What do your storage spaces look like? Do you know exactly where to go when you are looking for something? Is your system logical? Designing a meaningful storage space requires a lot more than just putting stuff in a closet, drawer, or cabinet. You need STRUCTURE — some proven guidelines to follow while setting up your storage spaces. Let’s begin with these basic organizing principles:

PLAN BEFORE YOU ORGANIZE

You can’t create a truly useful space unless you have an END RESULT in mind. Start by asking yourself what you want from your storage. Are you concerned about maximizing space? Being able to see everything you own? Protecting your treasures? Cutting down on time spent dusting? Creating a focal point for the room? Displaying or concealing your belongings?

Then remember these objectives as you organize. Your choice of supplies and storage location should be determined according to what you hope to accomplish with your organizing efforts. Everything you do — whether it’s cleaning out or buying a container or expanding a closet — should be an effort to accomplish these goals.

BIRDS OF A FEATHER

Look around your house — do you see anything that is clearly out of place? Any bowling balls stored in the kitchen or power tools thrown in with the toys? Don’t laugh — I’ve actually seen both of these situations! Your storage will serve you better if you think in terms of logical categories. Think back to those exercises when you were in kindergarten — “which of these things go together.”

Begin by sorting your belongings according to purpose — sports, travel, grooming. Then group similar items together travel accessories with your luggage, rags in the same place as other cleaning equipment, office supplies in one spot. Don’t forget accessories and related items — keep the knife sharpener with your cutlery and the extra bits with the drill.

GET IT TOGETHER

Before you can create an organizing “grand plan,” you need to take stock of your belongings. Do you have sporting goods scattered all over the house, clothes in three different closets, and miscellaneous “homeless” items here and there? Make a room-by-room tour — be sure to collect up everything you want to store in a particular storage space BEFORE you begin organizing. There is nothing more frustrating than designing the perfect closet, then realizing that you forgot 15 pairs of shoes!

LOCATION, LOCATION, LOCATION

A large part of being organized is having a set spot for everything you own. As you sort through your stuff, create a pile of “homeless items” that need to be incorporated into your storage spaces. Then do your best to find a logical place for each — no halfway spots allowed! You shouldn’t have to guess where to put something.

Each time you assign an item to a storage space, ask yourself why you are stashing it there. Because it’s close to where you will use it? Because it will be easy to see or reach? Because that’s the first place you would think to look for it? If you don’t have a GOOD REASON for storing an item in a certain place, please rethink your decision. The worst mistake you can make is to randomly stash your belongings around your home or office — how will you ever find them again?!

MOVEMENT MATTERS

Getting at your belongings shouldn’t require a lot of strain or effort. Take a quick look at your existing storage — do you bend and stretch to reach items you use all the time? You can make your life great deal easier by keeping motion in mind as you organize. Throughout your home or office, you will find a variety of places in which to stash your stuff.

Storage spaces that fall at or near eye-level are considered PRIMARY storage — these areas are easily accessible, and should really be reserved for items you use on a daily basis. Look around — is your primary storage cluttered with objects you rarely touch? Could these be moved a bit further away — to a SECONDARY storage area between knee and shoulder height? And what do you do with those incredibly inaccessible spaces — such as the garage, high cabinets, or the back of the closet? This TERTIARY storage is meant for items that you use only a few times a year — like holiday decorations, memorabilia, and archived records.

MAKE THE BEST USE OF YOUR SPACE

You should strive to choose a storage space that is APPROPRIATE for it’s contents. There are so many factors to take into account — an object’s size, shape, “breakability,” and weight. Are you storing heavy boxes on a high shelf? Sounds like a concussion waiting to happen! And you should always try to match form with function as you evaluate your storage spaces — how can you best use shallow shelves, a tall thin cabinet, or a deep desk drawer? Organizing requires a balance between creativity and common sense.

PROTECT YOUR TREASURES

You can’t just throw any old box of stuff in a storage space and call it “organized.” Some of your belongings are going to require a little more special treatment. Even those items that you wouldn’t normally consider to be “fragile” can be damaged by the climate. Attics, garages, and basements are usually the most at-risk. Are your storage spaces climate-controlled? Do they get really hot in the summer? Cold in the winter? Damp when it rains or is humid? Do you have problems with insects or other rodents? You may need to wrap an item, toss in some cedar chips, or purchase a special container before you stash your belongings away. If you think there is any chance of damage, pick a different storage space.

STORAGE “PARAPHERNALIA”

Have you ever had to open 6 different boxes to find what you were looking for? Organizing supplies should make your life easier, not hide your belongings away from the light of day! Use see-through clear plastic containers and label everything — shelves included! You should immediately recognize the contents simply by looking at the container. Accessories such as drawer / shelf dividers, lazy susans, pull-out baskets, and stackable shelves can also help you make the most of your storage by subdividing larger spaces.

PREPARE FOR THE FUTURE

Remember that your storage is an ever-changing and dynamic part of your life. You can’t just set up a storage system and think that you are “finished.” As you acquire new possessions — as your lifestyle and interests change — your storage needs will evolve. The first rule is don’t fill your cabinets, closets, and drawers to capacity. Leave approximately 15% of your storage space free for all those great future purchases. Also be willing to adjust your system as your needs change — what seemed like a good idea at one point may require some improvement down the road.

With the versatility and portability that plastic storage boxes offer kitchens across the United States, there is an increasing trend that is urging people to get organized. The unique lid features in some of the clear plastic storage boxes clamp down and give dust-free protection to valuables throughout the year. A plastic storage box also offers water protection to minks and furs.

There are decorative storage boxes that will give beauty as well as convenience to storage areas that are small and drab. The more popular wooden storage boxes are often used to stack craft projects in organized rows. Any storage box is meant to add convenience to the life of the user. With the use of decorative storage boxes and storage boxes made of wicker, home owners are creating a new shabby chic style in their bathrooms.

For the periodical collectors, who want to protect a large number of collectible issues, there are magazine storage boxes that provide built in cardboard spacers to protect each issue from dry rot, and water damage, through the use of plastic covers that allow the items to be handled with causing damage to the covers.

Men prefer the serviceability of aluminum trailer storage boxes. They have found that these useful storage boxes hold up well even though they are constantly being exposed to the elements of wind and rainy weather. The aluminum storage boxes help to organize feed and tack equipment in an orderly and controlled manner inside horse trailers as they travel down the highway.

With scrap booking enthusiasts, photo storage boxes offer a creative outlet in designing the perfect gift for a photographer or friend that recently had a baby. With ample access to embellishments that they have organized in clear plastic storage boxes, they can quickly find the right accessory to create marvelous memory books.

For genealogy history buffs, the use of photo storage boxes will aid in compiling a photographic history of past and present family members. Any storage box can hold the materials that the crafter uses to label the photographs and add mounting corners to create a wonderful record of family history.

There is a macho statement that is exhibited on the major highways of today, and in parking lots across America. The statement is shown in the back of pick-up trucks that have installed aluminum trailer storage boxes just behind the cab, and inside the bed of the pick-up truck. With the shine and gleam, these decorative aluminum storage boxes divide in the middle and provide convenient access to tools when on the job.

Whether you choose to use plastic storage boxes inside your home or wooden storage boxes in basement areas where past years of work can be archived, these versatile containers will keep all areas neatly organized. Magazine storage boxes will be greatly appreciated in corporate libraries where all issues of business and technology magazines can be used as ready reference materials during board meetings. All of the outstanding uses that a plastic storage box serves, will not cost the company a large amount of money to purchase and will last a long time.