When my eldest son Ben moved home from college because of COVID, we installed him in the Casita. It’s a two-room guest house with a little kitchenette. It’s nice, but not really set up for storage. His stuff was everywhere. Every time I went in there, I was tidying up, trying to figure out where to put his things.
I hit on the perfect storage solution: Caddies. Our bamboo caddies are stackable, good-looking and handy for hiding all of the various…uh…detritus associated with a college student.
We ordered a dozen. Problem solved!
Let me tell you how our bamboo caddies came to be. When Peter and I were newlyweds living in Singapore, storage space was tight. Like non-existent. I became obsessed with baskets and boxes to hold our stuff. There was literally no room under our tiny kitchen sink, so I found a vintage rice bucket and used it to hold all of our cleaning supplies. That little rice bucket (which I still have) was the Genesis of our bamboo caddy. It’s made from renewable bamboo and I think it's beautiful. We make them rectangular, so they can be stacked. To me, they look like a modernist chest of drawers when stacked in multiples. And you can orient them to fit almost anywhere. They function like a vertical junk drawer, but nicer.
They were initially designed to hold six of our cleaning products above (or below) the sink. But they can be used for so much more! In the kitchen, I use them to corral my favorite spices and utensils. I have three of them in our laundry room, each holding a stack of clean masks, gloves, and small bottles of hand sanitizer. I have another four in my dresser drawer. Two hold my scarves, folded Mari-Kon style and another two neatly house my rolled-up belts. I use them everywhere.
Of course, I also gave a few to the boys, to store all of their loose chargers, headphones, and whatever not-so-nice-to-look-at stuff they have laying around. The genius part? They actually use them!
If you’re like us, you’ve probably got a case of Corona Clutter, too. No matter the size of your home, it seems like there's never enough storage. These caddies are good-looking, practical, and affordable (the trifecta of domestic perfection).
Happy Tidying!
xmk
