With winter coming up in a few short weeks, your home is sure to become abundant with coats, boots, shovels, skis and more. Certain rooms in your home, such as your entryway, mudroom, closets and garage become places to store all of this winter gear and can become messy and crowded. To keep everything organized and in its proper place, here are a few helpful storage accessories and tips.
Place absorbent mats on the floor. It sounds obvious enough, but placing mats to trap the water near entryways is a must. Also place absorbent mats around the areas where the winter items are stored, since there will be a lot of foot traction in this area. This will help make your job of cleaning easier and prevent your home from getting too dirty from outside debris. If you isolate the mats to just one space in the home, that will become the destination for taking off winter boots and coats, instead of having to clean up mud and snow all over the house.
Open storage works best. Instead of cramming things into old cabinets or drawers, utilize open storage. Open cubbies, shelves and cabinets allow you to see all of the items you’re storing and choose the necessary ones easily. More importantly, open storage allows for proper ventilation and air circulation for any items that have snow, rain or mud debris on them. This type of storage allows you to air dry your items while keeping everything at an arm’s reach. For shoes, look for a shoe organizer to separate the boots from sneakers and invest in a boot dryer if possible to speed up the drying process.
Add hooks. Hooks are great for hanging items that need to dry, like wet coats and snowpants. Hanging things also saves space on the bottom of the rack or closet, which is great for storing shoes.
Invest in baskets and storage bins. These types of storage containers let you place similar items together. For example, you can put gloves in one container and scarves in another, or even assign one bin to each child or person for their winter items. Grouping items together keeps things organized and easy to find in a last-minute rush. If the baskets or bins are stackable, they can easily be stored away when winter is over with.
Utilize door storage. Over-the-door storage racks or shoe organizers are ideal for smaller items like gloves, hats and scarves. Just make sure the items are properly dried and clean before storing them to prevent mildew.
Add storage racks in the garage. Instead of leaving your winter items on the ground everywhere, invest in some hanging storage racks for your garage, mudroom or shed. There are a large variety of options available, including shovel racks and racks for skis, snowshoes and snowboards. Any items that can be stacked or laid flat would fit on long shelves as well. For heavier winter gear that won’t fit inside the house, you can install coat racks in the garage or shed. Encouraging storage outside of the home (like in a garage or outdoor shed) frees up entryway space inside your home and reduces the clutter and mess.