Sunday, February 20th, 2011
Deciding how to store items in your home is a very important part of de-cluttering and getting organised. The following tips will help you make quick and valuable decisions which will help you organise all areas of your home.
Hallway – Sort through your collection of scarves, hats, coats and other items of clothing that take up space. You can keep the items that are used daily or weekly as any of the excess items can be moved into a nearby cupboard, donated to charity or put in a self storage room.
Living Room – Old books, DVDs and CDs are the usual culprits so lose the bits and pieces and only display your most prized possessions.
Kitchen – The main source of frustration in a kitchen is overstuffed cabinets and drawers filled with duplicate kitchenware, dishes that are used only on special occasions, mismatched containers and appliances that you no longer use. If you can’t bear to part with an item consider relocating it or putting the items in storage.
Closets – It’s time to be strong and clear out those items that haven’t been worn in the last year, no longer fit or are out of style.
Bathrooms – Throw away any items that have expired or those that are no longer in use. Items such as toothbrushes can be kept in holders to save space and keep them clean.
Office – Any paperwork that can be found on a website or email should be recycled. Filing systems can help you minimise the inflow of paperwork and help reduce your existing paperwork piles.
Kids Room – Teaching children the concept of ‘one in, one out’ can stop toys from becoming jumbled and cluttered on the floor.
Garage –When you clear space in your house, boxes of old clothing, sports equipment and extra furnishings usually end up in the garage and will never return inside your home. To create a vast amount of free space you can donate the items or keep them in self storage.
To find out how you can benefit from self storage, visit our Quote and reserve online page to get started.
Tags: big yellow, Big Yellow Self Storage, boxes, business storage, clutter, collectibles, de-clutter, declutter, fine wine storage, furniture storage, music storage, personal storage, self storage, self storage blog, storage, storage solution, student storage, UK storage, wine storage
Posted in Tips and Tricks | No Comments »
Wednesday, May 19th, 2010
Did you know that the magpie – like all crows – does not have a musical voice and instead uses shiny objects stored in its nest to attract a mate? As with so many aspects of evolution – its reputation for stealing things is actually a feature of selection within its species.
Magpies collect and display objects with reflective surfaces in an attempt to find a partner, as the bird with the most objects of highest quality gets the strongest mate.
The birds will reputedly steal jewellery, silver and metals, earning them the name ‘The Thieving Magpie’. Rossini wrote an opera of this name (La Gazza Ladra). It concerns a French servant-girl who is accused of theft. She is tried, found guilty and executed. Later, the true culprit is revealed: a magpie. In remorse, the town organises an annual ‘Mass of the Magpies’ to pray for her soul. The title The Thieving Magpie was later used by progressive rock band Marillion for one of their albums.
We don’t condone stealing at Big Yellow Self Storage. If you’d like to store your valuables for safe keeping we provide 24 hour digital CCTV and every self storage room has its own alarm for you own peace of mind. We also have coded electronic gates, perimeter security fencing, smoke detectors and fire alarms to protect your things. All corridors are well lit, and all floors have an emergency phone just in case you need us. Visit our Quote and reserve online page to find out how you can benefit from self storage.
Do you think our friend the magpie has a bad reputation? Or is it a symbol of something else? Let us know your thoughts in the comment section below.
Tags: big yellow, Big Yellow Self Storage, boxes, business storage, clutter, collectibles, crows, de-clutter, declutter, fine wine storage, furniture storage, magpie, music storage, personal storage, secure storage, self storage, self storage blog, storage, storage solution, student storage, UK storage, wine storage
Posted in Did you know? | No Comments »
Monday, March 15th, 2010
The sun is finally here (almost), coats are getting lighter and the flowers are poking their heads out from under autumnal leaves and wintery ice. With this change in the air and Spring around the corner, a fresh start and a new look is on everyone’s minds – whether that’s a new haircut, new job or more often than not, some redecorating.
With this comes the long-awaited seasonal ritual – the packing away of the winter coats, boots, and sports equipment that are spilling out of closets and piling up in various corners of the home. Spring is a great time to get rid of all of the stuff that has been accumulating around the house. For some this may be just cleaning out the closet to accommodate for a warmer wardrobe, for others it is a time to really get down and dirty eliminating clutter and cleaning the whole house from top to bottom. Whichever way you do your spring cleaning, a cost efficient way to organise the leftover clutter is a storage room.
With Big Yellow Self Storage you can easily store your valuables while de-cluttering, redecorating to moving. You can store things of all shapes and sizes, with room sizes from 9 sq ft up to 400 sq ft. We employ state of the art customer service and technology in all our stores, boasting 24 hour digital CCTV monitored by staff round the clock. Each self storage room is protected by its own alarm while there’s also unique PIN entry access, well lit corridors and fire detection systems in all self storage locations with easy access 7 days a week. Visit our Quote & Reserve Online page for details on how we can give you a helping hand.
Over the next few month’s we’ll be bringing you the best tips, tricks and online resources to help you make the most of the spring clean season. Hit the subscribe button above to keep in the loop.
