A Tiny Guide to GREAT Storage

Chic + flexible shelves, cabinets, cubbies, let's get into it❤️.

Before we kick off today’s odyssey of cool hiding places, a big thank you to everyone who dropped comments in last week’s newsletter to be in the running for our two giveaways. (PS: Fwiw, I always choose names at random (pic below!), and only subscribers who haven’t recently won a giveaway, cuz there’s always enough for everyone:).

And so, big congrats to Lori who is now the proud owner of the sold-out No. 6 dress and Nathalie who won the Sardine Louie sunglasses and matching zip clutch. As an additional I Love You, the fine folks over at Sardine are offering a 48-hour 20% discount just for ATA subscribers to scoop up a new pair of very chic shades in the event that you need or want some, just use CHRISTENE20 at checkout. 😎

And btw, if you missed last week’s summer Friday dress banger, here SHE IS…

Summer Dresses To Wear Into Fall

---

Storage goals—Finding pieces that are as pleasing to look at as they are for sorting all your loose batteries and table linens (I couldn’t find the credit for this photo from one of my inspiration folders, apologies).

As a newsletter devoted to the notion of doing a lot with a little, storage factors HIGH on the list of home + life things to master. And to be fair, you don’t have to live in a tiny apartment to need + appreciate great storage. You just need STUFF, maybe even collections of stuff…and we all have it.

A good friend who was formerly the Dean of Architecture at Smith College, told me that when she was getting her degree herself, she devoted her thesis to the excess and evolution of storage units, as well as the impact “excess” baggage can often have on our hearts + histories as well as our homes (I 100% wanted to read it). Because if you live in a small space or any space that isn’t quite big enough for the life and the things you possess or simply yearn to, managing your stuff can become…complicated.

Three of my favorite thrifted storage curiosities, above, a filing cabinet from the 1970s found behind the cash register at a junk store in Rochester (I convinced the owner to sell it to me, he thought I was insane). My freebie Palaset Finland stacked units found on the sidewalk in Brooklyn, and a floating cabinet found at Restore for $40.

For a while, after my mom sold our childhood home, Kevin and I had a small storage unit in the Brooklyn Navy Yard. And every time I went there to look for something, I got a secret spasm in my right shoulder blade. Other than the big things, I could never remember what was actually in the storage unit, where I “stored” what I was looking for, or if it was even there at all. Unlocking the slatted metal door and peering into this mini black hole always made me uneasy, and sparked vivid memories of being a kid on Long Island rustling through an assortment of partially crushed cardboard boxes on shelves in the basement in search of ice skates whilst hoping a hairy spider wouldn’t give me a straight-up heart attack.

Storage beyond my actual living space was never good.

And somehow, in an effort to be more organized in my petite apartment, I’d created this whole other container of chaos that literally gave me back pain. That unit, even the smallest we could find, cost about $100 a month (same as my phone bill). Over the three years we had it, I gradually got rid of a lot of what was in there, mostly furniture that belonged to my late grandmother that I’d always felt guilty about throwing away or selling. I’ll admit, having this particular stuff in a remote place loosened my emotional grip (one upside, perhaps) and helped me to hone in on the two pieces I actually wanted to keep on living with—her Noguchi-style coffee table and her tiny 200-year-old dining table, which I now use upstate as a desk.

Mint and melon for the win. A hidden cabinet, courtesy of Atelier Karasinski. And below, we can learn a lot from chic library storage, the Archive library of the ateliers Beaudoin and Gromort-Arretche, preserved at the Architecture school of Versailles. I would have one of these custom-made for my own home if I could.

And, I think that’s a big part of today’s story, too—paying attention to what storage can teach us. Not just about how and what to organize but also simply getting more in touch with why we love what we love and why we’ve also chosen to give it a permanent place in our home and lives.

Paying attention to what storage can teach us + getting in touch with why we love what we love and why we’ve chosen to give it a place in our homes + lives.🍀

On a practical note, I’ve tried to organize what I love/recommend here as logically as possible, but the thing about storage is this: Sometimes it isn’t logical. Sometimes an industrial garden shelf makes sense as a hallway book nook. Or an old apothecary cupboard or gasp! THIS becomes the main stash for office paraphenalia. Because what I love to write about most here is how we can personalize a thing or a design move and make it our own. Because we love it. Because it works (for us!). Because it’s interesting to our eye, not just what or how someone else tells us to use it.

I want this in my house immediately.

The only quasi rules I have for GREAT storage is this:

1—Know what you need it for. For example, open shelves will not be conducive for art supplies or other loose bits that can look visually chaotic (I’m sorry, but I hate a storage basket on a shelf). If you want to see it, go for exposed storage and if you don’t, doors + drawers are mandatory.

2—Consider style + substance. Meaning, it’s great if it looks good but it also MUST to be sturdy + well-made since absolutely nobody wants to spend hundreds of dollars on a shelf tower that gradually begins to lean to the side OR completely collapses in the middle of the night (do you know someone this has happened to? I do, too.). And because we don’t want to add more crap to the world, try to buy the best quality you can comfortably afford, and aim for something that you can grow with over time, so wherever you go and whatever you do, it will be happy to come along with you.

3—Measure with space to spare. It can be tempting to get the biggest piece you can afford/fit to give you the most storage possible, but NOT at the detriment/flow/use of the rest of your space. Remember, when in doubt Tape It Out so you can actually see how it will complement/fit in with everything else AND you can physically move around it, test driving how it feels, breezy and open or too tight?

