16 Odd & Useful Storage Ideas: A Pro Organizer Speaks Out

One woman has turned her closet into a shrine for her dead husband. That's one of the tips (#10), I received after I wrote about the sports collection in my spare shower stall. The following list of 16 Space Savers is a guest post from professional organizer Suzy Wilkoff of Tasks Unlimited:

16 Wacky but Worthy Space Savers

By Suzy Wilkoff

Kitchen:

1) Dishing: If people don't use the dishwasher, because they wash dishes by hand, the dishwasher can be a catch-all for kitchen items, particularly another set of dishes! Keep the door locked at all times, so no one places dirty dishes inside.

2) Refrigerator vs Cupboard: Instead of storing items like canned tuna in the cupboard-- if your refrigerator is not overflowing, but your cupboard is -- store goods that are eventually going to be refrigerated in the refrigerator. That frees up the cupboard so that non-refrigerated items are more visible.

3) Fill the Gaps! If there is space between a big appliance (i.e, the refrigerator and the wall), store trays that may be too long for cupboards/cabinets in those long vertical spaces.

Bathroom:

4) Stalled Gaps: If there is space between the top of the stall and the ceiling and if the frame is wide enough on top, use the space to store sponges, brushes and/or shampoo bottles.

5) Happy Hook-ups: Hooks can be affixed inside under-the-sink cabinets to hang ponytail
holders, dry shower caps, etc.

Door knobs:

6) DIY Art Gallery: Long, thin, vertical hanging art pieces (crafts and/or ceramic pieces) can be hung from door knobs instead of on walls, depending on the size and materials they were

made of.

Window sills:

7) DIY Zoo: Especially in children's rooms, small stuffed animals (like Beanie Babies) can be displayed on the windowsills, if they have been cluttering other areas. That may make the toys more visibly appealing to the child.

Closets:

8) Into the Closet: If clothes closets aren't housing clothing, they can house filing cabinets and bookshelves.

9) Purse Snatchers: I hang my purses/handbags on clothing hangers in a closet, and they are more visible than placing them on a more conventional shelf.

10) Closet Memorial: I worked with a client who turned a shelf in her clothes closet into a shrine for her recently deceased husband. She placed small memorabilia on the shelf. Only she would see it, but it was nice for her to have it visible, rather than in a box in storage.

Fireplace:

11) Collection Display: Many unused fireplaces could be turned into attractive displays of vases, ceramic collections or sports memorabilia.

Balcony/Patio:

12) Benched: Long storage boxes are sold with tops that double as seats/benches. Not sure if there are any that are long enough to hold hurricane panels, but the ones I have seen can house sporting equipment, lawn and gardening supplies and/or outdoor equipment. For the high rise
condo owner, who is usually not permitted to keep much on the balcony, these are perfect and allow for maximum use of the balcony.

Garage:

13) Chilled Out: In addition to traditional items found in garages, I sometimes encounter refrigerators and/or freezers that are actively being used by large families to complement what is in the kitchen. Extra chilling and freezing space.

14) New Homework Assignment: I've seen quite a few garages turned into home offices and the second story of the garage turned into an additional bedroom/loft.

Underneath Stairwell:

15) Harry Potter's Bedroom: Depending upon what area of the house it's in, the space below a stairwell is a great catchall for pet carriers, large attractive containers holding blankets (or other large items.) That's where Harry Potter first slept at the Dursleys.

Murphy Bed:

16) Murphy's Law: A condo I almost purchased had artwork affixed to the wall that becomes visible once the Murphy bed is pulled out. That way, if you leave the Murphy bed open for an extended period, a visitor's eyes will be drawn to the artwork and not the fact that the bed is pulled out!


Suzy Wilkoff
Tasks Unlimited
http://www.tasksunlimited.com/

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