How We Maximized Storage in Our Craft Room by Using Floor Shelves in an Unexpected Way

Today we’re breaking down the way we used a floor-standing shelf to maximize vertical storage for craft supplies, decor and photo props.

A Shifting Space for Shifting Needs

Our tiny little craft/shipping/painting room (located right at the top of the staircase adjacent to our family room) has seen quite a few iterations over the years. When Kim was still lovingly painting custom pet portraits, this room served as the command center for that arm of our business. Canvas boards, paint, brushes, shipping boxes and tissue paper filled the drawers and shelves and we were left without space for much else.

Once Kim closed up The Pet Shop, the space shifted again to be more of a crafting/gift wrapping zone. Lucy’s finger painting supplies, smock and brushes filled the shelves, and it served us well in that configuration. However, as the impromptu prop and styling product shelf in our downstairs workshop started to overflow, we knew we’d need a new arrangement fast if we hoped to maintain our sanity.

The Hunt for the Perfect Shelving Unit

After what felt like an exhaustive online and in-person search of all of our favorite furniture sources, we thought we’d found a winner at CB2. Their Stairway bookshelf is beautiful and simple, but unfortunately, the individual shelf heights are fixed. We knew that some of the pieces we needed to store were taller than the 11.5″ spaces between shelves, so we were back to the drawing board. We then wandered into our local EQ3 store, where we discovered the Climb ladder shelf system. After seeing the unit in person, we loved the modular construction and almost unlimited adjustability. It was the perfect fit for the space if we mounted it directly on top of our craft table!

(Note: This post is not sponsored in any way, but as always, all opinions are our own.)

Lucky for us, the medium height 75″ gables were the perfect size for the 80″ of wall space above the desk. We placed an order locally for a white and oak system with 8 shelves (four pairs of two), then (im)patiently waited a few weeks for it to arrive at our local store.

Once the components arrived, we got to work assembling them over the course of an afternoon. We were thoroughly impressed with the fit and finish quality of the whole system. The powder coating on the metal gables is sturdy and the screws and hardware are all high quality. This was our first time purchasing from EQ3 and won’t be our last.

Stocking the Shelves

After a healthy purge of all of the items we’d been storing, Kim got to work putting storage and organization systems in place. We folded pillow covers and stacked them vertically in a bin for easy viewing; see them there, on the top shelf? We kept vases together, lighting up top, and we really had an honest conversation with ourselves about what we would keep and what had to go.

The deeper, sturdier shelves that now reached almost to the ceiling easily swallowed up all of our decor items. There was also more than enough space for all of our painting and drawing supplies to keep our little 4 year old occupied for a very, very long time.

This room gets incredible afternoon light that seems to make for the happiest of plants. A couple varieties of pothos trail down on the left side of the shelving unit, while on the opposite side of the room, the all-mounted paper roll shelf holds a fern, a Pilea and a Raven ZZ, which are all thriving!

The Rest of the Room

On the door side of the wall, we moved our magnet photo boards (from IKEA, but no longer available) to a vertically stacked orientation, and our BISSELL vacuum is still holding down the fort and helping us keep the second floor tidy. If you’ve been around for awhile, you know that we’re big fans of systems in this home and in our lives. We find that having a cordless vacuum on each floor of the home makes quick spot vacuuming a quick and easy chore. Systems make somewhat unpleasant tasks like cleaning that much easier to accomplish!

And see all those faux greens peeking out along the side of the desk? Kim stored her wrapping paper and greenery in slim white trash bins to keep everything upright!

Saving Artwork for the Future

As with most pre-schoolers, our little Lucy brings home a TON of artwork. These papers range all the way from simple colorful scribbles that aren’t terribly sentimental to traced hands and drawings of unicorns that we absolutely cherish. We’ve gotten into the habit of snapping photos of everything that we don’t want to lose. Hard copies of any specifically ‘keeper’ items also end up in this cute open basket.

Any artwork that is particularly sentimental might end up ironed flat and framed down the road. For now, this cute lil’ basket is the perfect place to keep everything all in one place.

The most recent iteration of this room is by far the most space efficient. Taking advantage of the high ceilings in this home has been a wonderful storage hack for us. In this case, the simple IKEA step stool acts as a ladder to allow us to stand on the countertop to access anything on the shelves quickly and safely. Three cheers for storage solutions that are as beautiful as they are functional!

Feeling motivated to organize? We have an entire category of blog posts that covers everything from organizing your shed to sorting laundry to awkward closets to toy overflow – even how we keep physical photos and digital files under control!