Our house in Charlotte, built in the ’90s, had lots of kitchen cabinets, closets, and I had dish storage in my dining room in the china cabinet, sideboard, and commode.
We have been at the lake permanently for a little over a year now, so we traded our dining room and closet space for our lake view.
That first pic is amazing! You’ll have to tell the Girls that Santa Dog won’t come if they don’t sleep in:@) Great job in utilizing unused space! Merry Christmas Mary, wishing you a wonderful one:@)
Hi Mary, I’ve been wondering if you keep all your dishes or recycle them to Goodwill! I’m planning a big clean out in January to free up space for new ones. This is a very clever idea!! I’m using a spare guest room closet and all the kitchen cabinets, but when I found myself buying more shelves, I said I must get control of this habit!!! I love dishes. Can’t resist, and when I see a great table posted on a blog I am tempted again. I also have 80s bathrooms, and when I had the shower door and frame removed in one to change to an updated look, the tile all fell down. Seems it was not installed properly! Chloe and Grace look like they are putting on the Good Dog faces for Santa. Connecticut Santa had to go to Trader Joe’s to find dog biscuits because Nellie loves the ones Chloe and Grace sent to her! Merry Christmas Mary! Hope you have a wonderful time at the lake. Linda
Unbelievable idea!…I always wondered where you stored all those gorgeous dishes and tablecloths…the napkin holder is genius…I am definitely doing that..but in the guest room closet…:)….Thanks for sharing that idea!..and I would trade a lake house for storage any day!!!
It must be ESP. I’ve been wondering where you keep your dishes!!! Now we all know! Well done. My kitties demand breakfast at 4 am. I feed them and they go back to sleep … I carry on! We must have a discussion with our fur babes! :D :D
Personally, I think you made a great trade. I’d LOVE to live @ Lake Martin full time, but with one still in highs school we have a few years before we can even think about it.
We need rain, too….out lake water level is *low*
I have Four full sets of china, and I just inherited tons of china and silver from my MIL. We are building a silver closet upstairs (taking space away from the attic). We are also putting in a couple of storage shelving units in the attic for seasonal decor/plates/etc.
Mary, I am going to show this to my husband. He is going to laugh and laugh and laugh. We have 4 bathrooms in this house, but only 2 people live here and we use the same shower. I have “threatened” to use the shower/tub space in the lower level bathroom to do something similar. When I mentioned it, Ramon said there was no way it could be done. He got a self-satisfied smirk on his little face and went on about his business, just KNOWING in his head this could never be seen to fruition. Uh, dude….this is your day of reckoning! Your Mayan calendar comeuppance! Your “Don’t Mess With Texas” moment! Bwahahahahahahahaha!!! I will try to have a camera ready to take a picture of his face when he sees this and HAS to concede that it CAN be done. Then I’ll take a picture of his face when I reassure him that it WILL be done! :-) :-) :-) This is Christmas-come-early for me! Thank you! I am absolutely giddy right now!!! :-)
What a great idea for storage! I recently did some renovation and have a brand new kitchen. I used some of my old kitchen cabinets to put in my sun room which is full of my seasonal dishes. I love it. I too LOVE dishes!
Wow! Aren’t you just the smartest lady? This storage idea is fabulous, as I too wondered where you kept everything! Your tablescapes are amazing! Wish we were part of your family …lol The lake view is breathtaking…I would trade any house for that view!! smile…
Santa could make a lot of bloggers happy if he magically delivered more dish storage to some homes. My sweet husband installed metro shelving in our attic for extra dish storage, but more dishes have joined the ranks since they first went in. I need to reorganize and edit. ;-)
Gracie and Chloe may be early risers, but they sure are agreeable to having their photo taken. Too cute!
