24 Home Organization Ideas

Ask any homeowner if they are in need of home organization ideas, and chances are pretty good that they will respond with an emphatic “yes!” Live anywhere for long enough and you will eventually accumulate more stuff than space. It’s a problem that can sneak up on you gradually, until one day you find yourself standing in the middle of your kitchen with a giant serving platter, and absolutely nowhere to put it.

When you take a step back and think about all of the different things you have in your home, it’s no wonder that many homeowners are facing some organization and storage headaches. Everything from holiday decorations, to lawn equipment, to formal attire, to power tools, to photo scrapbooks need to have their own place. If the system you currently have going isn’t working, it’s probably time for a storage overhaul.

With that in mind, here is our list of the 24 cleverest home storage ideas we’ve seen, organized by category. Somewhere on this list there is going to be a solution for your specific problem. Take a look and get some ideas.

Clever Drawer Usage

Learning that drawers can be used for storage is obviously not a huge revelation to anyone. In fact, many of you are probably here because your drawers are overstuffed and disorganized. What we want to highlight in this section are some clever and unexpected ways some other homeowners are using drawer space to their best advantage.

Underbed Drawers – Some beds are being designed with drawer space underneath, and it’s revolutionizing bedroom storage, particularly for people living in smaller spaces. Think about all that wasted space under your bed – why not put it to better use?

Drawers Built Into Couches and Chairs – Another clever trick we’ve seen is to hide drawers along the bottom of couches and chairs. These are usually made so that they’re not terribly obvious, so those hoping to maintain a certain look when decorating won’t have to worry too much.

Drawers Built Into Steps –

Every single step could potentially hold a bit of storage space beneath it. A cool new trend we’ve seen is for homeowners to make the front-facing panel of each step on their staircase into a pull-out drawer. This expands the storage in your home without taking up any additional floor space

Drawer Organizers – One of the main complaints about using drawers as storage is that they themselves can quickly become jumbled and disorganized. You can get out ahead of this problem by fitting drawers with organizer inserts. Some of these inserts are very clever too! We’ve come a long way since the basic silverware tray.

Built-In Shelving

Built-in shelving is a good storage solution for a few reasons; it’s very sturdy, it adds architectural and design interest to your rooms, and of course, it gives you more storage space. Here are some cool ideas we have seen homeowners using.

Bookshelves Under a Window Seat – Window seats are the perfect place to sit and read a good book, so why not put those books within arms reach? There is usually a lot of unused space underneath or even around window seats. Adding some built-in shelving to this feature gets you more storage capacity while maintaining your available floor space.

Shallow Shelving for Book Storage – Many people are moving away from physical media nowadays, but there’s just something special about books that makes them not only worth hanging onto but also worth displaying. Installing shallow (2 inch to 3 inch) shelving along the wall allows you to display your books with the front covers facing outward. This solution takes up zero floor space, and is even thin enough to fit on a wall that might otherwise be blocked by a door.

Floor to Ceiling Shelving – Some homeowners choose to dedicate an entire wall of their home to built-in shelving. We have seen this look especially striking along a living room wall with a fireplace, or surrounding the windows in a family room or dining room.

Shelving in Closets – Closets are underused spaces. The standard closet usually comes with a single shelf along the top, and a single bar for hanging clothing. By installing some shelving into part of your closet, you could easily double the storage capacity, even in a small closet.

Under the Stairs

We teased this concept a little bit when we mentioned shelving set into each stair on the staircase. An area that is often underused and unnoticed in the average home is the small triangular nook created by a staircase. We have seen some homeowners put that space to amazingly efficient use.

Office Space – In some homes, the area under the stairs is large enough to accommodate a small desk, a swivel chair, and even a few shelves or cabinets to help keep that office organized. You didn’t even think you had space for a home office, did you?

Shelf Space – This can be an opportunity for more exposed, built-in shelving, or shelves can be hidden behind cabinet style doors. Either way, you can get a lot of use out of these hidden spaces beneath your staircase.

Small Closet Space – Think Harry Potter. We definitely don’t recommend that you use this space as an emergency bedroom, but it certainly will make a great place to store your vacuum and other cleaning supplies, folding chairs, or your winter coats.

Kitchen Organization Ideas

Having a disorganized kitchen can quickly become a huge problem. If you feel like you can never access the tools you need, you might find yourself under utilizing your kitchen. If you feel like you have been ordering takeout a little too frequently, or if you feel like you’re in a bit of a cooking rut, it may be due to storage issues in your kitchen. Here are some of our favorite solutions to reduce or even obliterate kitchen clutter.

