Around the House: Store Things Creatively for Simplicity and Ease

By Yehudit Garmaise

Now that we are preparing for winter, we want to get our homes in order and store essentials in creative, attractive ways so we can always find what we need.

A few creative hacks can help to keep all homes neat, tidy, and organized.

1. Repurpose an old CD holder to vertically stash sippy-cup tops to prevent mold from growing when they are not allowed to dry 100%. Storing cup tops vertically keeps them orderly and allows them to dry completely. 

2. Consider storing other things vertically: Instead of laying flat, large items like cutting boards, large ceramic dishes, and baking pans, a great way to save space is to store them upright on shelves. This also makes them look neater and easier to grab.

3. Towel bars or even just a piece of copper pipe from a hardware store can be used for kitchen rods on which to hang anything you need to grab easily, such as measuring cups and spoons, mugs, pots, and oven mitts. Towel racks can also be used on the inside doors of closets and cabinets to create out-of-sight storage space for extra tablecloths, light blankets, and towels.

4. For clunkier items, like pots and pans, you can hang them on hardware store hooks on unused walls, instead of taking up valuable space in cabinets or drawers. Create a clean look, by hanging the biggest items first, then medium-sized cookware, and finishing with the smallest items.

5. Mount items on walls to be flipped down only when necessary. Clothing drying racks, ironing boards, and even small desks are items that are only used for parts of each day. Use wall space to get such items out of the way when they are not in use. 

6. One larger bag or an empty tissue box can provide a neat, compact way to store extra plastic grocery bags. That way, when you open that cabinet to grab a few bags, you can easily extract one or two, tens of plastic bags falling onto the floor. A fun way to store tissues in the car, instead of always searching for that box under your seat, is to put clean tissues in a new to-go coffee cup with a lid so that you can store tissues in the cup holder next to the driver seat.

7. Buy some pretty shower hooks and bend them slightly to the side to create the perfect shape and size for hanging purses, scarves, and tichels that otherwise easily get lost in drawers and fall to the floor of closets. 

8. Invest in several collapsible bins to store Yom Tov decorations. Whether you choose one uniform color or a color that you associate with each holiday, make sure to label each box so you can easily grab it without looking into every box.

9. Stash all grocery lists, to-do lists, and coupons in one place, such as inside one particular cabinet on the refrigerator with magnets or tape, or in a pocket made of fabric so you don’t have to hunt around for things when needed. Make sure to keep a pen near that chosen area.

10. To reduce visual clutter, the next time you buy towels, buy at the most one, two, or three colors that look good together. Save space in the linen closet by rolling the towels. You can create a pattern when storing the towels when you put them away.