It is very important and necessary for a woman to have a lot of shoes, but if it is a family consisting of several people that cannot boast of having a separate dressing room, the problem arises of how and where to store shoes so that they not only do not take up a lot of space, but retained all its characteristics, appearance and would have served for more than one season.
Preparing shoes
Before you start laying out your shoes and hiding them in all possible places, as long as they don’t get in the way, you need to prepare them for long-term storage, even if they are seasonal, or just shoes that you use now, but also in need of care and proper placement.
So, everything in order:
- Divide into seasonal: summer, winter, autumn-spring;
- In need of repair - repair;
- Remove laces and insoles;
- Clean shoes: wash fabric shoes, wipe leather shoes with a damp cloth, suede shoes with a dry brush or wrung-out sponge;
- Dry. All types of shoes should be dried only naturally; sun rays, heaters or radiators are not allowed;
- Treat the surface with special creams or sprays, give time for impregnation;
- It is advisable to fill boots and shoes with paper lumps or spacers to avoid deformation;
- Fold without bending the boot;
- Prepare a storage space.
How to store shoes if you have little space
Small spaces hide a lot of possibilities. I want every couple to find a place, and there is complete order in the house. Even in a small room you can add the required number of pairs:
- Open and closed chest of drawers. The first ones simplify the search - everything is immediately visible. For closed models, it is worth taking small photos of the boots, attaching the photo with double-sided tape.
- You can use a clothes hanger to store shoes in the hallway. This is a suitable way to organize your daily used models and save space.
- There are separate gadgets for boots and ankle boots that are difficult to fit in a drawer or chest of drawers. This can be a hanger on a long metal pipe, where each pair is attached to each other using a magnetic clothespin.
Storage space
Placing shoes that are used today is not a problem, because bedside tables, special shelves, and racks are often used for this.
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For convenience and quick access, all this is installed in the corridor or in the closet, near the entrance doors.
But as for shoes that are not used every day or are awaiting the onset of their season, we will consider further how to compactly store such shoes.
Drawers
It is necessary to ensure that in the hallway, the selected furniture options for placing shoes are suitable for the size of the room. The thrifty housewife tries to hide even her slippers on the shelf so that they do not interfere with free movement along the corridor. Cabinets with drawers built into niches help with this. It is often enough for users to open the doors to see what is inside.
If there is a separate dressing room, shoes that are not needed for the season are stored there, and in the hallway are models worn at the moment. To do this, you don’t need large furniture, but only a compact shelving unit with pull-out shelves or a cabinet with drawers. Where sandals, sandals or summer wedges are stylishly and simply placed. While winter boots are in a separate room and do not interfere with the search for the right shoes.
Storing shoes on the balcony
Quite a common placement. But is it possible to store shoes on the balcony? It is possible if you comply with specific requirements:
- The balcony is glazed with high-quality plastic double-glazed windows that do not allow moisture to pass through;
- Humidity is 60%;
- It is insulated, and there is an opportunity to install a convector, radiator;
- Protected from direct exposure to ultraviolet radiation and sunlight;
- Special lockers have been installed.
Built-in wardrobes
You can ideally store things in a small apartment by purchasing built-in furniture. Such sliding wardrobes can be corner, hanging, straight or radial. They are suitable for the hall, hallway, kitchen, any niche. The big advantage of this furniture is the ability to use all the free space: from wall to wall and from floor to ceiling.
Inside such a cabinet you can place almost everything you need for life:
- Filling should begin from the top shelves. They should be used to remove seasonal items and spare blankets. You also need to place boxes with light but voluminous items here.
- The lower level is for heavy objects and shoes. Dress shoes can be placed separately. Metal stands that are secured with a slight slope look good. They can hold ordinary shoes, boots, sneakers. It is better to put the rest of the shoes in boxes.
- On the lower level it is worth installing a safe for jewelry and documents. If desired, it can be hidden with a retractable masking panel.
- An important mid-level element is the clothes rail. Here it is important not to skimp and pay for its retractable option. Hangers for trousers, dresses, jackets and individual accessories are placed on it.
- Drawers for various items are installed on the middle level. They must also be retractable. It is convenient if their front walls are transparent.
- In the closet you can provide for the installation of hat holders, corner shelves, pocket systems, holders for small household appliances (irons, hair dryers).
Sliding doors of the built-in wardrobe should be mirrored. Modern technologies make it possible to make such surfaces practically unbreakable and resistant to mechanical stress. Overhead lighting (both external and internal) will also be appropriate.
Storing shoes in a closet
It is very convenient to place slippers, sneakers, sandals on the closet door, using special devices with pockets, or screw on hooks, and for high-heeled shoes, nail wooden shelves.
If there is space on the hanger bar, make a fastening for each pair on the hanger itself, which will allow you to quickly take what you need and also ensure normal air circulation.
We figured out how to store shoes without a box in a closet and move on to the next option.
Hanging the boots
Stylish high-top boots are difficult to store. If you still have their original huge box and have room for it, great. And if not?
It is strictly not recommended to bend high winter or autumn boots; they can simply burst at the bend points or take on a bizarre configuration once and for all. However, you can come up with some very original storage for winter shoes.
They can be hung by the boot using a trouser hanger with clips, which are sold in hardware stores. It is better to hang winter boots on free space in the wardrobe.
Our branded or simply beloved boots will take up minimal space and will be freely ventilated in the summer.
Storing shoes in boxes
It is most natural and convenient to store shoes in the boxes in which they were sold, because they are selected specifically for each pair, have space for ventilation, do not allow exposure to sunlight, and thanks to the cardboard, humidity is regulated.
If the package did not originally have a viewing window, you can sign or stick a photo - this will help you easily find the right pair.
How to store shoes in a closet was previously discussed, but if you have this classic option, you can choose a place according to the capacity of the piece of furniture itself
If space is limited, the boxes are folded into a special bed drawer.
If it is not available, glue together an organizer of the required size from the boxes themselves and place them there, after placing the shoes in fabric bags to avoid dust.
Zoning and furniture transformers
To place things in a small room, you can turn to the ideas of space zoning, as well as the use of furniture transformers. With the help of an ordinary wall or wardrobe, you can even visually expand the territory, and the dual function of a sofa and bed will allow you to hide massive household appliances. There is no need to chase such super-original forms as a bed retractable to the ceiling.
Everything is very simple:
- You can use any large wardrobe with sliding doors. With its help, the room is divided into two unequal parts. The front side of the cabinet should be placed towards the larger half. This will be the work area. In the small one you need to put a bed or sofa. You can attach a mirror sheet to the back of the cabinet. A screen would be useful in the corner.
- You can arrange shelves above the bed. They can either be located at the head or run along the main wall. Instead of a bedside table, you should put a vertical cabinet.
- The sofa should be folding and have built-in drawers (there are similar beds on sale). This is where you should put suitcases, bags of seasonal clothes, and a vacuum cleaner. Clothes should be placed in vacuum bags.
- An ottoman or sofa can be complemented with a homemade pocket for slippers.
- The closet should have shelves, niches, and a clothes rail. Then, in addition to the usual things, folding chairs, a folding bed, and a transforming table will fit here.
- Internal shelves are filled according to the principle of availability of constantly needed items. As for clothes, special multi-level hangers will simplify your search.
- In most of the room, one corner (preferably the one farthest from the door) should be equipped with a mezzanine system. You can simply make a frame from a colored metal corner. The distance between the runners should be set depending on the pre-selected tin or plastic boxes.
The cabinet must be placed so that it does not block the natural light of the room.
It is not recommended to place massive or heavy objects on top of it. There should not be many decorative elements. If there is really a need for them, then it is best to mount them on the walls.
Less popular, but eligible for use, places and methods of storage
If the proposed options seem boring, uninteresting, or for some other reason cannot be applied, there are several more fashionable and extraordinary recommendations:
- Shoe rack made from plastic pipes - convenient, cheap, original;
- Hooks for clothes – can also be used for shoes, hanging them in a vertical position;
- Baskets - not only mounted on the wall, but also installed on the floor;
- The rotating stand is original, but not suitable for boots;
- Wooden pallet - using imagination and sleight of hand, you can make a beautiful shelf for everyday shoes.
How and where to store shoes is up to each individual, but it is important to properly care for them and remember that the place of storage must have good ventilation, spaciousness, volume, and no odors.
By following these tips, your shoes will delight you with their look and comfort season after season.
Interesting ideas
There are many ideas for storing shoes. Instead of traditional boxes, you can use any available means. Multi-colored baskets, laundry nets, beautiful buckets, and even drinking water bottles with a cut bottom are suitable for this.
An interesting life hack for creating a shoe museum in your own apartment. Some shoes are so beautiful that they deserve a place under glass. The walls of a hallway or large corridor are quite suitable for these purposes. Organizing a home exhibition will turn seasonal cleaning into a truly creative process. It’s easy to make your own unusual fabric pockets that will not only protect your favorite shoes, but also decorate your hallway. You can create a composition on the wall from hooks on which cute children's shoes are placed.
In laundry buckets
In colorful baskets
In a cabinet with glass doors
On coat hooks
Shelves made of cardboard tubes
