Question, what do you do with the beautiful designer boxes that come with your latest shoe purchase? As you could probably infer from the picture below, I like to hold onto these beautiful and colorful boxes.
Individually, the boxes are pretty but collectively, they can take up a lot of space if not utilized properly. In a perfect world, I would have a beautiful walk in closet with ample space to display each of these boxes. However, my reality is a tiny apartment in Chicago where my husband only let me take over two of our three closets 🙂 and there is not enough real estate to justify keeping the original boxes to store shoes.
So how do I justify keeping my precious boxes if there is not enough space to use them as shoe organizers? The answer is, I get creative and find other items to store and place them throughout our apartment.
Socks
One way I’ve been able to incorporate these color boxes into my closet has been re purposing them from strictly shoe storage to sock storage. This time of year, my sock drawer is overfilling with the cozy, slipper like socks that take up a ton of room. This season, I decided to move all my season specific boots and boarding socks out of the drawer and into a storage box that I can store in my closet. I have found that this little change has been making it easier to get ready in the morning and when packing for snowboarding trips.
Jewelry
When I was single and lived by myself, I had a whole wall dedicated to beautiful statement necklaces and costume jewelry. After moving in with my husband, I needed to find an alternative to having my costume jewelry on display and have converted some of my favorite boxes into jewelry storage. I have one box dedicated for necklaces and another for bracelets and rings.
Wallets & Clutches
In addition to my larger jewelry pieces that take up space, I like to convert my shoe boxes into storage for smaller clutches, wallets and make-up bags. I keep a larger bin in my closet with all my purses and keep this box tucked inside the bin to keep similar items together. Thank you Marie Kondo for the suggestion!
Off-Season Shoes
I saved the most obvious use of these boxes for last and that is to house out of season shoes. I will put all my flip flops in one box and sneakers in another and keep them under my bed with my other out of season items. I highly recommend keeping the big boot shoe boxes for this exact reason. It’s a great size to store all your flip flops and sandals during the winter and is the perfect size to store your winter boots in the summer.
Other Ideas
While these are just a few of the ways I have justified hanging onto these beautiful boxes some other storage ideas include, memorabilia (concert tickets, pictures, letters etc.), travel sized soaps and shampoo (if you happen to collect them when travel :)), duplicates of make-up or personal care items… I think you get the idea.
I’d love to hear from you if there are other ways you have put your shoe boxes to work!
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