Collaborative post
When you’ve lived in your home for a long time, your possessions start to build up. Perhaps when you first move in, you start with the essentials and then you gradually acquire new items over time.
There comes a point when you simply have too much stuff. Your cupboards are overflowing, your once neat-and-tidy surfaces are covered in detritus, and you have to start using the floor as a storage space. This problem can be augmented when you have children running around, leaving their toys and clothes all over the place.
You might think there’s no harm in a little clutter, but it can have far greater consequences than you might realise. The messier your home is, the harder it will be to clean. Dust and grime will accumulate around the added clutter, and if you’re not careful you could end up with a major hygiene hazard on your hands. An untidy living environment can also play havoc on your mental health. It might not seem obvious at first but living amongst clutter can cause stress and anxiety, which can have all kinds of impacts on your physical health too.
It doesn’t matter whether you live in the smallest cottage or the biggest mansion, there are plenty of ways to increase your storage space and thereby reduce clutter. By ensuring that every item in your house has its right and proper place, you can maintain a tidy home and ensure a relaxed and peaceful mind.
Here are four great ways to increase your storage space.
Have a spring clean
The first, and arguably most important, step is to completely declutter your home. There is no point in trying to find storage space for items you don’t want or need, so it’s a good idea to go through your entire house with a fine tooth comb and get rid of any unwanted or useless possessions.
We all have things in our home that have been gathering dust for years. Those defunct CDs and DVDs that are no longer relevant in the streaming age. Clothes that don’t fit you anymore and toys your kids have grown out of. There is no point in keeping things that aren’t going to get any use. Clearing them out will give you some valuable space.
Systematically go through each room of your house and take an inventory of the items within them. Be strict and ask yourself whether you really want or need these things. It may be difficult at first, but you will find it gets easier as you go along. Before long, you will find enormous pleasure in clearing your home of that unwanted clutter.
Rearrange your home
Take a look at the layout of each room in your home. Does the way you have arranged your furniture maximise the available space? Perhaps moving your sofas to the edge of the room or putting a side table in a new place can increase the square footage of your floor space. Experiment with different layouts and see if there is a way to make your home feel bigger.
Invest in smart storage
Now you have whittled your possessions down to only the things you need and love, it’s time to find some space to put everything. There are plenty of smart storage options for keeping your belongings out of sight until you need them. For example, you could invest in some underfloor or under-stair storage for things like shoes and coats that always seem to take up space and get in the way. Seasonal items that aren’t used year-round, such as winter clothes and sports equipment, can be put to the back of wardrobes or stored away in the garage.
If you want to keep your possessions off the floor, you could install some new shelving units for a vertical storage solution. If you’re not sure about how this will look, there are plenty of design options and additional features like rustic shelf brackets to help you match your new storage system to the aesthetic of your home.
Keep it tidy
Hopefully by now your home will feel a lot more tidy, and help you feel a great deal more relaxed in your downtime. But it’s important to maintain good habits, otherwise the mess will start to creep back in before too long. Make an effort to give your home a good clean once a week, and get in the habit of putting your possessions back where they belong immediately after each use. Over time this will become natural, and your neat and tidy living space will bring you joy for years to come.