Home Tree Atlas: Home Decor Ideas and Mood Boards

Smart Small Closet Ideas and Storage Organization Tricks

There is a lot that you can do to make the most of a small closet space. Simple storage and organization hacks such has hanging up hooks on the inside of the doors, or using hanging baskets can help add more storage space. In this post you’ll find all of the smart and inventive small closet ideas you’ll need to make the most of your space.

The Clothes We Use The Most

If you do have a small closet, the first thing that you might want to do is to start purging, getting rid of some of your clothes. This little fact might help make it easier: we usually only use 20% of our clothes 80% of the time. That means that the other 80% of clothes we have, we only use 20% of the time. So try and figure out which clothes you use the most and get rid of the others.

And if you live in a seasonal place, then look to switch out your clothes and store out of season clothes either under the bed, in the attic, or in garage.

Creative Ways to Add Storage in Your Closet

Here are some ways to make extra storage space in your closet:

See if you can add storage space to the inside of your closet doors. Fit hooks and railings to hang up items. Or you can get over the door closet organizers.
You can get hanging baskets that fit onto your shelves. This way you use the entire height of each shelf making sure no space is wasted – just like the shelf in picture (5) that is storing the small towels or the socks in picture (6).
If you have a large void under your clothes railing, see if you can put in some shelves.
Make the most of the height of your closet – just like the closet in picture (1). Hang shelving all the way up to the ceiling. Or if you have a free standing closet, then look to get good looking storage baskets/containers such as matching wicker baskets. This way you can store things above the closet and it will still look good.
If you need to store a lot fo scarves, then have a look at my post here: Creative Ways of How To Store Scarves

Smart and Simple Small Closet Organization Ideas

What is smart about the small closet design in picture (4) is that you have most of the clothes hanging on a railing on the bottom half of the closet. Most closets will have the railing up high and then have shelving down low. But this means you have to bend down to get to the shelving. Having the clothes railing down low doesn’t make it harder to get the clothes, and leaves you with shelving space above, which is easier to get to.

If you have draws then look to get draw dividers to help organize them and keep them clutter free. The same can be done with shelving by using shelf dividers just like in picture (5)

If you need to store small items in your closet (toiletries, jewelry, cufflinks, etc.) then get a basket or tray so these items that be grouped together tidily – just like the metal basket in picture (5).

For ideas on how to store your shoes, have a look at my post here: Unique Closet and Entryway Shoe Storage Ideas

Creative Ways to Add Storage Around Your Bedroom

Here are some ways to add more storage around the bedroom to help store your clothes:

On the back of the bedroom door, see if you can fit hooks or railings. Again there are over the door organizers.
Put up a shelf over the door frame.
IKEA has storage solutions that can slide under your bed
Get a good looking wooden crate/trunk, or wicker hamper that you can use to store clothing in the bedroom. If you buy a good looking piece, this will also act as decor for the bedroom.
Getting Creative: No Closet Solutions and Storage Ideas

Here are some other bedroom storage posts to get more ideas from:

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May 27, 2016 in Bedroom, Storage

Farmhouse Bedroom Ideas, How To Style Your Space

When it comes to styling a farmhouse bedroom it is best to start with the main focal piece of the space, which is the bed. There is a lot you can do here: from choosing the right bed frame design, to playing with different fabrics for the linens. The bed alone really sets the style of the whole bedroom, since it takes up the most space. You can also find other farmhouse bedroom ideas and decor tips in this post, ranging from lighting to storage ideas.

Styling The Bed Area

Let’s start by focusing on the main focal point in the bedroom – the bed. The go to choice for a farmhouse bed is the traditional Victorian bed design seen in pictures (1) and (2). You can get one of these beds either here or here.

So you have the metal bed designs. An alternative is a wooden one with a curved headboard and footboard, or a modern 4 post bed like the one in the farmhouse master bedroom in picture (5).

