Figuring out the best storage solutions that work for our family has been something that just keeps evolving over time. When we built I tried to add as much as I could without breaking the bank. Inevitably we didn’t get everything I wanted, but I would say we have a pretty good start while also being able to make upgrades down the road. We have potential!

Primary Storage Solutions

Planning for the best functional storage began way before we even broke ground. I thought about what I liked about previous homes we’ve lived in and what was missing. I tried to add as much closed storage as I could (becuase we’re messy haha!) which started with built in storage. This included things we couldn’t, or didn’t, want to DIY.

We splurged on a few areas like the built ins around the fireplace that store all of the technology, the locker room and the kitchen/pantry. I love how functional our kitchen is with all drawers. It makes finding items so much easier. We made our pantry big enough to store all the food so I can see what we have at just a glance. No more going back and forth between the pantry & kitchen.

Our basement is unfinished so we put a lot of our storage down there. Things like Christmas and other holiday decor, season items such as our outdoor furniture, and all the kid toys. Hopefully in 5 or so years we can finish the space down there, but for now I’m thankful for the storage space.

Secondary Storage

Once I figured out the bones for each space I started thinking about how to make it more organized. Usually that meant adding baskets and bins to corral like items and make finding things easier. In the pantry I invested in glass jars to store dry goods. This made it easer to see how much we actually have and also made it more aesthetically pleasing. Win-win.

In the kitchen I bought the ziplock storage I’m sure you’ve seen every influencer on social media share. While they are nice, definitely not a necessity. I do however, recommend the bamboo drawer dividers. We’ve had some for years and work great to keep things organized. I also purchased acrylic drawer organizers for the bathrooms, my desk and our junk drawer. They’ve definitely helped to corral all the things and have also made cleaning crumbs out easier too.

To offset the cost of closed storage we did budget friendly closets in all the bedrooms which include only a rod and shelf. Someday we’d like to customize these, but for now they serve their purpose and we have more than enough room. We did add these cubbies for books and a few toys. As you can see they don’t need much since they don’t have much. Once they’re older and inevitably have more stuff we’d like to customize their closets more.

We’re far from organized in the garage (yikes!) but I did recently purchase a bike rack for the kids that came with a nifty shelf. Right now it’s holding life jackets since we’ve been headed to the lake or pool so frequently these days. I also ordered this wall tool storage and this heavy duty storage for power tools, rakes & shovels for husband for our anniversary, but he hasn’t gotten around to the install yet.

Things that are still on my storage solutions wishlist include a knife block for a drawer in the kitchen and more bamboo drawer dividers for the kitchen. Since I already bought the ziplock storage I’d like to also get the tinfoil cutter to go with, just because that will make my OCD happy.

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