Take Advantage Of The Obvious Storage Space In Your Kitchen With A Clever DIY

Kitchen storage is always at a premium, but with a little imagination and an eye for the nooks and crannies that often go unused, you can find extra space to store all of those things you want to get off your counters. For instance, the DIY Huntress on YouTube shows us that with just a few tools and some lumber, you can build an easy DIY shelving unit in the dead space next to your refrigerator that is as versatile as it is easy to build.

A custom shelving system for the side of your refrigerator can add much needed storage and organization space for everything from cookbooks to cutting boards and spices, while also dressing up the side of an otherwise not very pretty appliance. Of course, any time the word "custom" is involved, you will need to take your own measurements, create your own materials list, and plan your cuts accordingly. However, if you keep it simple, it should not be hard to take advantage of the obvious storage space in your kitchen you're missing out on.

This project requires you to build a box to the right size for your space, and then add shelves with rails across the front to keep your items in place. You may need to make a few decisions, like whether you want the back of your shelf to remain open or not, but this is an especially easy DIY that can make a big impact. You will likely have to rip your boards down to the correct width to fit in your space, so keep this in mind when purchasing materials. Your space may allow you to build deeper shelves and even forgo the rails. They don't call these custom shelves for nothing, so be sure to make this project fit your needs! 

Additionally, DIY Huntress used pocket screws and wood glue to join her pieces together. Pocket screws may look better, but are not entirely necessary. So, if you don't have the right tools for pocket holes, don't let that scare you off. Not only can you modify this design to work with the tools you already have, but you can change the design to work in other areas. If you don't have room for one of these shelves next to your fridge, consider building a smaller version to hang on a blank wall, or tweak it to organize your home using dead space behind a door as hidden storage.

If you're feeling inspired to find budget-friendly ways to organize your kitchen and bring new life to unused space, we have another solution for you. Many homeowners have cabinets that are hard to reach. Whether it's one of those tiny cabinets over the refrigerator or a blind cabinet that's too deep to reach into, many go under-utilized. Luckily, there are aftermarket organizers that can help you make those storage spaces more useful. For example, around $270 will get you the VADANIA Blind Corner Pull Out Organizer for a 36 inch cabinet. This pull-out and others like it may not be inexpensive, but they make it easier to reach what's in the back of deep cabinets, ultimately making the space more useful without a full renovation. Similar pull-down options exist for those hard-to-reach upper cabinets. 

Have a look around your kitchen and you may find all sorts of dead space just waiting to be used more efficiently. If your fridge abuts a wall, consider modifying the stationary cabinet plans by adding wheels, extra rails, and a handle to build a rolling cart that slots in between your fridge and the wall. From under cabinet spice racks to paper towel holders that mount to the bottom of your cabinet, there is no end to the ingenious hacks and space-saving solutions meant to make your kitchen more functional.