Once you have you bed chosen, the next step is to pick the right style of bedding. Go with light colored fabric. You can mix and match a white bed sheet, along with plaid (3), ticking (striped) (1) (7), burlap fabrics (7), or go with a more quilt like blanket like the one in picture (5).

One last thing you can do to style the bed area is to add an area rug under the bed – like the striped one in picture (1), or the woven matted one in picture (3).

A Farmhouse Bedroom’s Color Scheme

You can see from the bedrooms in the mood board above that most farmhouse bedrooms use white as the base color. This means white walls (how about fitting wooden panels to the wall to create a more farmhouse look). But warmth and color is brought into the bedroom through the use of natural materials such as wooden farmhouse furniture pieces and flooring, and wicker storage pieces, while shades of green are added with plants.

Storage Ideas

If you need to store things out in the open in the bedroom or even under the bed (extra linens, magazines, clothes, etc.), then store them in good looking storage pieces. This way they also act as decor for the room. Some ideas for good looking storage pieces for a farmhouse bedroom include:

Wicker baskets (6) (8)
Metal wire baskets (6)
A wooden trunk
A wicker trunk or hamper

Have a look at this post for more farmhouse storage ideas: Farmhouse Storage and Organization Ideas

Other Farmhouse Bedroom Decor Ideas and Design Elements

Window Treatment Ideas: When it comes to the fabric choice for the windows, the same style applies as the bed sheets. Either go with a white or cream colored curtain, or look for plaid, ticking (striped), or burlap style fabric. And a cast iron curtain rod will look good in a farmhouse bedroom. Another option would be to go with white or bare wooden shutters

Farmhouse windows are usually traditionally framed – picture (9) shows an example of this. This can simply be done by adding wooden trim pieces around an existing window frame.

A Mirror: Hang up a round mirror in a wooden frame, or an oval frameless mirror.
Paintings: Hang up some traditional paintings of farms in wooden frames
Lighting: When it comes to lighting, look for iron styled pieces like the wall lamp in picture (2). Or how about hanging a chandelier to add character to the space.

Here are some other farmhouse posts to get more ideas from:

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May 27, 2016 in Bedroom, Farmhouse Design

Color Guide: Purple Dining Room Decor Ideas

There are only a few areas to think about when styling a dining room. You’ve mainly got the seating area – you can also play around with the wall design and simple decor ideas. In this post I outline purple dining room ideas that will help you style your space.

Styling The Seating Area

When it comes to the dining table, go with a neutral colored one. White, grey, black, or a bare wooden on just like in picture (1). By keeping to a neutral color you can then decorate the seating area with pops of purple. Some ideas include: a purple table runner (4), purple place settings, a hanging pendant light with a purple lamp shade, or how about a purple centerpiece.

The centerpiece could be an arrangement of purple plants (3). Or normal plants but it a purple vase. You could use a purple tray to group together some items.

The chairs you use could have purple cushions, either for the seats, or add some purple back cushions.

The table and chairs can be grouped together by putting them all on top of a purple area rug. Just make sure the area rug is large enough so that when the chairs are pulled out they are still on top of the rug.

What To Do With The Walls

The simplest option when it comes to painting the walls is to have all of them white. This gives you a blank canvas of a room to decorate with pops of purple. Another idea is to paint all of the walls white, but have one wall purple – just like the dining room in picture (4). This one purple wall will stand out in the room making it a design feature.

Then there is the option of painting all of the walls purple, for a bold look. You can always divide up the wall. For example have the bottom section covered in white wainscoting and the top section painted in purple. Or fit white crown molding where the walls and ceiling meet.

Don’t forget that the shade of purple you use to decorate the space can change how the room feels. A dark purple will make the dining room feel secluded, relaxing, intimate, and luxurious. While a light purple will make the room feel spacious, and bright. Pictures (5) and (6) shows the difference the shade of purple you use can have on a room.

For a more luxurious look, see if you can add a subtle texture to the wall design if you are going to have them purple. This can be done by using wallpaper, or by using simple painting techniques – seen in the purple dining room in picture (2) Texture Wall Painting Ideas: From Faux Wood to Linen Effects.

