Featured image.
Alt-text: A green and orange storage bin.
Many homeowners are often looking for ways to maximize the space in their homes. No matter how big a house may be, the need for storage is always present. What makes for excellent storage for the things we use daily is – practicality! You want something both space-saving and cohesive, out of sight, and accessible. With these practical everyday storage solutions for your home, you can confidently wave those messy counters and cabinets, cluttered drawers, overcrowded entryways, and unattractive open shelves goodbye.
Office supplies for your kitchen
Office supplies are incredibly versatile, and for a buck you would spend at a dollar store, you will get one of the most practical everyday solutions for your home. Better yet, if you have any of these lying around, you can make use of them to create extra storage.
- A three-ring binder, with clips that open and close, attached to the inside of a cabinet door can be used for holding any kind of cooking tool.
- File organizers can be used to vertically store trays, cutting boards, pizza pans, cookie sheets, and those infamous lids that never seem to belong anywhere or have no designated space.
- Magazine files are wide enough for storing your canned goods, veggies, or food wraps.
Caption: File binders can be used for creating extra storage for hanging your cooking tools.
Alt-text: An opened file binder.
Under the sink
If you were to ask them to name the most disordered spot in their house, most people would go with the tiny cabinet under their kitchen and bathroom sinks. It is because this cramped space with a huge water pipe in its center is where we stack everyday items such as cleaners, reusable plastic grocery bags, toiletries, etc. But, for this precise reason, keeping everything organized and thus handy is a must.
The most practical solution for revamping the cabinet would be to add some organizers that fit around the pipes. The good news is that there are so many options to keep everything at your fingertips:
- Pull-out drawers or shelves that hold multiple bins to keep your cleaning supplies and sponges, toiletries, and hair styling tools in order.
- Storage baskets or floating shelves attached to the inside of the cabinet door for extra space.
- A small tension rod to hold your cleaners or a Lazy Susan handy for a spin, grab, and go.
- A convenient dispenser to mount inside the cabinet to store your plastic bags.
The ‘dead spaces’
Do you know that gap between the fridge and the wall, or the dryer and the washing machine? Well, it is nice to know a hack that helps you make the most of it. Purchasing or building a tall, skinny pull-out cart that fills that void is not only a space-saver but a convenience that’ll keep your food stocks or laundry supplies at hand.
Cohesive storage for condiments and spices
Cooking on the go requires your spices and condiments to be clearly visible and easy to grab. You don’t want to have everything take up that valuable counter space or rummage your spice drawer each time you need one bay leaf. A tiered spice rack or a rotating tray will keep everything convenient and easy to reach. Another option is to fold a piece of drawer-sized cardboard into a zigzag shape, place it in your drawer and use it as a horizontal tiered rack.
Caption: Organize your spices and condiments with some purchasable or DIY solutions.
Alt-text: Spoons full of various spices.
For greater convenience, keep cooking necessities such as oil, salt, and favorite spices in an easy-to-carry caddy that you can bring out when you start cooking and put away when you’re done.
Pretend drawers
Next in line for functional everyday storage space ideas are the drawers. There can never be enough drawers in the laundry room, kitchen, pantry… – well, any room in a house. Besides the fact that they make much better use of space, they are also exceedingly more convenient as they allow easy access to the items you store inside, even those in the back (as opposed to two feet deep cabinets). If you’re struggling with the lack of pull-out storage, even your leftover packing supplies and moving boxes would be a perfect alternative.
Closet space
Right next to drawers, your closet space is another precious commodity. If you’re short on closet space, a simple DIY solution comes to the rescue. For the first one, all you need are shower rings that you will attach to a hanger. On these rings, you can neatly store and organize clothing items such as your tank tops, pants, skirts, as well as accessories such as scarves or belts. Another DIY solution is to attach a lightweight chain to a hanger by looping the first link over it. Then add subsequent hangers (in horizontal order as the chain falls) on every other link under the first one.
Over the door storage
Never underestimate the potential of the closet door. An intelligent way to use it would be to hang an over-the-door hanging shoe organizer and use it to organize shoes and accessories. Of course, this inexpensive storage solution can be used for other areas of the house as well, such as your kitchen, pantry, bedroom, children’s room, and bathroom. The tiny see-through pockets are great to organize all kinds of different things that usually tend to get misplaced or lost. For example, you can use them to store chargers, bag clips, toiletries, medicine, hair accessories, etc.
Conclusion
With the help of these practical everyday storage solutions, you will be able to live more comfortably and have everything you need at hand but out of sight. Now it’s up to you to implement these strategies and try to follow through. Who knows, maybe you’ll even discover some new hacks of your own!
Photos used:
https://pixabay.com/photos/baskets-orange-green-storage-2028298/
https://pixabay.com/photos/binder-folder-filing-5501653/
https://unsplash.com/photos/V0xp-dTS3z0
