Looking for easy ways to organize your living room? Whether you have a small space or a large space, check out these 20 simple tips and tricks to help you get more storage in your living room and stay organized!
Strategize Your Interior Design
Photo via @zephyr_and_stone
If you’re going for a living room overhaul, utilize interior design themes based off lifestyles to create a cohesive, organized, and decluttered look to your living room—like minimalism or maximalism. As an interior design, functionality-focused minimalism helps keep your home organized and decluttered, reducing the amount of items you need to store and providing a designated spot. When strategizing a budget-friendly minimalist living room, opt for compact, functional furniture like DIY nesting tables to make the room look spacious. Or design a maximalist living room and pair your personal items with narrow, multi-functional, or retractable furniture to save floor space when needed. Go for geometrical shelving to embrace the fun of maximalism while maintaining a decluttered living room.
Remember Storage Can Be Stylish
Photo via @hannahs.home.styling
Storage options don’t have to be boring and dull. When adding bins and other living room storage solutions, choose colors to match your aesthetic and bring out personality. Decor items like mirrors, dressers, and coffee and side tables come in various patterns, colors, and styles to fit your room scheme, plus they can be functional for stowing items. Picking out storage options to pair with other items like area rugs or wall art can help brighten up a room, all while keeping everything tucked away.
Repurpose & Upcycle Items
Photo via @dariageiler
Purchasing brand new furniture can be a hassle depending on which style, material, and purpose you need it for. Make decorating cost-effective and easy by finding items you already own that can be repurposed for your living room! Upcycle dressers as entertainment stands, and store games, blankets, and other items in the drawers. Reutilize vintage trunks or buffet tables with a DIY project, turning them into unique and budget-friendly end tables or even coffee tables.
Explore Coffee Table Options
Photo via @copycatchic
Not only can centralized coffee tables bring a room together, they can also be functional furniture! Maximize living room storage with a tiered coffee table, and use the bottom shelf for books, board games, photo albums, or other small items. Stash away coasters, remotes, and other items in coffee tables with drawers, so you don’t clutter the surface. For small living rooms, opt for a lift-top coffee table, which can come in handy for reading, working on a laptop, or snacking.
Opt for Multipurpose Furniture
Photo via @recycled.restored
Not only is utilizing multipurpose furniture a great decluttering idea for your living room—it’s also a fantastic idea to keep small living rooms looking organized! Add a cube shelf in your living room to store books, knick-knacks, or even decor. Save a lot of room and provide guest seating with bargain side tables, fold-out or stackable tables, and stackable chairs. Use living room ottomans to store blankets and pillows to keep your area clean.
Invest in an Entertainment Center
Photo via @abbyorganizes
If you’re limited on space in your living room, it’s a good idea to utilize furniture that can serve multiple purposes. Entertainment centers are a great example of this. Not only is this versatile piece of furniture a place where you can set up your TV, cable box, and gaming consoles, but it can also be used to display decorative items and store books, magazines, DVDs, remotes, toys, pillows, blankets, and more!
Organize or Hide Your Remotes
Photo via @willowandwood
Are you always losing your remotes for your living room devices? Keep remotes organized by storing them in decorative boxes, serving trays set on your coffee table, specially-made remote bins, or makeup organizers. Or try out remote control organizers that can hang over the armrest on the side of your sofa. If your furniture is multifunctional, use your storage ottoman or the drawers of your coffee table or end table to store remotes.
Incorporate Hidden Storage
Photo via @willow_and_hall
Declutter your living room by adding hidden storage. This budget-friendly option is perfect for saving space and making your living area look tidy. Use seating that lifts up to store cozy items like pillows, blankets, or even extra clothing. Some furniture even comes with hidden storage within the armrests for placing charging cords or remotes. Consider purchasing a living room storage bench to combine all the things you need: hidden storage, extra seating, and display space. DIY a storage bench, find benches with cabinets, or use ottoman benches.
Use a Stylish Hutch for Storage
Photo via @mallorysdesign
If you need additional storage space, find a freestanding storage cabinet or hutch to keep blankets, books, games, and toys neatly organized and out of the way. A storage hutch allows you to easily stash items when you have guests coming over, so you have plenty of room for everyone. If you want to store items but still have them on display, choose a hutch or curio cabinet with a glass front to display precious items but still have them neatly arranged.
Utilize Built-In Shelves and Fireplaces
Photo via @georgiasattic
For those who have built-in shelves, store valuable items that you don’t want to bump into like glassware, important art, decor, or even small, delicate plants. Built-in shelves can also be used as bookshelves, or if they have glass doors, opt for using it as a curio cabinet to display china or other fragile items. If you have a non-functional fireplace, this can be used as a point of functional decor, as well. Place a decorative basket for storage inside the fireplace or even a piece of artwork to spruce up the empty space. Candles can also be placed inside a non-functional fireplace to create a warm, organized aesthetic.
