Is it hard to tell up from down when you walk into your home? Does it take forever to find things in your closet or to remember where you’ve put one of your cooking tools?
If this sounds familiar to you, you have a bad case of clutter.
Clutter doesn’t happen overnight; it gradually develops as one thing is placed here and another there, and before you know it, nothing is where it should be! Clutter is best handled in the same way – little by little until your messy home is an organized, comfortable space.
Luckily, you don’t have to fight the mess on your own. Here are 10 simple, yet effective storage ideas to help you transform your space.
1. Have a Designated Clutter Space
As much as you may want to get completely rid of clutter, it won’t ever be 100% gone. There’s always going to be one part of the house where things have a tendency to pile up. The trick is to make sure you only have one area like this.
Maybe you can live with a pile of mail on the kitchen counter or you don’t mind the fact that your shoes will never be super organized. Maybe you can manage with a messy garage, as long as there’s no clutter inside the house.
Whatever your one messy space is, stick to it. Let that be the place that you don’t worry about and then shift your focus to taking on the rest of the house.
2. Purge the House
Before you start putting things in bins or displaying them on shelves, place some items into garbage bags. This will be a huge help in organizing your space! It’s much easier to de-clutter a handful of things than it is to turn a whole pile into something clean and presentable.
Not to mention, purging the house at once means you can get everything out of the way as you start to organize each room. You won’t have to worry about what stays and what goes as you’re trying to put different storage ideas to use. Rather, you can take your time to weigh different storage options once you have a clear sense of what actually needs to be stored and organized.
3. Organize Everything
Speaking of organizing, make sure you’re intentional with how you put away all your clutter. Otherwise, you’ll still have trouble finding what you need, even if everything is put away.
Whether you’re color-coding clothes or storing food items by food group, you have to pick something. There’s also the option to organize some things by season or use. Either way, don’t skip this part of de-cluttering your home.
4. Use Labels
If you really like the thought of organizing, don’t overlook the opportunity to use labels. Labels may seem like a lot of work or too detailed, but they’re actually a life-saver.
They help you find the things that are right in front of you and they can jog your memory when you’re having trouble remembering where you put something.
5. Buy Storage Bins With Home Design in Mind
Labels are good for the kitchen pantry, stuff under the sink, and in areas like the laundry room or garage. But, they don’t really work in the living room or in other open areas.
To overcome the clutter in these spaces, invest in stylish storage bins. These will add beauty to your home while lowering the mess that’s currently there.
Plus, there are so many options to choose from! Between wicker baskets and open bins made with home decor in mind, or benches with hidden storage, there’s no limit to what a few new storage pieces can do for your home.
6. Use What You Already Have
While you’re getting ready to shop for new storage tools, see if there are any already in your possession.
Don’t get rid of the old corkboard sitting in your office if you have tons of accessories lying around. Stick tacks to it instead and use those as hooks to organize all of your earrings and necklaces in one place!
Or, instead of throwing out the mason jars you never use, try putting small bathroom or office items in them. And if you happen to have old bins you don’t like, see if a new coat of paint or repurposing them as deep shelves does the trick.
7. Get the Most out of Your Closet Space
Closets are often some of the messiest spaces in a home, but also the most underutilized. Take a step back at the messiest closet you have and try to imagine it with extra storage.
Do you see a new shoe rack to help organize all your options? Could you fit drawers in the closet, or maybe some vertical shelves to help you store folded items like t-shirts, pants, and sweaters?
These are just a couple of ways to make the most of every inch in the closet. Don’t let that precious space go to waste!
8. Find Storage Opportunities in Unique Places
Making use of the space you have doesn’t just apply to the closet. It’s a storage idea you can apply to the whole house as long as you have the right eye.
Maybe it’s worth taking a lounge chair out of the corner so that you can put a bin or basket next to it. Maybe you can re-work the area under your stairs to store large items behind a door or to install drawers that can help you keep track of small items.
9. Make Use of Vertical and Open Storage
If you’re having trouble repurposing some spaces in your home into prime organization areas, work with what you have in a new way. Try using vertical storage or open storage.
Vertical storage is all about going up. It uses things like shelves an hooks to organize items on a wall, rather than having to stack them in bins or stuff them into drawers. This is great for small and large items, but be sure your wall can hold the weight of whatever you decide to hang. Otherwise, you may end up with foundation problems!
Open storage can be vertical, but it doesn’t have to be. You can create open storage with a bookshelf or free-standing wall shelf, or with bottom cabinets that have glass enclosure or no enclosures at all. This can open up the room in some cases, and it leaves no room to hide clutter, meaning you have to keep things clean!
10. Set New Expectations With Your Family
The final step in de-cluttering your home is to share all your new storage ideas with your family. Make it a point to talk to your loved ones about the changes you’re making. Talk to them about how to use your new storage tools and why it’s important that everyone pitches in.
This will help ensure that clutter doesn’t reappear, in a way where everyone does their fair share.
Amazing Outdoor Storage Ideas
As great as it can be to finally take care of the clutter inside your house, there’s no reason to stop there! Once you’ve done all the indoor tidying up you need, shift your focus to outdoor storage ideas.
Things like bins and repurposed storage tools can do wonders inside and out, but there are plenty of outdoor-friendly storage tips that can help you with things like pool toys, pet items, yard tools, and much more.
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