Winter has come. It’s going to be chilly and cold, so make the best of it. It’s time to declutter your home. You and your family are excited to embrace that cold winter with a hot beverage in your hand. You want to feel comfort to its full extent. However, you have one problem. Your house is a mess. Not the kind of mess that you can just vacuum. We’re talking about waste of space here. When we say clutter, it means a room filled with a large number of things that aren’t organized or arranged well. If you’re ok with the mess, that’s fine. But I’m pretty sure you’re going to love your space when you have already decluttered it. The common items that take up a whole lot of your space are clothes–not the furniture, ceramics, or house decors, but the clothes, especially winter clothes like jackets, sleeves, scarves, coats, and more. If you want more space to move around, here are some helpful tips for storing winter clothes.

Before we start going into the storage tips, what is the main idea of storage in the first place? Well, the common description entails the storing of goods in a container for safekeeping or storage. In this article, we will go beyond the storage units and containers you have and the ways by which you could maximize their usage. This list also includes other tips that don’t necessarily utilize storage units and containers.

Winter Storage Tip #1: Get rid of those hanger racks

Your closet or cabinet usually has a built- in hanger rack. Instead of being able to hang only a few clothes, why not remove the rack to have more space? Fill your closet with all your folded clothes stacked in neat piles. If you want to hang some winter clothes, leave one closet with the rack.

Winter Storage Tip #2: Use space saving hangers

If you think about it, the hangers take most of the space on your hanger rack. You can choose among flat, nonslip, shirt, or felt hangers, as these are thin, which means that you can put more clothes in your closet or cabinet. Make sure to choose good quality hangers. You don’t want to waste your money buying a new set just because the brand you previously bought couldn’t handle the weight of your large winter clothes.

Winter Storage Tip #3: Avoid dry cleaning bags

Most people use dry cleaning bags for covering their clothes to keep them clean. However, these take up too much space and will eventually contain moisture inside, which is bad for the fabric of your clothes. It would be better to clean your closets and cabinets from time to time.

Winter Storage Tip #4: Organise and label

It is not just by folding clothes that you can declutter your home. If you want more space, you have to organize your clothes. Arrange your closet by categorizing the arrangement. For instance, allocate one side for sportswear, another side for casual wear, and so on. This will also eliminate that daily routine of going through all your clothes and throwing them around the room. If you need work clothes, look for something from that side. You can also save space by rolling up clothes rather than folding them. This can work for tank tops, t-shirts, or anything casual that you don’t mind getting wrinkled.

Storing winter clothes is on a new level altogether. This is because winter apparel is large in size and will surely take up a lot of space no matter what you do. Leave one cabinet just for winter clothes. Put a hanger rack on the outer side of the cabinet to hang the jacket you use when you go out of the house. That way, you don’t have to leave it lying around the couch or floor.

We stumbled on another witty way of remembering which closet contains the clothes you want: you may name your cabinets and drawers; better yet, label them. For example, if you want to wear your suede jacket, go directly to the Jacinta cabinet.

Winter Storage Tip #5: Use the right containers for storage

If you have a lot of clothes lying around, then you need to use some containers. Most people keep their winter clothing inside boxes. This is actually not advisable because a box can be easily gnawed at by rats or damaged by flood. As such, it is better to use other containers like duple bags or mega-box containers. These are made of more durable material to keep your winter clothes safe from pests and water.

Winter Storage Tip#6: Store clothes according to season

There is seasonal clothing and now, there is also seasonal storage. You may not have enough closets for all of your clothes. Why not organize them by putting them in containers and then pulling them out by season? For example, this winter, keep your summer clothes in containers in the garage, storage unit, or in the attic. During summer time, pull those containers out and fill your closets with summer wear. Keeping all of your clothes in cabinets will only clutter your closets. If you’re not able to find more space inside the closet, you usually tend to put them anywhere around the house. Keep on doing that and you will have mountains of winter clothing, which will take up most of your bedroom space.

Winter Storage Tip #7: Choose storage zones

 If you’re keeping your containers up in the attic, in the garage, or maybe in a storage room, make sure to organize your use of space. You can’t just put boxes next to each other. Maximize the space by dividing your storage area by units. Make sure to label everything. That way, you won’t have a hard time finding the items you need. You just have to look at one box and pull it out. There is no need to check and move each box just to find what you are looking for.

