Decorative Storage Ideas from a Property Brothers Dream Home
“Practical storage pieces are great if you have a basement or garage space but when you actually live with them day in and day out, they should be beautiful to look at.” – Thom Filicia
As the mother of seven children, I couldn’t agree with this statement more! Our garage is filled with bikes, Power Wheels, a golf cart and holiday decor…and we don’t have a basement. Finding decorative and functional pieces to creatively hide the mess that is my family is always a challenge..... but my efforts were recently praised during the Property Brothers shoot at our home.
Below are my top 10 choices for styling your storage needs within your home. All of these are from Amazon or Target so they are affordable and easy to get online!
1. Cotzen Wooden Entry Bench / Toy Box
Although not an exact replica of my custom farmhouse storage boxes, this is a much cheaper duplicate storage box that comes in three colors from Amazon. This has great storage capacity and can hold up to 110 pounds which means to this mother, that when my kids jump on top of it, it won’t break! This could be used in a hallway or any common living space where you need to hide toys, blankets and pillows. It also comes in two other wood stains.
2. Windham Entryway Storage bench from Target (online)
Who doesn’t love a great deal from Target? This Windham Entryway Storage Bench is an exact replica of some of the higher priced benches from Pottery Barn…and it comes in a variety of colors including a really pretty teal. This bench is so versatile..it would be great in a hallway but also at the end of a bed or along a long hallway with some gallery art above it!
3. Better Homes and Garden Modern Farmhouse Storage Cabinet
This is BH&G storage cabinet is great piece for a family room in need of a lot of storage. Throw some baskets on those shelves and you can have a well-organized area to hide games, toys, media equipment, DVDs and/or décor.
4. Tufted Top Storage Bench
I have these Madison tufted storage benches at the bottom of both of my teenager’s beds and used one as a “coffee table” in a children’s playroom. In my son’s room, this bench stores keepsake toys, like bobbleheads, and in my daughter’s room, it stores photo albums and yearbooks. Used in a playroom, it housed cozy blankets to watch movies with.
5. Salinas Hall Tree with Storage Bench
I actually have this Salinas hall tree on order right now! Every busy family needs a hall tree and what I love about this one is that I can put four small baskets in the cubbies to store more shoes. I’m not a huge fan of displaying shoes in the entry way so I love that this has the option of hiding them in baskets. This bench comes in both black and a distressed antique white so it can be paired with a variety of décor styles.
Click here to purchase this hall tree.
6. Delta Hope Chest
If I didn’t have the custom boxes I have now, I would definitely order these Delta hope chests. My family room toy storage boxes flank the French doors leading out to our backyard and these could be used for the same storage purpose. I could also see these on either side of a fire place or entertainment center, doubled up behind a couch or at the base of twin beds.
7. Sorbus Acrylic Makeup Organzier
Thank the Kardashians for making these acrylic makeup organizers famous! When these first came out, I spent upwards of $200 on my first one; now you can get them for under $30 online. This is one of my favorite ones because I like the width and depth of the drawers. I have this sitting up on my bathroom counter and then put all of my brushes in these little acrylic containers. You too can get ready like a Kardashian for less than $50! (I put all of my brushes in this cheap little glass vase and fill it with planter crystals from the craft store. I like the square shape because it doesn't crowd all the brushes together like a mug or glass jar. )
8. Odds and Ends Kitchen Organizers
We all have the corner of the kitchen where bills, coupons, note pads and other things get piled up. Although there’s probably a place where these belong, I end up using these two space savers to hide and store things I need easy access to.
I have this same little mail organizer in my kitchen. It goes well with a multitude of home styles and it especially coordinates with Rae Dunn Pottery. The second kitchen secret is that my bread box doesn’t store bread…it stores school calendars and forms, coupons, photos and other papers I need to refer to and don’t want to file. I love the aqua, metal bread box on the left (although it comes in other colors.) I just like the modern farmhouse /coastal feel of it.
If you want something more traditional, try the classic wooden breadbox. (I actually bought this and painted it in our former home.)
9. Kids Art Hanger
The amount of artwork that comes home from school is overwhelming! What do you hang, save or toss? I hung this sweet little art sign next to the wall by the garage and the kids love seeing their work on the way in and out of the house. I prefer this to the fridge art display because that art always seems to come flying off! I also like that I can stack the art under each clip and then do one massive move to the art tub for keepsakes.
10. Rolling Cart Storage
If you don't live by an Ikea and can't pick up one of their signature rolling carts, try these storage cart duplicates from Amazon! I use these all over my house! Since I used my office for a nursery, I have a simple farmhouse desk in my room that always looks clean because when its bill paying time, I wheel my little office cart out of my closet and push it back in there when I'm done. I also have one of these for kids' art supplies and one for my teenager's bathroom products in a Jack and Jill bathroom. I love that you can display these carts in playrooms but can also wheel them into a closet for storage. With a variety of colors to choose from, you can't go wrong having one of these handy!
