Storage space is a precious commodity in our ever-accumulating homes. So, just when you thought you'd crammed your cupboards and stuffed all your shelves, there are still undiscovered depths in your house that could prove the perfect hiding places for clutter. Make use of every nook and cranny with these innovative storage places we've found for your home. Click or scroll on for more...
Wall panels are not only decorative but they can be practical, too. Choose a half-wall panel design and finish it with a narrow ledge to use as a shelf to display small, light trinkets, and to securely lean colourful artwork. Why not take it further by adding screw-in hooks to the underside of the ledge for hanging jewellery, bags, and other home accessories?
It's no secret that bikes are awkwardly shaped and take up a lot of space. Storing them can be a real issue, so make the most of tricky spaces in your garage, hallway, or shed by installing bicycle hooks on your walls. You can then neatly stack your bikes away, keeping the floor free for other uses.
In most kitchens, tiny gaps go unused. This creative solution from trusty IKEA uses slimline shelving mounted on wheels to hold condiments and kitchen sundries that would otherwise take up cupboard space. Genuinely ingenious! We love the fresh pop of green against white cupboards, too.
Vacant ceiling space is another fantastic resource that most of us are not making the most of. Perfect for garages, a ceiling rack can securely store equipment, bikes, and DIY materials. Easy to install, ceiling racks can be height adjustable, plus you could hang hooks off them for additional storage purposes.
As most kitchens contain a microwave, these days it's rare we need to use the warming drawer under the oven to keep food at serving temperate. So, instead of making it redundant, use it as handy storage for slim baking dishes and pans instead.
Need more room in your small kitchen? Look up! The fifth wall is often a forgotten storage solution that can be used to hang pots and pans or hook up hanging planters to grow fresh herbs. Perfect for keeping essentials handy while prepping and cooking meals.
Add intimacy to your open-plan living space with stand-alone shelving that doubles as a room divider. Not only will it help to zone off areas, but it will add plenty of all-important flat surfaces to place things on. What's more, the slim design of the shelving means that you won't block out too much light, either.
A kitchen island is often high on a new kitchen wish list. Make the most of your practical focal point by looking for a way to increase storage possibilities. A built-in wine rack at one end can keep bottled beverages neatly stored and safe. Alternatively, an additional shelf hidden under the breakfast bar can make a discreet home for placemats and table linen.
Double bespoke wardrobes create plenty of bedroom storage but never overlook the opportunity to create more. Here, the alcove between the two closets fits a stylish bed. The space above has also been utilised thanks to a wall-mounted floating shelf to store and display a library of bedtime reading material.
A traditional fireplace can look empty and unloved if it's not in use. But styled up like this pretty pastel display by @Yvestown, it will not only make useful storage but can become an attractive feature of the room. Install shelves to make a quirky and quaint library or fill it with chopped wood ready to feed a working fireplace elsewhere in the home.
An enclosed porch has many benefits—it makes your home energy efficient, it can act as additional security, and it offers a warm welcome for visitors. But don't forget that extra space can also be put to good use. It's a perfect spot to store a large basket on the floor for stashing hats, scarves, or shoes, and an umbrella stand will stop rainwater dripping in the hallway.
Partition walls have space in between each panel, so why not put it to work by cutting out recess storage? This tiny bedroom would look cluttered and cramped with extra stand-alone bookshelves, however, the cubby hole wall storage at ceiling height looks well-designed and stylish.
Take a look at the top of your kitchen cabinets; they might be a bit high but they're still valuable space. Measure the gap between the ceiling and the cupboard, and slot in storage boxes or wooden crates to keep supplies and small appliances that are used less often hidden. That way your kitchen will still look organised rather than cluttered.
If the side of your fridge stands free from a wall, invest in an overhanging shelf. It's designed with ledges that clip to the top of the fridge and has supported shelving—ideal for condiments and packets that don't need chilling. This one has a pole for kitchen paper and hooks for tea towels—how handy!
Garden shed full to the max? Utilise other areas of your outdoor space. A raised deck or patio area has plenty of room underneath to store decking cleaners, tools, and collapsable garden furniture like deck chairs. You'll need to consult a tradesperson for this project as the area will need waterproofing and new drainage for the deck above installed.
If there is plenty of room to move around it, the end of your bed makes an optimal position to keep a storage trunk or ottoman for folding fresh bed linen and extra blankets. Choose one with a padded lid so it can double up as a comfortable bench—handy for perching on to put your shoes and socks on.
Sometimes you will find a storage solution in unexpected places. The narrow nature of a TV media unit means that it will fit snuggly at the end of a bed. Use the flat surfaces to rest your morning coffee, while the drawers underneath will work well as additional nightstand storage.
Bathrooms are renowned for their lack of storage space, so installing a bath panel with a cupboard or sliding doors is a brilliant solution. It's the perfect place to hide away cleaning products, leaving the vanity free for stashing toiletries, towels or other bathing essentials.
Kickboards at the bottom of cupboards add a professional finish to kitchen units but they often block off useful space. Swap the boards for pull-out storage on runners to create a whole new set of low-level drawers just waiting to be filled. Opt for soft-close drawers so you can easily nudge them shut without the loud clatter.
Make good use of where kitchen corner joints meet by installing a pull-out corner carousel. Add one at the lower level to store pots and pans and another in the cabinet above to easily retrieve food or crockery. It's a handy device that should be a kitchen storage staple in every fitted kitchen.
The space underneath your bed is calling out to be used! It's the ideal spot for drawers on wheels, which are great for keeping lesser-used clothing and seasonal items. Go for budget-friendly clear plastic containers that allow you to see the contents at a glance or splash out on bespoke made-to-measure drawers that match your bedroom furniture.
