Storage & Organization

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If you’ve lived in as many small spaces as I have, you’re always looking for ways to save floor space. The oldest trick in the designer’s book for small spaces is to use vertical space and elements as much as possible to fool the eye into thinking the room is larger than it is. It is also practical, as it gives you more room to move around. Even if you’re not lacking space, any pet owner would appreciate this beautiful hanging Square Cat Habitat by Buddha.

The room my husband and I are currently in is small, to say the least. We are always tripping over things, squirreling away papers and trinkets into nooks and crannies, and losing things because we have too much stuff for such a limited space. So I’m always looking for creative storage options that maximize available space — mostly vertical space, since there isn’t much floor space left.

Ever since I got an iPod for Christmas a few years ago, I have rarely bought CDs. There’s some stuff I just cant find on iTunes, but for the most part, I just download the songs or albums I want. I’ve also converted most of my CD collection to MP3 format, so I don’t use them much any more. However, I do have quite a stack of software CDs on and around my desk. I keep them on hand in the event I ever need to reinstall. I also have a sizable supply of blank CDs and DVDs so I’ll always have one on hand to provide native files to my design clients.

I’ve always loved the look of vintage hatboxes. Not that I have a lot of fancy hats to store, but I just love the classic charm of a well-designed box, round shape and all. They are also a great way to clear clutter in a stylish way. Add a few of them to a cluttered shelf as a catchall for all those misplaced items that will inevitably land there.

These Calypso round storage boxes from The Container Store aren’t vintage, but they are cute and functional all the same. The polka dot patterns in bright make them perfect for kids’ rooms. They aren’t huge, but definitely big enough to contain stray crayons, doll clothes, or single socks that have mysteriously been separated from their mates.

When it comes to my graphic design business, there is little that I print on paper. I use eFax and keep electronic copies of my faxes, keep my accounting records on computer and have a couple of sketch books for putting design ideas down on paper. Still, this doesn’t stop the top of my desk from becoming a magnet for clutter, mostly from mail, magazines and my daughter’s endless toddler doodling. I have one of those old plastic trays for sorting paper, but it is small, so most stuff ends up on top of it rather than sorted neatly inside it.

If there is one common factor in every well-decorated home, it is organization. You don’t see photos of homes in magazines with books, papers, dishes and more on every surface. What you do see, however, is well-planned bookshelves, complete with storage bins to hide…I mean, organize…all the things you don’t want everyone to see.

If you’re going to need storage, please forgo plastic. There are handmade baskets and bins of all sizes and styles if you are willing to look. These bamboo storage boxes are a great option. While the velvet-like interior lining isn’t the eco-friendliest option, the bamboo-covered exterior makes it at least half green. Is that green enough? Only you can decide.

We all have them: cell phones, iPods, PDAs, organizers…and all those essential electronics have to end up somewhere. If you’re anything like me, they wind up in a pile on top of your desk, cords tangled on their way to the nearest outlet. I haven’t been using my iPod a whole lot anymore since I’m working from home, but there’s still the cell phone, and occassionally my PDA since I don’t have a Blackberry that does it all.

On the days when I take my daughter to preschool, I always eye the cubby storage system that hangs on the wall opposite the door. There are several of them, all with hooks on the bottom where the kids can hang their jackets, backpacks, etc. I can’t help thinking how great it would be to use that in the entryway of a home with kids.

I know how much of a pain it can be to work in small spaces. We lived in a 2-bedroom apartment when my daughter was born. It was a beautiful apartment and very spacious…that is, everything but the office. It was really more of a closet. In fact, it was smaller than the walk-in closet in our bedroom. When I was in there, it took a lot of strategy just to turn around without running into the walls or my desk because it was such a long narrow space. My only solace? There was a window.

I used to think of cork boards as the type of thing you’d see in a teenager’s room or a dorm — maybe in a busy family’s kitchen. But that’s because cork boards typically lack style. They are plain and look like…well, like cork. As much as I love the look of cork flooring, putting it on my walls was a harder sell.