If your shoe collection has been growing over the years, but your short storage is getting a bit cramped, it's going to be time to think about how to store shoes long term. Here are some storage tips so you'll give your collection of kicks the care and space they deserve.
Prepare Your Shoes For Storage
There are a couple of stuff you will got to do to organize your shoes for long term storage:
- Start by sorting your shoes into similar groupings (tennis shoes, dress shoes, workout shoes, etc)
- Thoroughly clean the surface and insides of the shoes.
- Remove laces
- Condition and polish leather shoes. Conditioning your shoes will prevent them getting brittle and cracked during storage.
To help maintain the form of your nicer shoes, insert a shoe tree into them or stuff them with acid-free tissue paper. Cedar shoe trees absorb any moisture which will be present in your shoe while deodorizing and deterring pests at the same time.
Pack Your Shoes For Storage
When planning on storing shoes for an extended period of time, it is important to settle on an appropriate container to pack your shoes in.
Choose the choice below that works best for your unique situation:
Original Shoe Boxes
- Pros: The cardboard box that your shoes were originally packaged in is the cheapest option for a shoe storage vessel. The boxes stack nicely and uniformly, and labeling makes it easy to seek out the shoes you're trying to find .
- Cons: The cardboard are often flimsy and make arid conditions which will make your shoes dry and brittle. Rodents and pests can easily infiltrate cardboard boxes, and should even be interested in them.
Stackable Plastic Boxes
- Pros: Clear, stackable boxes are very sturdy and may stack high. The clear box allows you to ascertain which pair of shoes are in each box.
- Cons: The tight locking lids on plastic storage boxes can trap moisture inside the box. To avoid this, dry your shoes thoroughly before putting them in plastic boxes and put colloid packets inside your shoes to dissuade moisture buildup.
Shoe Organizers
- Pros: there's a good kind of inexpensive shoe organizers you'll purchase that suit your specific needs for size and space. Shoes are easily accessible once they are in an organizer in your bedroom or closet. Over the door and hanging organizers don’t need any floor space to be used.
- Cons: stand up organizers can take up valuable assets in your home and collect dust.
Organize Your Shoes
Anticipate your shoe needs and organize your shoe collection by frequency of use and therefore the current season.
Keep the shoes that you simply use daily in an easily accessible spot sort of a shoe rack by the front door. Store shoes that you wear just for special occasions on a shelf within the closet or in a temperature controlled self-storage unit.
Consider the functions of the shoes you regularly use compared to the placement they are stored in. Place house shoes near to your bed, put gardening or mowing shoes by the rear door or within the mud room, and date night shoes in an easily accessible shoe organizer in your bedroom.
Organize your shoes by the season–If it’s winter time, keep your summer shoes in storage, and within the summer, store your winter boots.
Choose an Optimal Storage Location
Storing shoes on a shelf within the closet or a shoe rack works great for the shoes that you simply frequently wear, but consider putting the shoes you simply wear some times a year into a self-storage unit if you don’t have room anywhere else.
Climate-controlled self-storage provides the optimal conditions for storing shoes future . The shoes are going to be secure and you'll avoid damage from heat or moisture. As a bonus, you free up some of that precious closet space back at home. seek for a self-storage unit that is large enough to accommodate the space you would like for your shoes and other seasonal items
Things to look at Out For When Storing Shoes
- Pests. Rodents will chew through cardboard shoe boxes and shoes to induce nest material. be careful for signs of rodents like droppings and chew marks on shoe boxes in your closet or storage unit. Store shoes in lidded plastic containers to stop rodents and bugs from having the ability to access your shoes.
- Mildew. Mildew can wreck a pleasant pair of shoes and spread like wildfire. Put silica gel packets inside your shoes before putting them into storage. Acid-free paper and shoe trees also help absorb excess moisture.
- Heat damage. Intense heat can dry out and warp your shoes, making them brittle, misshapen, and unwearable. Heat also can melt glues that hold parts of shoes together. Keep shoes out of the garage and attic, and use a climate controlled storage option for future shoe storage.
Considerations for various sorts of Shoes
Leather shoes. Leather is one among the foremost common materials utilized in many dress shoes and boots. Clean and condition leather shoes before storing and help them maintain their shape by employing a shoe tree or stuffing them with acid-free tissue.
High heels. Helen Stringer recommends using your closet’s crown molding as a makeshift ledge for hanging your heels.
Sneakers. Clean and take away the laces from sneakers before putting them into future storage. If you've got used your sneakers to run or workout in, they'll got to be deodorized before storing.
Flip flops. Since flip flops are so light, you'll fit multiple pairs in one box while storing. Flip flop hangers are often hung within the closet or on a door to store multiple pairs.
Work boots. Store boots upright and fill them with plastic bottles or boot molds to help them maintain their shape.
Kids shoes. Unused toy bins, chests, and ottomans make great locations for storing little shoes.
Depending on the material and the location, shoes can be stored for decades. Optimal conditions are the key to preserving shoes for the long-term.
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