Creative Ways to Organize
by Better Homes & Gardens
Clever Closets Around the House
Mudroom Closet: Get Hooked
Turn a closet
into a mudroom in just a few simple steps! Taking out the clothes rod allows
room for hooks
so that all members of the family have a quick spot to hang their coats and
bags. Install a low shelf
which can double as a bench and extra storage space. Removing the door and
painting the inner walls
to match the hallway outside will make the space seem more like a mudroom and
less like a closet.
Craft
Closet: Contain Your Closet
A shelf-lined closet
can be just what you need to keep your space neat and organized. See-through storage containers
are perfect for this sort of tucked away space, allowing you to see what you
need before sifting through all the drawers. Different sized and labeled
containers fit snugly on the shelves,
ensuring that everything has a place and the closet stays organized.
Linen
Closet: Corral & Conquer
Towels, sheets,
and blankets are necessities but can be a headache to organize. Keep your linen
closet in tip-top shape with a few organizing tools. Use shelf dividers to
create cubbies on existing shelves. Label each cubby as the designated spot for
specific linens -- a spot for kids bathroom
towels, guest towels, twin sheet sets, queen sheet sets, etc. Use baskets to
round up extra toiletries and cleaning supplies. High shelves are ideal for
storing large, infrequently used items such as bulky comforters
and extra pillows.
Household
Closet: Organization Boosters
An adjustable shelf unit provides extra storage space and a more
organized layout for your closet.
Specific compartments and products to boost organization help make sure that
everything has a place and makes your closet look tidy. Desk organizers, mini
drawers, photo boxes and even magazine holders can be used to eliminate clutter
and make sure everything is in order.
Hall Closet: Season by Season
The coat closet sees a lot of
traffic -- and a lot of clutter. And just what piles up in your closet will
change from season to season. Outfit your closet with organizational gear that
is useful year-round. An over-the-door pocket organizer is perfect for
corralling mittens and hats during the winter, and umbrellas
and sunscreen in the summer. Hooks on the back of the door and along the closet
wall are smart closet additions, as well. And no matter what the season, shoes
will always track in something from the outdoors. Use a shoe rack to keep
footwear organized. Set the rack on a large jelly roll pan
or other tray to collect the muck from the bottom of shoes and boots.
Home Office Closet: Private Work Space
Create your
own tucked away work space simply by using a wall-mount storage system and setting
up a makeshift desk. In this crafty closet, a hollow-core door
sits atop stacked storage cubes, perfect for a DIY work surface. The
original pole bracket is still in place, allowing the closet to be used traditionally
as well.
Bedroom Closet: Doubled-Up Storage
Try this
smart closet storage idea: install a
second bar to add more hanging space. In this bedroom closet, a shorter, lower
bar is suspended from the top bar, leaving room on one side of the top bar for
longer items, such as dresses. The lower bar is at the perfect height for
hanging shirts on top and pants and skirts below.
Home Office Closet: Room within a Room
By adding a
few room-like features, you can turn a closet into a practical home office that can be
tucked away behind closed doors when not in use. Make the storage space feel more
like a room with a colorful coat of paint and a pendant light to brighten your
work surface. Use table legs and wall brackets to convert a prefinished wall
shelf into a slim desk, then bring in ready-to-assemble modular storage units
for books,
files, and office accessories. Hang decorative bulletin boards on the wall for
the finishing touch.
Household Closet: Laundry Room
Despite
their heavy workload, laundry rooms are often squeezed into small spaces where
clutter can make the space feel even more cramped. To give the room a more
spacious feel, replace closet doors with simple canvas
curtains
that slide neatly out of the way when open. Above the washer and dryer, mount a
storage shelf for laundry
detergents, fabric softeners, and stain removers.
Craft Closet: For the Kids
If your kids
are budding Picassos, designate a closet as storage central for all of
their paints, brushes and other supplies. Buy bins or baskets that are the same
size and assign supplies to each one. Look for plastic baskets with handles,
which are easy to clean and easy to transport from closet to a work space. To
prevent supply overload, sit down with your kids every few months to weed out
empty bottles and dried-out markers.
