Posts Tagged 'storage'

« Older Entries

Tips & Tricks: How To Organise Your Garage

Friday, September 3rd, 2010

Garages can fast become an area of your home where items just get thrown into simply because there’s no other place for them or they haven’t been organised properly. Sifting through these can be a real time investment purely because you may find bits and pieces that you forgot you even had! Here are some top storage solutions to keep your garage organised and stop it from becoming cluttered.

First of all you should divide your items into different sections depending on what you decide to keep, store or throw away which will help reduce the amount of items that you have to find a new home for and act as an incentive to clear out the junk.

Adding open or closed shelving to your garage will clear away many items such as small paint tins that get cluttered on the ground into a safer area. Which type of shelving you go for depends on what need to get out of the space as open shelves make it easier to find items and much easier to grab the ones you need. Closed shelving or cabinets may give your garage a cleaner look but can restrict lighting; you’ll also have to remember where you’ve stored items to make it work. Placing a label on the door listing the contents inside will make it easier for you to find what you’re looking for.

Bins are a useful garage storage solution for certain things such as sports equipment because footballs, rugby balls and cricket bats can be kept together without a great deal of effort. Small bins can group similar small items but avoid getting too many large bins for your garage as it will be easy to throw items in without organising them and will just build up with clutter.

For all those items that you don’t want to throw away but aren’t being used at the moment you can place these into self storage. To find out how you can benefit from self storage visit us in any of our stores or our Quote and Reserve online page to get started.

Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , ,
Posted in Tips and Tricks | Comments

At Home’s ‘Save Space’ Series: The Best Zones To Save Space Around The Kitchen

Tuesday, August 31st, 2010

We’ve teamed up with our friends at home magazine to give you top advice on personal storage solutions. Stay tuned as we’ll be bringing you more ideas to save space and declutter for all areas of your home……

Welcome to the second installment of at home’s ‘Get Some Space in Your Life’ series with some great advice from leading personal storage experts at Big Yellow Self Storage.

at home have already looked at space saving tips for your living room and we’re going to continue to bring you personal storage solutions about how to declutter in all areas of your home, including the bedroom, garden and ideas to maximise space to make working at home more successful. Planning the perfect space in the kitchen is like creating the perfect menu. You can create space by throwing out products that are out of date or no longer in use and keep the best ingredients to maintain the great look.

Three space saving tips for your kitchen

Organising Kitchen Cupboards
Kitchen cupboards can be a main area of frustration as jars can easily clutter and build up with every shopping trip. There are some easy ways to organise the clutter that spice jars, canned goods and other items create before they quickly multiply.

Transferring spices from there original packaging into small sized jars and labeling them by hand can free up a large amount of space and make them stackable. Keeping canned items in one cupboard area and assigning one shelf for each type can keep them organised and easy to reach. Any other space you create can be used to store pasta or boxes of food.

Clearing the Clutter Under the Sink
The area underneath your kitchen sink can quickly become cluttered and make it hard to find anything you need. Overtime the area is piled full of items such as cleaning products or washing detergent and every time you to try to pull a product out, five others fall out with it. Sorting under the sink can make it much easier to find items and have a completely de-cluttered area.

Get rid of any products that you don’t need, if it’s so old that you can’t even read the label or no longer use then don’t hesitate to throw them away. If you haven’t used a particular item in a while, then chances are you’re not going to use it again anytime soon. Hanging on to these products will just collect more clutter and take up more free space that could be used. For the items you decide to keep, sort them out by category to make them easy to find out them all later.

Organising Kitchen Drawers
Drawers are the messiest place in any kitchen with items simply getting chucked in. The answer to stop all your drawers from becoming overly cluttered is by making space for one drawer that can store a mixture of items. This can store scissors, various utensils, stamps and any other items that end up jumbled together. A single drawer used for these items can make the whole kitchen feel de-cluttered.

Dividing the drawer into different sections and assigning an item to each one will create space and make things easier to find. It’s also a great excuse to throw away any old, broken or unused items.

Storing Utensils
Utensils such as spatulas, ladles and whisks can be a major cause of clutter in the kitchen as they can get left on the counter or mixed up in a drawer. When items are mixed together, sharp objects can cause injury if you’re in a hurry and don’t look carefully when reaching inside. Keeping utensils organised and tidy is a great way to avoid accidents and make cooking a lot smoother. Storing these large utensils in a wide pot that matches the design of your kitchen will keep them organised and easy to reach.

