Sneaky Storage Solutions

Whether you are settling into a new dorm room for the school year, an apartment post-graduation, or just trying to make better use of the space in your long-time home, this post is for you. A cluttered environment can take a toll on your happiness by impeding your ability to truly relax. So, with a little help from Goodwill – an entrepreneurial leader, environmental pioneer, and social innovator of the “reduce, reuse, repurpose” practice –, today we’ll be chatting about a few ways you can use the three Rs to maximize storage without bringing home ugly containers for organizing.

Image via pinterest.com/visitgoodwill

Our first tip is to utilize unseen space (like the space under your bed!). Take a moment to look around the room you’re currently in. Is there any shadowy nook that is currently only housing dust bunnies? It isn’t hard to turn that into storage with the addition of easily repurposed drawers like these that were shared by Goodwill Industries of Northeast Iowa (Waterloo) on their Upcycled Goods pinboard. This is the perfect way to stash clothing, shoes, and handbags in the bedroom or DVDs in the living room. Maybe you have space under the bathroom cabinet that could be used to house spare towels. No matter what you’re stashing or where, these sweet little drawers are a quick weekend project that can make the most of your space. Check your local Goodwill for an old dresser to work with!

Image via amazinggoodwill.com

The next tip on our list is to hide things in plain sight! This may look like just an ottoman, but, of course, there’s storage inside. Merri from Goodwill Industries of Southeastern Wisconsin (Milwaukee) found this great piece in her local Goodwill, but since it had some stains she knew it needed a little facelift. After re-covering it with a thrifted shirt and giving it a fresh coat of paint, it fit better aesthetically into her proposed space so she could reuse it as a foot rest/coffee table (with a tray on top)/sneaky storage solution. Check out her post for more details!

Image via facebook.com/groups/LularoeKaraMiller

Lastly for today, is the ultimate storage hack: reducing! It may seem like a surprising tip, but when you have less to store, you need less storage! One really easy way to reduce the amount of stuff you have is to choose items that can be used or, in this case, worn multiple ways! The LulaRoe Cassie can be worn as a skirt, top, and scarf which Goodwill shopper Lindsey Elderbrook points out on her wardrobe pinboard, and yes – it might be found at Goodwill! Since thrift stores are stocked by donations, there’s always a chance that a specific LulaRoe piece that you pined over and never got might magically appear on their racks. Triple bonus points to you if you score it second-hand, can wear it three (or more!) ways, and for a fraction of the original price. May the thrift gods be forever in your favor.

I frequently forget that just by shopping at Goodwill I’m helping to save the environment, but when I think about how often my trips there result in one of the three Rs, it’s easy to see. This is just one of those incredibly easy ways that I can minimize my environmental impact, maximize my positive community impact, and find unique stuff all at the same time! I hope today’s tips gave you some great weekend project inspiration! Do you have any other sneaky storage solutions to share with us?