle did her research — digging into what drag artists typically have in their closets and thinking of creative space-saving ways to store them.
“DD has a ton of thigh-high boots that would flop over on the shelves,” Crystelle shared. “It made the most sense to hang those up! I also used our belt racks for crossbody purses on the side of a par!” That outside-the-box thinking helped create a space that worked smarter, without stretching DD’s budget.
“Crystelle was a great collaborator because she was open with me about the practical elements of each puzzle piece that makes a closet system: from baseboards to pull-out belt hooks, and beyond,” DD said. “Through this open dialogue, we were able to create a space that was totally tailored to me, affordable, and could be as flexible as my needs are.
“I used to hate coming into my studio because it felt so overwhelming and chaotic. This closet has changed the way my studio feels and I love coming in every day.”
Final result
Now the space performs as well as DD herself. “Every day I am grateful for a new thing. Sometimes it's the height we went with so it fits so much, other times it's about how easy we made it to move shelves around depending on my needs. Most of the time it’s my new vanity.. oh wait the shoe shelf,” DD says. “Plus of course the incredible organizing job of my friends at Shelfie NYC who helped me purge, sort, and reorganize my things back into the closet and vanity area with so much care, creating organized, sustainable systems for longevity.”
The finished space provides the perfect balance of functional and fabulous. “It’s a space that feels completely like DD, just full of personality and creativity,” says Crystelle.
“All I needed was not an easy task with limited space and a limited budget,” DD said. “But working with my California Closets designer was easy because she understood all of the needs. The magic of CC and Crystelle is that it’s so personalized, and so every choice is catered to the specifics of the room and how it will be used. There is no one-size-fits-all. That’s the CC difference.”
