Keep Coffee Mugs And Supplies Organized With A Space-Saving Kitchen Storage Hack

The footprint of U.S. homes has been shrinking over the past few decades, due, at least in part, to today's homeowners desiring smaller homes than buyers in the 2000s. It's not a stretch to imagine that a smaller home comes with smaller rooms and less storage space, including the kitchen. Running out of space for your ever-expanding mug collection? Don't have room for the coffee bar of your dreams? You need to start getting creative with how you use your kitchen's vertical space. Try this DIY using a wire shower caddy that works great for renters, condo owners, and those living in tiny homes, too. By creating storage space on the side of your refrigerator, you will be freeing up space in your kitchen cabinets.

All you need to save cabinet space with a genius Dollar Tree hack for extra coffee mug storage is a wire hanger, some hooks, and the empty side of your refrigerator. Looking for supplies? Head to Dollar Tree and pick up one Home Collection Wire Shower Caddy for just $1.25. A caddy alternative is the Kenney Rust-Resistant White Metal Wire 2-Shelf Hanging Caddy, though it's significantly more expensive at just over $15. Drilling into the side of a fridge is never a good idea, so you'll need to hang the caddy on your fridge using hooks. While in Dollar Tree, pick up these Self-Adhesive Hooks. They hold a decent 2 pounds each, making them relatively heavy duty. Alternatively, try magnetic hooks, like this 6-pack of FINDMAG Neodymium Magnetic Hooks for about $6, each holding up to 30 pounds.

Let's get started constructing the cutest coffee corner idea for a small apartment! Wipe the fridge clean of oil and dust to give the hooks the best chance of adhering securely to the side wall. Use isopropyl alcohol on a cloth; cleaning products leave a film that can un-stick the hook. If you're using magnetic hooks, this step isn't necessary. However, starting with a clean surface behind a caddy filled with food items is definitely more hygienic. Cut the triangular hanger portion from the Dollar Tree caddy using wire cutters and smooth any sharp edges using a file or sandpaper.

If you're using adhesive hooks to hang the caddy, measure and mark where you want the hooks to go on the side of the fridge before sticking them on. You only get one chance to stick them, and this also ensures the caddy sits straight when mounted. Once the adhesive hooks are stuck to the fridge, you might need to wait a while before hanging the caddy on them. Command strips require one hour of waiting time, which might work as a guide, but it's still best to check the packaging of whatever hooks you have for the manufacturer's instructions. Once the caddy is looped over the hooks, all that's left to do is hang your mugs at the bottom and fill the shelves with (lightweight) coffee bar essentials — think coffee pods for your machine, tubs of sweetener, powder creamer, a cinnamon shaker, a holder with stirring spoons, and more.

There's no denying this is a DIY project any coffee lover would have no problem making, and it's this ease of assembly that allows lots of room for customization. Have a prevailing color scheme in your kitchen? Coordinate this fridge-mounted coffee caddy by spray painting the wire a matching color and using fancier hooks. A pair of Haute Decor Magnetic Hangers hold up to 10 pounds each and come in nine colors and two sizes for around $17. Another way to tie this to your existing kitchen decor is to decorate the space around the caddy using fridge magnets, cute coffee-themed signage, or coffee-making condiments stored in magnetic jars.

If you're worried about items falling through the wire rungs of the shelves, fashion custom shelf liners by cutting cardboard to the size of each shelf and covering it with contact paper or self-adhesive wallpaper in a pattern you prefer. You could also cut a sheet of plastic shelf liner down to the size you need. Alternatively, store everything in matching storage jars or containers that fit the width of the shelves exactly. This fridge-mounted caddy is designed to serve one or two people as a coffee station. Know the weight limits of the hooks you use, and don't overload your caddy with more than two mugs or lots of heavy storage containers. Do so, and you risk the entire caddy slipping from the side of the fridge, resulting in broken mugs and a dented floor.