DIY Storage Solutions: 7 Simple, Affordable Solutions from The Merrythought

DIY Storage Solutions: 7 Simple, Affordable Solutions from The Merrythought
Manda and Caitlin McGrath, the duo behind The Merrythought blog, are scrappy women who are forever upgrading their houses without spending a penny more than necessary.
Photography courtesy of The Merrythought.
In response to Caitlin’s growing indoor plant collection, a DIY Ladder Plant Stand.
Ladder Plant Stand
Paper Organizer
Manda created the DIY Wood Wall Organizer in response to her kids’ daily flood of school papers: “I think that might be the number one complaint I hear from moms when we’re discussing clutter and things they struggle with: All the papers,” she says.
But notes that it’s also ideal, as shown here, for mail or magazines.
Peg Rail
A project that speaks to us Shaker peg rail lovers here at Remodelista: The Merrythought’s DIY Wooden Wall-Mount Rack. Note that they used basic dowels as hooks, but you could easily add wooden Shaker Pegs—they’re .60 each (25 for $14.25) from Sabbathday Lake Shaker Village in Maine.
Floating Shelves
DIY Floating Shelves are made from 2-by-6-by 8 pine boards
Manda and Caitlin describe their DIY Wood Bookshelf as “scaffolding style.” It was inspired by Anthropologie’s Toscana Bookcase.
Standing Shelves
Cube Side Table
Caitlin’s DIY Plywood Side Table is simply an elevated open cube.
Caitlin devised this DIY Toilet Paper Stand for her grandparents’ cabin. Peruse our DIY Projects archive for more ideas, including The Merrythought’s Simple and Elegant DIY Towel Holder for Under $10.
Toilet Paper Stand
 {"vars":{"GA4_MEASUREMENT_ID":"G-GB8Q6PKMP8","GA4_ENDPOINT_HOSTNAME":"www.google-analytics.com","DEFAULT_PAGEVIEW_ENABLED":true,"GOOGLE_CONSENT_ENABLED":false,"WEBVITALS_TRACKING":false,"PERFORMANCE_TIMING_TRACKING":false,"CUSTOM_PAGE_TITLE":"${title} - Remodelista","WEB_STORY_LENGTH":"11"}} {"vars":{"gtag_id":"UA-146156281-1","config":{"UA-146156281-1":{"groups":"default"}}},"triggers":{"storyOpen":{"on":"visible","request":"event","vars":{"event_name":"web_story_open","event_action":"story_open","event_category":"${title} - Remodelista","event_label":"${storyPageCount}","send_to":"UA-146156281-1"}},"storyProgress":{"on":"story-page-visible","request":"event","vars":{"event_name":"slide_view","event_action":"story_progress","event_category":"${title} - Remodelista","event_label":"${storyPageIndex}","send_to":"UA-146156281-1"}},"storyEnd":{"on":"story-last-page-visible","request":"event","vars":{"event_name":"story_complete","event_action":"story_end","event_category":"${title} - Remodelista","event_label":"${storyPageIndex}","send_to":"UA-146156281-1"}},"tapLeft":{"on":"click","selector":".i-amphtml-story-back-prev","request":"event","vars":{"event_name":"interaction","event_action":"tap_left","event_category":"${title} - Remodelista","event_label":"${storyPageIndex}","send_to":"UA-146156281-1"}},"tapRight":{"on":"click","selector":".i-amphtml-story-fwd-next","request":"event","vars":{"event_name":"interaction","event_action":"tap_right","event_category":"${title} - Remodelista","event_label":"${storyPageIndex}","send_to":"UA-146156281-1"}},"openAttachment":{"on":"story-open","tagName":"amp-story-page-attachment","request":"event","vars":{"event_name":"interaction","event_action":"open_attachment","event_category":"${title} - Remodelista","event_label":"${storyPageIndex}","send_to":"UA-146156281-1"}},"muteStory":{"on":"story-audio-muted","request":"event","vars":{"event_name":"interaction","event_action":"mute","event_category":"${title} - Remodelista","event_label":"${storyPageIndex}","send_to":"UA-146156281-1"}},"unmuteStory":{"on":"story-audio-unmuted","request":"event","vars":{"event_name":"interaction","event_action":"unmute","event_category":"${title} - Remodelista","event_label":"${storyPageIndex}","send_to":"UA-146156281-1"}}}} {"requests":{"reportEvents":"https://pi.story.domains/events/amp"},"transport":{"xhrpost":true,"useBody":true},"extraUrlParams":{"eventName":"${eventName}","device":"${device}","platform":"${platform}","languageId":"${languageId}","deviceLanguage":"${deviceLanguage}","appVersion":"${appVersion}","storyId":"${storyId}","channelId":"${channelId}","companyId":"${companyId}","userId":"${userId}","slideId":"${slideId}"},"triggers":{"openStory":{"on":"visible","request":"reportEvents","vars":{"eventName":"story_open","device":"desktop","platform":"amp","languageId":"2","deviceLanguage":"${browserLanguage}","appVersion":"2","storyId":"Mn5Ml","channelId":"3424","companyId":"2213","userId":"${clientId(msuser)}","slideId":"${storyPageIndex}"}},"slideView":{"on":"story-page-visible","request":"reportEvents","vars":{"eventName":"slide_view","device":"desktop","platform":"amp","languageId":"2","deviceLanguage":"${browserLanguage}","appVersion":"2","storyId":"Mn5Ml","channelId":"3424","companyId":"2213","userId":"${clientId(msuser)}","slideId":"${storyPageIndex}"}},"tapLeft":{"on":"click","selector":".i-amphtml-story-back-prev","request":"reportEvents","vars":{"eventName":"slide_tap_left","device":"desktop","platform":"amp","languageId":"2","deviceLanguage":"${browserLanguage}","appVersion":"2","storyId":"Mn5Ml","channelId":"3424","companyId":"2213","userId":"${clientId(msuser)}","slideId":"${storyPageIndex}"}},"tapRight":{"on":"click","selector":".i-amphtml-story-fwd-next","request":"reportEvents","vars":{"eventName":"slide_tap_right","device":"desktop","platform":"amp","languageId":"2","deviceLanguage":"${browserLanguage}","appVersion":"2","storyId":"Mn5Ml","channelId":"3424","companyId":"2213","userId":"${clientId(msuser)}","slideId":"${storyPageIndex}"}}}}