The start of a new year is a great time for resetting the mind and making moves to put ourselves on track for a positive start to the year. So for our first post of 2023, we’re going to share with you a couple of ways of doing this in the home along with our tips on how to approach planning your perfect home storage.

Tidy house, tidy mind

One thing we will be doing in January to get ourselves in to the right mindset is to have a good clear out. Proven to help us feel more calm, in control and focused, decluttering and re-organising our homes can have a hugely positive impact on our wellbeing. Tidy home tidy mind is very much a theory we practice and preach here at Hygge & Cwtch, however we know that with all of this organising and rearranging can come the fresh challenge of where to put everything.

A new year refresh

January is typically the time of year that we retreat to our homes. Recovering from the festive season, sheltering from the Winter weather and restoring our energy. All that time at home gives us the opportunity to work out whether the space we are in serves us well. Does it make us feel how we want to feel? Does is practically provide everything we need? It’s a great time of year to consider redecorating, rearranging and refreshing our homes to set us up for the year ahead. Key to doing this well, is getting your home storage right. And here’s why…

Planning your perfect home storage

Decluttering, organising and rearranging will only be a success if you have the right type and amount of storage. The ability to hide those items which don’t make you feel good to look at every day. And likewise, having the things on display which bring you joy.

Storage expert, Lu Wei, has a 2:8 storage principle which we first read about in Frida Ramstedt’s book, ‘The Interior Design Handbook’ (2019, page 41). Wei’s theory is to have only 20 per cent of your belongings on view and 80 per cent to be hidden away. This is to minimise visual noise and create a ‘quieter’ space for you to live. Of course, we would use this as a guide only, but we very much sign up to this theory of minimal ‘clutter’ for a calmer mind.

So if you’re reorganising or redecorating, look at everything that you want or need to keep, and consider whether it should be on display or hidden away. Find a balance of both which works for you.

Another consideration when planning your perfect home storage is actually based on your personality. Are you a tidy person who likes everything in its right place? Are you happy to regularly clean and keep tidy anything on display? If this sounds like you, then open storage is a winner. If not and you realistically know that things are likely to get untidy pretty quickly, then this can have a detrimental affect on your wellbeing. More closed storage might be the way forward.

Open storage

For those items which bring you joy and inspiration, and will benefit your wellbeing through being visible every day, you need open storage. In short, a place to put your things where they can be seen.

Open shelving is the main way to do this and can come in many forms to suit many purposes.

Open bookshelves for book-lovers who will feel inspired to read if they can see their full range of books on display. Perfect for a snug or an area where you are most likely to pick up a book and sit down to read. Have a hygge moment.

Open or recessed shelving is ideal for ornaments or items which need to be within easy reach. Think bedside tables for those night-time must haves. Or a place for personal care items in the shower. Keep it clean, tidy and to a minimum and open storage can be practical as much as it can be pretty.

If you’re in the clean and tidy personality camp, the kitchen is one place where open storage can make a design statement whilst being extremely practical. Having items to hand while cooking without routing through cupboards can be a real time saver. If you needed more inspiration to ditch the wall cupboards, look no further…

Closed storage

Not only practical in the sense that it hides away items that you don’t want to look at every day, closed storage can come in many forms and often provides multiple functions. A TV stand with storage drawers. A bench for seating with drawers or trunk space inside. A cupboard or sideboard which homes multiple items but visually adds to the look of a room.

If you were thinking that hiding 80% of your items away would leave you with a minimalist home and that’s not your thing, think again. Closed storage is hugely varied in it’s form. Wardrobes, cupboards, drawers, boxes, baskets… anything that holds items of any size which you can’t see unless you purposefully look in it. That’s closed storage. It comes with endless opportunities to add colour, texture and interest, so your home will look far from minimalist.

Another tip from Lu Wei is to not have too much open storage in your line of sight. In other words, stand in a place in your home where you can see multiple rooms or areas, such as the hallway. Or perhaps somewhere that you spend a lot of time, such as at the cooker or kitchen sink. As you look around, if you can see lots of different types of open storage with various items on display, this can create an overall effect of clutter. Even if the individual area or room is following the 2:8 principle, the positioning of your storage may not be having the best overall effect.

What next?

Well, the world is your oyster when it comes to buying home storage. The opportunities are endless and can at times be overwhelming. Which is why we highly recommend taking this considered, planned approach to understanding your needs, what works best for you practically and visually to best support your wellbeing at home. This will make the process of selecting your storage a whole lot easier.

If you think you still need a little help with planning your storage, your space and your style, then get in touch with us for a chat. We’d love to talk.

In the meantime, sign up to our emails for a monthly drop of Hygge & Cwtch musings and inspiration… a quiet minute to step into our world and enjoy the feeling of a little cwtch from us to you.