Attached to the underside of open shelving, these simple screw hooks make the most of the under-used space between shelves. Alternatively, the humble S-hook is a simple and effective addition to a kitchen rail, providing somewhere for mugs, utensils, and tea towels to hang.
Nearly everyone has wall cabinetry in the kitchen, but which clever soul thought of adding an extra shelf in the usually wasted space directly underneath it? It's the perfect place to store your favourite mugs that get used most often.
Talk about a classic storage hack! Turn your vacant internal door panels into a place to store your pan lids. Thanks to the awkward top handles, lids are almost impossible to stack and store, so these stick-on silicone grippers are a godsend.
If you don't have a cupboard under your staircase, you can still steal back precious square inches with some bespoke cabinetry. This nifty solution, designed by Zugai Strudwick Architects, is such an obvious use of wasted space, we're surprised that every home doesn't have them. Perfect for keeping shoes, toys, and household items out of sight.
Suitcases take up lots of space. Make the most of them by packing coats, out-of-season clothing, or smaller bags inside them. Vacuum-packing your items will also allow you to add double the capacity of your suitcases. These vintage metal trunk versions look super stylish and no one will know they are packed full of clothes when shut tight.
Kitchen cupboards are often poorly designed, resulting in overcrowded shelves with lots of dormant overhead space. A plastic, metal, or wooden stacking shelf could be the answer to your kitchen storage problems since they provide an extra level within a cupboard. Some even pull out on rollers. A stack shelf means you can utilise your cupboards much more efficiently, doubling the usable surface area in one easy step!
The space in a converted attic or loft can often be an unusual shape, which needs a bespoke storage solution to make the most of it. Fitted cupboards can be installed flush into the sloping eaves or—for an easier project—these ambient illuminated bookshelves make a cosy library corner.
If you're looking for seating in your hallway, go for a bench that also doubles up as a clever storage unit. A two-in-one bench with added drawers and a low-level shelf not only provides somewhere to put on your shoes but a place to store them, too! Combine with a slimline coat rack and umbrella stand for additional hard-working hallway storage.
Take a tip from Austin Maynard Architects and build extra space into the fabric of your home. This contemporary open-plan house has a raised floor to incorporate cavities for extra storage, which are accessible through pull-out drawers and trap door compartments.
Corners can also be a fantastic place for external shelving. Floating, wraparound shelves allow you to make the most of every inch of wall space—just be careful not to fit them in tight spaces and give yourself enough room to manoeuvre around them.
Alcoves often have a quirky appeal but can be a little redundant. Maximise your interior space by turning awkward corners and narrow nooks into useful storage spots. Create handcrafted shelving in your bathroom for stacking towels and toiletries, or turn a small recess in your living room into a makeshift bookcase.
Speaking of corners, make the most of your bathroom walls by erecting a corner caddy for storing all your bathtime essentials. Some racks attach to walls or baths using suction pads or tension rods, so you needn't drill into your tiles to add extra storage to your bathroom.
You can even create a shelf in the most unlikely of spots. The space above internal doors, for example, is generally left empty. Adding shelving above a door frame will give you a narrow but practical spot to store towels, shoes or even books—and you can customise its usage from room to room.
If you're not lucky enough to have a vanity with built-in drawers, then why not consider maximising the space below your basin? Under-sink shelving units are specially designed to slot together, leaving a gap for any exposed pipework. The RÅGRUND from IKEA, for example, is triangular, meaning you can use your washbasin for storage by putting two shelves side-by-side.
If you're a keen cook, you may be short on space for your spices and herbs. Stay organised with a smart, wall-mounted spice rack, which will turn dormant wall space into somewhere to keep your most-used ingredients. Whatever your cuisine of choice, your favourite flavours will always be at grabbing distance.
If you have a compact kitchen, then your worktop space will be in short supply. Maximise your counters by adding a non-permanent corner unit. Ideal for storing spices, oils, or mugs, a raised corner shelf will allow you to utilise the space underneath and can be moved to meet your needs.
If you don't benefit from under-stair cupboards or built-in drawers, then maximise this vacant space by adding shelving, stackable storage boxes or a moveable bookcase, where you can keep all sorts of household items. Invest in custom-built solutions by asking a carpenter to create bespoke units to fit the space exactly or go for budget-friendly readymade solutions you can tailor to suit your needs.
The space behind your internal doors is the perfect spot to create additional storage. From coat hooks to shoe organisers, which are specifically designed to be long and narrow to fit the width and height of a standard door panel, you can create extra storage. Plus, shoe organisers can also be used for a number of other purposes, including storing beauty products, toys, gardening tools, and even food items in your kitchen pantry.
If you can use hooks inside, you can certainly use them outside. Hooks are a fantastic storage option for cramped garages or sheds, where space is limited. Simply install some strong hooks and tie string around the end of your tools to keep them organised and within easy reach. You can also add hooks to your external walls for hanging up dirty boots, recycling bags, or plant pots.
If you're an avid handbag buyer, it's likely you've run out of storage space for your collection. Utilise the internal space of larger bags by keeping purses or smaller handbags inside them, making your collection both pretty and practical.
The space under your stairs is calling out to be used! Under-stairs cupboards prove that storage doesn’t always have to be obvious. Utilise your redundant interior pockets to create ideal spots for storing shoes, coats, or household items, keeping clutter nicely tucked away.
Have you ever considered how useful the area behind your bed could be? A handmade headboard is a perfect choice for people with limited bedroom space. Create built-in shelves or cupboards where you can keep essentials without cluttering up the rest of your room.
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