Monthly Archives: July 2011

21 July, 2011
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Small Space Organizing

It’s hard to keep a small room or small apartment organized. Things can get piled up and it gets hard to find what you need when you need it. Use these tips to help keep a small space organized. You’ll have a clean space that will help your small place seem bigger and more orderly.

1) First determine what you need to clean. There are usually “hot spots” around small homes that collect junk. Tackle one area at a time. Use the counters, beds, dressers, or coffee table to start organizing. Take everything from the pile and divide it into categories.

2) Create a pile for each category so that you can get an idea of what types of organizational products you might need. You don’t necessarily have to spend a lot of money to get organized. For storage, you can use old shoe boxes, plastic zipper bags, things of that nature. Avoid making a miscellaneous pile. This is what generally gets us into clutter mode to begin with. Make sure that similar items are kept together so that you can find what you need when you need it.

3) You may want to install some shelves in a closet or in the corner of the room. Shelves give you a space to put boxes, bins and other containers that are storing your belongings. Label boxes so that you can easily locate things when you need them. As a general rule, store things that you don’t need very often up higher or down lower than everything else. Place things that you use more often at about eye level so that you can have quick and easy access to them.

4) Get creative with storage space. There are lots of furniture pieces on the market that are designed to save space in small apartments or homes. Couches have armrests that open up to reveal cup holders, storage for remote controls, magazines, and more. Coffee tables have tops that open up to reveal storage. Even ottomans can open up and provide storage for blankets or anything else that you need them to. If you don’t want to spend a lot of money, check thrift stores and used furniture places for trunks and other things that can serve as storage or tables.

5) You can make more space in your closets than you realize by utilizing space saving hangers, like velvet hangers. These hangers are all the rage because they allow you to double or even triple the space in your closet. The slim design helps clothes to fit closely together. The finger clips and cascading hooks allow you to coordinate outfits. The possibilities are endless. You just have to use your imagination.

About the Author: Rick Miller is on the staff of Only Slimline Hangers, a leading online resource for velvet hangers which are space saving hangers, non slip hangers and slim line hangers. For more information, please visit http://www.onlyslimlinehangers.com.

11 July, 2011
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Quick Fix Closet Tips

It’s time to get creative with your closet and make some real, usable space in there. If you do it right, you’ll have that extra storage space that you crave. Most people complain that their home doesn’t have enough storage room, so this is a hot topic. If buying a bigger house isn’t an option, then you’ll need to do something to make even your small closets usable and spacious. Use these quick tips to get your closet in order fast. You’ll be glad that you did and you can enjoy the benefits every day.

1) The first thing is always to clean out the closet. Clothing can collect in there for years before you realize what a crowded mess you’ve created. Make sure that you have space on the floor or bed outside of the closet before you start. Then, go through and get rid of things that don’t deserve the space that they’re taking up. Old, out of style clothes, clothes that just don’t fit right, clothing that doesn’t match anything, and things that you just never wear need to go. If you have a lot of nice items to get rid of, consider having a yard sale, taking them to a consignment shop, or selling them online.

2) If you want your closet to stay uncluttered, you’ll need to come up with a system for getting rid of things as needed. You may want to install a hook in the closet to hang a bag on. This bag can be used for tossing in clothes as you realize that you really don’t like them as much as you thought you did. You can force yourself to get rid of something every time you put something new in the closet. As new shoes and clothes come in, old ones must go out. Many people find it helpful to turn the hangers backwards. As you use the clothes in the closet, turn the hangers forward. At the end of the season, get rid of the clothes that are still hanging backwards.

3) You will also need to come up with a good system for switching out summer and winter clothes. Out of season clothing can be stored in bins under your bed or in large containers in the top of the closet. When you store clothes for a longer period of time, you’ll want to be sure that they have cedar closet products inside. This will absorb moisture, preventing mildew from forming, making your clothes musty. It will also keep pests that damage clothing away from your stored items.

4) Find storage space inside and outside of the closet as well. Use the space on the back of the closet door, under the bed, in a cedar chest, and near the ceiling in the closet. Make good use of specialty hangers, like belt hangers, tie hangers, skirt hangers and cascading hangers to create more room and use less storage space around the room. Space saving hangers, like velvet hangers, are perfect for coordinating outfits, cascading multiple items from one hanger, and keeping your clothes hanging close together and wrinkle free while they’re in your closet.

About the Author: Rick Miller is on the staff of Only Slimline Hangers, a leading online resource for velvet hangers which are space saving hangers, non slip hangers and slim line hangers. For more information, please visit http://www.onlyslimlinehangers.com.

1 July, 2011
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Saving Space on a Budget

Space often comes at a premium in the bedroom, where clutter is most common in many homes. The bedroom is sometimes the last place that we think about cleaning, because it stays out of sight and out of mind until it is time to go to bed. But really, we do a lot in our bedrooms and they deserve our attention. You get ready for work, put away laundry, and essentially spend a good portion of your life sleeping in there. So, get ready to make your bedroom more spacious without spending a lot of money.

1) Choose furniture and decorations for your bedroom that also double as storage areas. A trunk is a good example of an inexpensive item that looks nice at the foot of the bed or underneath a window. You can use it for out of season shoes, blankets, pillows, extra clothing, holiday gift storage, or whatever you need. This small item can help you to take a lot of the clutter out of your room and make space in your closets and underneath your bed.

2) Speaking of under the bed, this is an often neglecting storage area. You may think that things under there would be hard to get to. However, if you use boxes or drawers on casters, you can store a lot of things under there that are easily pulled out for access. Many containers are designed to fit under the bed and they don’t cost much. You don’t really need anything fancy because your dust ruffle or blankets will cover them when they are pushed underneath for storage. You can also add risers to many beds to make even more space underneath.

3) Another way to create storage areas in your bedroom is to better arrange your closet. We all have a little extra square footage in there that we don’t realize we have. If you go in and add or move shelving around, you can usually make some more space in there. Check out the corners, front wall and ceiling of your closet. Is there unused space? Would it be better used by maneuvering your hanging bar or top shelf around? Experiment with your closet arrangement until you figure out a better use for the space. Sometimes just hanging your short items on one side and the longer ones on the other will create extra space below the shorter items.

4) The easiest way to quickly make space in your bedroom closet is to use space saving hangers, like velvet hangers. These hangers don’t only hang closely together, but they can also cascade from each other creating up to three times the space you had before.

About the Author: Rick Miller is on the staff of Only Slimline Hangers, a leading online resource for velvet hangers which are space saving hangers, non slip hangers and slim line hangers. For more information, please visit http://www.onlyslimlinehangers.com.