Storage for Small Spaces

My house is not extremely “small”, but somehow we have managed to almost grow out of it with only 3 people! It is a 3-bedroom house with a den and open floor concept... There is no reason we shouldn’t be able to raise an army here, if we do it right! And Daniel and I both feel strongly about living within our means and making our home what we need it to be- not simply buying a new one because we have too much STUFF. It does help that I’m guilty of being a throw-it-away queen.

So here are some ways that I came up with to help give us more storage and space in the home that we have (which, by the way, came with very little storage. First-time homebuyer mistake...).

First, we hired a friend who is a contractor to build us a WINDOW SEAT! My husband would call this a kitchen bench, but I have ALWAYS wanted a window seat, and it's under a window, so that’s what I refer to it as! We had a relatively small budget, so we saved up for a few months to pay him cash for the job. Here are the progression pictures...

Break for the night...

The top is in!

Primed and ready for paint

Tape off- ALL DONE!

 I wanted the bench built into the nook in our kitchen to provide extra seating against our new table.

Photo bomb by the dog...

 I also wanted to be sure it could open and provide storage! I filled the seat with holiday decor and a few kitchen gadgets that are used, but rarely. I wanted them to be easily accessible for holidays or company so I didn’t have to dig through a closet, garage, or attic. It’s perfect!

Then into our master bathroom... for another $50, our contractor made me custom shelves for this stupid little waste-of-space corner.

And then I added our junk to them!

 I LOVE THEM! I finally have some storage! It was really needed because neither of our bathrooms have drawers or closets. Just cabinets (which I added some storage into with plastic drawers from Walmart!).I will be watching Goodwill closely for some cute baskets to organizer it even more!

Here are a couple of other ways that I have found to provide storage...

Two storage solutions- one to hold viewable things, and one to hold not-viewable things (feminine products!)

BEST. IDEA. EVER.

 This was an awesome find too. My laundry room is TINY, I was tired of having absolutely NO storage there. I searched high and low for something perfect to help. My husband pushed the two machines apart and we measured...we only had 8 inches in between them! So after some more online searching, I found this little cart on Walmart.com for under $20! It fits perfectly and holds so much stuff! 


 Every house with children needs a few hinged ottomans- one to hide toys, the other to hide books, movies, and random stuff.

I am a BIG fan of bookshelves in closets to add more storage- There is one in our (small) closet, one in Piper’s, and one in the hall closet to give me more pantry space!

Slightly messy closet- but hey, we can't all be perfect.

Well there it is. I hope this helps. Good luck organizing and your home!!!

P.S. Don't break the bank looking for storage solutions. First visit places like Goodwill, Savers, and garage sales. Most things just need a little cleaning and paint.

 Most of my bookshelves I get from Target for $20 or from family getting rid of old, ugly bookshelves- they're in closets anyway! 

Find storage ottomans at Ross or TJ Maxx for half the price of other stores.

And NEVER go into debt organizing your home. Spend a few months saving up to pay for it in cash! If you have to endure a little while with piles laying around, it will still be totally worth it.

 Be smart and frugal, and it will come together soon!