Feel like we got an early Christmas last March when Sadie came to live with us. Life is full of love and joy here! ~ Sarah
I absolutely love this.. amazing. Who would ever think!!! I love the idea of the hanging pieces for napkins.. must implement, then i would have more room for dishes.. aha, light bulb! Merry Christmas.. xo marlis
Love your idea of putting shelves in the unused tub. We plan to buy a lake home whenever our house sells and I have been concerned about space too. I will probably need to be very creative with space so I appreciate you sharing your creative ideas. Merry Christmas.
I too, was one of the many who wondered just where you stored all of your beautiful pieces we get to view & enjoy in your posts. Thanks for solving the mystery and for sharing this clever idea! Merry Christmas.
That is too funny! I feel your storage pain! I’m not as disciplined at buying just 2-4 as you are. I don’t know if you have seen this, or if you have a pantry, but those shoe holders fit nicely over a pantry door to free up some pantry space, too (for more dishes! ;o) Hope your fur babies will learn to sleep in. Maybe they need some Benadryl or Bojangle’s tea.
Hi Mary, I have said it many times,those fluffy little pups are too adorable. And their names suit them perfectly. I think it is great to utilize space. I would have a fit if a “guest unknowingly used” the toilet! I am a worrier over silly things. ;-) Merry Christmas to you and your family. xo
Love it!!! That is too funny. My family is very sympathetic to my dish habit but I think they’d draw the line at using a shower. So neat how you hung the canvas storage off of a tension rod and hanging the creamer and sugar are a great idea.
Thankfully my doggies sleep past 4 am but more dish storage is definitely on my list!
Get a bigger dog, bigger bladders makes for more you time ;-) but they sure are pretty, not a bad trade off~
Your lake may be low, but we just grew one at the beach, I could surf in my backyard … oh and kayak the rushing river … I will take a lake over mudslides any day~
Very clever with the shoe racks … I use giant cumbersome tubs, love your easy dish dressing room! You need a dish shed next, trust me its fabulous. Think how much MORE fun you could have~
Who would have thought a shower for a storage area? Ingenius! 4 AM is early. My little one will sleep curled up by my side until my eyes open. Guess I should be grateful.
;-)…and my question has been answered! Very clever, Mary…
We have 4 ‘so-called bedrooms’ in our little cottage but two have no closets…We use one as the office/library and the other one is outfitted with metro-racks and another large plastic shelve unit all long the walls and we’re using it as our walk-in pantry and storage for my craft supplies (in plastic tubs) and a lot of things that don ‘t fit anywhere else…We just finished re-organizing it and I have to admit, it makes better use of the room than as a guest bedroom. Unfortunately we have only one bathroom…but I love the idea of the unused tub area turned into storage and the shoe hanging units are a stroke of genius!
Chloe and Gracie are perfectly adorable…even if they wake up at 4 am…
Merry Christmas, Mary…I hope you get your Hatherley Lattistep and rain to fill the lake levels…Or can I send you some of our extra…we’ve had almost continuous rain for 4 days now! (although I’m grateful for it as the island has been experiencing a drought)
Well that’s a pretty inventive way to use some valuable unused space! I really like those shoe cubbies for the linens- very smart! We just got a ton of snow- sorry I can’t send it your way even in the form of water!
Have yourself a Very Merry Christmas!
Liz
Ha HA! How inventive. It reminds me of a girlfriend who stored her fully decorated Christmas tree in the unused shower behind the shower curtain :)
I have wondered where you keep all your things…now I know. I have some shelves like that in a guest closet and the rings are genius! Same with the hanging thingie for linens. The Lake View? Totally worth it!!
Mary, Thanks for sharing your dish storage! Great idea!! I too had wondered & thought maybe you had a big walk in butler’s pantry of sorts! The lake view brings back so many memories of my grandparents lake house on Lake Martin, AL. I miss it every day! I love it when you include the lake in your posts!
Hi Mary! And Chloe and Gracie too!! LOVE those first pics!! What a great idea for dish storage!! Wishing you and your family a very Merry Christmas!! xo Jeanne, Chloe and LadyBug
I love all of your dishes… and these adorable little pups!
