If you have ever been privy to apartment or small-space living you can attest to the fact that there is no such thing as too much storage. “Oh, my apartment… it has too much storage” said no one ever. And while we all wish that we had plenty of walk-in-closets and built in floor to ceiling storage areas to stash every little bit of our lives away that we don’t want out for the world to see, most of the time that is just not possible. When Brian and I first moved to NYC together we shared a tiny little studio apartment and we had to get as creative as possible with our storage needs. Granted we were young and didn’t have a lot that needed to be held on to (or stored away), but anything that provided storage for us in that apartment was gladly welcomed in the door. Flash forward to many years later, our living conditions (and the size of our spaces) have changed but our need for storage has not. No matter where we all live – every home, apartment, studio, or loft needs somewhere to keep things that isn’t a total utilitarian eyesore.
So to combat the storage problem we pulled together some of our favorite storage pieces in three different categories (based on your needs). 1) Closed Storage: these are the cabinets for those of you that may not have the most attractive things to look at, and really just need a pretty place to close the doors and forget about what is behind them. 2) Display Storage: these are for those of you that have pretty items to display, are incredibly clean and have more willpower than to just shove stuff in there. 3) Multifunctional Storage: the hybrid of the last two, these offer some open and some closed storage which makes them perfect for any room where you have some pretty items to show off as well as some not so pretty items that you want hidden away.
Let’s start with closed storage and a few of our favorites right now:
I am very into this cabinet above and although rattan is having a major moment right now, it will always be in style in our book. #2 (which you see above) is one of my favorites but I also love #3 for the price, and I love the more modern lines of #1 and #15.
1. Shale | 2. Marte | 3. Carver | 4. Stockholm | 5. Estilo | 6. Charlene | 7. Murtaugh | 8. Parsons | 9. Hemnes | 10. Nantucket | 11. Muse | 12. Antwerp | 13. Media Cabinet | 14. Blake | 15. Bezier
Next up we have display storage for those of you design exhibitionists that are ready to show off what you have rather than hide it away.
I have the glass front display cabinet in my dining room above (although this is not how it always looks as we had styled this for a shoot and this was before we had swapped out our chairs) which houses a little bar area and I have to say I love that cabinet. It is so affordable and is just the right proportions to work in a dining room, bedroom, kitchen, or anywhere else. Keep in mind, everything in these types of cabinets is in clear view so these are best used for your prettiest items vs the everyday stuff. If you are looking to house boxed food, papers, junk, electronics or anything else that might not be “display-worthy” then scroll back up to the last roundup as the closed storage might be a better option for you. But when they are done right they really can be so beautiful in any room.
I love #2 from Target as I have mentioned already 1 million times, but I will never not recommend it as a good option for any room. #13 is a great option for those of you looking for something more traditional, and I love the mix of woods in #15.
1. Haze Vitrine | 2. Hadley | 3. Anthracite | 4. Ventana | 5. Murtaugh | 6. Regissor | 7. Curio | 8. Windham | 9. Casement | 10. Odean | 11. Noche | 12. Hemnes | 13. Malsjo | 14. Dontae | 15. Millie | 16. Windham | 17. Garrett | 18. Hampton
Lastly, multifunctional storage for those of you that want the best of both worlds.
While technically some of these could fall into bookshelf land we did pull pieces that had both open shelving and then some aspect of closed storage whether that be doors or drawers. Style them out like Justina did above in her old studio or repurpose a vintage piece like Brady did below in his bedroom where he turned it into a place to hold his clothes and TV.
1. Modern | 2. Franklin | 3. Mid-Century | 4. Siegel | 5. Blake | 6. Avalon | 7. Clive | 8. Royal | 9. Antwerp | 10. Mid-Century Platform | 11. Kasse | 12. Sofia
So, are you more the “display storage” or “hide it all away” type?
