I Was Sick of Coat Chaos in My Under-Stair Closet – These 83-Cent Hooks Tripled My Storage
It's so useful to have extra hanging space when we have guests
The area under your stairs can either be wasted or utilised well as a handy storage space, which is particularly vital for small homes that lack areas to keep things out of sight.
In winter, these areas can struggle more than usual with bulky winter coats taking up space, especially if they also house appliances or have to serve multiple functions. That’s why I’m instantly tripling the available storage in mine with 83-cent adhesive hooks from Amazon that stay on without hassle for years.
I know it works because I already have one in there, and now I’m adding more to maximize my hidden storage space.
Why Adhesive Hooks Are So Handy for Bulky Coats
This multi-pack has come in so handy in my home, and I use the strong adhesive hooks to add handy storage space under the stairs, inside closet doors for accessories or on walls for coats and more. Leave it for 24 hours before loading to ensure a good bond and long-lasting hold.
When we bought our newly-built home, the under-stairs storage closet had a row of four hooks already on the wall, and these have been our main space for storing coats and bags out of sight and keeping our open-plan living room free of visual clutter.
I found it a pain to have to lift off multiple coats to get to my handbags, so I stuck a cheap adhesive hook from Amazon to house my bags, and that transformed accessibility and boosted functionality very easily.
That’s particularly important for me as I am disabled, have limited mobility, and live with high levels of joint and soft tissue pain, so even something as simple as removing several coats can hurt my already painful neck and shoulder and incapacitate me for hours.
Now, with bitter winter in full flow, I’m finding that I also need more coat storage, so I’m adding two more of my favorite 83-cent hooks from Amazon to allow for all the extra winter coats, jackets, and bags we have in play, including a lower space for my nine-year-old daughter and a higher one for my tall husband's heavy coats.
This will instantly triple our usable storage space in this vital area of the home and will not require any drilling in the plaster walls, which are usually rubbish at holding screwed-in hooks.
The hooks are loved by professional organizers, including Rebecca Jo-Rushdy, a KonMari® Master Consultant. She says, 'I actually use the exact same hooks for my kids’ Oodies, which are so awkward and bulky. It’s been a total game-changer and has completely solved my “Oodies on the floor” crisis that was driving me up the wall.'
She adds, 'I also really appreciate how thoughtful this easy organizing tip is for chronic pain, lowering the physical strain by designing storage around the body, not against it, which s so important. And, eye-level hooks for kids are brilliant as children genuinely love clear, simple organizing systems, and when things are accessible, they can reset independently and feel capable and proud of their space.'
Making the Adhesive Stick for Good
I only take one additional step when using these 83-cent hooks, or any type of wall-mounted adhesive storage item in my home, to ensure they stay on for a long time and do not ping off when loaded.
After pressing it firmly onto the wall, I leave it to cure for 24 hours. This ensures the adhesive can adequately bond to the surface, but make sure you squeeze any air bubbles out first so the adhesive layer makes full contact with the wall.
Loading it prematurely will, in my experience, cause it to pop off, and then that hook is wasted, as the adhesive will be covered in microscopic remnants of your wall and won’t be reusable.
Before adding my hook, I did a stocktake of sorts to figure out which items I needed to keep in the space and which extras to sell or donate (I use Vinted to sell clothing as it’s quick and easy with in-app printing of postage labels).
This is a smart move, so you don’t end up without enough hooks or too many for the space.
Professional organizer Dana White of A Slob Comes Clean and author of Decluttering at the Speed of Life, adds, ‘I think adhesive hooks are a great idea, but you’ve got to declutter first. You may come home with multiple hooks because you don’t have a full understanding of what needs to be in this space. Hooks are perfect when you know how many you’ll need and where they will go.’
It Works in Multi-Use Storage Spaces Too
Homes & Gardens content editor, Charlotte Olby has encountered a similar problem organizing her small home. She says, ‘I was totally at a loss for ways to add extra hanging space to our tiny understairs cabinet. This really felt like something I’d have to go custom for to find the right solution, but these heavy-duty hooks will work wonders at giving me extra space for hanging up coats and scarves now we’re in winter.’
Charlotte particularly likes that they can rotate 180 degrees. ‘This function means I can hang things off the awkwardly slanted roof of the space, too. I’ll be adding a couple of baskets as well, so I can hang up our messy pile of winter hats and gloves and stop losing them.’
This is also perfect for stashing coat clutter, or guest coats, out of sight when you have visitors but limited storage.
I’ve also used these hooks inside my closet doors and on the side of my daughter’s closet. They’re definitely handy to have around and are a great way to use vertical storage to save space.
What to Shop
This multi-pack has come in so handy in my home, and I use the strong adhesive hooks to add handy storage space under the stairs, inside closet doors for accessories or on walls for coats and more. Leave it for 24 hours before loading to ensure a good bond and long-lasting hold.
You can give a little floor space to this sleek and stylish 5.6ft coat rack, with 12 extra sturdy hooks for hats, coats, and scarves this winter. It’s made from a durable mix of stainless steel and aluminium and comes with a one-year limited warranty.
I have hooks like this over every door on the first floor of my home. The discreet, simple design is easy to slot onto any door in guest-heavy areas, too. This item is available in packs of eight and 16, too.
Enjoy a more classic and still renter-friendly option in this metal over-the-door seven-hook addition. It’s waterproof and rustproof, so when it’s not needed, you can store it anywhere in your home, from the garage to the attic, shed, or balcony storage bin.
If it’s time for a bigger coat storage solution, this slim multi-functional bench hits many pain points: Store shoes, hang coats, and have somewhere to sit, even in the tiniest of entry points.
Easily free up your hooks by storing one to hand and putting the rest in a vacuum storage bag. Make sure garments are clean, dry, and free from sharp edges, then use your vacuum stick to suction down the bag’s volume and store under beds or sofas.
Meet the Experts
Dana White began blogging about getting her home in order back in 2009 in what she called her 'personal deslobification process'. Her lived expertise grew into the hugely popular No-Mess decluttering phenomenon. In time, Dana wrote a hugely successful book, Decluttering at the Speed of Life (a Wall Street Journal bestseller). She is now also a speaker, podcaster, YouTuber, and trains and certifies Decluttering Coaches in her unique process at DeclutteringCoaches.com.
With a background from Parsons School of Design, NYC, Rebecca is a KonMari success coach and professional organizer who helps clients around the world to declutter their homes, hearts, minds, and workplaces so they can instead become sanctuaries that spark joy and flow. Rebecca loved my Lunch Break decluttering method.
An over-the-door rack is another great solution for busy winter storage spaces.
