Creating Space in A Small Space

We live in a small house. It's less than 1000 square feet, it's two bedrooms and its trusty old walls are home to 4 adults, 3 children, 4 (big) dogs, and.... a lot of cats. Thankfully I have acreage - and I love my old house. I inherited it from my Grandfather, and I am blessed and thankful. And at first, it was perfect... when it was just me.

Now I have 3 children and a whole family.

So it's a little cramped, but with a lot of open communication and respect, we make it work. What has been our primary struggle has been... storage space. None of us are minimalist lifestylers... we like our (mostly nerdy) stuff. And my children love every single stuffy, doll, and toy they have ever gotten since birth.

There is the tiniest coat closet by the door, and a shared closet space for the space heater, my bedroom closet, and the towel closet. My kitchen pantry serves also as my laundry room. To try and make up for the lack of space, the original builders of the house crammed as many kitchen cupboards as possible in the tiny kitchen.

My grandfather had also struggled with storage space, as he custom built a triangular floor-to-ceiling corner shelf and installed rudimentary shelves of plywood in the pantry (waaaaaay up high, as if everyone in the world is built 6'6"). He also installed bottom kitchen cupboards on the back porch and topped them to serve as an outdoor bar.

But where there is a will - there is a way.

When my fiance bought us a new refrigerator for Christmas, we made a mistake: Wrong measurements. After ordering the magnificent French-style door beast of a fridge, we realized that it was going to be almost two inches too tall to fit under the cabinet on the wall. It was also going to have to have the doors removed to fit into our widest door - our sliding back door.

I scanned the house in a panic. I was in love with it already. My man could sell ice to an Eskimo if he did it the way he sold this refrigerator to me. And upon seeing a wide-open blank wall in the dining nook, I saw an opportunity.

I had my bubba and my hubba help me tear the cabinet off the wall.

That baby was getting a makeover and a new home. The kitchen wall got a little touch-up too, with a fresh coat of paint.

I took the opportunity to get creative with it. With a good sanding, a fresh new coat of black paint, and a funky broken porcelain mosaic rosined into each door, that cabinet looks so good against my freshly painted yellow walls.

Next up is an old side table that I have set aside. I intend on using it as a wall shelf by the front door where we will keep our purses, keys, outgoing mail, emergency medicine, flashlights, and maybe even an umbrella if I work it right.

The point is, that a minimalist lifestyle isn't for everyone, so storage space is essential to having an organized small space.

In a small house that may house a big family (or someone who likes things), organization can be hard if you don't have the right storage space. The key to a house that isn't super cluttered is this: Everything has a designated place. If there isn't a home for things to go to, the things can't go to their home. Make sense?

These DIY cabinets are just the beginning steps into making this house more storage-friendly.

Do you have any storage hacks or suggestions?

Share with me in the comments, as I am still looking for solutions to my small house living!