Mary, I would love to wish you and yours a magical Christmas! I hope you will get everything you want for this holiday season.
Cute pic of your pups, Mary! What a clever girl you are to utilize the space. I remember reading Debbie’s post about her bathroom. I love how you hang the napkins in the shoe storage. Thanks for sharing with us. Merry Christmas to you!!
Cute little puppers! What a great idea for dish storage, Mary. I love how resourceful we dishaholics can be when it comes to storage! I have them in several rooms!
Wishing a very Merry Christmas.
Now this is ingenuity taken to a new level!!! I LOVE the napkin storage idea and am so stealing that one!!! Wishing you a VERY merry Christmas, more water in the lake, sleeping dogs and whatever else is on your list:):) XO, Pinky
Now this is what I call improvisation. Great job! -Brenda-
P.S: As I have sewn as a hobby for years, I store my many pre-wound bobbins acccording to colour family in clear shoe-pockets that are attached to the wall which also works out marvelously for a lot of my miscellaneous craft supplies. ie: Paint brushes ‘n pens, glue guns and sticks, etc. etc. etc. I find them far more versatile for storage than free-standing or built-in shelving units would be since they save on floor space which in turn allows me to have lower base cabinets equipped with lots of countertop, cupboards and drawers including my sewing machineS.
Very clever! I have a closet in my main bathroom built especially for my silver and accessories, not always the best to come upstairs to get out a tray, but hey a girl’s gotta do what a girl’s gotta do!! Love the shoe storage for napkins!
Oh yes! Count me as another convert! I have a large garden tub just taking up floor space as we use the separate shower, walk in, due to handicaps! The unused space has bothered me for ages, and we need more storage desparately! And the sweater storage hanger, what a great repurpose! Its perfect for napkins and or for towels, which we need space for! What great ideas! The Russian Dacha is beautiful! You continue to amaze and inspire! Thanks for sharing. Your doggies are precious! Helen
Great idea! Hmmm, since I have a family of 5 in a 2 bathroom house, I wonder how my children would feel about no longer having a bath tub? On second thought, they might like that. Here’s to lots of storage space and 3 dirty children! Thanks for the inspiration of repurposing space, which we are often doing in our full house. And, your dish collection is lovely!
I truly have been wondering where you kept all your dishes. Your idea is ingenius and by the comments will help solve problems for many. I have five sets of twelve and they are stored in the kitchen and dining room. It is the vases, flower containers and flower pots that are causing me problems. I have vowed not to buy anymore because they are too BIG! I may try your idea in my closet because I have all the above tucked away in my guest bedrooms and hall closets and I can not find anything I want sometimes.
I am not sure why I haven’t found you until now…..but I am so glad that I finally found your blog…..lovely and thank you so much for showing your dish storage….between my love of pretty dishes and TJ Maxx….well, I am running out of storage and wondered how in the world others store so many dishes…thankyou for being real and showing how thinking out of the box can support a dish “problem”….by the way…your pups are adorable! Now, I am off to check out your blog!!!! Happy New Year
Andrea
I did miss this in the Cmas rush! I am sending it to Alma, who just bought huge beautiful cabinets for her bedroom. Guess what they will be filled with! :)
All your dishes are beautiful!
Mary, that bathroom storage is too funny. I am a floral designer/crafter and every nook and cranny is full. My tub is full of flowers and the oven is full of large dishes. I love dishes and glassware. Thanks for sharing your creativity with us.
