How To Find Storage Space In Your Home
We just got back from our Alaskan honeymoon and the house was a disaster. My moving boxes were all over the house and our wedding gifts needed to be unpacked. Instead of unpacking after work, we began watching HGTV while eating dinner on the couch.
As we watched Fixer Upper, Property Brothers, and Windy City Rehab, I started dreaming of demoing our house. The homes renovated on HGTV had open floor plans, massive kitchen islands, walk-in pantries, double sink bathroom vanities, and large closets.
With wedding planning finished, I dreamed of turning our 1960s house into the perfect house. I quickly realized that I was living not in reality.
The reality is that we have a wood burning stove, orange backsplash in the kitchen, stained glass windows and kitchen cabinets, and wallpaper. Our 1960s home is one of a kind.
When I finally started to unpack my moving boxes, I couldn’t find enough space to store all of my stuff. I like to shop (like most girls) and our 1960s house wasn’t built to hold all of my belongings.
To fit our new married lives into our 1960s home, I had to get creative in my storage solutions.
Find storage in your house by using the three strategies below
STRATEGY #1: MINIMIZE YOUR ITEMS
Tip #1: If you have duplicates, donate one.
My husband already owned the house before we got married so he had his kitchen items and appliances unpacked and organized. We were gifted a large number of kitchenware from our wedding registry and I had to find space for my own set of kitchen items. Our galley kitchen only has cabinets on one side so we didn’t have enough storage to hold onto duplicates. When unpacking, I donated any duplicates that we had. For example, my husband had a blender and so did I. I kept the newer one and donated the perfectly working one to a thrift store.
Eliminating any duplicates that you have will give you more space for something else.
Tip #2: Donate any old cloth items to a rags basket.
Since our house was built in the 1960s, our hallway linen closet is a foot narrower than a typical linen closet. There isn’t a enough space to keep all of my mismatched towels from T.J. Maxx, so it was time to get rid of some. Accepting that I couldn’t change the dimensions of the closet, I got rid of any old towels and sheets and only kept the ones that I wouldn’t be embarrassed to give to guests.
Instead of throwing cloth items away, I keep them in a plastic basket in the laundry room for when I need a rag for a house project.
When you minimize the number of items you own, you will find that you have enough space for the beautiful and well taken care of items.
STRATEGY #2: ORGANIZE strategically
Tip #1: Organize your items so that it’s easier to get to them.
Do you remember middle school lockers? The feeling of trying to angle your body sideways so that you could get your notebook without touching your neighbor? This is how our hallway closet feels. Since I can’t change the width without breaking down walls, I have learned to arrange items so that they are easier to get out. For the hallway closet, instead of folding my towels horizontally, I roll them up so that when I grab one, I don’t hit my arm or worse, my elbow, on the door frame.
When your items are organized practically, you can fit more in the same space.
Tip #2: Place a small basket in your kitchen for miscellaneous items.
If we don’t put things in a designated space right away, the kitchen counters will disappear. I placed a small woven basket on the counter right when you walk into the kitchen to dump my keys, mail, a notepad, and coupons. Just make sure to clean it out frequently or it will look cluttered pretty quickly.
To prevent the kitchen from looking like an office space, the basket creates a boundary for these miscellaneous items.
STRATEGY #3: FIND AN ALTERNATIVE SPACE
Tip #1: Buy furniture pieces with built-in storage.
When shopping for furniture pieces, opt for the piece that will serve two functions. Instead of a simple side table for the dining room, we bought a side table with built in drawers. We store table runners and nice place mats here.
Tip #2: Use space in the next room if it is more practical.
We have a pantry in our kitchen the size of a moving box. The previous owners had a china cabinet in the kitchen but it made the kitchen feel small so I wasn’t interested in adding bulky furniture. Instead, I used the bigger closet in the tea room next door as the pantry and I put my baking supplies in the kitchen. It only takes four extra steps to get to the tea room closet so having our pantry in the next room works better for us.
Utilize the more practical space, it doesn’t matter what guests think.
Tip #3: Look into an outdoor shed if you need more space for your outdoor equipment.
Our house does not have an attached garage but a carport. Unfortunately, the national average cost to build an attached garage is $35,000. Luckily, the previous owners solved this problem for us and left their shed in the backyard. Since we don’t have a garage, we store sports equipment, gardening supplies, yard tools and lawn chairs in the shed.
If you don’t have a garage or enough space in your garage to store all of your outdoor equipment, an outdoor shed could be a great option.
Whether you live in an older home with storage challenges or you just feel like you don’t have enough space, I hope that my tips have given you a few ideas. Instead of watching HGTV tonight and dreaming of demoing your house, print off my free printable workflow and find some storage space in your home