An old friend’s house in East Hampton, this vintage flat-file cabinet always enchanted me.

So, that’s what we have here—a panoply of the best storage I could find that that will surprise you either because of its engineering, its value, its joie de vivre, or hopefully…all three. Most of all, I hope one or two of these ideas/links lead you on some new, intrepid journey to find even more life room-altering tweaks and additions that can make your space even more of a home you love. Okay, let’s get into it…xxCb

Vintage stackable Kartell Componibili cabinets, circa 1980. One of the holy grails of chic, collectible storage. I have a few of these, none of them match, and I use them for different things. They flex w/you, which is probably why they’ve been around so damn long.

SHELVING + SYSTEMS

Hello Storage Bench by 2Modern—I love how versatile this is for small homes or any passageway/mini room that needs “a moment” for settling in and stowing away your umbrella, shoes, backpack, whatever (it almost looks like a tiny brutalist sculpture, too). Could also be handy in a tinier child’s room for books, magic wands, etc. 🪄

Everyone loves Vitsoe shelving designed by the legendary Dieter Rams and if you have the budget for it, by all means go crazy, it’s The Best. But I also really love CASE Shelving (below) for its sharp, architectural lines and lean-yet-robust construction (dammit, I love the colors, too). You could definitely create a little makeshift office somewhere with this vertical piece (a big closet??)…I am transfixed.

The Pier Library from Design Within Reach is another classic/investment any small home could grow/change with (and on sale now, too).

Sometimes library and school suppliers make great quality shelves/cabinets (often on casters!) in wonderful colors you can try and even storage benches with cushions you could have recovered with an incredible hearty striped textile (I love this one by Nickey Kehoe woven in England, don’t you??).

I asked my friend Laura Fenton—author of the incredibly good/life-enhancing Living Small newsletter—if there were any storage/shelving styles she loved a lot…(photo and quote, courtesy of Laura as well as one of her newsletters devoted to organizing. “I love the solid pine Hemnes bookcases from IKEA. Their price has slowly crept up over the years, but they really are a worthwhile upgrade from the classic Billy. A couple years back I bought three of the tall narrow ones to create a book corner near our dining table.”

10 organizing tools I swear by

Pillar Bookshelf by THUMA—For anyone who wants a simple build but also a quality piece of long-lasting furniture, this shelving unit is it. It’s so classic and efficient, I can see this having many lives in an ever-changing flexible space. A good call for rental/AirBnB spaces, too.

Elfa Decor Basic Shelving by Container Store—There’s a tiny whiff of “corporate” in this unit, but not the bad ones. More like if you went to the liquidation sale/auction of a very, very cool historic advertising agency, and you scored this set-up from the Peggy Olsen office. A very good value, too. (This IKEA version, which is less $$ is similar and also great).

Whatever Peggy is putting down, we are picking up, including her shelves.

Stainless Steel Open Cabinet by Culinary Depot—Don’t get me started, I love this so much…I wish they made a whole wall with enclosed cabinets, too. It’s wonderful.

Add It White Storage Cabinet by Steen Ostergaard—This design won some awards and it does have great lines and proportions (I might swap out the pulls, as I’m always swapping out pulls…😬). A wonderful option if you’re in the market for shelving that also has some enclosed cabinets à la the USM Haller configurations (founded in 1885, amazing colors), which are pricey but very collectible w/a high resale value (my advice here would be to go for a smaller piece to start and then build on it if you like how it works/looks).

A MIX of fantastic storage things, all from Walmart.

I was super excited when Walmart invited us to come explore some of their latest home designs, and naturally it prompted me to check out all their storage options, too (you can find links to everything I included above as well as more very cool pieces right here in my Walmart storefront). Because their assortment runs the gamut from ultra practical/industrial to the more refined, it was fun to source a mix of unexpected things—from a brilliant metal cabinet (which I would 100% use as a home bar) to these excellent, very timeless stacking bamboo crates that we immediately turned into a mobile desk for all Raffi’s art supplies when she wants to play or draw…anywhere (see below). She loves them, and the clean lines make them a really lovely and seamless addition to Tiny Apt. HQ. #walmartpartner #walmartcreator✨

KITCHEN

Mason Kitchen Island & Grayson Kitchen Island both by Urban Outfitters—I’ve never lived in a home big enough to accommodate a working kitchen island like these, but I LOVE how they are fashioned to operate almost as a room unto themselves w/loads of storage nooks. I like both styles for their versatility to blend in with a variety of different decor/vibes and also their design efficiency for making a weirdly shaped kitchen or galley style space more communal and high-functioning.

The Base Utensils Organizer by Material —Countertop caddies are one of those things that always elude me, which is why half my shit ends up in an old metal coffee can or a piece of pottery I thrifted. This one is modern and engineered to fit all the tools you likely use the most. And best of all its simple/not trying too hard. I want one.

Pantry shelving by IKEA—The best value by far for industrial’ish shelving that knows how to LIVE + work but also looks subtly stylish whether its keeping all your canned goods/cereals safe or serving as a makeshift closet.

REFORM Kitchen cabinets—When we eventually redo our tiny Brooklyn Heights kitchen, this is who I’m calling first. I could honestly look at their kitchen inspiration images all day, in particular, a Copenhagen home on the left using their Reflect stainless steel style (my personal choice) and on the right, Rebekka Bay, creative director at Marimekko’s home in the UK. (If you’re looking for something less custom/pricey, the Knoxhult style at IKEA is pretty marvelous, too.)

BEDROOM + Dresser/Console Hybrids