Why we need storage in transitional space.

Transitional space exists in every home and office and the right storage is critical.  With either a traditional mudroom or entry hall/room or that transitional space you’ve created, you’ve found the right space.  So once you’ve decided on your transitional space – or “launching and landing pad” as organizers like to call it, what should you put it in for storage?  Dumping our stuff in a pile or on the floor doesn’t make our transitional space work – it just makes another mess so we need to find storage that works.

What’s the right storage?

In additional to hooks for hanging, the Three B’s – baskets, buckets and bags – can create the right storage.  Large baskets are great for any number of things – sports equipment, shoes, hats, mittens,  you name it….Shallow buckets – with an emphasis on shallow – can serve the same purpose.  If the bucket is too deep, you will lose those items housed at the bottom and will need to dump out the contents to find anything not visible on the surface.  Think wide, not deep. And bags are the most versatile storage option of all in your transitional space.  One of the most critical uses of transitional space is to house those items not just entering your home but those that need to leave it.  To create a process around getting items out of your space and to its new “home”, take it to the transitional space, put it in a bag (I love a small handle bag) and STAPLE a sticky note to the bag.  If the item is ready to go when you leave the house, the likelihood that it will go is much greater.

Transitional space work best with the right storage.  And choose the right storage for the item – coats on hooks, hats and gloves in baskets, sports equipment in bins – and make those baskets, buckets and bags work for you.