The New Year naturally seems like a good time to start out on the right foot by putting your home in order.  Last Thursday’s post outlined numerous ways to use clear containters to get organized.  Today we’ll take a look at some creative and stylish ways to store and organize things throughout your house.

Creative Storage & Organization

Storage  and organization doesn’t have to be boring and it doesn’t have to be expensive.  There are lots of functional yet creative and inexpensive ways to store things in your home while creating visual interest and easy accessibility.

Kitchen

Photo Amazon.com

 Test tubes store a lot of different spices in a very small footprint.  The glass tubes let you know when it’s time to buy more and smaller quantities help ensure the spices on-hand are fresh.

Photo HGTV.com

Three colorful and repeating cans add a decorative touch to a kitchen while getting utensils out of the cluttered drawer and within easy reach for the cook.  Pick cans with labels that match your favorite cooking style ( big cans of tomatoes if you cook Italian often) as well as your kitchen color scheme (label art spans the color wheel!).

Bedroom

Photo MarthaStewart.com

 A wooden folding ladder unexpectedly serves as a nightstand in a guest room.

Photo Lowes.com

 Modular closet storage units are transformed to foot of the bed storage with the addition of legs and leaf graphics. 

Photo GoodHouseKeeping.com

Old hardsided suitcases gain new life as foot of the bed storage pieces – use them for bed linens or out of season clothing.  Use longer legs and turn them into nightstands or an end table for a bedroom chair. 

Photo MarthaStewart.com

Line closet walls with painted peg board and gain tons of extra storage space. Notice the hanging hand bags, belts, ties, sports racket, lint roller, mirror and even a wire basket for perfumes?  That’s a lot of storage in a usually wasted space.

Photo MarthaStewart.com

Odds and ends teacups and saucers organize jewelry.  Did you notice the earrings hanging on the lip of the cup?  You could use this idea for cosmetics in the bathroom or office desk items (paperclips, rubber bands, stamps, push pins) too.

Office

Photo BHG.com

Old silver forks keep business cards, tickets and reminders front and center in the office.  Use them in the kitchen to hold a recipe card while you’re cooking or in the pantry to hold a shopping list or coupons.

Craft Room

Photo MarthaStewart.com

All it takes is the back of the door to create a wrapping center.  Use a dry erase board to keep track of monthly birthdays, anniversaries and showers.  Removable dowels supported by curtain rod brackets keep rolls of wrapping paper and spools of ribbon at hand while hooks keep scissors, and tape within reach. 

Photo Lowes.com

 If you’re a quilter, cover a board with flannel and then frame it with some painted trim for a pin-less way to organize your completed squares or swatch inspirations.

What Are You Using?

 Creative storage means you don’t always have to use an item for it’s original purpose.  What tricks have you come up with for repurposing something so it helps keep you organized and stores things you need?  As always, Your Decorating Hotline wants to hear from you.  Share your ideas!

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