Appliance Lifts – If you never haul out your stand mixer because it weighs too much, you might benefit from an appliance lift. This is a device which lifts a large or heavy appliance out when you need it, and puts it right back into its cabinet when you’re done.

Dish Drying Rack Over the Sink – One of the fastest ways to eat up your counter space is by using a dish drying rack. You can regain up to 2 feet of counter space by installing a built-in drying rack directly over your sink. Now, any water that comes off the dishes is going straight down the drain, and you have a clearer counter.

Slide Out Cabinet Features – If you find yourself getting down on your hands and knees to search for a sauce pan or a certain utensil, there is a better way. You can install slide out racks and shelving in your kitchen cabinets. Not only does this help keep you more organized, but it also gives you easier access, meaning you get more use out of your kitchen.

Smart Pantry Shelving – If your pantry is currently set up as a series of straight shelves, one on top of the other at regular intervals, you are not maximizing that space. Things get lost at the back of the shelves, and it’s very difficult to take inventory of what you need at a glance. Instead, you can install shelves of varying height and width to maximize both the visibility of the items, and your ability to reach everything in your pantry. Adding a few turntables can also make your life easier.

Use The Cabinet Doors – For small items, you can often get away with storing these on the back side of cabinet doors. For example, a very small for hook would allow you to store measuring spoons. Likewise, a shallow shelf might give you room to store 6 to 8 spice bottles. Small things have a tendency to get lost, especially in a disorganized kitchen. You can prevent this problem by giving the small things their very own spaces.

Bathroom Storage

A disorganized bathroom can very quickly become a messy bathroom. If you have been trying to stack folded towels on the tank of your toilet, or balance your cosmetics kit on the rim of a narrow sink, it sounds like you need some good solutions for extra storage. Here are some clever ideas that will help.

Shower Curtain Pockets – You can find shower curtain liners that feature storage pockets. Now of course, don’t go overboard with this; make sure you have a firmly installed shower curtain rod before adding any extra weight. However, this makes a great solution for loofahs, sponges, razors, or even tub toys if you have kids. Everything can drip dry right into the tub, and the pockets are mesh which helps prevent mildew.

Custom Drawer for Hair Tools – Blow dryers and curling irons are awkwardly shaped, and often don’t fit into drawers or cabinets without some major creativity. There are custom-made drawers which are specifically designed to hold not only these hair tools, but also their power cords neatly.

Over the Toilet Shelves – Not many people can say that they are using the floor space immediately on either side of their toilet tank. That means there’s room for a piece of furniture there! There are lots of clever designs out there for storage furniture meant to provide shelf or cabinet space above your toilet.

Small Cabinets – If you are working with a small bathroom (this is especially common in some older homes) you may be wondering where on earth you could squeeze another cabinet. We have seen some very creative installations of the narrow but tall cabinets in bathrooms. You increase your storage space without interrupting the walking path.

Bedroom and Closet Organization Ideas

Ideally, your bedroom should be a relaxing and tranquil place for you to unwind at the end of a stressful day. Therefore, when you have a disorganized bedroom, it can leave you feeling tense and can even sometimes affect your sleep. Luckily, there are some pretty cool ways to tackle organization issues.

Shoe Ottomans/Shoe Bedskirts – Shoes can take up a lot of space. Simply stacking them up on the floor of your closet doesn’t do any favors for you, or the shoes. A shoe ottoman is a piece of furniture where the top can be removed, and shoes can be stored in individual pockets inside. A shoe bedskirt is a very clever solution. It’s a series of fabric pockets for your shoes, which can easily be hidden by a standard dust ruffle.

Hinged Mirrors – If you have a mirror mounted to your wall, you may be hiding some usable storage space behind it. Yes, really! Small objects such as jewelry can be hung directly on your wall behind your mirror. Install a couple of hinges allowing the mirror to swing wide, and you can access all of your favorite earrings and necklaces.

Pegboard for Closet Storage – Installing a small section of pegboard in your closet can give you a place to hang smaller items such as belts, scarves, or neckties. These can be especially useful in small closets, where you want to leave as much space for hangers as possible.

Wall Mounted Closets – Some rooms may not have closets at all, and other rooms may have exceptionally small closets. Rather than moving a bulky and heavy armoire into your bedroom, consider using wall-mounted closets. These are usually shallow cabinets mounted up off the floor which provide you with shelf space and hooks to hang clothing.

There are lots of creative storage solutions out there, and this list only names a few of our favorites. If you have been struggling with organization issues, we hope that a few of the items on this list gave you a good starting point.

Of course, if there is someone in your life struggling with organization, maybe they could benefit from reading this too. Be sure to share this list on social media with your friends, and let’s get everyone organized!