We keep talking about 'storage' because organising is a visual way of giving your home a new look.
We often see all kinds of recommendations for storage tools, and the magic of turning 100sqm into 200sqm, but we often overlook the essence of storage - it's not about finding ways to collect more, it's about finding ways to use it well.
Table of Contents
01 What is really effective storage?
Most people have a misconception about storage. Many of my friends, either think that storage is all about throwing, throwing, and throwing; or they find a way to design a big hidden storage space where all the clutter can be stowed.
But have you noticed that none of these storage methods solve the problem of organisation, or that such storage is ineffective? Setting aside a lot of space in advance instead gives you a good reason to buy a lot of items. You end up with storage tools all over the room, but the room is still not tidy enough.
If you do this, storage just becomes a filler job and everything in the house, whether useful or not, is covered and out of sight.
The room looks clean and tidy, but when the reserve space is filled up again, the room becomes cluttered and disorganised, and you have to flee again to easier storage methods, thus falling into a vicious circle from which there is no escape.
Effective storage is not about finding ways to hide things, it is about finding them immediately when you need to use them, and increasing the efficiency of storage is more important than increasing the volume of stockpiling.
It is impossible to change people's habits without changing their consciousness.
There are only two things you should really do with storage, one is to identify the discarded items and the other is to identify the location of the items, by doing these two things well, whoever is doing the organising can do it quickly and efficiently.
Identifying items to discard starts with discarding useless items. For most families, decluttering is a difficult task, especially those with elderly people.
Keep the total number of items at 80%, with 50% of frequently used items stored first and the remaining 30% set aside for a small space for hoarding, so as not to throw them away and to satisfy psychological needs.
Of course, sogeshome is against the practice of 'throwing away without thinking', and also against mindless hoarding, where the rate of purchase is much higher than the rate of consumption and the total number of items cannot be reduced at all, leaving the room in a permanent state of tidiness.
Apart from stocking up on items, there is another major reason for the constant increase in items - not keeping track of the number of items you own, so it becomes important to check where items are stored.
02 Kitchen storage tips
For small kitchens, every area is an inch of space and there is no room for waste.Showing you the secret of kitchen storage "storage on steroids".
Cabinets can be divided into three parts: floor cabinets + hanging cabinets + worktops.
Kitchen storage space allocation principles: ① hanging cabinets for lighter items; ② floor cabinets for heavier items; ③ the area between hanging cabinets and floor cabinets for frequently used daily items.
Kitchen hanging cabinets are generally best made into multi-layered compartments 30 to 40 cm wide.
Here it is important to stress that the hanging cabinets in small kitchens must go to the top, not only to save space, but also to facilitate cleaning and reduce hygiene dead ends.
Some people say that it is inconvenient to store items above the hanging cabinets, but in fact there are quite a few good ways to solve this problem.
The first way, you can put the appliances and kitchenware that are usually used less frequently in the space above the hanging cabinet, which is better than taking up space on the countertop.
The second method, if the budget is sufficient, you can install lift type hanging baskets, so that hanging cabinets and then high do not have to worry about taking things inconvenient.
And floor cabinet design sogeshome suggests using a combination of drawers and pull-out baskets, more convenient to take and put.
Kitchen storage is actually a very worthwhile topic, which has a lot to learn, especially the various kitchen magic tools that can make the kitchen storage function at least twice as big. The secret to wall storage is the storage up hanging method, the secret to countertop storage is vertical placement; the secret to floor storage is the use of multi-layer shelves and so on ......
We have previously written a special text on kitchen organisers, so if you don't remember, click on the link below for a refresher!
3 Steps To Choose Kitchen Storage Rack & Shelf in 2021
How to choose oven racks to change a cluttered kitchen?
03 Wardrobe storage tips
A woman's wardrobe is a testament to her love of herself, and coming home to a well-organised wardrobe is a small blessing in a life of anxiety, yet the reality is often the following.
Either the wardrobe is too small to fit all the clothes in at all and the change of season becomes a relay race of seasonal clothes.
Either the wardrobe has enough space, but it's full of dividers and the clothes are in piles, so finding clothes is like looking for a needle in a haystack.
For wardrobe storage, it is highly recommended that the hanging area is the main focus and the drawer area is supplementary, so don't use dividers if you can.
The hanging area is easy to access and has strong storage, so you don't have to mess up a pile of clothes after taking one out, and you don't feel bad about wearing crumpled clothes when you are in a hurry to go out.
What's more, you can see at a glance how many clothes you have, so you don't forget about them in the drawer and feel like you have nothing to wear every time the season changes.
It also reminds you that you already have enough clothes, so don't overspend on them.
The ideal hanging area is further subdivided into: a long clothes area, a short clothes area and a trouser hanging area, none of which is necessary.
Avoid wasting space underneath short clothes by hanging long and short clothes in separate sections.
If you have more short clothes and the long section of your wardrobe takes up a lot of space, you can also use telescopic rods to create a double hanging area.
04 Bathroom storage tips
Smaller bathrooms are generally smaller, but the bathroom is very functional, so it becomes especially important to increase the storage space in the bathroom from the design.
Pay attention to the 1m2 storage around the washroom area, such as underneath the sink mirror, make a swivel opening hidden storage, smart and beautiful.
The drawers under the sink, cosmetics, cotton swabs, aromatherapy, toothbrushes, towels, perfume, lipstick have a place to put them.
A wall niche is also a good solution and can be combined with a cupboard to make a built-in storage unit, giving the bathroom a few extra square feet of storage space and sorting things out.
Corner triangles are often overlooked, but making them into triangular cabinets can actually add a lot of space and make it easier to clean, reducing the number of corners that are not easily cleaned.
05 Balcony storage tips
Storage and washing and drying on a domestic balcony are often interlinked, so if storage and washing and drying and basins are used together for space, more attention should be paid to size issues.
In addition to the cleaning products, you can also leave a standing cabinet to store tools such as brooms and mops, which are taller than 130cm in height.
If you want to put a hoover, a cordless hoover should consider the storage of the charging stand and the location of the power socket.
Cabinet doors can be used to hang tools, or to reduce partitioning by using hooks, shelves, cavities and the like to make flexible use of space within the cabinet.
It is also common to find a combination of washing machine + hanging cabinet/shelf. It is also useful to leave an open compartment in the hanging cabinet, which is the most commonly used and most convenient storage area than opening and closing the cabinet door.
If you need to renovate your bathroom, take a look at the Bathroom Renovation Guide from Sogeshome.
06 Utilising wall space
Making use of wall space is actually one of the ways to increase the efficiency of your storage, and you can find the items you need at a glance.
Add a cavity board above the slim shoe cupboard in the entrance, even if it's a small space again, and keys, umbrellas and other travel essentials are straightforward to access.
The wall of the balcony, with a combination of a cavity board and a wall-hanging cabinet, stores all kinds of tools and is superbly practical.
The most utilised wall in the home is the kitchen wall, next to the fridge, above the countertop, under the cabinets, any wall that can be seen, can be found a way to use it.
In the bathroom shower area, under the mirror cabinet, above the toilet and on the wall behind the door, coat hooks, telescopic rods and shelves are a must.
There's a lot to know about the specifics of storage, so Sogeshome will cover it all this time! But true storage is something that allows us to take a proper look at our lives and learn that storage is not about optimising stockpiling capacity, but about considering your current needs.