Making the Most Out of Your Living Room Storage Furniture
One thing that many people underestimate the importance of when it comes to their homes is the need for storage space. Some people try to find a place with a good amount of closet space, but that’s usually for the massive amount of clothes they own. Usually, people have a bunch of other stuff they’d like to store away, especially in the living room, which rarely has an attached closet.
So what do you do when your home doesn’t have a built-in place to store your extra stuff? Well, you have to make do with the furniture in the room. If you’re not sure how to make the most out of your living room storage furniture, we’re here to help. Plus, we have some bonus tips on places where you can store your extra stuff if you run out of space.
How To Store Things in the Living Room
Despite the typical lack of closet space, there are usually quite a few places to store your items throughout your living room. While some of these might be a little more obvious, others are potential options you might not have thought about before. Either way, we’re sure you’ll find these suggestions useful.
Display Everything You Can
Before storing anything away, set out as many items as you can. Even though the minimalist look is quite popular these days, if you own a lot of stuff, you won’t be fooling anyone by trying to hide it away. It’s better to display your items for all to see.
Of course, you don’t want to go overboard, though—there is such a thing as too much. In general, setting a few display items on top of your coffee and end tables will usually do the trick. If you overload them, it won’t look as good. Plus, no one will be able to set their drinks or personal items down while sitting in your living room.
Get a Large Media Display
Even though many people mount their TVs to the wall these days, you can’t go wrong with a large media display unit. The shelving options on these stands can be very useful for storing all kinds of items. Whether you still like to watch physical media or own a couple of gaming consoles, a media display will have plenty of shelving to set these machines on.
Plus, if you have an expansive library of movies and games, the drawers these stands usually have will fit many of them. For those of you that need more space or like to show off your collection, you can add additional shelving units to display your movie and games. However, in some cases, you might be able to find a TV stand large enough to have all the shelving you need for your collection.
Utilize Bookshelves and Wall Shelving
For everything non-media related, though, you’ll want to consider using bookshelves and other wall shelving units. This type of shelving is great for larger book collections or knickknacks you like to show off to your guests.
For those of you who like to collect figurines and other valuable items, these shelving units will be perfect for your displays. Ones with moveable shelves will give you a lot of flexibility, and if you want them to be extra protected, you can buy something with a glass door that keeps them from falling out.
If standard shelving units aren’t going to work for you, you should look into floating shelves. These attach right to the wall and add an interesting dynamic to your room. They’re also strong enough to support any of the items from above that you choose to display on them.
Regardless of the method you choose here, the goal is to utilize verticality. Trying to store a lot of items will take up a lot of space, so investing in shelving options that extend upward will save you a lot of precious floor space.
Buy a Specific Storage Cabinet
Of course, not everything in your living room will be items you want lying out for everyone to see. That’s why getting yourself a storage cabinet will be a necessity. These pieces of furniture are great for putting things you don’t use very often but would still like access to. Maybe it’s a couple of board games or extra boxes of tissue.
Regardless of what you might put in there, these storage cabinets are perfect for putting away anything extra you might have in your living room. If you don’t already own one, we have many affordable storage furniture options for sale here at Click N Furnish. We’re positive that at least one of them will fulfill your current storage needs.
Consider Discrete Storage Options
While the usefulness of dedicated storage options can’t be understated, sometimes your living room calls for something a bit more discrete. Fortunately, many ottomans and coffee tables can open from the top, giving you a secret place to store some hard-to-place items. In many living rooms, people use these spaces to store extra pillows and blankets, but the list of possibilities here is endless.
Other Places To Store Things
Now that you’ve learned how to make the most out of your living room storage furniture, it’s time to consider some additional storage options if you simply don’t have enough room after applying all our tips above. You shouldn’t have to utilize these in most cases, but it doesn’t hurt to be prepared.
Attic or Basement
While not all homes will have an attic and a basement, most will have at least one. It should go without saying that either of them will make for a great storage space for any extra stuff you couldn’t fit into your living room. You’ll just need to ensure the stuff you put into them aren’t items you’d like to use often. Attics aren’t easy to get into, and constantly running down to the basement for something can get annoying.
Storage Locker
Still, both of those options will be much more convenient than this one, which is a storage locker. Renting one of these is usually a last-case scenario because you won’t want to visit yours often to get stuff that you regularly need. Plus, they have a monthly cost attached to them. These lockers are best for things you only need once a year or for the next time you move.
Downsize a Bit
If worse comes to worst, your final option is to downsize. No one likes getting rid of their stuff, but if you have nowhere to put it in your home and don’t want to pay expensive storage locker fees, it’ll be your only option. The upside here is once you downsize a bit, your living room will look much better than it did before.