As far as conspiracy theories go, my theory that the inanimate objects in my house are conspiring against my efforts at neatness, is really rather reasonable. No matter how many times I clear my desktop or coffee table or shove the shoes back under my dressing table, my stuff inevitably ends up in a bit of a mess.

However, the possibility that my stuff ends up in all the wrong places simply because my house is not very well ordered and I don't have strategically placed storage facilities, did dawn on me.

So, how do I create more storage space without renovating my house? There are only so many shelves in a cupboard and while I want my stuff to be easily accessible, I also want it to look good. I chatted to two interior designers and a decorating enthusiast for some nifty ideas on how to store my stuff. This is what I discovered…

Use baskets or boxes

The thought of baskets tends to conjure up images of Little Red Riding Hood skipping through the forest, however not all baskets need to be frumpy. I'm not really keen on traditional wooden baskets, but there are always wire ones or ornately beaded ones. Or I could try to get hold of some beautifully patterned, thick cardboard boxes.

Baskets can house a number of miscellaneous goodies that look messy and are never in the right place when you need them — I'm always looking for my keys or TV remote!

"Put a decorative basket or bowl at your front door especially for your keys (but nothing other than your keys). You won't be nagging your hubby or partner for cluttering up your kitchen counter with keys and you'll always know where they are," says Belinda Frylink from Interior Collections.

She suggests storing magazines in a decorative woven basket underneath the coffee table. When the basket gets full, just get rid of the old ones. This will keep the top of my table free, without losing the convenience of having easily accessible magazines.

Decorative baskets or boxes can also be used to store remote controls and unopened mail. "Have two decorative baskets close to your front door for unopened mail — one for 'immediate attention' and the other for 'read/file'. Sort through and throw away all junk mail as soon as you walk in the door after collecting the mail," she adds.

Shelf it…

Shelves seem like a rather obvious and not particularly appealing way of storing an assortment of things from toys to books to kitchen utensils. However, there are ways to make shelf storage more appealing and apparently where you put the shelf really changes the dynamics of the room.

Marcia Margolius from Bed and Bath suggests that frequently used items should be kept at eye level and be easy to reach. This will also ensure that I put things back when I am finished with them.

However, I could also put a small shelf above a window and display objects (that I like but never use) attractively. "They will be more noticeable and decorative when grouped together in one area rather than scattered around the room and a great talking point for visitors," says Frylink.

Shelves also work well in bathrooms and children's rooms. I only have a small amount of storage space in my bathroom, so I could put up shelves to store rolled-up towels and bath goodies. This is far more practical than keeping my towels in a cupboard in another room.

Kids' rooms are typically full of toys, books and sports gear. Shelves are a nifty way of storing and displaying toys. If things are looking a little messy try putting small toys such as lego or crayons in fun boxes.

Alternatively, Belinda Frylink advises that you "cover up the open shelves with Roman or roller blinds on the front and sides to hide the clutter of books and toys".

I don't really like the idea of open shelves, however an Ottoman or storage bench also works well. These are great for storing things that are not particularly appealing to look at, such as sport equipment, games or spare blankets. I can even throw a decorative cloth over the top or cover with scatter cushions.

In the bag

Whenever I want to find a telephone number, I usually spend about 10 minutes just trying to find the directory. Hanging beautiful woven or raffia beach bags on a wall close to the telephone is handy for hiding telephone directories, according to Frylink. This bag could also be a useful place to stash a notepad and pen for telephone messages.

"Shoe bags have endless uses," says Claudia Drummond, a decorating enthusiast. "Hang them behind the door in the kitchen or inside the utility cupboard. Store candles, matches, sponges, rags and tools. Most bottles of cleaning agents are narrow enough to fit into each pocket. A plastic shoe bag with holes punched in can be used in the shower."

Display creatively

Beautiful photos should not be kept in a box or a dusty album where they are only looked at once every couple of years. At the same time, too many photos placed haphazardly around the room are neither tasteful nor tidy.

Frylink's solution is having some photos reprinted in black and white or sepia and placing these in black or wood frames. Hang these photos in various compositions around your home. Alternatively you could display them underneath the glass on your coffee table.

Or make a photo gallery using old CD boxes, says Claudia Drummond, "place photos in CD boxes and stick the boxes directly onto a room divider screen or wall. Arrange in perfect rows and columns for a slick look".

For a modern, trendy look display your favourite CDs on the wall. "Fix rows of small brass hooks on a wall close to the CD player, spaced perfectly to hang the CDs side-by-side to cover the whole area," explains Frylink.

Kitchens do not need to be solely functional. Use glass bottles or vases to display food in a charming way. Drummond advocates using glass jars.

"Rows of identical glass jars on a floating shelf look awesome in a kitchen — they'll reflect light and you'll be able to keep stock of your supplies at a glance. Fill with anything — pasta, beans, rice or sugar."

Frylink adds that stacking apples, pears, lemons, limes or oranges in a tall, oblong flower vase and putting it on the kitchen counter. "This takes up less space than a flat, shallow bowl and the colour of the contents is more noticeable," she says. In fact, glass vases, that aren’t being used for flowers, can be filled with candles or glass beads and used as décor accessories around the house — at the same time freeing up space in my cupboard.

Ok, so maybe the fact that my remote ends up in the couch and my towels end in up in a pile on my bedroom floor does have something to do with me. Mmm… that's one conspiracy theory down, but I do still have some theories about Elvis, JFK and alien abductions…


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