By sunny 
Whole house storage has always been a major part of renovation and a big part of the renovation budget. Designers usually communicate with homeowners about their needs in an exhaustive manner, covering details such as exterior dimensions and interior construction. During the communication, you will find that designers often mention storage design.
Is storage design just about making cabinets?
It’s true that making cabinets can keep your home tidy and organised by storing an ever-increasing number of household items in a limited space.
However, professional whole house storage design is much more than that; it is not simply adding more cabinets.
Great storage design frees up more space for families to live together and prevents items from taking up too much space. At the same time, when items have their regular place, it can also directly enhance the convenience of life and the overall aesthetics of the home.
So, for the kitchen, dining room and bedroom, where storage is in high demand, what are the methods and considerations for whole-house storage design? Next, we explore room by room.
Kitchen storage design
Conform to the line of movement, the principle of proximity
The principle of proximity is the essence of storage design, as items will only be used frequently if they are easily accessible, otherwise they will become decorative over time.
In the kitchen, the preparation of a meal requires frequent access to various spices and kitchenware. If you don’t follow the principle of proximity, you’ll be overwhelmed when cooking and spend a lot of time tidying up after the meal.
Therefore, in the design of the kitchen storage, be sure to consider the kitchen line: take ingredients → cleaning → cutting → cooking → serving. Refrigerator, sink area, meal preparation countertops and cooking area of the ingredients and items needed, should also be in accordance with this line of storage, easy to access and return to the place.
For example, cleaning supplies can be placed under the sink, knives on the meal preparation countertop, and large pots and pans in the floor cabinet under the hob, which is more in line with usage habits.
Focus on storage positioning, light on the bottom heavy in the middle commonly used
Fruits and vegetables, eggs and milk, detergents, daily necessities, tableware, cooking utensils, spices, grains, etc., each item should have its fixed storage location.
Storage, according to the frequency of use and the weight of the items, follow the ‘light on the bottom of the weight of the middle commonly used’ principle:
① Hanging cabinet: suitable for storing lightweight and infrequently used items, such as dry food, stock seasonings, etc..
② floor cabinets: suitable for storing items that need to bear weight, such as pots and pans, dishes, rice, etc..
③ Middle area: suitable for storing the most commonly used items, which can be easily accessed without bending over or standing on tiptoe, such as commonly used spices, knives, food clips, etc.
In short, the upright state of reaching out to get the most convenient items, squatting followed by tiptoe the most trouble. At the same height, the surface items are the best to take, and the inner items need to spend time to find. According to their own habits of use, everyone should be located in the kitchen items organised.
Kitchen storage
Make full use of wall and countertop space, such as wall-mounted kitchen shelves can be used to store condiment bottles, spoons, spatulas, etc.; microwave oven shelf can store microwave ovens, but also can be returned to other kitchen items.
In addition, there are some can make better use of the existing space storage artefacts, such as:
① Faucet shelf: suitable for placing wet steel wool, dishcloths and so on.
② sink shelf: can fully tap the space under the kitchen sink, doubling the storage capacity.
③ Drawer dividers: Categorise items at a glance through zoning, making it easy to pick up and put back in place.
Search online or browse Ikea, you can find a lot of practical storage artefacts.
Custom kitchen cabinet sizes to maximise space
Bespoke kitchen cabinets are a prerequisite for good whole-house storage in the kitchen. After all, the biggest advantage of customisation is that it maximises the use of space. Therefore, a good whole kitchen design will definitely focus on solving the problem of kitchen storage.
Guest dining room storage design
Choose furniture that comes with storage
The dining room is usually the largest public area in the house, taking on a variety of functions such as leisure, entertainment, meeting guests and even reading, so there are also more clutter. When shopping for essential furniture for the living room, consider styles that come with storage.
For example, the smaller living room can choose a small double seat sofa, and then with a small side table can be stored. It is now popular to install a partition behind the sofa for photo albums, decorative paintings, books and so on.
If there are children at home, we must consider the storage space for children’s toys, and the position should not be too high, so that it is convenient for children to take and return. For example, when choosing bookshelves, you can consider the bottom with toy storage function of the style.
Of course, also to avoid too fragmented arrangement, to maintain the harmony of the living room and the overall beauty.
Make full use of wall space to create a whole wall storage TV cabinet
TV wall area is large and concentrated, if made into a whole wall storage, the capacity will be very considerable. It can be said that the whole wall storage TV cabinet is the strongest storage design in the living room.
If you are worried about the whole wall to do the cabinet will be visually depressing, you can control the depth of the cabinet in 30-40cm. and then according to the remaining depth of the living room to choose the sofa and coffee table.
Hide eight reveal two principle
We have mentioned this principle many times in previous articles. Applying it to living room storage is equally applicable. For large cabinets like TV cabinets, you can set aside 20% to make them open and install cabinet doors on the rest. Otherwise, too much openness can lead to clutter that directly affects the neatness of the living room.
Of course, there is no need to make up proportions rigidly. Ultimately, it’s a decision based on your lifestyle and preferences. If you like a simple and refreshing style, you can make all of them into cabinet doors; if you like to display and diligent organisation, then all of them into the grid can not hurt.
Bedroom storage design
Make full use of the space available for storage
The first thing that comes to mind is the bed, which has the largest footprint in the bedroom. There is a lot of space under the bed that can be made into bed cabinets, such as tatami mats and bed boxes.
If you can’t make a cabinet at the head of the bed, you can also put a mobile trolley for placing alarm clocks, water cups and bedtime books, etc. It’s easy to move and push and pull.
If there is a window, do not just place a few pillows waste of space, made of storage space is actually more practical.
Consider the convenience of access
Convenience of access is a very practical and important factor, otherwise items may never be taken out again after being put in.
Items that are used frequently should be stored in a more accessible location. On the other hand, items that are used infrequently can be stored in places that are relatively inaccessible.
For example, tatami mats or the bottom of a bed are more difficult to access and are often used to store infrequently used items such as seasonal bedding and luggage that is only used when travelling.
Built-in wardrobe interior storage design is crucial
A built-in wardrobe is not the same as a wardrobe with good storage capacity. The design of the interior of the wardrobe is more important, it not only determines the size of the storage capacity of the wardrobe, but also determines whether you need to spend 10 minutes or 10 seconds to find a sock. It can be said that a bad design is the same as doing it for nothing.
In general, small households should make full use of the drawer space and learn the vertical stacking method. While the large home should give more consideration to the design of the hanging rod, it is best to hang up all the clothes, because …… laziness is the nature of man well. If conditions allow, it is better to have a cloakroom.
Through careful planning and design room by room, whole house storage will no longer be a problem. I hope the above suggestions will help you with your whole house storage design.