Home Storage Idea Book

Every house needs storage space that you can get to easily, that holds a wide variety of items, and that is as flexible as possible. Using a room-by-room guide to the house, Joanne Kellar Bouknight shows how to make the most of your storage space, focusing on four key categories of storage: active, seasonal, dormant, and displayed.

With the help of detailed drawings and inspiring color photography, Bouknight provides practical, proven design solutions that will work for you -- whatever your style or needs.

Taunton's Home Storage Idea Book covers:

• storage basics
• entryway storage
• kitchen storage
• living spaces
• work-space storage
• bedrooms and closets
• bathroom storage

"Did you find a convenient place to store that new electric waffle iron you bought the other day? Here is a book that addresses the serious storage problems most of us suffer with today. Taunton's Home Storage Idea Book by Joanne Bouknight has interesting and practical storage ideas for every room in the house."

-- Chuck Williams, Founder of Williams-Sonoma, Hold Everything, and Pottery Barn

"I guarantee you'll find at least one brilliant idea for every room in your house. This is more than a book. Bouknight has written the storage bible for a new age of cocooners."

-- Marvin J. Girouard, Chairman & Chief Executive Officer of Pier 1 Imports

"A MUST read for everyone who wants to put away their stuff! Bouknight demystifies storage so we can all find our belongings and be more productive. Written with insight, intelligence and no small amount of common sense."

-- Lucy H. Hendrick, author of Get Organized in the Digital Age

Introduction

Storage Basics
Storage Design
Reconfigure, Replace, or Add On?

Entryway Storage
A Welcoming Entry
Stairway Storage
The Mudroom

Kitchen Storage
Storage Options
Storing Kitchen Gear
Storing Foods
Beyond Basic Kitchen Gear

Living Spaces
Freestanding Storage
Built-In Storage
The Entertainment Center
Fireplaces
Showcasing Art and Treasures

Work-Space Storage
Make Room for a Home Office
The Work-Space Desk

Bedrooms and Closets
Where to Store Clothes
How to Store Clothes
The Bed
Kids' Bedroom Storage

Bathroom Storage
Storage Areas to Consider
Storing Toiletries and Medicine
Storing Bathroom Linens

Resources

Credits

I watched a squirrel from my kitchen window this morning as it scuttled up a post, chomped madly on an acorn, dashed down the post, and zigzagged through the grass, looking for a place to bury the acorn. It took a few more bites, ran a few steps, stopped suddenly, dug a quick hole, and dropped in the acorn, scrabbling the soil and grass frantically across the top. "And you're going to remember where that one is next spring?" I said to the squirrel.

But, in truth, there was no good reason to feel smug; squirrels are not the only species rushing around looking for something stored months ago, somewhere. Take a March morning, the first day of spring soccer -- when shin pads, soccer cleats, and soccer balls have to be dug out of wherever they were tossed last November, grass and mud dried between the cleats, the ball now a bit wilted. Or take a Thursday night in December, when you remember that your kindergartner's class is supposed to decorate two dozen gingerbread cookies the next day. Where did you put that king-size jar of ground ginger that you bought last month? On the pantry shelf next to the baking powder? In the cupboard next to the flour canister? Maybe it's still in the crate with the 1,000 cups, plates, and napkins bought at the same big-box store. Where is that crate?

While we all know that life would be much more pleasant if we were all perfectly organized, trying to get to that point can feel like a monumental task. I hope that Taunton's Home Storage Idea Book will help demystify the process of designing good storage and help you use the resources available to create household storage that is both attractive and functional.

Approaching storage design systematically will help you tackle this big project, while also helping to ensure that the proper storage system is chosen. Taunton's Home Storage Idea Book moves through the major areas of a house with specific storage ideas and examples for each room. Keep in mind that this book shows storage in real, lived-in houses, with no product photos interspersed. You can learn a tremendous amount from studying catalogs and stores that sell storage products, and these products will solve many of your storage dilemmas. However, seemingly good storage concepts don't always translate to real-world functionality, so I've chosen to examine storage that works in its natural environment.

But before you begin, you must first rid yourself of what you don't really need or love. Life hasn't changed much since the 19th century, when Thoreau suggested that we "simplify, simplify." Do try to simplify, first by getting rid of old things that no longer have a purpose -- be it practical or sentimental -- and then by forging ahead and devising storage for the objects that you're pretty sure you can't live without, plus some.