Everyone needs storage cabinets. I think it is important to have some sort of storage cabinet or closet in every room of the house. Storage cabinets help to keep your belongings organized. Proper use of your storage cabinets can also help each room appear less cluttered.

There are many different types of storage cabinets. Some are built into the structure of your house. Others are free standing and are not integral to your house. Of the built in storage cabinets, some are flush with your walls while others are attached to the wall and stick out into the room. Although I have preferences amongst the different types of storage cabinets, all provide benefits and the use of them should be optimized.

One thing to remember if you are using storage cabinets for your belongings is that since they are typically have less room than closet storage, you tend to stack things up in cabinets, resulting in the possibility of musty items, and even worse, mold or mildew if moisture is able to reach your belongings. Make sure to use cabinet storage only for items that are rotated on a regular basis. You should generally follow the rule that, other than for keepsake items, if you are leaving items in storage for longer than one year, you should seriously consider whether you really need to store it, or whether it would be best to just give it away to charity and free up that extra space for more often used items.

In my experience, bathroom cabinets are one of the worst offenders when it comes to wasted cabinet space. This is not to say that your medicine cabinet and vanity drawers are empty, quite the opposite. Leaving cabinets chock-full of expired, outdated and unusable medicines and half empty shampoo samples, and old razor handles for which you can no longer find blades, is storage sacrilege. One trick I like to use is to leave everything on the counter that I used over the course of a week or two. This makes it much easier to identify the essentials and figure out what you can really get rid of without missing. Don’t even think about the prescriptions and medications - get rid of anything which has expired, and replace the most important items such as Ibuprofen and allergy medications.

For reasons I could never understand some rooms were built without closets or storage cabinets. In the case of such rooms storage options will have to be added. The choice of added storage will depend on your tastes and budget. There are fabulous antique wardrobes and storage cabinets that can be picked up from boutique antique collections. Check your Yellow Pages for the contact information of antique dealers in your area. Equally functional and much less expensive options can be found at stores like Ikea.

Storage systems are not always the first things that come to mind when you think of a happy home, but don’t dismiss the peaceful and calming effect that a well-organized non-hectic home can effect. Remember, an organized house is a happy house, and if you lack closet storage, then cabinet storage may be just the thing to end your storage dilemmas.

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