Simple Decor Ideas

Here are a few simple decor ideas you could use in your purple dining room:

To decorate the walls you could always hang up a gallery wall. If you want to infuse purple here, then try and find some purple pieces to frame in black frames. Or a bolder option is to use black and white pieces in purple frames
If you have a small dining room, it would be better to hang up one large purple art piece vs. smaller pieces – as this creates a less cluttered look and makes the space feel larger. You can see the large purple art piece in the dining room in picture (3) as an example of this.
Another way to make a space feel larger is to hang up a mirror. This mirror could be inside of a purple frame

Here are some other dining room posts for more ideas:

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May 27, 2016 in Color Palettes, Dining Room

Style Guide: Modern Laundry Room Ideas and Storage Tips

A modern laundry room is going to be a clean and fresh looking space, just like how you want your laundry to come out. This post on modern laundry room ideas and design tips will show you how to design your space to make it look good, and show you how to make the most of the space with the right storage ideas.

The Right Color Palette

From the pictures in the mood board above you can see that most modern laundry rooms are white. A white color palette gives a fresh, clean look to the space. Black and grey are some other color options to consider, just like the laundry rooms in pictures (4) and (6).

How To Add Some Warmth

If you do pick a white or light grey color palette for your laundry room, you will want to add some warmth to the space, otherwise it can look a bit sterile. Infusing natural materials is one way to do this. Wicker baskets (1), a wooden backsplash (2), wooden cabinets (3), and adding some plants (5) are some ideas.

Modern Storage Ideas

Any room in a modern house will be clutter free and look sleek. In the laundry room this means storing everything out of sight. You’ll want to put as much as possible inside of cabinets, with very little stored out in the open.

Hide away the ironing board by hanging it inside a tall cabinet
Or have a fold out ironing board fitted into a draw, just like in picture (8)
Have a look at the clever pull out modern laundry hamper draws in picture (7)

For more ideas and for some photos on how to store your ironing board, have a look at my post here: Wrestling With Your Ironing Board: Ideas on How To Store It and Hide It.

If you need to store things out in the open, then look for good looking storage containers. Matching containers work best. Have a look at the wicker baskets in picture (1) or the matching plastic containers in picture (3).

Helpful Laundry Room Storage Ideas and Solutions

Try and fit in as much counter space as you can, along with a sink. A railing can also be a useful thing to have in a laundry room to hang up clothes – just like the laundry rooms in pictures (2) and (5).

Good Looking Cabinets

Built in cabinets are the way to go to create a modern looking laundry room. And take advantage of the height in your space, and build storage from the floor to the ceiling.

To create a modern looking laundry room, you’re going to want to make sure you have the right look when it comes to your cabinet doors since they take up a lot of ‘visual space’.

The most modern look is to not have handles. Since you don’t have anything sticking out, you are left with smooth, sleek surfaces – have a look at pictures (2) and (3) to see what I mean. To do this you can go with doors that push pop to open, or have a groove that act as a handle – just like the cabinets in picture (1).

If you do need to have handles then try and find sleek looking metal ones, seen in pictures (5) and (8).

Design Tips For Modern Closet Doors

4 Design Tips

Modern Lighting: Recessed lights are the way to go in a modern laundry room. The light fixtures are fitted inside of the ceiling, hiding all of the parts, creating a sleek look. And if you have a sink, you might want to bring the light down from the ceiling either by having a pendant light or under cabinet lighting.
Window Treatments: If you have a window that you want to add privacy to, then some modern options include hookless curtains, blinds, or shutters just like in picture (4).
Easy Washing: Have a look at how the washing machine and dryer are elevated in picture (7) making it easier to load and unload them. And the platform doubles as storage space.
Hide Away: If you are putting the laundry area in another room of the house (in the kitchen, or bathroom) then it might be a good idea to store everything (including the washing machine and dryer) inside of a cabinet – just like in picture (6). This way you can hide it all away when it is not in use.

Here are some other posts to get more ideas from:

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