Get Creative with Vertical Space
Photo via @designwithinreach
Save on floorspace and declutter surfaces by making the most of your vertical space. Use shelving to break up the blank canvas of the wall, allowing you to display books, plants, art, and other personal items. Tall shelving units, ladder bookshelves, floating shelves, or mounted magazine racks are smart ways to bring storage toward the ceiling, opening up your living room. Keep items accessible with a ladder or fold-up stool that can be stored next to the shelf, behind the shelf, or under a sofa.
Create a Gallery Wall
Photo via @joybird
Not sure where to keep all your art? Create an accent wall that doubles as a gallery to display your artwork! Use small hooks to hang your pieces, use floating shelves, or place large pieces on the floor against the wall to give some variety to the space. Don’t feel like you have to align art in a perfect line. Vary your hanging height and intermingle large and small items to give your wall eye-catching variety.
Hang Plants on the Walls or the Ceiling
Photo via @themacramejungle
Have a lot of houseplants needing a proper display? Bring greenery into your living room while saving surface area on tables with wall planters and hanging planters. This houseplant organization tip is useful if you have young kids or pets who like to get into things—or if you’re designing your living room in the urban jungle style. Make your own wall planters, purchase inexpensive ones, or mount hooks in the ceiling to hang your plants. Use decorative pots to not only spruce up the room with patterns and color, but also to help drain excess water and help keep your plants alive.
Add Book Storage
Photo via @annastathakiphoto
If you’re a book lover, keep all of your favorite reads in one place by using book storage! Use wall space to add floating bookshelves and free up space for other items in your living room. Try clear shelves or corner braces to create your own floating bookshelves. Strategically stack books in bookshelves or storage cubes for a minimalist vibe.
Personalize Your Pet’s Areas
Photo via @woodys_craft
Keep a pet bed and pet supplies in a designated area, and store bones, squeaky toys, and catnip toys in a cute box or crate for easy access. When you need to hide pet supplies to make room for guests, these items can be moved beneath or behind a couch, under an end table, or into a storage trunk. Having a designated corner for your pet and their items means they can be cozy in their space. You can save space in your living room by choosing a pet bed that can also function as furniture or a decorative piece, and even start a DIY project to make an end table double as a pet bed!
Organize Cords & Wires
Photo via @utwireproducts
If you have electronics or lamps on shelves and tables, you can organize cords and wires out of sight to keep your living area looking tidy. Run cords through an ornamental box to disguise them as decor. Use adhesive wall hooks to run wires along the sides of shelves or furniture to keep them out of sight. Keep all of your charger cords organized with binder clips on the edge of your shelves or tables. Organize lamp or TV cords with zip ties and then affix them to the back of furniture. You can even go a step further with this trick by wrapping cords in a fabric that matches the color of the furniture or wall for easy camouflage! Create a recharge station for phones by decorating and repurposing an old shoe box so your charging cords stay untangled and easy to find.
Make a Space for Kids
Photo via @jacky.by.life
Is your living room being overwhelmed by kids toys and games? Designate a shelf, play area, or storage trunk to organize and store children’s books, toys, games, and stuffed animals. Play areas can be created with storage cubes to hold toys and books, small indoor tents where kids can play or read, or even hanging canopies to create a hidden space for children to nap or snuggle with their stuffed animals.
Display Items on Bar Carts
Photo via @elestudiodegraciela
Not only are bar carts perfect for mixing up drinks when entertaining guests, but they can be multi-functional. Use a mobile cart to display decor, small pieces of art, plants, and more. Or feature prized and frequently-used items, like a record player and record collection. Decorate your bar cart with lights for some extra flair, and roll it from one room to another when needed to use it as a side table or serving tray.
Store Blankets & Throws on a Ladder
Photo via @kirklands
Keep blankets stylish and easy to access by using a ladder to store blankets and throws. Simply hang or lean a stylish decor ladder against a wall in your space to keep the space organized and tidy. You can even create a DIY blanket ladder to add living room organization. Not only does this keep blankets and throws off of your sofa, which decreases clutter and frees up seating, but it’s also a great decorative piece that adds an element of comfort to your space.
Add Storage Under the Staircase
Photo via @northstonehampark
Do you have space under your staircase and aren’t sure what to do with it? Upgrade that small stretch of under-stair space into extra storage. Install shelves or cabinets to make it into a bookshelf or a display. If the space opens up and there’s room to walk in, turn that into a small closet, a space for your pet, or even a kids playroom. Or turn it into a little reading nook by adding a ledge, small chair or sofa, or throw pillows. For more living room decorating ideas, check out our 2023 Home Design Trends for inspiration!
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