How to Organize your Garage
Everyone calls me the Pantry Queen but what they don’t know is that I love organizing garages just as much! This past month I had the time and the energy to tackle my OWN garage. Did you know that The Container Store now offers Virtual In-Home Design consultations for your custom space needs?
They do, and I took advantage of it!! I wanted a second set of eyes on my own space. I had an idea of what I wanted it to look like but I wanted a professional opinion too. When I go into a client’s home I am their second set of eyes, and I needed that in my own space too.
Lilly was my virtual designer , she was patient and knowledgeable, and we made a great team! It was so easy, I booked an appointment online, then she sent me a zoom link. On the day of the appointment, I took her into my garage and we talked about all my ideas and she shared all the different options available . She took inventory of all that was staying in my garage (before the call I did a total purge, just like I do for my clients). After our session, she sent me her plan idea, (it was just the way I envisioned it would look), I signed off on it, then it was sent off to The Container Store. Did you can pay online and have the parts delivered straight to your home via the Dolly app? It’s so easy! I scheduled my delivery for the day before installation.
Funny story, the day it was delivered my husband came home and said “that’s the new garage?”. He couldn’t believe that the entire garage was in this tightly wrapped package. How’s that for efficiency? The picture to the right is the space empty and ready for installation day.
The next day, the installer showed up bright and early and got right to work. You can install the system yourself and save a little money, but I wanted the professional to handle it and he did an amazing job! We spent about 15 minutes talking about what was on the other side of each wall he was drilling on, then he measured our bikes so he could hang the bike rack at a height I could reach. This is a progress shot of him in action.
And here is the back wall installed! I filled in some holes with spackle before install day and then did some touch up painting after it was installed. The entire installation took about four hours and as soon as he left I got right to work organizing! I was so excited.
This is the hanging tool side, so easy to clamp the handles in! You can get hooks too and custom design it to fit whatever you need to hang up! That’s the beauty of an elfa system. I chose the white, but it comes in platinum too. The long tool hook can accommodate several tools and can hold up to 50 pounds of weight.
On the opposite wall we hung our bikes on these vertical bike hooks, you can get horizontal bike hooks too. They work on the track system or can screw directly into the wall (please hang them on a stud for more secure hanging). We hung the ladder in between the bikes for easy access when getting them down. The golf bags hung up nicely on these accessory hooks. The track is so secure it can withstand all this weight hanging on it with no problem or worry at all!
I love that the door can still swing in but there is no wasted space on the wall behind it. Here we added the white utility board. I love how you can customize it to hang whatever tools or decor you need to keep handy. I love these curved hooks for hanging the extension cords and bike pump on.
Lilly helped me decide on how many drawers we would need. I wanted a smaller drawer for all the smaller tools (this was easier than hanging them all on the utility board), and a medium drawer for the sander and drill. I love that they have drawer dividers in them to keep like with like separated.
The other thing we needed to make room for were the big bags of pool chemicals. They are tall and heavy bags and these Elfa shelf baskets with a lip on them make the perfect solution for storing them. You can get clear dividers to keep things separated too. The Elfa basket and dividers are an online only item. So easy to add to your cart and have it shipped straight to you!
I used these white taper bins to keep the smaller things together. Like with like is my motto and when it has a label it’s even better! Again, the Elfa baskets and clear dividers work perfectly here!
Next I added these show stopper white bins!! They come in black too! No surprise they fit perfectly on the Elfa shelves. They are labeled so anyone in my family can find exactly what they need when they need it, and where it goes when they are done. They are my current favorite!
On the very top shelf is where I decided to keep the bulk of my Christmas decor. I decided to move the big tree inside and store it in several tree bags in the attic. It was too heavy to get up and down so we decided to move it inside. The rolling storage bin however is so easy to wheel in and out of the house, but lightweight enough that I got it up on the shelf myself! The smaller clear weathertight totes hold all my ornaments and tree skirts and stack perfectly. My two wreaths stay safe and dust free in the handled totes, you can find all my holiday storage links here.
So there you have it! Our newly updated and organized garage. What do you think? To say we are happy with how it turned out is an understatement! After my husband saw it installed he said “I should know better than to underestimate Neat Freak McKinney or The Container Store”! He would be correct lol!
If you want to see the before pictures and all the behind the scenes videos, head to my Instagram feed or Facebook page, I’ll show you all the fun I had organizing it.
Do you need help with a space in your home? I can help you! Message me here to set up a phone consultation, or call The Container Store and to set up a free virtual consultation. You won’t be disappointed!
Whether you live locally or not, I’m ready to help you today,
Lisa
**This post was sponsored by The Container Store, however all photos, organization ideas, and written content are mine.