Tags: Big Yellow Self Storage, business storage, byss, clean, clutter, collectibles, de-clutter, declutter, furniture storage, music storage, personal storage, self storage, self storage blog, spring, storage, storage solution, student storage, UK storage, wine storage
Posted in Features | No Comments »
Monday, March 8th, 2010
It really doesn’t take long to clean up your home when you’ve got an end goal in mind. If you are about to put your home on the market, then you should know that it becomes all the more important for you to make the space inviting. It’s a lot like presenting a blank canvas to a new family. Letting them see the potential for how they can make it their own – instead of getting distracted by what’s already there.
And when you are giving people the tour of your home, the last thing that you are going to want to do is make it look a lot smaller by failing to clear out any extra items.
Almost every home shows better with less furniture. Remove pieces of furniture that block or hamper paths and walkways and put them in storage. Since your bookcases are now empty, store them. Remove extra leaves from your dining room table to make the room appear larger. Leave just enough furniture in each room to showcase the room’s purpose and plenty of room to move around. You don’t want buyers scratching their heads and saying, “What is this room used for?”
What’s more, when you see those offers start coming in, you are going to thank yourself for taking the extra time to clean everything up.
Tags: big yellow, Big Yellow Self Storage, boxes, business storage, clutter, de-clutter, declutter, furniture storage, home, music storage, personal storage, self storage, self storage blog, Self Stroage, staging, storage, storage solution, student storage, UK storage, wine storage
Posted in Tips and Tricks | No Comments »
Tuesday, February 16th, 2010
Parcels4Troops organise small ‘home comfort’ parcels for soldiers to be sent out to them in the field. The scheme was set up a few years ago by ex-RCT (Royal Corps of Transport) Corporal Alasdair Sutherland to help a couple of his work colleagues who were in the Territorial Army and deployed in Iraq. The parcels were received extremely well and the word spread, resulting in many more parcels being sent out to the unit.
We’ve offered Parcels4Troops unlimited use of 100 square feet of self storage at our Edinburgh branch to help the donation drive. If you’re in the area, then donations from the following categories would be greatly appreciated:
Small packets of sweets (no chocolate or toffee – not very good in the heat)
Glucose sweets
Anti-bacterial hand gel
Packets of dried noodles
Cup-a-soups
Sachets of drinking chocolate
Chewing gum
Breakfast oat bars
Toothbrush and toothpaste
Moist wipes
If you’d like to get involved, you can drop off donations for troops during opening hours. Visit Big Yellow Edinburgh online for details. Alternatively contact Parcel4Troops via their website to find out how you can help.
Tags: big yellow, Big Yellow Self Storage, boxes, business storage, clutter, de-clutter, declutter, edinburgh, edinburgh self storage, fine wine storage, furniture storage, music storage, parcels4troops, personal storage, self storage, self storage blog, Self Stroage, storage, storage solution, student storage, UK storage, wine storage
Posted in Charities, News | No Comments »
Monday, February 15th, 2010
We cherish the three Rs here at Big Yellow Self Storage. Yes, that’s Reduce, Reuse & Recycle! We’ve built this ethos into the way we operate our facilities. In fact, we’re investing over £1 million in renewable energy technologies at Barking, Balham, Fulham and Kennington, as well as working with a full time environmental manager to increase the pace of change within the company.
This investment forms a key part of a detailed study into the actual buildings themselves, to quantify the energy, waste usage and benefits of these new technologies. We’re also looking at which improvements can be introduced to existing and new stores alike.
One of the most innovative steps we’ve taken is to use products that are more sustainable. As well as selecting materials responsibly with low embodied energy, easy reuse and from sustainable sources. We’re trying to encourage and improve bio diversity by replacing previously lost habitats with green walls/green roofs as well as reintroducing landscaping.
To help you on the way to reaching your green goals, we’re offering one lucky Big Yellow Self Storage fan a chance to win a brand new Eco HD TV. This Eco Panel TV will save you money off your electricity bill, saving you up to 45% of your TV’s energy consumption, compared to a conventional LCD TV, and on top of that, it looks fantastic!
To be in with a chance of winning this fantastic prize, head over to the Big Yellow Self Storage Facebook Page and answer our question:
What’s the Big Yellow Self Storage strap line?
Tags: big yellow, Big Yellow Self Storage, boxes, business storage, clutter, de-clutter, declutter, eco, fine wine storage, furniture storage, hd, lcd, music storage, personal storage, prizes, self storage, self storage blog, Self Stroage, storage, storage solution, student storage, tv, UK storage, water storage, win, wine storage
Posted in Features, News | No Comments »
Thursday, February 11th, 2010
As part of Big Yellow Self Storage’s ongoing CSR efforts, we’ve been working with the HR and Operations team to raise awareness of the social and environmental impacts of our business. After our company policy was distributed to all stores in 2008 and presented during the annual 2009 Spring Conference, all employee inductions now include an introduction to our CSR objectives.
