Double The Shoe Storage Space In Your Closet With Just One Affordable Hack

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Real estate and rent prices have skyrocketed in the U.S. in recent years, forcing people to consider smaller homes. However, diminutive living spaces can have a detrimental impact on our physical and mental health. It's more important than ever to maximize the space you have so you can live a fulfilling life. This includes decorating in a way that makes you happy and organizing everything to create ample room for storage. Decluttering can relieve anxiety, help you focus, and even improve your physical health by reducing stress. It turns out that any time is the best time to clean out a closet, making that a good starting point. In particular, you can solve your shoe storage woes with a DIY involving just one item: a shoebox.

What's a more affordable shoe storage hack than one involving the literal box you carried your new shoes out of the store with? This idea by enticestudio on Instagram involves more than just stacking boxes in the closet. You want to be able to see every pair of shoes for easy outfit planning. This hack solves this problem by creating display cubbies from the boxes, making space for an extra set of shoes. It's an easy and affordable project. All you need to do to get started is head out and buy a new pair of shoes, though these Easycustomerlee Small Corrugated Cardboard Shipping Boxes work well, too.

Once you have your hands on a shoebox, the only tool you need to complete this DIY is a knife — preferably a box cutter or X-Acto knife. Keep yourself safe when breaking out these tools by avoiding dull blades, wearing gloves, and making deliberate cuts that move away from your body. Start by opening the shoebox lid and cutting the lid off along the bend. If the shoebox just has a removable outer lid, this step isn't necessary. It may take more than one slice to get all the way through. You might find it easier to cut halfway along one side before flipping the box around to cut it again.

Once you've removed the lid, pick one of the shorter sides for your cubby opening. Slice through both corner seams along the edges of this side to create a cardboard flap. Cut the flap off from the bottom of the box. Flip the shoebox upside down and set it on a shelf in your closet. Place one pair of shoes on the top platform and slide another into the open cubby underneath. There are plenty of affordable closet storage hacks that keep shoes off the floor, but these cut-up shoeboxes work at ground-level or on a shelf higher up in the closet.

One nice thing about creating cheap, easy shoe storage solutions out of malleable materials such as cardboard is that there are lots of opportunities for customization. Applying a new paint finish when remodeling your closet? Paint your new shoebox storage cubbies complementary colors or use a contrasting hue to make them stand out on a shelf. Alternatively, you can flex your creative muscle by decorating the boxes with colored stick-on rhinestones, paper mache, or any other preferred decorative technique.

If you want to create larger storage cubbies than you can create using a single shoebox, some big-box retailers give away their used merchandise packaging boxes. If you've own rather than rent your house, build similarly shaped yet more permanent cubbies using woodworking techniques and cheap plywood. The sky is ultimately the limit. Why not invite your equally crafty friends over? They can contribute creative decor ideas and help with decluttering. A little bit of support can go a long way when tackling the daunting task of organizing your living space.