From the Display Cabinets grouping, we have #9/Crate & Barrel, but in the long/low version. It is gorgeous! Black metal with glass doors, and clean lines. The back is also lined, very important so you’re not seeing our bright white walls through the glass doors. Looks awesome with my vintage milk glass and silver collection; we also hung picture ledges above it, which creates a little more space for decorating. Very happy with the piece!
I have been waiting for that rattan Ikea cabinet (#4 in closed storage) to be in stock since March! It seems like everyone really loves it, but has anyone gotten their actual hands on one? Every time I check the website for it to be in stock it’s pushed back another few weeks. Right now it’s expected in Atlanta Nov 25 – Dec 2. So sad because it’s so pretty! Thanks for putting together so many great options because I might have to give up on that one.
yes! I got it earlier this year and it’s fantastic. gorgeous and simple in person, with a really solid frame and beautiful solid brass hardware. I actually converted it to be a bunny hutch this past month, but before that, it stored a shockingly amazing amount of stuff. thumbs up everywhere.
We’ve seen a few of the new pieces from the rattan collection in person and they are goooood. xx
Thanks, y’all! Jasmine, that bunny hutch sounds adorable!
I’ve been DYING for a bookshelf roundup. Maybe next?
She did! https://stylebyemilyhenderson.com/blog/81-bookcases-thats-lot-books
I know this because books are our main storage problem, and I’ve been looking through that roundup for inspiration.
Riffing along with the hutch discussion above, has anyone ever located a freestanding Larder. I cannot seem to find one in the US, they are all of British manufacture. Something similar to this:
Thank you!
My favorite round up you’ve done!
Great post! Great info. and pics! Thank you!
Love this – especially where you threw in that last round-up with the nearly-$18k dude for good measure. Really, all of these are gorgeous and you are SO right about never having enough storage space.
Love this round-up. Any tips for how to style a built-in hutch? I live in a 100+ year old building with a built-in in the dining room, and I’m having some trouble figuring out what to put on the flat surface underneath the cabinets…
Depending on how much room you have there you could leave it empty, or you could style it out with a larger tray, some glasses, decanters and bar supplies? xx
surprised you didn’t include the ikea ivar in the multifunctional round up as you’ve used it a few times (and I bought it bc I saw it on here!) Great customizable option. I have one with a combo of open shelving and cabinets below. I painted it powder blue and it looks so cute! http://www.ikea.com/us/en/catalog/categories/departments/living_room/11703/
Excellent roundup!! Thank you
I like how you organized the round ups-I’m definitely more of a closed/mixed storage person.
I loved Brady’s room reveal initially and I know his cabinet is vintage, but it’s perfect! Do you happen to know the maker of his cabinet?
Thank you so much!
He got it from Chairish and unfortunately there wasn’t any info both on the piece and on the page about where it came from or the maker. xx
Thank you so much for taking the time to reply Emily! 🙂
Loved this!
was hoping to see this one in the last round up: https://www.wayfair.com/furniture/pdp/langley-street-easmor-70-etagere-bookcase-lgly3073.html
high quality and great value–but i guess is more of a book shelf than a hutch!
That one is good! It is pretty similar to the West Elm version that we have on the roundup, but we are keeping it bookmarked for next time. xx
Where is that fab ladder from in the first picture?!
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Okay, what am I missing? Where is info on the cabinet that opens this post and then featured again lower down? Is this a vintage find or is it available in stores?
I actually do think our house has too much storage, but if I want to remove upper cabinets to add more windows dies that make it ok? ?
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You are speaking my language! I’ve been on a hutch hunt for months. I finally found this gem on Craigslist and refinished it and am so happy how it turned out: https://www.instagram.com/p/BakA2XyHQLD/?taken-by=mbenningfield (I’m just really jazzed about it—hope it’s not odd to show my own thing ha!)
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Window cabinets look much nicer and modern compared to the completely closed ones. They somehow decor the room by themselves and you can use them to put interesting eye-cathing elements inside or books — something interesting to look at. Great choice of cabinets.
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