Invest in a drawer that has different components for each type of silverware including forks, knives and spoons. This will keep your entire set of cutlery from becoming mixed with each other and make them easily accessible.

Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,
Posted in Features | Comments

Tips & Tricks: Maximise The Space In Your Bathroom

Friday, August 20th, 2010

We tend to spend a lot of time decorating our bathrooms but more often than not toiletries begin to take over and outgrow their storage spaces with extra clutter. You can make great use of all the areas of your bathroom to help store items in the most efficient way regardless of the size. A great way to start clearing the clutter and maximising the space is by throwing away any items that have expired or products that you no longer use.

Shelves are a versatile storage solution that match any décor and can be added to a blank wall space which will give you the opportunity to find a place for items in your bathroom. Corner shelves are very useful to maximise the space in the corner of your bathroom and be purchased ready-made from household retailers.

Wicker baskets are practical, provide simple storage solutions and can aid in the décor of your bathroom. They’re portable and can be placed on open spaces around your room, although you don’t want to cover every available space with a basket. With these you’ll be able to store a variety of different large or small items as they come in many different shapes and sizes.

Adding a storage cabinet that goes above your toilet is a great way to make use of the dead space that is often left empty. It will give you lots of extra space to store items such as soap, toilet tissue and hand towels.

The back of the door is an area which many don’t realise is a great storage space. You can purchase hangers which clip on to the top of the door or even paint the door with magnetic paint. This space can be used to hang towels and store other items while maintaining the attractive look of the door.

Tags: , , , , , , , , , , ,
Posted in Tips and Tricks | Comments

At Home’s ‘Save Space’ Series: The Best Zones To Save Space Around The Home

Tuesday, August 3rd, 2010

We’ve teamed up with our friends at home magazine to give you top advice on personal storage solutions over the next six weeks. Stay tuned as we’ll be looking at how you can save space and declutter in all areas of your home……

Welcome to the first installment of at home’s ‘Get Some Space in Your Life’ series with some great advice from leading personal storage experts Big Yellow Self Storage. Over the next six weeks, the at home team will be bringing you personal storage solutions about how to declutter in all areas of your home, including the living room, bedroom and garden.

It’s important to remember that keeping a tidy mind means keeping a tidy home. You can create space through natural palettes in design or decluttering style choices throughout your home – decluttering regularly will help you keep it looking brand new.

Four space saving tips for your living room

Tip 1. Newspapers & Magazines
We’ve all had a special newspaper that we are tempted to keep for the future. It might be for reference or an historical event that we want to share with the future generations in the family. Sometimes these are valuable, but most often they won’t be worth much in monetary value. It’s the fact these ‘we were there’ moments or how this event has touched our life that makes the edition important to us.

The biggest problem when it comes to storing paper keepsakes are pests! Here’s how to ward off any unwanted visitors and ensure your papers stay in excellent condition for years:

1. Find a closet or drawer in a dry area.

2. Store and stack papers tight together, folded in half (as they are delivered).

3. Use a pest trap nearby, but make sure it doesn’t touch the papers.

4. Monitor your papers occasionally, checking for both pests and mold.

Alternatively, by putting these into self-storage can put your mind at rest from pesky critters destroying your keepsakes.

Before you decide to store those magazines, you need to ask yourself:

• Are these magazines worth hanging on to, or can they be recycled to clear the clutter?

• Do you want to be able to go back and read the magazines from time to time or are you happy to put them away and letting them sleep in a cool, dark place?

• Are your magazines valuable or more sentimental?

• Do you want to keep them in pristine condition for 40 years or 400 years?

Tip 2: DVDs
DVDs have a habit of accumulating around the TV and before you know it, they’re all mixed up and in the wrong cases – so when you want to find The Dark Knight, you end up with Legally Blonde. Not ideal. Investing in a DVD rack is a smart way to avoid this potential catastrophe and will also minimise clutter. Another solution is to do away with DVD cases altogether and store your discs in a CD wallet which you can arrange by genre.

Tip 3: Books
The main focus should be to store your books in a way that will give the bindings and covers the support for efficient use of the self-storage space. If there is room left on your bookshelf, make sure to place a bookend or another heavy object against the last book. This will help to hold your books upright, preventing any bowing or bending. You will also need to consider storing them in places where the books won’t be exposed to direct sunlight, moisture, or heat as serious temperature changes can cause major damage to fragile book bindings, pages, and covers.