One of the interactive aspects of this policy is the recent Employee Work Travel project, which took the shape of an Intranet-based survey in Autumn 2008. It covered a variety of questions to help build a profile of the distance people travelled to and from work, how much business travel was carried out during working hours and the different modes of transport use.
Employee response came back at a very impressive 85%, indicating that prior education had been successful, as well as an existing level of interest and concern for the environment.
The estimated total carbon footprint of employee travel has been increasing year on year due to the development of new stores, as well a growing employee numbers. In 2007, 191 employees produced 422 tonnes of CO2, whereas in 2009, 230 produced 524 tonnes.
As this forms one of largest contributions to Big Yellow Self Storage’s overall carbon footprint, this was an area we wanted tackle in earnest. Once the findings from the employee feedback have been reviewed in more detail by the CSR Committee, the company will be able to develop new strategies to achieve this.
This could include making greener travel easier or more appealing by installing showers or secure cycle racks in more stores, encouraging the use of public transport. Additionally, steps like providing employees with water bottles could vastly reduce this carbon output, as purchasing bottled water en route is one of the biggest contributors to unnecessary waste.
Travel plans are already implemented where traffic congestion in inner city or urban environments are an issue and transport plans can offer information on modes of transport other than the car. But now Big Yellow Self Storage wants to broaden the scope of this to produce a reduction of carbon output for employee work travel for 2010.
Tags: big yellow, Big Yellow Self Storage, boxes, business storage, byss, clutter, collectibles, containers, de-clutter, declutter, fine wine storage, furniture storage, music storage, personal storage, self storage, self storage blog, Self Stroage, storage, storage solution, storage uk, student storage, UK storage, wine storage
Posted in Features | No Comments »
Tuesday, February 9th, 2010
Steel shipping storage containers outlive their usefulness after 5 years, and they used to sit abandoned at shipyards gathering rust. Now, because they’re so durable, light weight and easy to stack, a new recycling trend has emerged. Everything from shipping container sculpture, homes, hotels and museums have started to appear. The possibilities are seemingly endless.
The simple, boxy shape of shipping containers makes them perfect for housing, whether creating a small recycled dwelling out of just one container or stacking multiple containers for a larger home or complex of small living spaces. Just as they can be transformed into housing complexes, shipping containers are perfectly suited for use as hotels. The world’s first shipping container hotel was built in Uxbridge, West London in 2008. The 8-story Travelodge was built from 86 modified shipping containers, and the whole process was said by the company to be 25 percent faster and 10 percent cheaper than conventional hotel buildings.
You can slap a door on a shipping container and call it a house, but it takes a bit more creativity to transform it into art. Check out these two examples from artists in Rotterdam and Yokohama, Japan.
Homes & Structures
Hotels
Museums
Tags: big yellow, Big Yellow Self Storage, boxes, business storage, containers, de-clutter, declutter, furniture storage, homes, museums, music storage, personal storage, sculptures, self storage, self storage blog, Self Stroage, steel, storage, storage solution, wine storage
Posted in Did you know? | No Comments »
Saturday, January 30th, 2010
……yes that’s right, cardboard boxes are being turned into art by creative individuals all over the world. Check out these genius examples and then why not give it a try yourself next time you’re moving some stuff around. Instead of just chucking away your old boxes, why not recycle them in different ways, by making something for your kids or to scare your neighbours on Halloween!
Tags: art, big yellow, Big Yellow Self Storage, boxes, business storage, collectibles, de-clutter, declutter, furniture storage, music storage, personal storage, self storage, self storage blog, Self Stroage, storage, storage solution, student storage, UK storage, wine storage
Posted in Did you know? | No Comments »
Tuesday, January 26th, 2010
The New Year inspires many of us, with resolutions ranging from losing weight to cutting down on liquid merriment. Your home could also benefit from some of this post-Hogmanay energy, so why not actually sort out the mess that is your spare room, or finally put away those dusty vinyls that haven’t been played in years? To help you out, there are plenty of online resources where you can find great advice on creative storage solutions for every facet of your home. See our cream of the crop below.
Unclutterer is blog about getting organised. It offers impartial advice on removing clutter and streamlining your home. There’s even a forum where you can discuss your storage needs with other members who will be only too happy to answer your queries – no topic too strange!
Swiss-Miss is a design blog that provides innovative design ideas and news. Not all are home related, but its interesting stuff and well worth adding to your RSS feed for cutting edge design and storage ideas
Storage Solutions is an independent blog written by a storage obsessive! She posts at least once a month and always has some interesting ideas about niche storage topics like storing your Christmas presents
Kitchn as the name suggests is a Kitchen blog offering advice to the budding domestic goddess, or god for that matter. Much of the posts are related to cookery, but storage in the kitchen is also covered on a regular basis. So if you want to know about the future of spice racks, have a read!
Tags: big yellow, Big Yellow Self Storage, bloggers, boxes, business storage, clutter, de-clutter, declutter, declutter bloggers, declutter tips, decluttering, fine wine storage, furniture storage, how to declutter, music storage, personal storage, self storage, self storage blog, storage, student storage, UK storage, wine storage
Posted in Features | No Comments »
