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Greetings!
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February is a challenging month for homeowners. The holidays are behind us, yet spring is a few months away.
It's the perfect time to make changes at home to support your lifestyle, the one you're living today and changes you would like to make. This is especially true for those who might have moved but are waiting for the housing market to improve before buying, selling or both.
This newsletter provides you with great ideas about creating more space within the home you already own, and organizing tips to make better use of that space.
Change can be stressful, so take it one project at a time. It also makes sense to focus on one special room, so that you can see and enjoy the improvements quickly.
Tina Gleisner, Everyone's Handywoman PS Hope to see many of you at tomorrow's Open House in Portsmouth NH. For details, click here. PS Don't have time to update your email profile, you can download your FREE Home Energy Report here ... or Call to learn about our Home Energy Audit!
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How to Create More Storage in Your Kitchen 
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They say a picture is worth a thousand words, so today's article will combine the best of both. Places to create more space and storage in your kitchen: - Add an island or if you don't have enough room, a rolling cart
- Add a wall of pantry style cabinets. Use 12 inch deep cabinets, floor to ceiling (below, to right of refrigerator) if space is limited. One project needed a doorway moved 18 in, to free up 6 ft.
- For hard to reach shelves, add sliding drawers that take the place of fixed shelving.
- Sometimes a built-in cabinet like the window seat below, creates storage (large and tall pots) without taking up visual space.
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| Find More Space, More Storage in Living Areas |
We have lots of different living spaces from traditional living rooms,
formal dining rooms, family rooms and more. As we spend a lot of time
in these spaces, we can always use more functional space and storage
for books, crafts, media, etc. Here are ideas for how you can enhance your living space:
- Built-in bookcases
will optimize the space you have versus traditional bookcases come in
fixed widths and heights. The bookcase below also helped to define a
gathering/work space separate from the family room entertainment area.
- Treat furniture as an investment
and pick practical pieces that can perform more than one function
(bench or coffee table below right) and work in more than one room,
i.e. this piece started in the family room and moved to the bedroom.
- Furniture that doubles as storage
- platform beds with drawers underneath, tables that store extra leaves
and sometimes chairs when folded. I like getting catalogs from Crate and Barrel and Pottery Barn, for ideas like desk tops that sit on top of file cabinets or bookshelves.
- Utilize every opportunity for "extra space" like the exposed foundation below with 12 in deep shelf to wall shelves that hold framed photos and smaller collectibles.
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| Where Do You Hang the Coats? |
While it is common to have a closet near the front door, many homes lack one. Here are creative ways to keep your front entryway neat and organized, especially when you don't have a nearby closet:
- Combining hooks and shelving to meet family member "front door storage" requirements from coats to backpacks and sports equipment.
- A window seat is a perfect place to sit and safely on boots or outdoor shoes. Even better, you can store them inside the window seat.
- Less expensive are console tables to store the most common things we take with us when leaving the house. Shoes are hidden under the lower shelf, pet or sports equipment are easy to toss into the baskets and there are 2 drawers for paperwork, keys, etc.
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Basement & Garage Storage Ideas
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Americans use their basements and garage to store things like food, craft supplies, holiday decorations, tools, gardening supplies. We have a plan for using everything immediately but today's busy lives get interrupted, so it's important to create a good storage system so you can find things. There are many possibilities from simple, 2x4s and plywood to standard kitchen cabinets. We've created some incredible storage solutions for our clients including:
- Custom shelving in basements, garages and attics to fill all available space
- Assembled and installed basic cabinetry from the Lowes and Home Depot
- Recycle old cabinets when remodeling a kitchen or bathroom. They'll work well for a laundry area, basement and/or garage storage (once put corner cabinets into a new bedroom closet).
- My Handyman frequently builds storage on the garage ceiling for less frequently used items like camping gear or single season sports equipment.
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| Links that Make Life Easier |
Some
related to home maintenance, repairs or remodeling ... and sometimes
they're just fun things we've seen that are worth sharing:
National Association of Professional Organizers (NAPO)
If you need help getting organized, you can work with a professional organizer. The link will take you to their web site , . They're really great at helping you let go (get rid of) stuff youhaven't used for years.
Materials for Organizing At Home
You
are ready to start organizing your home but not sure what steps to
take? There are many resources available to help you. This article
provides a starting point to see the breadth of materials available to help you get organized.
Google
If you're looking for more ideas, inspiration, etc, use google and search for "creating more space". You will find great information for small bedrooms, children's bedrooms, outdoor living spaces, etc.
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