Myrna
That first pic is amazing! You’ll have to tell the Girls that Santa Dog won’t come if they don’t sleep in:@) Great job in utilizing unused space! Merry Christmas Mary, wishing you a wonderful one:@)
Hi Mary, I’ve been wondering if you keep all your dishes or recycle them to Goodwill! I’m planning a big clean out in January to free up space for new ones. This is a very clever idea!! I’m using a spare guest room closet and all the kitchen cabinets, but when I found myself buying more shelves, I said I must get control of this habit!!! I love dishes. Can’t resist, and when I see a great table posted on a blog I am tempted again. I also have 80s bathrooms, and when I had the shower door and frame removed in one to change to an updated look, the tile all fell down. Seems it was not installed properly! Chloe and Grace look like they are putting on the Good Dog faces for Santa. Connecticut Santa had to go to Trader Joe’s to find dog biscuits because Nellie loves the ones Chloe and Grace sent to her! Merry Christmas Mary! Hope you have a wonderful time at the lake. Linda
This is ingenious! I love it. Merry Christmas to all of you. Love, A
Unbelievable idea!…I always wondered where you stored all those gorgeous dishes and tablecloths…the napkin holder is genius…I am definitely doing that..but in the guest room closet…:)….Thanks for sharing that idea!..and I would trade a lake house for storage any day!!!
It must be ESP. I’ve been wondering where you keep your dishes!!! Now we all know! Well done. My kitties demand breakfast at 4 am. I feed them and they go back to sleep … I carry on! We must have a discussion with our fur babes! :D :D
You are a genius! I hope Santa will bring me a third bathroom so I can do this :-) Merry Christmas Mary!
Personally, I think you made a great trade. I’d LOVE to live @ Lake Martin full time, but with one still in highs school we have a few years before we can even think about it.
We need rain, too….out lake water level is *low*
I have Four full sets of china, and I just inherited tons of china and silver from my MIL. We are building a silver closet upstairs (taking space away from the attic). We are also putting in a couple of storage shelving units in the attic for seasonal decor/plates/etc.
{I feel your pain.}
You and Debbie are both geniuses! Great idea.
xo,
RJ
I just love Chloe and Grace’s little furry faces. They look so innocent and sweet. Just want to squeeze them!.
What a clever idea to use an unused shower/tub area for storage. That’s definately using ye ole noodle!!
Merry Christmas to you and your family.
xoxo
Kathi
Mary, I am going to show this to my husband. He is going to laugh and laugh and laugh. We have 4 bathrooms in this house, but only 2 people live here and we use the same shower. I have “threatened” to use the shower/tub space in the lower level bathroom to do something similar. When I mentioned it, Ramon said there was no way it could be done. He got a self-satisfied smirk on his little face and went on about his business, just KNOWING in his head this could never be seen to fruition. Uh, dude….this is your day of reckoning! Your Mayan calendar comeuppance! Your “Don’t Mess With Texas” moment! Bwahahahahahahahaha!!! I will try to have a camera ready to take a picture of his face when he sees this and HAS to concede that it CAN be done. Then I’ll take a picture of his face when I reassure him that it WILL be done! :-) :-) :-) This is Christmas-come-early for me! Thank you! I am absolutely giddy right now!!! :-)
What a great idea for storage! I recently did some renovation and have a brand new kitchen. I used some of my old kitchen cabinets to put in my sun room which is full of my seasonal dishes. I love it. I too LOVE dishes!
Wow! Aren’t you just the smartest lady? This storage idea is fabulous, as I too wondered where you kept everything! Your tablescapes are amazing! Wish we were part of your family …lol The lake view is breathtaking…I would trade any house for that view!! smile…
Blessings,
Gert
Santa could make a lot of bloggers happy if he magically delivered more dish storage to some homes. My sweet husband installed metro shelving in our attic for extra dish storage, but more dishes have joined the ranks since they first went in. I need to reorganize and edit. ;-)
Gracie and Chloe may be early risers, but they sure are agreeable to having their photo taken. Too cute!
Feel like we got an early Christmas last March when Sadie came to live with us. Life is full of love and joy here! ~ Sarah
PS.