Home Office Closet: Simple Makeover
Outfit a
small, narrow closet
with shelves you can install yourself to give the space an organizational
boost. Shelves placed close together provide a smart way to organize cumbersome
rolls of wrapping paper. The rolls will lay flat and be protected from being
crushed. Take a trip to an office supply store for file storage boxes and tags. Be
sure to measure the height and width of your shelves to ensure what you buy
will fit neatly on the shelves.
Craft Closet: Use Your Resources
Gather
individual materials to turn an unremarkable closet into a crafter’s haven. A
metal pegboard against the back wall is a great place to hang shelves and is
also a quick and easy way to hang tools and supplies. A cutting board
resting on top of filing cabinets
makes an instant work space with lots of storage. Curtains allow
the whole area to be hidden away when not in use.
Linen Closet: Roll with It
Save space
in a shallow linen closet
by rolling up towels instead of folding them. Put lost space to use by
installing towel racks
on the back of the door to hang wrinkle-susceptible linens, such as tablecloths.
With these delicate linens out of the fray, they won't be crushed by sturdier
towels and blankets.
Kitchen Closet: Pantry Savvy
Plan out
your pantry to store all of your kitchen
must-haves. Instead of installing shelves from wall to wall, these shelves stop
short, leaving room on the wall to mount a broom and mop holder. By sacrificing
a just a few inches of shelf space, these cleaning necessities have a place to
call home, and any storage
space that was lost was regained by mounting basket-inspired shelves along the
back of the door for condiments and spices.
Mudroom Closet: Transformed Space
This space
once housed a closed-off, cluttered closet. The decision to remove a closet
door can be a scary one, but opening up this closet had a positive outcome.
With the door gone, the space was fitted with custom cubbies that meet all the
requirements for a savvy mudroom closet. Shallow cubbies fill the back of the
space, leaving room for a bench extension in front, the perfect perch for
taking off shoes. With an open storage
space such as this, don't forget about adding a little style. Line the back of
the space with wallpaper,
or paint it a fun color.
Household Closet: Cleaning Supplies
Make a clean
sweep of your utility closet
by organizing all the household cleaning supplies -- you'll make cleaning a
breeze when you can find everything easily in one place. Separate cleaning
supplies in containers
for specific rooms: a bathroom
bucket with cleaner for the toilet, shower, and glass; a bedroom caddy with a
dust cloth, surface cleaner, and linen spray. Stash sponges and used rags in
wire trays and baskets to let air in and moisture out. Store gloves, cleaning
wipes, and extra supplies in a hanging shoe or sweater organizer mounted on the
inside of the closet door next to hooks holding the broom, mop, and dustpan.
Craft Closet: Arts & Crafts Galore
Dedicate one
closet to all the arts and crafts supplies in the house and you'll always have
exactly what you need on hand for school projects, home decor creations, or just
creative play. Start by filling the closet with basic adjustable shelves, then
use a variety of storage
boxes and containers
to organize your supplies. Canvas boxes with dividers work well for storing
papers and fabric scraps vertically where they can be flipped through easily.
Use clear storage boxes and containers so the contents are visible. And use
boxes with lids for easy stacking.
Household Closet: Extra Storage Space
Make the
most of otherwise unused space -- such as beneath a staircase -- by building a closet. If the bonus space
is near the kitchen, add shelves and
countertop to create a butler's pantry. Off the basement media room, create a
mini library for DVDs, CDs, and portable electronics.
Kids' Closet: Baby Changing Station
Creative
thinking makes the most of this small closet in a nursery. By removing the door and building
in a simple cabinet with a top, the space is now a handy baby changing station.
To make this transformation in your nursery, include storage shelves and a
drawer in the base cabinet. Up top, cut a semicircle from the existing (or
added) shelves at the doorway opening to allow headroom for Baby and grown-ups.
These shelves put nursery necessities within easy reach.
Household Closet: Garage Storage
Conquer
garage clutter with handy metal bins. Assign a specific item to each bin, and
you'll avoid the frustrating search for a tape measure or a roll of tape.
Fasten sharp tools, such as saws,
to a pegboard storage
system, so reaching into a bin doesn't become a hazard. Keep screws and nails
in small boxes and round up all of the boxes into one bin, so you can easily
find a deck
screw or finishing nail.
Are you ready to get organized? Interested in purchasing closet storage systems, contact
Cabinet-S-Top, 1977 Medina Road, Medina, OH 44256 ~ 330.239.3630 ~ www.cabinet-s-top.com
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