Making the Most of Storage: Folding and Collapsing

 

One of my favorite things about life in this little cottage is figuring out how to make the most of our space. I’ve come across a great number of things that fold or collapse for storage, and they have made life so much easier! It occurred to me that if these items have been a good fit for me, they may be for you, too! Today I’m sharing some of my favorites that we use regularly!

1.   Water Dish. This one was gifted to us when Lexi was a baby, and we have used it so often! I couldn’t find the exact one we have, but this is basically the same thing! It has a clip that you can hook onto a belt loop or treat bag if you’re going to be gone for a while, which is so handy! We use this when we go for long walks (or short walks on hotter evenings), and also when we are traveling with her. We can collapse it to carry and pop it up when she needs a drink. We can also keep it in her travel bag so we know where it is whenever we need to grab the bag and go.

2.   Simple Step Stool. We bought two of these when we moved here, because there are a handful of spaces that I’m not tall enough to reach effectively, and I didn’t want to have to haul our heavy step stool up and down the stairs for a quick use. We put one upstairs and one downstairs, and now we’re covered. They fold up to a very slim footprint and slide easily behind a piece of furniture. They’re cost-effective and SO handy.

3.   Laundry Basket. I think I’d been using the same laundry basket I had since before Ryan and I were married, but it was a big space hog, and when we moved here, I didn’t have anywhere to keep it without the storage space being inconveniently located in relation to the laundry or the basket just being a big eyesore sitting out in front of everyone. Then I realized they make collapsible laundry baskets, so we got one! I store it under our bed when I’m not using it, and when I need it, it pulls right up to full size!

4.   All-Purpose Basket. This one is similar to the laundry basket, but it’s smaller and has handles. I also keep this one under our bed, and I use it right now to haul produce in from the garden. It can also be used to wash dishes outside or serve any other purpose that can involve water and/or messes. It comes clean easily!

5.   Food Storage Containers. Our kitchen is not the smallest in the world when it comes to storage, but I do need to maximize every shelf, so having food storage containers that collapse when not in use has been a game changer for me. We use these to store leftovers and to hold Ryan’s lunch items! We have a rectangle and round version of these sets!

6.   Colander. This was a wedding gift that has served us SO well. It’s a large colander that can expand to rest over our kitchen sink. It holds large amounts of food, so it’s perfect for cleaning produce! As you might imagine, to store that at full size would take a lot of cabinet space, but when all folded up, it fits neatly in the side of a cupboard!

7.   Guest Bed. I’ve shared about this one before, but it fits the category, so I’ll share again! When we lived in Kokomo, we found this bed at IKEA and purchased it for our guest room. It’s followed us to every home since and has been such a perfect fit for us. It stores on the daily at a twin size, so it doesn’t take up much room and if we just have one person over, it works great. But it also pulls out to be a king bed, so if we have a couple stay with us, we have plenty of room for both! There are other versions of this bed, but this is ours.

8.   Kitchen Island. We purchased this one when we moved to this house, and it’s been the right choice for sure. I like a lot of walking space in our kitchen, so this slimline island with cabinet and drawer storage gives us the extra room we need – not just for storage, but for a little extra counter space as well. It also has a leaf that pulls up if you need to double that space (or slide stools under it for extra seating), but it doesn’t have to take up all that space all the time. We use both versions of it pretty equally, and I'm glad we went with this choice!

9.   Travel Backpack. I bought this for Ryan a couple of years ago, and we’ve gotten so much use out of it. When we are away for the day (especially if we’re hiking) we’d been using cinch sacks to hold water bottles, sunscreen, bug spray, wallets, keys, etc. But then I found this foldable backpack that can hold a tremendous amount of stuff – yet it folds up into a tiny little pack! It also has a chest clip, which helps distribute the weight and keeps our necks/backs/shoulders from hurting so much if we’re carrying a heavy pack for several hours.

10.                Lunch Tote. The very first thing I purchased for Shafferland after Ryan and I became engaged was a thermal tote from Thirty-One. A friend of mine had a party, and I got this to serve as a picnic tote for us. (I was also swayed by the fact that if turned on its side, it could keep pizza boxes warm.) We STILL use this bag almost eleven years later. We use it every single time we go to the grocery store, on every vacation, to haul pizzas, and yes, for picnics. It has been more than worth its price tag. (And I acknowledge that this company has some higher-end price tags.) They no longer make the exact version we have, but this looks like the current comparable, and it actually looks a little bit better, even, than what we have. Best of all, it folds up to store in the car to be ready at any time!

 

So there you have it! Our top ten easy-to-store collapsible and foldable items!