I see those pictures all the time! You’ve probably seen them, too! You know the ones? The ones with perfect, very bright storage areas in the basement. The ones with the matching containers that might even be empty, sitting on a beautiful shelf and lovely labels on each bin! The ones where, if you really stop to think about it, you realize that you could never even fit all your stuff nicely into those bins! Those Pinterest pictures set up such disappointment sometimes.
I am going to let you in on the biggest basement storage solution ever!!
I may increase the anticipation as much as I can, though, because it’s just too good to dive right into! It’s almost like a top secret tidbit of info, only for those who have top clearance!
If you have struggled with your storage solutions in your basement, you definitely need this tip. It’s probably THE tip that can solve your organizing problems in your basement…forever! Ok, are you ready for it!? I am not even going to put it in big letters…
Get rid of your stuff!
There it is! It’s actually that simple!! Think about how many times you go to the basement to grab stuff. Think about what kind of stuff you are grabbing from the basement. I would guess that it might be food, cleaning supplies, seasonal décor, maybe it’s some camping gear or some other outdoor gear for whatever season you like to adventure through. Maybe it’s even tools. Or worse, maybe it’s long-term deep storage of who knows what!
If you are truly struggling with easy access to your stuff or with the ability to put all your stuff in a bin, try pairing it down – big time! It doesn’t mean that you have to get rid of all of it! Far from it! BUT, I imagine that you could likely get rid of at least a number of items that you don’t realistically use anymore. Even seasonal décor! Have you ever looked at what is left in one of your seasonal bins after you set everything up? Why have anything left in there at all?? It should all be up and on display! If you do have leftover stuff in the bin, even while the decorations are out, consider getting rid of it! If you are not willing to put it up, then why be willing to store it?
We are a gaming type of family. We like video games, but we especially love board games! When the kids were young, we had all kinds of games that they could play, but then we also had more advanced adult boardgames too. It created a huge amount of excess in our gaming shelf. We had to find a second storage area for our games! Now that the kids have grown up and we were able to get rid of a bunch of those younger kid games, we have way easier access to the games! Most basements are storing temporary needs, but that can add a ton of clutter and chaos to that dreamy organized basement!
So here it is…I repeat! The best organizing trick for your basement…
Get rid of your stuff!
If you find that there is a specific area of your basement that is just always disorganized, it may be time to take a closer look at the stuff rather than finding a better, costly solution. If you can start by getting rid of some of the stuff, you may find that whatever system you were using, is actually more than enough space to keep your stuff organized – it may have simply been that you had too much stuff to begin with!
So there it is! The big secret. Just get rid of your stuff. If you are home this weekend, try using 30 minutes to tackle a corner, a shelf, or a bin! Your stuff will be easier to get, easier to use, and most importantly, easier to put away!!
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