Making use of wasted space is always beneficial. This is a discussion of possible hidden storage areas to stimulate your thinking so you can address your particular storage needs. 

Possible areas to look for unused space:

• As the picture above indicates...under stairs can be useful for file cabinets, toy storage or a variety of other uses. You can build in a unit as shown or have open shelves or a cabinet door that covers a storage bin. The possibilities are limited only by your imagination.

• An existing closet can offer the lower portion to a small file cabinet (or 2)  that are simply sitting on the floor. When you open the closet door you have access to your files.  The only thing you have lost is the ability to hang long garments in this closet. 

• A large walk in closet behind the wall gave up some of it's space for this TV niche and bookshelf.  The TV niche is approximately 24" deep.

• This entire built-in was housed in a 12" deep alcove.  The bottom cabinet sticks out only 4 inches into the room.  This gives 16" worth of storage in the bottom and tons of book room on the shelves and comes out only 4 inches in the room.  How to build these is covered in our Built-ins Section

•  Attic eaves offer good  "low" storage possibilities.  Depending on the size of the eave, you can have pull-out storage bins on floor rollers or cabinet doors covering simple shelves, etc.  Drawing shows a pull out bed on rollers.

• Another example of sliding storage trays. These are basically a box mounted on swivel casters you can buy at your local home center.