One final tip to keep in mind is to rotate your books every once in a while by swapping some of the books that are at the ends of the shelf for ones in the middle. By doing this you are avoiding placing any long-term stress on any one book.

Tip 4: Photographs
To store photographs properly, make sure you use the right type of albums. Do not place old photographs (or any photographs for that matter) in albums that are magnetic or of the ‘stick and peel’ variety. Over time, the plastic, cardboard, paper and glue found in such albums will only damage your photos. Instead, invest in albums which are guaranteed and labeled as free of acids. Use a permanent black marker on the back of the photographs to identify the time, occasion and the people or subjects in the photo. Make sure to write with a soft grip, so as to not leave any marks or indentations on the pictures.

If you don’t want to put your photographs in albums or frames, then you can use plastic sleeves or bags which are PVC-free. Another option in place of plastic sleeves or bags is layering each photograph with sheets of acid-free paper or cardboard.

For all of your packing needs and to find out how you can benefit from self storage, visit bigyellow.co.uk to get started.

Tags: , , , , , , , , , , ,
Posted in Features | Comments

Tips & Tricks: De-Cluttering Your Home

Friday, July 30th, 2010

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: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,
Posted in Tips and Tricks | Comments

Big Yellow Self Storage Finds Two Social Media Gurus

Monday, July 19th, 2010

Earlier in the summer we unveiled the Big Think to search for students that are passionate about social networking, social media and web culture. Those taking part had to prove their enthusiasm for social media by submitting a catchy, funny or downright silly news headline which had to include the words “Big” and “Yellow” on our Big Yellow Self Storage page on Facebook. Many of the entries were topical as they mentioned the General Election that was happening at the time and the noisy Vuvuzelas in the World Cup.

Entrants were then encouraged to get as many ‘Likes’ or retweets on their entry as possible from their friends, family and complete strangers to get their hands on the prize. The winner would win an internship with the Big Yellow online communications team and the runners-up would receive an iPod Touch.

After a great deal of hard work, our winner with 223 ‘Likes’ was Nicholas Wellings whose entry was ‘BIG Bird from Sesame Street is BIG and YELLOW just like the BIG YELLOW Storage’.

We saw some really passionate individuals rise to the challenge and we thought it was a shame to pick just one bright spark. So, we were delighted to be able to offer a 2nd month-long internship!

Our 2nd Big Thinker winner was Anna Naylor with 174 ‘Likes’ whose entry was ‘Strangest proposition I have ever had; A YELLOW toothed BIG issue seller asked me if I would like to go out drinking with him, but only if he sold enough copies of the BIG issue that day’.

The internship is a fantastic opportunity for Nicholas and Anna to work and learn with our online communications team in London this summer. The scheme will offer them a detailed program focusing on how to effectively enhance brand presence online and through social media sites such as Facebook.

With well over 300 entries and 2,500 ‘Likes’ from both internship competitions, we would like to thank everyone who took part in Big Thinkers and we can’t wait for our fantastic winners Nicholas and Anna to get started later in the summer!

Tags: , , , , , , , , , ,
Posted in Features | Comments

The Big Yellow Armadillos Take On London To Brighton (Part.2)

Friday, July 16th, 2010

As we got closer to Brighton, we noticed there were lots of families on the streets all cheering and giving out much needed energy supplies to keep everyone going! The support was fantastic, the people that lined the streets probably didn’t know it but they helped so many people throughout the day.

Everyone was dreading the final point and they all knew it would come….Ditchling Beacon! We all had heard about it but none of them really expected what was about to come. Ditchling Beacon is a brutal mile long climb to the top of the South Downs that starts at mile 47, everything else compared to this was easy. The hill was so steep that many of the riders had to get off their bikes and push them to the top simply focusing on putting one foot ahead of the other. We were amazed to see people still cycling, trying to make it to the top!

Finally there was a man shouting over the microphone “that’s it you’ve made it, you are about to reach the top of Ditchling Beacon, you are now 234 metres above sea level”. We stopped at the top for a minute to look at the views which were amazing and so beautiful. After the agony of the Beacon the last 6 miles were a joy as the sea came into view and riders flew down the hill reaching speeds of 38mph.

After a final crawl through Brighton traffic the riders made their way down to Brighton Pier and all anyone could hear were the cheers of thousands of people. Finally the Finish Line was in sight, a sprint along the seafront brought to an end to epic ride.

