Creating a paradise away from the city

Most homeowners would like to have more storage in their home, for all those everyday items you collect over the years and which easily get in the way when you're trying to go about your day. If this sounds like your home, note a few storage hacks you can use that will keep items organized and at your fingertips, and out of the way of foot traffic.

By the front or back door

Kids often have a hard time keeping their items organized because they typically need different items for different activities; for example, they need books and homework for school, sporting goods for practice, and quiet toys for when you go out to eat. Invest in some affordable backpacks for your child and keep each one packed with those various items, and put them by the door; they can then easily grab one pack for school and another for when you're going out. This keeps all their toys, equipment, books, and other items organized while being stored in the packs, rather than taking up valuable closet space.

In the garden

If you hate walking back and forth to the garage or shed when it's time to work in the garden, or find that all your tools get disorganized in those spaces, stake a mailbox into the ground near your garden. You can use it to store your shears, handheld rakes, and other such pieces. You might also use a child's wagon for those tools; putting them all in the wagon keeps them separated from sporting goods and other pieces in the garage, and gives you an easy way to transport them to the garden for easy use.

Books

If you have lots of books but don't want to take up the space needed for a bookcase, buy some inexpensive rain gutters. You can hang these on the wall just as you would shelves, and they are a perfect way to organize those books while they stand up, with the cover showing. Since these can be cut to any size, gutters can work in any room of the home without taking up the same space as a bookcase.

Remember that if storage hacks don't work for you and you still seem to have too much "stuff," it's good to put some things in totes and bins and invest in a self-storage unit. This will get items like off-season clothes, holiday decorations, and sporting goods out of the way while still keeping them available when needed.