If the old saying that you can “never be too rich or too thin” were re-written for a home, it would say you can never have too much storage. Time and time again, houses are short on precious space to hold all our belongings. So, while you’re decluttering this spring, why not take a look at where you can add some more storage?
With the right furnishings, you can literally create more space in your home. Furniture should be put to work and the furnishings that do double and triple duty are good choices. For instance, if you’re thinking of adding a new coffee table, opt for one with storage. Another good choice for your home is to select pieces, such as small chests, to stand in for side tables and consoles. Sofa tables that have shelves or storage are a better option than tables that only have legs. A long, thin dresser used as a sofa table, can anchor the room and offer valuable storage.
Create more function from your furnishings by making them do double duty. A short filing cabinet can be fitted with a round top and table skirt and stand in as both a table and filing cabinet. Or, add a round skirted table to store items out of sight. A collection of pretty hat boxes can be used on top of an armoire for decoration and hold papers or other items.
Rolling storage carts can be put into closets for jewelry or lingerie and can be added to coat closets to store hats, gloves and scarves. Another option is to add wire drawers to create more drawer storage in the closet, add shelf dividers to make your shelf more useable and, if space is available, add a second shelf for more storage.
If your ceilings are tall, it may even be possible to add a clothes rod up high for seasonal clothing. Storage bins and boxes are still more ways to add more storage to your closet. Homes often need more storage, but by being resourceful and using the storage space you have more creatively, you can greatly improve the amount of storage in your home with just some simple changes.
Living Space: Simple Steps to Transform Your Home
Guest Post by Kathryn Weber, author of Living Space: Simple Steps to Transform Your Home
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Kathryn Weber is the publisher of the Red Lotus Letter feng shui e-zine for wealth, and writes Living Space, a nationally syndicated newspaper column on decorating for Tribune Media Services. A lifelong Texan, she approaches the home with her true-to-Texas style — no fussy froo-froo stuff going on here. She developed the Red Lotus feng shui jewelry line for Home Shopping Network where almost all her styles quickly became customer favorites. Candid and straightforward, Kathryn has written two scripts, two newspaper columns, multiple features, and over 500 weeks of ezines.
Her family and home are her world—and she shares it with three rescue pets. She’s been happily married over 20 years to a guy she met on a desert island working with chemical weapons. In fact, domestic terrorists stealing chemical weapons were the subject of her first screenplay in 1995. “On Edge” was a quarter finalist in Action Scripts for the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences Nicholl Fellowships in Screenwriting. Her son, Steve, is an avid traveler, hunter and fisherman who enjoys golfing with his dad and homeschooling with mom. Kathryn has a degree in English from the University of Texas at San Antonio where she grew up. A fifth generation Texan, she’s a straight-shooter and a trusted friend.
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