In a college dorm room or any small bedroom storage space under the bed is often overlooked. First, if the bed is not raised, you can consider adding bed risers underneath the legs of the bed (if your college or university permits it). With or without risers, you can use plastic drawers, a wire basket system, containers, or bins to maximize the space under the bed. This space is ideal for items such as dirty laundry, off-season clothing, sports gear, luggage, and extra blankets. You can even have three bins to sort your laundry – white, lights, and darks as depicted in this photo of under the bed storage.

When choosing a storage system for under the bed you’ll need to consider what you are going to store in it, what your budget is, and how you will transport it to your dorm room. Plastic drawers may be less expensive but will not be as sturdy as a wire basket system made of steel. Plastic drawers may end up being too bulky to transport to new living quarters while a wire basket system can be nested and used to carry items as you move into your new room. However, wire baskets will be more costly. Collapsible bins are also a consideration as they fold down for easy transportation, but you may have difficulty purchasing them in sizes large enough to meet your storage needs.

Happy college space planning!

If there is one thing that is a must on your college shopping or packing list, it is Command™ hooks, organizers, and poster strips by 3M. The Command™ line provides for damage free decorating and organizing. This means when you leave college at the end of year, there will be no damage to the walls and you can reuse them again next year. What a huge money saver!

The Command™ line of products adheres to almost any smooth or semi-smooth surface, such as walls (with paint or wallpaper), wood, metal (your refrigerator), tile, glass and mirrors. No tools, nails, or screws are needed. The Command™ strip has special adhesive technology. When you want to remove the Command™ adhesive strip, simply pull straight down with your knuckles rubbing against the wall and as the strip stretches, the adhesive releases. Walla, the strip is off and no surface damage! It couldn’t get any easier.

Command™ has an extensive line of hooks, organizers, poster strips, and Velcro® strips. The hooks are available in sophisticated finishes such as bronze and chrome or fun colors such bright pink, green, and blue. Recently a Disney® character line of hooks was added.

To view the product line before shopping go to www.commandstrips.com or to get a coupon from 3M go to www.commandcoupon.com.  To satisfy your specific style or taste, head to Target, Wal-Mart, Meijer, and Menards where you will find the biggest selection of Command™ products.  You can also find Command™ products at your local hardware store, office supply, and grocery store.

If you want to maximize space in your closet consider switching the type of hanger you are currently using to the new slim line of hangers. You may have caught a glimpse of these hangers while out shopping. These hangers are much thinner than plastic or wood hangers, so you truly can fit more clothes in your closet as they occupy less space. It is an easy way to gain space with little investment of money and time.

Not only do these hangers save space but they prevent garments from sliding down on the hanger or falling to the floor. The hangers are covered in a velvet-like material which makes the clothing grip to it. This gripping action also eliminates the bumps you sometimes get in the shoulders of clothing from the hanger protruding out on each shoulder end. These features make this line of hanger ideal for polo shirts, sweaters, and knit fabrics.

The hangers are available in different colors form sleek black to various trendy colors. I recommend choosing a color that will still be available five years from now leaving you with the option to later add more hangers in the same color. Lines of these slimmer hangers can be found at Bed, Bath, and Beyond, Target, and on home shopping channels.

The way to maximize space in any area is to “go vertical.” When you add storage components to a small room be sure to build up as high as you can go. A person typically can reach a foot higher than their own height to pull something down off of a shelf.The photo is from a residence hall room I set up at Lehigh University in Bethlehem, PA.

The pictured wire basket system worked ideally to maximize height and storage space in this on-campus room. The top of the double-stacked set of wire baskets (far left corner) has a height of 84 inches or 7 feet.  The top basket is easy to pull out and use, but keep in mind that something lightweight and non-breakable should be placed in the top basket such as sweaters, sheets or blankets. 

In this picture you’ll see three wire baskets systems for maximizing the height in a room. These systems are ideal for a college residence hall or apartment.

Happy organizing and space maximizing!

If you’re looking for some way cool ideas on how to organize and decorate a dorm room, tune into WFMZ-TV’s Sunrise Show on Thursday, July 16th from 8:40 AM to 9:00 AM. You’ll find cool ways to organize and maximize the space in your college residence hall. Certified Professional Organizer, Diane Albright will share tricks of the tradewith news anchor Eve Tannery .