Hidden rooms and secret passageways are the stuff of legend. Only found in ancient castles and fantasy books, nobody actually has a hidden door in their house, right? Very wrong. There is now an entire industry devoted to providing the slickest, most beautiful and subtle hideaways for adults who still have the dreams, and now the cash, to make fantasy a reality.

(Images via adamsfinefurniture)

Hidden rooms used to be more like small crawlspaces, used to store illicit goods, or smuggle human cargo (for good or ill purposes), but there are no longer such limitations. While a hidden room the size of a large office might be obvious to the astute observer, let’s be honest, most people entering a house are not keeping track of dimensions.

(Images via sybarites, curiousphotos, woodweb)

Just like in the movies, these hidden doors can be opened by knocking on the wall in a certain spot, or pulling a lever cleverly disguised as a book. The only limitation is in your pocketbook, and your spouse’s patience.

(Images via hometone)

Some hidden doors are acts of interesting design more than subtlety. This designer door can easily rotate a hundred different ways, and would not be purchased by someone hoping to make their house appear like a Sherlock Holmes setting.

(Images via essentialgearguide, curiousphotos, slashgear)

One of the most famous secret doorways is the hinged bookcase designed to blend in perfectly with the rest of the library, or under the stairs. These doors are even able to hold the weight of a real set of books, minus the one that can be used to open it, of course.

(Images via curiousphotos, apartmenttherapy)

The second most famous hidden door comes straight out of the realm of fantasy; who could forget the famous dresser and passageway into the land of Narnia? Some parents have decided to make this dream a reality for their children by creating innovative doorways into secret play rooms.