Posted on March 21 2011 by Charles Thompson

The right storage can help keep ‘clutter’ organized

Many of us have been there. Closet shelves bulging, shoes and boots a tangled mess, desks piled with papers and mail, all about to topple. Magazines in too-tall stacks, ever threatening a slip-slide domino effect; video games, CDs and DVDs, baby gear, toys, pots and pans, spices, all those mega-quantities of staples from Costco. They all have to go someplace, but we moan, “There’s no room!”

Time to rethink that. Getting organized has to be part of every spring cleaning ritual. And says home improvement expert Lou Manfredini: “If things have a home, they have a better chance of ending up there.”

HOW TO GET ORGANIZED

– Organizing starts with taking stock. Empty the contents of a drawer on a clean surface.

– Group like items. Toss anything broken, not working or outdated.

– Arrange what you need in a partitioned container. Whether you need a rubber band or a battery, you won’t have to dig.

– Apply the “first in, first out” rule to magazines and newspapers. Collect the rest in an appropriate catch-all. Hangable cubbies are one option, and these also work for wine, CDs and DVDs.

– Think about how you use dinnerware. Extras need not hog valuable kitchen space 24/7. Store them at the top of a pantry shelf, or in a closet.

– Consider the garage for seasonal storage. Sturdy wire shelving or overhead racks tidy up boxes of Christmas ornaments or oversize holiday platters, along with skis, tennis rackets, golf clubs and fishing rods.

That’s good advice, but it’s not easy to de-clutter. It’s tempting to just scoop up and stash – inside a drawer, inside a cabinet, inside a whole closet. It’s a quick fix when you invite a few friends over to watch a big game on TV, but a nightmare when you want to retrieve a particular item. Where to start?

Most organizational experts will advise that the concept of containing stuff has as much to do with deciding what’s important, purging what’s not, then finding a home for what’s left. It’s the hardest part for those who insist “I might need it someday.” For this, you really must be objective. Make that brutal.
“It’s not about what you think you need or want,” says Gale Steves, author of “Right-Sizing Your Home” (Northwest Arm Press, $21.95). “We probably can do with far less.”

Steves advises tackling room by room to decide what is essential for that space. Categorizing items helps dictate the type of storage required. There may be multiple solutions, so experts suggest being flexible, especially to accommodate changing needs.

For most retailers, storage has emerged as its own category in recent years. In addition to the pragmatic, utilitarian containers – think ziplock bags, cardboard boxes with dividers for holiday decorations, see-through plastics – manufacturers are offering more stylish solutions.

It’s largely a matter of thinking outside of the box, although that’s a good starting point.

One way to go is up the wall. Bins, cubes and shelves offer flexible options. The stackability of bins and cubes makes them especially attractive. Go vertical or horizontal, following your available footprint. Cubes that hang, especially airy wire ones can create focal points, lending further versatility, form and function.

Freestanding shelves, of course, have become familiar as a means of displaying family photos and artwork, and gathering small items in decorative boxes. They come in handsome architectural profiles, generally in lengths from two to four feet. Some of the slim, modern ledges are even available in fashion colors, such as the acid yellow that recently turned up on the West Elm website.

Etageres also have become popular options. These open-shelf towers are handy in a range of settings, from bathrooms for storing towels and toiletries to breakfast rooms for everyday dinnerware and cookbooks to garden rooms for plants and decorative pots.

Open shelving that celebrates its framework also has caught on. One such bookcase called Hancock, inspired by Chicago’s Big John skyscraper and available at CB2, ascends from wide to narrow shelves. Other open shelves lean, adding architectural panache.

Boxes and baskets remain an appealing go-to for storage. They sport a variety of looks, including upholstered, in fabrics from wool flannel to canvas to perky cotton prints and even high-end leather and skin cladding, such as python or stingray. Don’t overlook kids’ sources if you crave color. At PBteen, for example, you might be bowled over by bold polka dots in vivid hues.

Baskets are available in a range of weaves, colors (natural and stained) and patterns, such as stripes, which give them a fresh look. The portability of baskets is a plus for objects to be transported from room to room – even outdoors, where a large round handled basket might serve as a catch-all for towels and books.

Martha Stewart Living’s new Craft Space collection, modeled after furnishings in her own at-home workshop, features a gift wrap hutch with easy-to-remove dowels for wrapping paper and ribbon and cubbies for supplies. The furniture, with its well-thought-out, detailed interior spaces, is sold through Home Decorators Collection.

Even if you don’t have a home office, one movable piece of storage can make a difference. Mobile file drawers, some in shocking hues like chartreuse (at CB2, red also is an option) may be useful as an additional end table in the family room. Casters allow you to wheel it away when you’re out of business mode.

Consider furniture that does double duty. Benches with lift-up tops are a bonus; some even offer a shelf beneath, which can house shoes or baskets for scarves and gloves.

Some manufacturers now are building storage into the bases of beds, taking advantage of otherwise wasted space, with shelves and drawers. Even under-bed boxes are smarter: Some roll out, and they can be fitted with compartments.

There are dining tables with built-in storage, some opening piano-style, others with drawers, to house flatware and/or linens. Of course, flatware storage with slots and silver fabric protection have increasingly been incorporated into buffet drawers.

Better Homes and Gardens designers listen to their readers’ wish lists, which have prompted a whole series of clever hidden storage spots for its furniture lines for Universal: pullouts for linens behind a breakfront; pullouts for jewelry behind mirrors; dressers with velvet-clad partitions for jewelry; night tables with built-in chargers for phones, iPads. And many cocktail and end tables feature storage and charging for laptops and other electronics.

One huge dent you can make is to zone stuff that feeds junk drawers: batteries, rubber bands, twist ties, pens, paper clips and the like. Check out Bed Bath and Beyond, Home Depot, the Container Store and closet companies for a wide range of storage inserts and organizers.

You may want to study up before you tackle the daunting task. There are plenty of sources for organizing, including one of the Dummies series. The authors of a recent book, “Common Sense Storage: Clever Solutions for an Organized Life” (Creative Publishing International, $24.99), make an interesting distinction between neat and organized:

“The house that is ‘neat’ will have clean sightlines. … The house that is ‘organized’ will be as purposeful with these hidden spaces as with what is out in the open.”

The kicker resonates: “In terms of clutter, out of sight is definitely not out of mind.”

Similar Posts:

Share

Leave a Reply