Living Room Storage Tips
Living rooms are a place for relaxing, gathering, and spending time with your loved ones. They’re for living! And as we all know, living comes with a lot of clutter, whether it’s because you have children or because you live with someone who seems to have mess following them around. Either way, it’s a lot nicer to relax in a clean, decluttered space. But how can you achieve this without installing reams of big, boring storage cabinets against your walls?
In this blog, we’ll be sharing some of our favourite living room storage tips to help you find that balance between style and storage. From secret sofa space to creative shelving and fluted glass, if you’re stuck for storage inspiration, keep reading to find some…
Make use of vertical space
Running out of floor space? Think vertically!
By extending your storage to the ceiling, you’ll be making the most of every inch, and this can make a compact living room feel much larger, especially if you have alcoves or empty corners which aren’t being filled. With made-to-measure storage, you’ll both be styling your space and giving yourself plenty of room to store anything from books to photo albums to ornaments.
Get creative with shelves
For wall space where a full fitted unit is impossible - such as above a fireplace or existing piece of furniture - it’s time to think shelves. Floating shelves provide extra storage space for things you want on display, as well as giving height to lower tables or sideboards. Floating shelves can also fit into awkward corners, making the use of the space that would otherwise be left to gather cobwebs.
Use ottomans to combine storage and seating
Ottomans are a great secret weapon to have in your storage arsenal, as they don’t look like storage at all - and they provide comfort, whether they’re acting as an extra seat during a gathering or a foot rest on a cosy Friday evening. Many ottomans are hollow, providing room to store things like extra blankets or cushions when you lift the lid. This is perfect for decluttering your sofa space, and everything you put in there is easy to grab when you want it without having to get up.
Use the space under your sofa
Whilst we’re on the subject, settees can also provide some secret storage. If you’re in the market for a new sofa, you can look for one with built-in storage, but if your existing one has longer legs you’ll already have plenty of room to store things underneath. Just be careful not to overload it, as it can end up looking cluttered itself!
Double-duty benches and window seats can also provide extra storage, which can be ideal for hiding away shoes and providing a place to perch when you put them on.
Add side tables and sideboards
If you have plenty of floor space and some blank walls to contend with, adding side tables and sideboards will give you both storage and surface space. Decorate them with vases, statuettes, sculptures, plants, photo frames, and more. Side tables and sideboards can come with built-in shelves or even cabinets, the latter of which will allow you to hide away clutter such as wires, board games, or stationery.
Organise your wires
Speaking of wires… these are one of the worst culprits for making a living room look cluttered. There’s lots of methods of wire management that you can implement, especially around your TV. Cable tidies are particularly useful for hiding extension leads and you can install some subtle cable trunking to hide wires which run around the room.
Possibly the most effective way of hiding unsightly cables is to choose a TV unit which features cupboard space to hide them. Shelves can also be installed within the cupboards to allow you to store gaming consoles and other electronics away, further decluttering the space around your TV. Our solid wood TV stands are made-to-measure, so we can add whichever features you require, including space at the back of the stand to allow for simple cable management.
Combine open and closed storage
A mixture of both open shelves and closed cupboards will help you find balance in your living room design. Too many open shelves full of trinkets and your living room will feel overwhelming and cluttered, even when everything has its place - and you’ll be doing a lot more dusting. On the flip side, having storage which is all covered by doors can make your living room feel empty and closed-off.
Striking a balance between the two will also allow you to pick and choose which items you have on display and which you hide away.
Or sit somewhere in between with fluted glass
A modern answer to the frosted glass of 00s interior design, fluted glass is a super stylish way of half-hiding your less-stylish items in cabinets. The ribbed texture of the glass obscures the view of anything behind it without making your room feel closed off - as is the risk with solid cabinet doors.
You can even get window film which gives the appearance of fluted glass so you can achieve the look with your existing glass cabinets. You can tie in the fluted glass doors with a fluted glass lampshade or even fluted panelling.
Reclaimed Wood Coffee Table with Storage
Choose a coffee table with storage
Your coffee table is usually in the centre of your living room, making it a prime spot for things to be placed within easy reach - remotes, chargers, magazines, candles, books. A cluttered coffee table will quickly make the room as a whole look cluttered, so the power of choosing a coffee table with built-in storage cannot be understated.
You can go for open or closed storage or a combination of the two - a drawer or two can be particularly handy if you tend to put lots of smaller accessories or items on your coffee table. Whatever you choose, it will leave you with plenty of space on the coffee table’s surface to decorate it and keep it looking fresh.
Solid, Reclaimed Wood Storage Solutions, Made-to-Measure at the Bespoke Carpentry Co.
Here at The Bespoke Carpentry Co. we offer a beautiful range of solid wood living room storage solutions from shelves to sideboards to TV stands that celebrate the beauty and uniqueness of natural materials. Each piece of furniture is meticulously handcrafted by skilled artisans who take pride in their work, ensuring you get a product that not only looks stunning but also stands the test of time.
To get started, browse our range of pre-designed solid wood furniture online, give us a call on 01305 849386 or fill out our online contact form.
