Four Storage Ideas to Clear Clutter (and Encourage your Kids to be Less Messy too)

Nobody wants to spend hours tidying up every day, but practically everybody prefers a clutter-free living space. The answer is organised storage, so you can find stuff easily without tripping over things or endless searching when items go walk-about.

Storage Furniture in Living Areas

Storage furniture is a godsend for households with gadgets galore and an advancing army of toys and games. Coffee tables, end tables, vintage chests or trunks, sideboards or cabinets all make it possible to do very quick tidy-ups.

If children like to play in the kitchen while you’re doing the cooking, why not give them a special toy drawer or cabinet where they can keep small items. Colouring books, crayons or craft items come to mind, but can include anything your kids generally end up playing with in the kitchen.

Do the same in the bathroom for bath time toys to help keep the side of the bath uncluttered.

Taking a Seasonal Approach

We tend to use certain things during summer and others during winter, so why not pack away seasonal things we’re not using.

• As seasons change, sort out closets and pack up things you won’t wear again for a few months.

• Clear space in the garage or shed by removing tools or equipment you’re not using.

• Clear the garden of swings or climbing frames, paddling pools or other outdoor toys.

To get the most out of rotational storage you need somewhere to keep them safe, and storage units are a good solution. It’s also the answer to furniture you want but really have no space for, like guest beds or inherited items. You don’t have to give permanent house room to things you’re not actually using.

Maximising Floor Space

If you can keep the floor reasonably clear, you’re half way towards having a home that appears tidier and more spacious. Apart from furnishing tricks like choosing items on legs so you can see space beneath them and have fewer dark shadows, a quick and easy solution is to make more use of shelving:

• Replace bookcases or DVD racks.

• Display collections.

• Store kitchen utensils or pans to create more drawer space.

• Put awkward areas like alcoves or under-stair cubby holes to better use.

• Create design features with staggered shelf arrangements or bespoke lighting effects.

As well as shelves all over the house, other solutions to give more floor space include raised beds in kids’ rooms, where there is a desk or closet beneath the bed. Encourage kids to keep stuff off their floors by putting in shelves at a kid-friendly height so they can reach. With shelving being non-permanent, it’s relatively easy to raise them a bit as kids grow taller.

Zoned Out

If you’ve got the space for it, consider creating activity zones. They can help grownups keep things together as well as kids.

Instead of having everything happening everywhere in the house, make special areas for things like:

Quiet times

A reading nook or cosy corner somewhere away from TV and main traffic areas of the house. For children, beanbags are comfy alternatives to chairs and take up less space, and could be incorporated in their bedroom by installing a couple of bookcases into a corner.

Eating zones

Breakfast bars, kitchen tables or entire dining rooms should be reserved just for the purpose of eating. It’s okay to allow other activities (such as homework) when it’s convenient, as long as everything is tidied away so it’s always a clear area when it’s time for a snack or meal. Having a dining zone can help if yours is the kind of household where you’re always finding random plates and cups in unlikely places.

Office areas

You can achieve a semi-private office or homework zone in a main living area just by cordoning off a small part of the room with a turned-out bookcase. If it’s a home office for adult-only use, installing higher shelves above a computer workstation can put office supplies out of the reach of small children (no more wandering pens or notebooks full of toddler artwork). Of course after de-cluttering you may need the use of a company that specialises in rubbish removal.

Getting organised can involve changing habits, so take it a bit at a time. Successfully controlling clutter in one area of the house will encourage you to do it again in another area.