Hygge, lagom in every corner of the world, the philosophy of comfort and happiness is understood in its way. Scandinavians wrap themselves in blankets, the Japanese look for zen in natural beauty, and the Danes just do nothing. If you want to put your thoughts in order, then start by cleaning the house. No philosophy course, coach, or book will help you find happiness when you can't find a hairdryer at home.
We know that interior design, the area of the apartment, the number of things, and even the number of rooms are different for everyone. But there are a few life hacks that will help you organize your storage, no matter what design you have. We tell you what can be done so that things are easy to find, and order and comfort are maintained at home.
Storage of things in the apartment: one step from order to clutter
Most household problems begin with the fact that you simply do not know: do you have some kind of thing, where it lies, and whether you need it at all. Therefore, repeating things appear in the apartment, rubbish accumulates, you buy additional furniture for storage, but this does not help, and ... You have to act radically - to carry out a global audit.
The problem of the number of things and the lack of space to store them is especially familiar to those who live in small apartments. And she is also familiar to those who live in an apartment without a balcony (in this case, what is usually sent to a balcony dump accumulates right in the rooms - under the bed, in the closet, right on the floor, or on the mezzanine).
To prevent this from happening, at home it is necessary to store only the necessary and relevant. Remember the golden rule of the four categories! This is when, when conducting an audit, you divide all things (including dishes, clothes, and even furniture) into 4 categories:
- Leave (I need a thing, I like it, I use it regularly).
- Give to friends or give as a gift (working thing, in good condition, but I do not use it).
- Give it to a storage warehouse (the thing is working, I like it, but I don’t use it temporarily - for example, seasonal clothes, children’s things for growth, car tires, bicycles, or skis).
- Throw away (item in poor condition, broken or damaged, I do not use it and I do not like it).
After a global revision, you can start magic - apply secret and not-so-secret life hacks that will help make the apartment cozier, cleaner, and happier. And saving time and effort on not cleaning every weekend - isn't that happiness?
Life hacks for storing things in an apartment
Our advice can be applied immediately after you got rid of the trash and put into storage everything that you definitely won’t need in this season of the year. No bicycles, car wheels, or mountains of children's toys standing in the corner of the room forlornly! Let's start by finding out where is the best place to store things.
What places are better to use in storage and how?
Storage areas in the apartment are divided into open and closed. It's very simple: closed storage systems in an apartment are cabinets, drawers, boxes, chests of drawers, and open ones are racked, open hanging shelves, table surfaces. It is not necessary to stick to only one storage system, the most rational thing is to combine it. Closed systems have a huge plus in that things do not gather dust, they are not visible, and open storage has a clear advantage in that you can easily find a thing visually and can instantly take it from shelves and enjoy it.
For things that you use daily (cosmetics in the bathroom, gadgets, and appliances - a laptop, hairdryer, coffee machine, TV remote control), choose open storage systems.
If you use things less often, say a couple of times a week, use closed storage systems. For example, put the vacuum cleaner in a pantry or closet, photo albums and memorable souvenirs in a separate closed box and under the bed, and put it on a shelf in a closet.
Do not keep in front of your eyes and plain sight what you do not use daily - it is these things that create visual noise, collect dust and eventually lead to a mess.
Use non-obvious storage spaces:
- corners (you can hang corner shelves there and win a lot of space);
- walls (hang stylish organizers);
- console tables;
- niches;
- a place under the bed (not just on the floor, but in boxes on wheels or straw baskets);
- the reverse sides of cabinet doors (hooks or perforated panels can be hung there).