Even if you’re not showing your house to sell it, clutter makes any space seem smaller than it actually is.
I once saw a 3,000 sq. ft. home that looked positively tiny because there was stuff everywhere: piles of books, papers and magazines, clothes, shoes, handbags… you name it, there was a pile of it. I’ve written about
tips for decluttering your home before, and one important step in decluttering is that every item in your house needs to have a home.
I can hear you now: “Yeah, that’s great, but where can I store stuff I want to keep but don’t really have room for?” Well, short of renting yourself a storage unit—which is an option for off season sports gear, for example—there are a lot of great ways that I’ve seen in homes and condos to make more storage out of spaces that aren’t huge.
Build shelves in unlikely places
- Behind doors — Think about the doors in your house. What’s behind them? In many cases: a wall. That’s because you don’t want to put something that will interfere with the functioning of the door right in the way. What CAN work in that space are shallow shelves installed like built-ins, right on the wall. In spaces where it won’t generally visible, such as in a mud room, pantry or garage, the shallow wire shelving that you can buy for pantries is a perfect choice! It is easy to install, doesn’t take a lot of room and gives you lots of extra space for everything from toilet paper to cleaning products.
- Above doors — That’s a space that doesn’t get used a lot, but it’s a great place to put shelves for items that you want to display. Just consider their breakability if you’ve got any door-slammers living in your home!
- Under stairs — Okay, you’re not Harry Potter but under stairs, particularly those leading to the basement, are often underused spaces to which shelving or hooks can be added to create more storage.
- Between joists — Do you have an unfinished basement with joists exposed? You can add wire shelving in places here to store things between the joists, including hanging rods for sporting equipment, off season clothes bags and more.
- Awkward corners — Units that are built for corners are a great way to use a space that sometimes is difficult. Floating shelves also work in corners, adding some much needed storage in a spot that might otherwise be blank. Actually, floating shelves are useful anywhere that a standard bookcase would just be ‘too much’.
Hanging rods in smart spaces
- Laundry room hanging rods — Very often, people have a shelf or two, or a cupboard, but nothing to hang clothes on. So anything that needs ironing, or needs to be hung up to dry doesn’t have a space. Install a hanging rod below the shelves or sticking out of the wall, like a bathroom towel rod, and you’ve got the perfect hanging space in the room where these clothes should be!
- Kitchen rods — Get rid of counter clutter by adding racks and rods under storage cabinets for everything from paper towel to spices and knives.
Leverage underused spaces
- Under the bed — This is one of the most underused spaces in any home. It’s not visible but it’s a great place to store extra / out of season clothes. I’ve seen people use their suitcases for this, which keeps stored items free from dust, or you can buy zipper storage bags or boxes that will fit perfectly.
- Backs of doors — If you open your pantry door, what’s on the back of the door? Probably nothing! But that’s a great space to add a shoe holder, hooks, and magnetic strips so you can store tools, tape and other items that you might otherwise find in a junk drawer.
Think vertically
If you’re storing things that can hang, you can be really creative about ways to do that.
Necklaces, ties, scarves, belts, handbags, hats… these can all be hung with hooks in odd spaces, so that they’re visible, accessible and tidy. One home I visited recently used a cork bulletin board in the walk in closet to store the masses of costume jewelry this person had: all the necklaces and bracelets were hung up nicely and there were even hooks for hanging earrings (including one little cup that was attached to the board, for smaller stud earrings.
In the garage, adding sturdy hooks gives you a place for all your hand tools, shovels, rakes and more. And don’t forget the tops of cabinets and refrigerators in the kitchen! These can be great spaces to store items you don’t use often, like the crystal punch bowl you got at your wedding.
Buy furniture that multitasks as storage
Ottomans with lids that pop up, coffee tables that are actually storage units under the top, old fashioned trunks that can be a side table AND a great place to store extra blankets, games or more. Benches with flip top lids for mittens and more in the mudroom? Now you have a place to sit while getting your boots on AND a place to store all the extra pieces.
If your bathroom is big enough, a cabinet vanity sink, rather than a standalone sink, looks very nice and allows for storage inside it.
This works outside too, if you want to have a wooden bench as extra seating for guests, and a place to store the extra hose nozzles and garden gloves.
There are dozens of furniture pieces that you can get that can serve more than one purpose, and create storage in spaces like dens and living rooms, where storage can be at a premium. In a home recently, I saw side tables with leather ‘hammocks’ built under them to store newspapers and magazines. It was tidy and looked really cool; a different style from just a standard shelf.
Compartmentalize for maximum storage usage
Ask me how many times I’ve stepped into a walk in closet for a home that is being sold and it’s just a jumble of stuff everywhere. Even the ones that have quite a few shelves and hanging rods tend to be overrun with clothes, bags and shoes, all over the floor. The key with this kind of space is to put things in boxes or baskets: in compartments. If you keep shoes in their boxes, or buy some new ones at the dollar store, you can find them easily but not have them everywhere.
Even if you’re not planning to sell for years to come, having good storage is a selling feature in any home, and it makes life while you’re living there that much more organized and enjoyable. So set up a DIY weekend and get storing!