Hope you Santa delivers the Hatherley Lattistep. I had to google it to see exactly what it is. ;-)
I absolutely love this.. amazing. Who would ever think!!! I love the idea of the hanging pieces for napkins.. must implement, then i would have more room for dishes.. aha, light bulb! Merry Christmas.. xo marlis
Love your idea of putting shelves in the unused tub. We plan to buy a lake home whenever our house sells and I have been concerned about space too. I will probably need to be very creative with space so I appreciate you sharing your creative ideas. Merry Christmas.
I too, was one of the many who wondered just where you stored all of your beautiful pieces we get to view & enjoy in your posts. Thanks for solving the mystery and for sharing this clever idea! Merry Christmas.
That is too funny! I feel your storage pain! I’m not as disciplined at buying just 2-4 as you are. I don’t know if you have seen this, or if you have a pantry, but those shoe holders fit nicely over a pantry door to free up some pantry space, too (for more dishes! ;o) Hope your fur babies will learn to sleep in. Maybe they need some Benadryl or Bojangle’s tea.
Hi Mary, I have said it many times,those fluffy little pups are too adorable. And their names suit them perfectly. I think it is great to utilize space. I would have a fit if a “guest unknowingly used” the toilet! I am a worrier over silly things. ;-) Merry Christmas to you and your family. xo
Love it!!! That is too funny. My family is very sympathetic to my dish habit but I think they’d draw the line at using a shower. So neat how you hung the canvas storage off of a tension rod and hanging the creamer and sugar are a great idea.
Thankfully my doggies sleep past 4 am but more dish storage is definitely on my list!
Merry Christmas.
– The Tablescaper
Get a bigger dog, bigger bladders makes for more you time ;-) but they sure are pretty, not a bad trade off~
Your lake may be low, but we just grew one at the beach, I could surf in my backyard … oh and kayak the rushing river … I will take a lake over mudslides any day~
Very clever with the shoe racks … I use giant cumbersome tubs, love your easy dish dressing room! You need a dish shed next, trust me its fabulous. Think how much MORE fun you could have~
Who would have thought a shower for a storage area? Ingenius! 4 AM is early. My little one will sleep curled up by my side until my eyes open. Guess I should be grateful.
;-)…and my question has been answered! Very clever, Mary…
We have 4 ‘so-called bedrooms’ in our little cottage but two have no closets…We use one as the office/library and the other one is outfitted with metro-racks and another large plastic shelve unit all long the walls and we’re using it as our walk-in pantry and storage for my craft supplies (in plastic tubs) and a lot of things that don ‘t fit anywhere else…We just finished re-organizing it and I have to admit, it makes better use of the room than as a guest bedroom. Unfortunately we have only one bathroom…but I love the idea of the unused tub area turned into storage and the shoe hanging units are a stroke of genius!
Chloe and Gracie are perfectly adorable…even if they wake up at 4 am…
Merry Christmas, Mary…I hope you get your Hatherley Lattistep and rain to fill the lake levels…Or can I send you some of our extra…we’ve had almost continuous rain for 4 days now! (although I’m grateful for it as the island has been experiencing a drought)
I love it Mary. You are incredible! Brilliant idea!
Merry Christmas!
Well that’s a pretty inventive way to use some valuable unused space! I really like those shoe cubbies for the linens- very smart! We just got a ton of snow- sorry I can’t send it your way even in the form of water!
Have yourself a Very Merry Christmas!
Liz
Fun post!!!! Thanks so much for sharing your tricks…:) Merry Christmas from a devoted follower.
Ha HA! How inventive. It reminds me of a girlfriend who stored her fully decorated Christmas tree in the unused shower behind the shower curtain :)
I have wondered where you keep all your things…now I know. I have some shelves like that in a guest closet and the rings are genius! Same with the hanging thingie for linens. The Lake View? Totally worth it!!
Mary, Thanks for sharing your dish storage! Great idea!! I too had wondered & thought maybe you had a big walk in butler’s pantry of sorts! The lake view brings back so many memories of my grandparents lake house on Lake Martin, AL. I miss it every day! I love it when you include the lake in your posts!
