Home storage ideas:

Ever been envious of that one friend who always seems to have everything so well-organised at home? You know the person I mean – the one with impeccably labelled Tupperware and perfectly folded linen cupboards. Well, envy no more, because we have put together a room-by-room guide on home storage solutions and organization techniques. Let the transformation begin!

Kitchen

Pots and pans take up a lot of drawer space that could be better used for something else. Hang a long towel bar and hook your pots, pans, and lids onto that, or if you have a floating shelf above your kitchen island, put hooks into that and hang them from there. This also adds to the overall décor by filling the normally empty space above eye level.

Decant your dry ingredients like flours, cereals, pastas and spices into airtight jars and label them. Square containers or anything stackable are a practical choice as you can place them on top of each other to maximise space in your pantry.

If your pantry is too small, you can put these containers on display on a shelf. There are plenty of affordable and stylish containers that will look great on view like this, particularly if you have a country-style kitchen. Additionally, you can also put hooks on the underside of the shelves and hang mugs from them to maximise cupboard space further. (Just make sure they’re located close to the kettle or you’ll have sacrificed functionality for space.)

If you have a gap between your fridge and cupboard it’s a good idea to get a thin, pull-out cupboard installed. This can be used for all your tinned food, jams, oils and even spices. There are also many wire rack solutions for your cupboards and drawers, whether it’s a small rack for your spices, rotating wire baskets for those pesky corner cupboards, or wire pull-out baskets for plates and bowls.

Laundry

A tidy laundry makes you feel less overwhelmed when the washing piles up, so it’s important to have your bench space as clear and organized as possible. Baskets and hooks are your friends!

Organise your cupboards logically, with high-use items next to the washing machine or sink, and any small items like stain remover pens, shoe polish etc stored in small baskets. Be realistic though: are you really going to put the laundry liquid away in a cupboard each time, and is it important for you to have a stain remover spray close to hand?  If you like things within easy reach, we suggest getting a tray to put your everyday items on and catch any drips so your bench stays clean.

Place a rod under your sink to hang spray bottles, and place labelled baskets underneath for sponges and dishcloths. Put a hook on the back of the sink door to hang your dustpan and brush or lint roller. Make sure your laundry has a little bin on the bench or under the sink for emptying the lint out of the dryer or cutting off threads and tags.

If you have a tall cupboard, fix hooks or a wall rack inside to hang brooms, feather dusters, and mops. Also, affix a hook to the back of the cupboard door or laundry door to hang up your ironing board, thus freeing up a lot of space in your cupboard.

Bedrooms

Earring organisers and jewellery trees are a great way of storing jewellery. Put all your hair ties and clips into a segmented tray in your dressing table drawer, or into a wide-mouth glass jar on your chest of drawers.

If you have space under your bed, use it. You can put out-of-season clothes in vacuum sealed bags and put them under your bed in rolling crates. In kids’ rooms, you can throw all the toys in the crates at the end of the day and roll them under the bed for a quick tidy-up.

Hang up your scarves and ties to save drawer space for socks and underwear. Shoe hangers are ideal if you don’t have enough surface space at the bottom of your cupboard– or if your shoe obsession rivals that of Imelda Marcos.

Lean a stylish storage ladder against the wall and place extra throws or blankets onto it, or a selection of your most beautiful scarves. Hang handbag hooks to make an art feature out of your favourite handbags and free up cupboard space. Alternatively, consider buying an ottoman with storage to put at the end of the bed.

Bathrooms

Bathroom cabinets are crucial, and ‘face-level storage’ such as behind mirrors should be maximised for everyday items such as moisturisers and sunscreen. (Just ask Shaynna Blaze). Organise your bathroom cupboards methodically, putting small items into storage baskets and lining up toiletries in a row. Locate high-use items at the front of deep cupboards, but remember to put anything at the back into baskets so you can pull them out easily and they don’t just roll away into the dark corners.

Towel storage can be hard to keep neat and organised. Rather than piles, consider rolling the towels and putting them in baskets, organised by size. Or if this seems too much effort, consider using baskets just for the smaller sizes, like hand towels and face towels. If folding, always line up the towels with the folded side out. The sight of a neat towel cupboard can definitely make one feel a little smug!

Use a wicker or vintage tray to display perfumes and cologne for an artful touch. If you don’t have enough space in the cupboards for toilet paper (we all like to hoard a little extra these days), consider buying a nice basket to store the rolls in instead.

Maximise towel hanging space, whether adding an extra towel rail to the wall, hooks on the back of the door, or an artful ladder for draping towels over.

Garage

Mount your bikes onto the wall, with a couple of hooks for your helmets too. Put up a shelf or wall rack for your surfboards, freeing up some space for extra tools or a workbench. Hang garden tools and hose pipes onto the walls for a neat solution.  If you have enough space in your garage to store some excess furniture you can check out our tips on preserving your furniture whilst they are in storage.

Now that your house is well organised (and better functioning), it may be time to invite that super–organised friend around to show them that two can play at that game. You might even find them asking for hints!