By Ruth Kelly, Marketing Manager, Clever Closet
Many people overlook their hallway as an integral room in their home. It can easily be forgotten because it is not a destination, but a thoroughfare between other spaces that may receive more care and attention. When they are connected to external doorways, hallways can be more vulnerable to clutter and dirt than other parts of your home, which can make it easy to think of them differently than you would any room that you spend more time in.
However, this can be an unhealthy habit. Your hallway will create a first impression for visitors, set the tone for how your home feels, and be seen by more people than any other part of your house. As such, you should keep it clean and tidy, to help you feel relaxed when you come home after a long day, and let visitors know that you love and take care of your home.
Here, the storage experts at Clever Closet will explain some nifty ways that you can keep your hallway tidy and organised, no matter the size of the space you have to work with. These tips can also be used in other parts of your home, so if you aim to overhaul your approach to staying tidy, this is a great place to start.
1. Use the space
Start by thinking about how much space you have to work with. Every hallway is different, which means that different storage solutions will be more suitable in some cases than in others. If you have high ceilings, consider putting up shelves or coat pegs to take advantage of the space. If one part of your hallway is wider than the rest, think about how you could use baskets or boxes, or if your hallway is especially thin, whether a ladder shelf or other slimline piece would work.
If you have no room at all for extra furniture, decide whether the items that are cluttering your hallway need to be there at all – they might be better stored in another room, as we’ll discuss below. Or, ask whether you could make use of the area under your staircase. Clever Closet provides a range of modular under stairs storage solutions that can help you to make better use of this space. This can help you to stay organised and store a lot more items than you otherwise could without taking up any additional room.
2. Give every item its place
Whatever you need to store in your hallway, make sure you have somewhere for it to go. If you find that you have too many shoes for your shoe rack, or more coats than you have room to hang up, you either need a new storage solution that will accommodate them, or to put them somewhere else. You should also be careful not to overfill a storage space – even if there is just enough room, too many coats or pairs of shoes will look untidy.
If you host guests regularly, make sure there is room for them to take off their shoes and hang up their coats – wherever possible, plan to have more storage space than you need to give yourself more flexibility.
Often, outdoor gear is seasonal, so you don’t need to hang winter coats in your hallway all year around. Store them in your wardrobe until it comes time to use them regularly – the same applies to footwear, umbrellas, and other outdoor essentials that will change according to the weather.
3. Invest in hidden storage
Many hallways are small and adding a storage solution can make it more difficult to manoeuvre. Even if it creates more room by keeping your items organised and away from the floor (or keeps them hidden from view behind a closed door), a new piece of furniture can sometimes feel like an obstacle.
In these cases, hidden storage areas can provide a suitable space without occupying any extra room in your hallway. This is one advantage of an under stairs solution, which occupies otherwise-unused space and stays out of view to create a larger amount of storage space than you could create with a single piece of furniture.
There are other innovative hidden solutions that you might consider, depending on the design of your hallway and your storage needs – do your research to learn whether there are innovative solutions you haven’t considered that might help.
4. Set a tone with decoration
A storage solution can feel much less intrusive if it matches the overall style of your hallway’s decoration. Even if it takes up a lot of space, a piece that matches the colour palette or has an attractive design can become a feature on its own, rather than a practical necessity.
As such, you should consider how you might integrate storage into the design of your hallway. If you are hanging coat rails or putting up shelves, consider whether there is also room for framed photos or artwork. While you don’t want your hallway to be empty, a minimalist style will create the greatest sense of tidiness and organisation, so try to balance storage with decoration.
5. Remember to be flexible
If you want to keep your hallway clean and tidy with minimal maintenance, you should be prepared for different eventualities. Consider whether you need an area in which wet coats and muddy shoes can dry, without creating a larger mess. Having kitchen towels or a welcome mat at the ready beside the door, or slippers for yourself and your guests to wear indoors, can keep your hallway in its best state at all times.
This might also mean accounting for letters and parcels, which can pile up beside the door unless you have a dedicated place to store and organise them. You might also benefit from a way to sort the important post from any junk mail, or to keep tidy any food menus or catalogues that come through your letterbox. Really, this is about considering what you need for your hallway and finding effective solutions.
By applying the suggestions above, you may benefit from a new perspective on hallway clutter, find more appreciation for your space and gain new insights that will help you to keep it tidy. If your hallway has everything you need to help you relax when you get home, or to provide for guests, you will be able to cherish your space and create a great first impression.
