Category Archives: Small-Space Solution

Window Shopping: Society in Bishop Arts

A Quick Fix for Tidy Cutting Board Storage

I’ve finally found a way to store and organize my cutting boards in the kitchen cabinets. For the 3+ years we’ve rented this house, the avalanche of cutting boards has been one of those things that slowly annoyed me.

In my April 2010 move-in post on Virtually Unpacking The Kitchen, I mentioned that I didn’t have a spot for them. Last week I got a nice reader comment on that post with a suggestion for how to store them. I was embarrassed thinking that a situation mentioned 3+ years ago still had not been resolved!

Our kitchen is extraordinarily nice, especially for a rental home. It was renovated prior to our move-in, and has wonderful deep drawers in the kitchen island, a spinny thing in the bottom corner cabinet by the dishwasher, and plenty of upper cabinet space.

Kitchen Cabinets | The Borrowed Abode

Oddly enough, though, there was only one cabinet deep enough to hold the cutting boards – the bottom left cabinet by the door in the photo above.

So for the last three years I shoved my cutting boards in there haphazardly, along with our silver chargers and smaller serving platters.

Inspired by the ideas Julia shared in her Small Kitchen Solutions post, I grabbed a tiny tension rod at Target and wedged it in between the cutting boards and the serving dishes. Gone is the avalanche of cutting boards.

Kitchen Cabinet Cutting Board Storage | The Borrowed Abode

This solution would work really well for baking sheets and serving platters too!

The fix itself took maybe 2 minutes, and I love that I didn’t have to install anything that required drilling holes into the new cabinetry – when you rent the temporary and leave-no-trace solutions are always the best!

Do you think this tip could help you cut chaos in your kitchen cabinets?

Fast Fixes for Storage and Organization

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The New Year is incredibly motivating when it comes to getting organized. Sometimes tossing your house to get that fresh start seems like the right thing to do. The slash and burn method of household cleaning can easily lead to being overwhelmed. Using what you have to easily transform an unused area, pillow, or organize a bit? That’s something that won’t result in hysterics.

In combing the archives here at The Borrowed Abode I found some fast fixes that you can easily knock out today. Fast Fixes DIY Storage and Organization | The Borrowed Abode

(In clockwise order, from top left:)

1. In a small rental apartment, every inch of space counts! Use the insides of kitchen cabinet doors for DIY coupon storage. You can also use this space to hang recipes, calendars, and other bits of paper that normally end up in piles.

2. Do you have an old pillow just taking up space instead of on display? Update your old and boring pillows with this quick and easy fix!

3. Scarves don’t have to take up space in a drawer or thrown over a chair. Create a DIY over the door scarf hanger to cut the clutter in other areas. Or, if you have more space, try a larger (& prettier) one that can be hung anywhere!

4.Small spaces often seem impossible to keep clean. Old containers can quickly be recycled into DIY organization systems. Create a unique and organized entry space using old flowerpots or other empty containers you have on hand.

5. Use what you have to organize your home! While an old bookshelf may not be your favorite piece, it will keep clutter to a minimum.

Do you have any quick and easy storage solutions to add to this list? Leave your tips and tricks in the comments below, we’d love to see your ideas.

(Disclaimer: Some of these posts have tiny pictures because it was the early days of the blog. The ideas are still good, though!)

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Small Kitchens: Solutions for Renters & Homeowners

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Note from Jane: Welcome back to Julia, who’s going to be blogging here at The Borrowed Abode more regularly! Take it away . . .

Kitchens are a blight to many a renter. Scroll past the first picture for lots of useful eye candy.

Behold.

Before you look, 1) Have mercy for this is an old photo and I had a young infant (clearly) with me. That is also not my light fixture. I put it up there to be silly and see how it would look. But the cabinets are orangey-pink, my table was too big (we have a new one now) and the baby stuff has for the moment been removed. Oh and the mess has been picked up. 2) Please don’t pin this. That would be…embarrassing.

Now that I’ve stated and shown the obvious reasons rental kitchens can suck, let me go over a few more reasons why they frequently do:

Too small
Not enough storage OR
Lots of cabinet storage that isn’t useful/makes no sense
Dead wall space
Narrow walking space (oven and fridge can’t be open at the same time, etc.)

Feel free to add more gripes and solutions in the comments.

That being said, I’d love to point out the number one way to fix a rental kitchen: just learn to live with it. While we may dream of granite counter tops and non-linoleum flooring I always find it best to focus on what I can do.

#1 I can COOK in my kitchen despite the fact that ___________. (Fill in the blank with your preferred reason)

The most amazing example I can think of regarding utility in small kitchens is Deb @ Smitten Kitchen. She is my go to for delicious recipes and gorgeous photography. Her kitchen happens to be just 42 sq. ft. (if you can believe it once you check out her site.) She has a great post with small kitchen maximizing tips that’s worth a read.

#2 I can maximize storage in my wee kitchen.

The nice thing about ugly old kitchens is that they are often already jacked up enough for me to continue the tradition of jacking them up. Behold, great kitchen ideas:

Hooks under cabinets

Use cabinet fronts for additional storage

New uses of space and items: Tension rods as cabinet dividers, cake stands as counter storage, and tiny shelves wherever there’s room for them

1,2,3

When in doubt, go vertical and use up your wall space – I add this point out of love. Between a huge window and a galley kitchen with cabinets in every inch of it, I have no room to go vertical.

1,2,3

Yeah, that last kitchen is pretty and the microwave is unrealistically small. And it has marble. But it has vertical storage that is likely affordable, so we can forgive the pretty I hope.

So, any amazing kitchen ideas that ya’ll have implemented in your rentals and homes? My kitchen needs help for sure (as we have witnessed), but with so much web inspiration out there I’m sure I can figure something out.