Follow my renovations on Instagram.

“Surfaces are not for storage”

surfaces are not for storage

I found this excerpt a while back on a Facebook page called becoming a minimalist. I wanted to share it with you today because I think it will resonate with a few people. I am not one to hoard or have excess clutter, but this still resonated with me. The principle being that “surfaces are not for storage” is a perfect way to look at areas within your home. I read the comments and people agreed OR expressed they have a lack of storage stopping them in their tracks.

I have pretty good storage at my house, but I am also ruthless and throw/donate things pretty easily.

What happens though if you have a complete lack of storage within your own home? What if your kitchen bench gathers stuff (notes, bills, chargers…) and you just have no where to put them?? The thing here is that you will need to create your own storage. Pinterest is busting at the seams with storage ideas! People love to write about that stuff.

Here are just a couple of ideas to get you going:

  1. Cheap shelving in your garage area. I picked up some free small bookcases and we stack all of our shoes in the garage against the wall. Shoes don’t live inside at our house (well my good ones do, but that’s about it!).
  2. Designate a kitchen drawer to kitchen mess. I have a space for all the bills, notes and random things in a drawer in my kitchen. Nothing is on the benches, but rather tucked away where no one can see the crap we collect.
  3. Can you use roof space? We can get up into ours through a manhole in our garage and we store all our Christmas stuff, spare suitcases, sporting gear (and god knows what else is up there!).
  4. Rent a storage space. These are popping up all over the place. I know in Wagga there seems to be a real need and it must be successful because there are plenty around. Cost wise I know this might not be an option, but it might be your only solution. I think it’s a perfect idea if you don’t have the space to put everything, but you need it all.

Anyway, food for thought today. Nothing feels better than getting the rubbish out. You might also like to read this post I wrote on Why Decluttering Is Good For You.

♥ KC.

11 comments

  • Vivienne Russell

    I don’t hoard as much now. I’m pretty ruthless as I just don’t have the room to store. At the end of the day if you pack it away you mustn’t really need it. Sentimental things are different, they need to be kept. I’m with you, I really dislike paperwork etc on benches but sometimes it’s a necessary, out of sight out of mind, things may get forgotten.
    Hope you’re feeling better

  • Karen O'Keefe

    That’s a good way to look at it!! Must make note to self!

  • Shauna Hollier

    After nearly 26 years in the same house with 5 kids I have sooooo much stuff it’s not funny but guess what? The kids are all grown up and moving on and in a few weeks I’ll only have one at home so I’m having a big clean out Salvos, garage sale, big skip whatever it takes lol
    I hope you’re feeling a little better Katrina xx

  • Kim

    Thank goodness, I will thought that I was the only one!

  • Anita Lane

    If I was building I’d make all surfaces on a slopa so the family couldn’t dump stuff (including floors lol)

  • Kylie Wood

    Totally agree
    And also great feng shui.

  • Melissa Schrader

    lol I say this aaaalllll the time to my family. I’m not winning

  • Chrissie Taylor

    I have NO storage my new home.
    None.
    Zip.
    So I’ve had to take the Konmarie method to a whole new level.

    I’m in the middle of preparing my first big job:
    Installing a kit garden shed to move all my stuff from my SINGLE garage into it.

    Perhaps you could do a post on levelling a sloped block to put a shed? Lol
    This one will not have a concrete slab due to plumbing etc underground.
    So I’ve researched and I’m investing in a groovy little shed kinda like a Little Tikes Cubby but for grown ups!

    • Emily Williamson

      I put together a flat pack shed. Make sure there is NO wind. A third person would be helpful too, we struggled with just the two of us to hold the pieces.

  • Georgie Johnine Rothacker

    Must get this made as a sign to hang in the kitchen!!! The bench becomes a dumping ground

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *