20+ Ways to Use Common Kitchen Storage All Around the House

published Jun 12, 2015
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(Image credit: Minette Hand)

Kitchen storage solutions you already know and love aren’t limited to the kitchen. Adapt them to work in the rest of the house, in ways you never intended, and you’ll be organized for miles. Here are five objects and tons of smart and creative ways to repurpose them into something useful in other rooms.

Knife Blocks & Magnetic Holders

  1. Such is This made an old block into an office storage caddy.
  2. Matchbox (or other metal toy) storage in the kids room using old knife racks.
  3. Refresh Living made one into a thread holder for her sewing machine.

Dish Drainers

  1. A vintage wire dish rack makes a great mail organizer for your landing strip.
  2. An old dish drainer gets reused as a file folder organization system, from La Maison Bohème.
  3. IKEA’s wooden dish rack becomes a planter stand, from IKEA Hackers.
  4. I Heart Organizing shared this colorful book caddy from Hi Sugarplum.

Hanging Fruit Baskets

  1. Hanging baskets are usually used for food in the kitchen, but A Pair and a Spare uses this one for craft supplies.
  2. Keep those kiddos organized with a toy caddy to keep in the bathtub from 8 Foot Six.
  3. Traditional tiered wire storage becomes an edible herb garden from Dishfunctional Designs.
  4. Hanging storage for a shabby chic office, from Ameblo.

Silverware & Cutlery Trays

  1. A bedside valet, like this one in The Nest, keeps all your personal accessories corralled and in place.
  2. Stick a tray inside a box and you’ve got a craft caddy your kids can take with them.
  3. Instead of silverware, Cosmo stores loose bathroom products in a cutlery tray.
  4. Take this idea from Honey We’re Home, and organize batteries by size and store them in your media cabinet.

Wine Racks

  1. A beautifully organized yarn storage system from Repeat Crafter Me.
  2. Curbly shared this IKEA VRUM hacks, turning it into a wall mounted planter.
  3. We featured Matthew and Deb’s bead collection, housed in an old wood wine rack now in the living room.
  4. Rolled up towels for guests fit perfectly in each slot, via HGTV.
  5. You can use one to store rolled up wrapping paper and/or posters, according to Pretty Easy Living.

Paper Towel Holders

  1. Here, paper towel holders are part of a whole closet organizational system, from Netrobe. (Also lead image above).
  2. If you have one like this, it can also store two sizes of tape. From Glue Sticks.
  3. Make one into ribbon storage, as seen on Recycled Wares.
  4. Turn one into a file system of sorts, for stickers, menus, or photographs. From Club CK.

Spice Racks

  1. A shiny metal spinning spice rack, like this one in Redbook, is perfect for small, craft supplies.
  2. An IKEA version became bookshelves over on 6th Street Design School.
  3. Spoonful of Vintage looked to an old rack to store fingernail polish and scarves.
  4. If you don’t mind giving away your beauty secrets, a few of these racks can hold plenty of grooming supplies in a bathroom.
  5. Inverted, the Bekvam acts as a magazine holder for Retropolitan.

Re-edited from a post originally published 6.12.15- DF