In total over 30,000 riders took part on the day, setting off from Clapham at different times from 6am to 10am for the worthy causes of Cancer Research and the British Heart Foundation. In total staff members have raised approximately £7628 to date for Cancer Research and Big Yellow Self Storage will be matching this figure to boost donations.

A massive thank you goes to Paul Holmes for all his hard work in organising the team! We all had a fantastic time!

Tags: , , , , , , , , , ,
Posted in News | Comments

Feature: Redecorating Your Home – The Best Online Resources

Tuesday, June 8th, 2010

When it comes to redecorating your home, don’t forget about the dead space that could be used for storage. Look at corners of rooms, nooks and crannies in which shelving or units could be placed. Don’t be constrained by a box mentality though, you can find specially designed units to fit almost any space.

The retailers below will provide you with a source of furniture to suit almost any need – in any colour, size and shape.

Ikea – the Scandinavian company that is now synonymous with good quality basics at low prices. It is a hugely popular destination for model styled décor and accessories, but you can use its products as a base, then personalise them to fit into your home with a bit of creative thinking.

Graham and Green – opened its first shop in Notting Hill in 1974, and since then has expanded from humble beginnings to a delightfully identifiable, British establishment. Today, it has six beautiful shops; four catalogues each year and an online store that shows a vast collection of unique furniture and contemporary home accessories.

Lakeland – ‘the home of creative kitchenware’, sells innovative cookware appliances and utensils that are perfect for any contemporary home – as well as a range of truly brilliant storage ideas.

Tags: , , , , , , , , ,
Posted in Features | Comments

Tips & Tricks: How To Store Handbags Correctly For Self Storage

Monday, June 7th, 2010

When your handbag costs as much as a holiday to a tropical island, you need to make sure you store it correctly. If you are the kind of person who throws everything in the bottom of your closet, including your precious Prada purse, then think again. Storing them carefully will prolong the lives of these accessories when using self storage; keeping them in pristine condition and making them last longer.

One of the best ways to store handbags is to put them in plastic boxes which allow air to circulate. Just make sure the boxes are big enough so that you are not folding over the bag handles.

The handbags you use regularly need to be easily accessible, so store them on the top or side shelf in your closet, standing upright in a line. You can organise them however you like – by size, type or colour – just make sure they aren’t crumpled on the floor.

Purses you don’t use so often can be wrapped in cotton pillowcases or cloth storage bags before putting them into self storage. Do not put them in enclosed plastic dry cleaning bags, or boxes without airflow as this will damage the leather.

If storing bags together make sure you cover any brass or mental chains, rings, studs and so on to stop them marking other bags. You can do this with a piece of tissue or cloth. Tuck chain handles inside the bag to prevent the chain from scratching or marking the outside leather. Undo metal fastenings and buckles on straps so that they do not leave an impression.

To help their keep, stuff the bags with tissue paper or any alternative acid-free filling, but do not use old newspapers. Bubble wrap is better than tissue paper for padding out or wrapping bags, as it doesn’t attract moths in the same way as tissue paper.

For all of your packing needs, including bubble wrap, storage boxes, tissue paper or loose fill visit us in store or online at our online box shop www.bigyellow.co.uk/boxshop.

Tags: , , , , , , , , , , ,
Posted in Tips and Tricks | Comments

Selling Unwanted Items Online

Friday, June 4th, 2010

As you prepare to move house, there’s inevitably going to be a lot of clothing, possessions and gadgets that you don’t need any more. While the most important things that you can’t quite part with – or simply don’t quite need to be a part of your new home immediately – can go into self storage, the sites below will help you get rid of the things you no longer want and make some money in the process!

eBay - the original and biggest auction site, sell anything here from cars to computers on your own terms.

Gumtree – started in March 2000 as a local London classified ads and community site, it is designed to connect people who are either planning to move, or had just arrived in the city, and needed help getting started with accommodation, employment and meeting new people. Now a much more comprehensive offering, it covers 60 countries and allows you to find or advertise everything from a nanny for your kids to a bargain for the living room.

Amazon – Amazon.co.uk includes a feature in which you can enter your own goods into its seller’s marketplace. This means that you can add your books, clothes or toys to its main directory, and while buyers are scrolling through the products, they can choose your item if the price is right.

Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,
Posted in Features | Comments

« Older Entries