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The storage library

Storage ideas for every room, every thing and every kind of home

Start from wherever your problem actually is. The room that has run out of space, the pile of things with nowhere to go, the home that will not take another cupboard, or the kind of storage you want to build.

Browse by spaceRead the planning guides

By space

Storage ideas by room and space

Start with the room or gap you are trying to fix.

A hallway with floor-to-ceiling built-in cupboards, one open showing coats and boxes, a bench with shoe cubbies and the underside of a staircase beyond

Closets, Halls & Garages

The rooms that exist purely to store things. Closets, wardrobes, hallways, understairs, garages, sheds, lofts and basements.

13 guides

An open-plan living space with low cabinets under a window, full-height shelving beside a chimney breast and a closed sideboard

Room Storage

Storage ideas for the rooms you live in. Kitchens, bathrooms, bedrooms and living rooms.

11 guides

A garden corner with a lidded timber storage bench, an open vertical tool store holding spades and rakes, a wall-mounted hose reel and stacked firewood under a lean-to

Outdoor & Garden

Weatherproof storage for gardens, patios, balconies and yards. Tools, bikes, firewood, cushions and bins.

5 guides

A utility room with a stacked washer and dryer under a worktop, shelving of folded laundry above, a pull-out drying rack and a broom and mop on a wall rail

Utility & Work Rooms

Storage for the rooms that do the work. Laundry, utility, home office, workshop, craft room and playroom.

3 guides

Three awkward spaces in use at once: a pull-out unit in the narrow gap beside a fridge, a shelf fitted into an alcove, and boxes tucked under a sloped ceiling

Awkward Spaces

The gaps most people write off. Under the sink, above the fridge, behind the door, in the corner, along the wall.

1 guide

By thing

Storage ideas by what you need to store

Start with the pile of stuff that has nowhere to go.

An open wardrobe arranged by category with hanging shirts, short stacks of folded knitwear, upright handbags on a high shelf, coiled belts in a shallow drawer and angled shoes below

Clothes & Personal Items

Storage for the things you wear and carry. Shoes, bags, coats, clothes, jewelry, makeup and toiletries.

5 guides

A hobby storage wall with transparent shallow drawers of sorted parts, upright board game boxes, vinyl records stored vertically, a basket of yarn and a bin of sports equipment below

Hobbies & Sport

Storage for collections and kit. LEGO, toys, board games, books, vinyl, yarn, fabric and sports gear.

6 guides

An airing cupboard with slatted shelves of folded towels and bed linen in labelled stacks, a vacuum bag holding a spare duvet on the top shelf and folded blankets below

Bedding & Linen

Storage for bulky soft goods. Blankets, towels, duvets, sheets, pillows, quilts and rugs.

3 guides

A workshop wall with a pegboard of hand tools on individual hooks, a drawer unit of labelled parts bins, coiled extension leads on the wall and timber offcuts stacked flat on brackets

Tools & DIY

Storage for tools, materials and cables. Hand tools, power tools, timber, paint, screws and extension cords.

1 guide

An open kitchen drawer from above with pans stood on edge behind peg dividers, pot lids in a vertical rack and a row of labelled spice jars in a shallow tray

Kitchen & Food Items

Storage for what lives in the kitchen. Pots and pans, food containers, spices, jars and dry goods.

1 guide

By home

Storage ideas by type of home

Start with the kind of home you live in and its limits.

A compact camper van interior with overhead lockers, a bench seat with drawers beneath, a narrow galley with retaining rails and netting across an open shelf

Home Types

Storage strategies that depend on the kind of home you have. Small houses, apartments, rentals, RVs, campers, vans and boats.

6 guides

By method

Storage ideas by method and approach

Start with the kind of storage you want to build.

A living room with a lift-top coffee table open to show blankets, a lidded ottoman used as a seat, and a bench with baskets underneath

Storage Furniture

Furniture that stores things. Storage beds, cupboards, shelving, benches, ottomans, trunks and carts.

1 guide

Start here

The storage problems people ask about most

The storage problems readers ask about most, each written in full.

How this works

How the storage library is organized

Category, then the thing itself

This hub lists every storage category. Each category page groups its subjects into sections, and each one gets a full article with measurements, clearances and buying advice.

Every link goes somewhere

You will not find a placeholder page here. If something is listed, it is written in full, which is why the library grows a subject at a time rather than arriving all at once.

Measurements, not mood boards

Every storage idea includes the dimension, clearance or load limit that decides whether it will actually work in your space. Read our editorial policy for how we research it.