Winter Storage Tip #8: Lay out your winter wardrobe daily

Choosing what clothes to wear before you go out takes a lot of time. This goes for girls, as well as for guys. You don’t want to spend half a minute choosing the right clothes by digging into your drawers, right? So why not lay them out the night before? It’s winter and you don’t need to look stylish. What you need are layers of clothes. When you prepare your clothes early on, you can choose what you want and what makes you look good. You don’t have to mess up your folded clothes in the morning. Fix yourself up, have some breakfast, put on the outfit you picked out, and you’re good to go.

Winter Storage Tip #9: Unleash your creativity when decluttering

Many people make use of their creative ways to design their home from within, even if it’s cluttered. For example, people make use of their old winter clothes to make the inside of their home look like art rather than a pile of mess. How? Try to use shelves for clothes rather than storage for books or gadgets. If you have a bookshelf on your wall, why not put scarves, earmuffs, and sweaters? Just make sure to arrange them neatly. 

Winter Storage Tip #10: Convert one room into your closet

Have you seen the videos of entertainment channels that visit homes of celebrities? Most celebrities have one room just for clothes. You don’t have to be famous to do that. If you have a broom closet or maybe a spare bedroom, why not turn that into a closet? You can then get rid of the containers that take up too much space. Now, you have a wide storage for your winter clothes.

Winter Storage Tip #11: Rent storage units

Clothes are a daily necessity, so to make more space for them, why not put away the less important things in storage? These can include furniture, ceramics, instruments, glassware, and others? Get rid of unwanted furniture and declutter your home instead of creating a pile of clothes in every corner of the house. This is a good way to keep your house clean and in order. You can rent storage units, lockers, warehouses, and even mini-garages for the sole purpose of storage. This is a common practice here in Australia. People look for available units nearby, and they put everything they no longer use in storage. However, before moving your items to the storage unit, make sure to sort them out. Identify the items you want within easy reach, those to get rid of, and those for storage.

Winter Storage Tip #12: Sell, don’t throw

If you have too many winter clothes and do not have enough space to store them, why not sell them? Hold a small garage sale in front of your house, and sell your clothes for affordable prices. You can be guaranteed that many people will benefit from this garage sale. There is also no point in keeping these clothes if you’re not going to use them, so why not let others have them? You can, of course, keep the ones given to you by someone special or those that have a great sentimental value. Storing winter clothes that you no longer need unnecessarily takes up space. On the other hand, selling them would bring in some extra money.

Winter Storage Tip #13: Donate, don’t throw

Another alternative is to give them away to people who need them the most. It may be for a friendly neighbor who has been using a worn-out hoody all these years or for the kids in the orphanage near you. You will be doing an amazing deed and at the same time, creating a lot of space at home. It’s a win-win decision, right? There are also people who are victims of calamities all over Australia who need these winter clothes more than you do.  This is not the same as “another man’s garbage is another man’s treasure.” You are simply giving people clothes to warm themselves up against the cold.

Winter Storage Tip #14: Tidy up your home

This isn’t actually a storage tip, but it is a tip to keep your place spacious. This is not just cleaning your home. The idea of cleaning in this context includes washing your clothes. Your dirty clothes may not be dusty, but they are still considered a mess and they take a lot of room, especially when you just leave them behind. So make it a habit to clean your home or apartment at least once a week to keep things organized.

Winter Storage Tip #15: Think before you buy

This is a tip for storage and saving money. Buying something new is common for most people; this means having more clothes to keep. If you’re going to buy a new set of clothes, make sure to organize your old ones first. This will give you time to decide what to do with them–sell them or give them away, it’s up to you. This way, when you come home with a new leather jacket in tow, there’s space ready for it in the closet.

Conclusion

According to statistics, the self-storage industry in Australia was worth over $1.1 billion in 2016 and is expected to increase by 3.3% in 2017 This business has helped thousands of people organize their home.

If you’re having a hard time decluttering your home, it is advisable that you rent a self-storage unit. Just think about it. Winter in Australia is truly remarkable. You get to enjoy the blazing winter sun from your window. You look at the snow covered landscapes and wait for the moon to rise. To make things better, you have a hot chocolate or a cup of tea in your hand. You enjoy each other’s company and the space within your home. No piles of clothes on the floor, no closet next to the fireplace, and everything is in its proper place. If you need assistance in decluttering your place and storing your winter clothes in an orderly way, you can search for self-storage units at http://www.spacer.com.au.