We have had to get creative around our house to store things since we don’t have any closets. And our favorite kind of storage is hidden storage.
Can you guess where we keep our board games?
They are in the landing! The particular project I’m sharing today was actually done almost 2 years ago, it just hasn’t really been presentable until the living room makeover happened.
Sorry, I don’t have any decent photos of the project since it happened pre-blog, but it’s really simple.
We pulled up the floor boards that were covering the landing. Then we put down a section of plywood, mounted by hinges on the inside. It’s easier to show you than explain it.
Right now, it’s still just stained plywood, we will most likely be covering it in thin strips of wood to match the rest of the floor. And then I need to touch up and caulk the baseboard, but we’ll get to that when we re-finish the stairs.
We are incredibly happy with it. It was a relatively simple project that only cost about $25 and it’s totally hidden, that’s our favorite part.
And, now that I see it in pictures, I really want to paint the inside, it’s so not pretty. Another project for the ever-growing list!
Update: I covered the inside of the landing lid with some polka dot wrapping paper, and it now looks like this:
Kyle Lefort
January 16, 2013 at 10:58 pmIt uses an otherwise empty space, and you can store the board games in the same room where you’d use them-without having the clutter problem. Genius!
Christina O
January 17, 2013 at 11:14 amThanks, Kyle!
onshore
January 17, 2013 at 7:33 amIngenious! I assumed there was a drawer under the landing, but this is way more simpler.
onshore
January 17, 2013 at 7:33 amOh and what is under the stairs itself? Is there any storage?
Christina O
January 17, 2013 at 11:19 amThank you! We considered a drawer, but yes, it was more complicated and you wouldn’t get as much storage space out of it.
Under those stairs are the basement stairs.
Anonymous
January 17, 2013 at 12:25 pmBest. Idea. Ever. I love my board games, but the OCD in me hates that the boxes are almost never the same size. We do keep them in the living room (where we play) but I have to do this in my next home if possible. Great use of space.
Love,
Kim
Christina O
January 25, 2013 at 7:56 amYes! Even as a child, it bothered me that there was no standard box size and it still drives me crazy.
Thanks for the nice comments!
otterine
January 17, 2013 at 4:57 pmThat’s awesome! 😀
Mini Dork
January 19, 2013 at 5:34 amBrilliant. Very clever and functional idea.
fabriquefantastique
January 22, 2013 at 8:00 pmfantastic…I would keep my knitting there…
Kris
March 28, 2015 at 9:01 amWow, I wish I would have known about this idea back in 1972 when we built our house in Wisconsin.
What a neat idea!