If you live in a small home, you may struggle when it comes to storing everything you own. Small houses and apartments are difficult to keep tidy, with the furniture you do have full to breaking point.
But there are ways you can make the most out of the space you have. We’ve put together a list of seven clever storage ideas that are perfect for small homes for you to maximise your space.
Only Keep the Minimum
Before you start looking for storage options for your home, make sure you only have what you need. Sort through your clothes, kitchenware, media and anything else you own. Anything that you haven’t used in the last six months to a year, you should consider getting rid of it.
Items can be donated to charity, sold or disposed of. Try to recycle what you can rather than throwing anything away. Don’t keep hold of something you no longer use or don’t have an emotional connection to.
Once you have had a clear out, keep on top of what you bring into your home. Only buy something you will actually use to prevent clutter from building up again. Have regular sorting sessions to keep on top of this.
Embrace Multifunctional Furniture
When it comes to your furniture, try to choose pieces that have more than one feature. This will help prevent you from cluttering your home with unnecessary items.
Large items like sofas and beds often come with hidden storage, giving you an additional place to tuck things away out of sight. Furniture like a bureau will give you a desk that can be closed for even more hidden storage. You can also use an ottoman to combine extra room with additional seating for when you have guests over.
When looking for furniture, check out your various options to find the most functional pieces for your space.
Use a Free-Standing Fruit and Vegetable Rack
To free up some cupboard space and remove countertop clutter, add a fruit and vegetable rack in your kitchen or pantry. As they come in all different shapes and sizes, you can choose a design that is easy to hide such as behind a door or under your dining table.
Designs come with several shelves, letting you organise produce by types and dates for even better organisation. You’ll also not forget about what you have bought and end up leaving things to go off, hidden away in a cupboard.
Utilise Wasted Space
One of the key ways to create effective storage in your small home is to make the most out of wasted space. Nooks and crannies that seem pointless can be used in many different ways to free up your home.
If you have high ceilings, you could install shelves at the top of your room. These are great for tucking things away like books in an unobtrusive way.
On the tops of cupboards and wardrobes, as well as under beds, you can use baskets and boxes for storage. This will help to keep you organised whilst having a much better look than loose clutter out in the open.
You could also use the backs of doors for additional storage. Racks, plastic bags and baskets can be mounted on internal doors and cupboard doors to make the most out of the space.
If you have stairs in your home, make the most out of this area by adding hidden drawers and cupboards to the staircase and underneath.
When it comes to utilising wasted space, think outside the box. There are plenty of areas in a home that can be given a purpose.
Keep Drawers & Cupboards Organised
It’s fair to say, there’s a huge number of us who’re guilty of this. From the outside, your room looks completely clean and clear but hidden away, it’s absolute chaos. Drawers and cupboards look like a bomb hit them and need a good sorting. Organising these spaces will give you more room and make your life easier.
In all cupboards, drawers and wardrobes, use internal effective storage options. Organisers will help keep things in the right places and maximise the space you have available by increasing the useable areas. Keep things tidy by folding clothes, stacking kitchenware and ordering bills and papers etc.
Completely remove the “junk drawer” that ends up in every home. Tidy things away in the right place and throw away what you don’t need. There’s no need to keep the huge collection of rubbish that builds up. Take away the drawer and the temptation to use it.
Turn Hobbies into Decor
If you have a passion or a collection, show it off. You can install open shelving or mounts to display whatever you love. If you have several guitars, mount them by the handle to the wall. If you have a camera collection, narrow frames or a glass shelving unit is a perfect way to store them. This also works for smaller collections such as holiday souvenirs.
Displaying something you love will remove your need to store it whilst creating some completely personal home decor. Whatever you want to add, try to find the right way to display it based on the size and scope of your collection.
Make your Space Feel Bigger
Even when you make the most out of the storage options you have, your home may still seem cramped. However, there are a few techniques you can use to give your space the illusion that it’s bigger than it is.
- Follow Minimalism – Remove all visible clutter, limiting what you have on surfaces and countertops. This will make your home feel more organised.
- Open Flooring – Clearing your flooring can make your room feel bigger. Try not to add too many free-standing furniture pieces and wall-mount whatever you can.
- Let in the Light – A bright room with natural light has a light and airy atmosphere.
- Use Mirrors – A classic interior design trick, adding a mirror instantly makes your space appear bigger than it is.
Try to make the most out of the room you have by getting the perfect layout and decor. These are just a few of the hundreds of tips you can use to help your room appear bigger.
For more ideas, please visit our previous blog post.
Final Thoughts
It may be difficult to keep a small home tidy and organised, but the tips we have discussed should be a good starting point to make the most out of the room you do have.
Effectively use your space by using the wasted areas around your home in an inventive way.
Try to keep what you have to a minimum by avoiding holding onto needless items. Follow minimalism to get the best results and give the impression your space is larger than it.
Author Bio
David Atkinson is a content creator at Perfectly Engraved, a premium manufacturer of engraved gifts, trophies and awards.