That is a great idea! Have a very Merry Christmas!
Hi Mary! And Chloe and Gracie too!! LOVE those first pics!! What a great idea for dish storage!! Wishing you and your family a very Merry Christmas!! xo Jeanne, Chloe and LadyBug
I love all of your dishes… and these adorable little pups!
Mary, I would love to wish you and yours a magical Christmas! I hope you will get everything you want for this holiday season.
Cute pic of your pups, Mary! What a clever girl you are to utilize the space. I remember reading Debbie’s post about her bathroom. I love how you hang the napkins in the shoe storage. Thanks for sharing with us. Merry Christmas to you!!
Cute little puppers! What a great idea for dish storage, Mary. I love how resourceful we dishaholics can be when it comes to storage! I have them in several rooms!
Wishing a very Merry Christmas.
Now this is ingenuity taken to a new level!!! I LOVE the napkin storage idea and am so stealing that one!!! Wishing you a VERY merry Christmas, more water in the lake, sleeping dogs and whatever else is on your list:):) XO, Pinky
Absolutely brilliant!! Thanks for sharing. I have a shower stall we never use too. I could do the same thing.
Now this is what I call improvisation. Great job! -Brenda-
P.S: As I have sewn as a hobby for years, I store my many pre-wound bobbins acccording to colour family in clear shoe-pockets that are attached to the wall which also works out marvelously for a lot of my miscellaneous craft supplies. ie: Paint brushes ‘n pens, glue guns and sticks, etc. etc. etc. I find them far more versatile for storage than free-standing or built-in shelving units would be since they save on floor space which in turn allows me to have lower base cabinets equipped with lots of countertop, cupboards and drawers including my sewing machineS.
Very clever! I have a closet in my main bathroom built especially for my silver and accessories, not always the best to come upstairs to get out a tray, but hey a girl’s gotta do what a girl’s gotta do!! Love the shoe storage for napkins!
Oh yes! Count me as another convert! I have a large garden tub just taking up floor space as we use the separate shower, walk in, due to handicaps! The unused space has bothered me for ages, and we need more storage desparately! And the sweater storage hanger, what a great repurpose! Its perfect for napkins and or for towels, which we need space for! What great ideas! The Russian Dacha is beautiful! You continue to amaze and inspire! Thanks for sharing. Your doggies are precious! Helen
Great idea! Hmmm, since I have a family of 5 in a 2 bathroom house, I wonder how my children would feel about no longer having a bath tub? On second thought, they might like that. Here’s to lots of storage space and 3 dirty children! Thanks for the inspiration of repurposing space, which we are often doing in our full house. And, your dish collection is lovely!
I truly have been wondering where you kept all your dishes. Your idea is ingenius and by the comments will help solve problems for many. I have five sets of twelve and they are stored in the kitchen and dining room. It is the vases, flower containers and flower pots that are causing me problems. I have vowed not to buy anymore because they are too BIG! I may try your idea in my closet because I have all the above tucked away in my guest bedrooms and hall closets and I can not find anything I want sometimes.
Oh how I love this! You are one clever girl!
I am not sure why I haven’t found you until now…..but I am so glad that I finally found your blog…..lovely and thank you so much for showing your dish storage….between my love of pretty dishes and TJ Maxx….well, I am running out of storage and wondered how in the world others store so many dishes…thankyou for being real and showing how thinking out of the box can support a dish “problem”….by the way…your pups are adorable! Now, I am off to check out your blog!!!! Happy New Year
Andrea
I did miss this in the Cmas rush! I am sending it to Alma, who just bought huge beautiful cabinets for her bedroom. Guess what they will be filled with! :)
All your dishes are beautiful!
Mary, that bathroom storage is too funny. I am a floral designer/crafter and every nook and cranny is full. My tub is full of flowers and the oven is full of large dishes. I love dishes and glassware. Thanks for sharing your creativity with us.
Myrna