Preparedness

 

Closets

           

If you have a deep closet with a bar for hanging clothes, move the bar as far forward as possible. Make sure you still have room to hang clothing. Add shelving to the back wall of the closet. Even if the shelf is shallow it can be used for smaller items such as soup cans, catchup, or shampoo bottles.

           

Add an additional shelf. Most closets have a shelf above the bar on which you hang your clothes. Look for wasted space above that shelf. This is a great place for Christmas decorations and items you use only occasionally, freeing up other space.

           

In children’s rooms, lower the clothing bar and add shelving above. Most clothing bars are hung higher than they need to be, even for adults, creating wasted space on the floor – which usually collects lots of clutter.

 

Raise the floor. If you don’t want to lower the clothing bar build a platform on the floor. Place storage boxes under it and you will still have room for all those shoes.

 

Empty your closet

Most people wear only 20% of the clothing in their closets. Try going through your wardrobe and if you haven’t warn something in the last year get rid of it.

 

 

Under a staircase

Utilize an open staircase by installing custom cabinets, shelves, or storage cubes on the wall. For a decorative look add a bench with storage inside. If you don’t care about fashion or don’t have the money to make changes, just stack away. If you are stacking keep a map of your inventory and remember to rotate your foodstuffs.

 

If your staircase is enclosed, you have a huge cavern just waiting to be put to work. Create access to the space within by creating a door and store away!

 

Recycle

If you remodel, or know someone who is doing so, salvage the kitchen cupboards and add them to your garage. Remember you can mount them high and go all the way to the ceiling with storage while retaining plenty of floor space for the car.

 

Old doors can be hinged together creating a screen to hide food behind. I know someone who did this with French doors and added simple, inexpensive blinds to the back. It looked great and hid her treadmill.

 

Closet Doors

Don’t forget the back of a closet door. An over-the-door shoe bag makes a great place to store spices, packaged seasonings, and other small items.

 

Use an armoire

Instead of a dresser, use an armoire. An armoire will double your storage space but without taking extra floor space.

 

Consider the Bathroom

Have a big bathroom? Add a dresser and store your supply of toothpaste, hygiene items and other bathroom products where these items are ready to use.

 

Add storage above the toilet. You can purchase a ready made shelving unit or create your own.

 

Add shelves

If you are stacking cans in the cupboard you can easily add another shelf. Adjust shelving to accommodate the size cans you wish to store on them. Leave about 1 inches above the can so you are able to easily access your stored food.

 

Hang a shelf on the walls, a foot or two from the ceiling, in your bedrooms. Baskets can be placed on the shelves and used for food storage.

A shelf over a doorway can also add a great architectural touch to a room and hold books.

Move the sofa

If you have a sofa in the middle of a room, consider adding a dresser or cabinet behind it that can be used as lamp table.

Next to the sofa

If there is a narrow place between the sofa and wall place a wicker or bamboo clothes hamper next to the sofa and place a lamp on top.

Use Baskets, baskets everywhere!

Clear items out of cupboards

You may be noticing a theme here. Clear items out of cupboards and off closet shelves and use these areas to store food.

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  Take little used litchen item, for example and store them in the garage. The garage is not a good storage area for food but it is great for roastikng pans, oversized cake pans, extra large serving bowls, etc.

 

Remove pots and pans from cupboards and hang them. All the decorative wrought iron curtain rods on the market now make an easy way to create a custom looking pot rack; just add hooks.

 

Over the Cupboard

If you have a small space, or a large space above the cupboard, cut down a cardboard box to the proper height and width to fit the shelf, remove one of the longest sides. Cover the remaioning three sides with burlap or fabric. Place food to be stored on the shelf, turn the box upside down and slip the over the food. When you need to access the food simply slip the box off, retrieve the food, and replace the box. Make the boxes slightly different sizes or different fabrics for variety and interest.

 

Use a trunk

Instead of a coffee table use an old trunk.

 

Next to the be

There is often more room next to your bed than your side table takes up. Consider getting a larger bedside unit, a small dresser, a trunk, a small bookcase.

 

Open up a wall.

That’s right. There are so many ways to use the space between the studs in your walls. Remove the dry wall, add a header and footer and:

a. Add a medicine cabinet to store soaps toothpaste and other small items.

b. Add shelves and a door and use for spice storage.

c. Add dowels between stubs to hang tablecloths. Enclose with cabinet doors.

 

Uniform storage containers

Invest in uniform storage containers and stack in the cormer of a walk in closet.

 

Home and garage attics

Don’t forget the attic, both in the house and in the garage.

 

Create a window seat

Use two purchased bookcases to flank either side of a window. Add a bench or cabinets on the floor between the bookcases.

 

Loft beds

Make or purchase a loft bed even if you do not have more than one child in a room.

 

Bunk beds

Convert the top bunk of a bunk bed into a food storage area. Create a tent over the entire bed with an opening to the top bunk to retrieve stored items and allow the fabric to also cover the sides of the lower bunk creating a sleeping tent. If they prefer to sleep on the top bunk make curtains for the bottom bunk out of camaplague or paint fabric to look like a castle for your princess.

 

Add a Wall

We have a friend who had a large living room. That is the room most of us only use when company comes. A wall was added to the end of the room creating a nice long “closet” which added extra storage space for food storage. The door is at one end of the wall making it look as thought there is a small closet but through that unassuming door is a cool, dark, narrow but long, large space for food storage.

 

Contact Carolyn at: Ca*****@To**********.com“ Follow her frugal living tips at: https://blog.TotallyReady.com