I spend a lot of time mentally planning my future home (as someone who currently rents a small apartment). I want it to be organized and functional, with a place for everything so it’s streamlined and clutter-free.
I also enjoy thinking of creative storage solutions, so when I saw a toast rack at the thrift store the other day, I immediately started to ponder how the product could be used differently. The more I thought about it, the more I could see a toast rack working in so many ways in a living room instead of a kitchen.
Why You Should Keep a Toast Rack in Your Living Room
As the name suggests, a toast rack is typically used in a kitchen or on a dining table to store slices of toasted bread ready for enjoying over breakfast. Its divided-up sections are ideal for holding slices, keeping enough room in between every piece to allow them to slightly cool and be easier to grab. They were more commonly used in the late 18th century, but can still be found in homes today.
The living room might not sound like an ideal home for a toast rack, but there are so many simple, stylish ones like this one that would work wonders in organizing your living room. Here are some of my top ways to use this item.
Store table placemats.
Looking for a convenient home for your living room placemats and/or coasters? Look no further than a humble toast rack. It’s perfect for this purpose, with pre-divided sections to slide each mat in for efficient storage.
Display your magazines.
If you’d like to double up your magazines or some of your favorite books as decor, a toast rack is a great way to store them. They can sit in the sections lengthways or upright, depending on your preference.
Organize your CDs and DVDs.
If you’re like me and still have copies of hard media hanging around your home, imagine how nice they would look sitting in a toast rack. I envision the rack sitting near the TV holding my current favorite tunes and shows, or perhaps the ones I’m planning to enjoy next.
Store your vinyls.
In the same way, a toast rack can also be used to store vinyl records. Just be mindful to evenly distribute the weight so your toast rack won’t topple over!
Keep photos for your picture frames.
Are you someone who likes to rotate their living room picture frames around frequently? You can keep the photos not currently being displayed neatly stored together in a toast rack. Some toast racks will even be wide enough to hold photo frames themselves if you have some you’d rather not take out of their frame.
Toast racks in the living room are far from conventional, but they have so much potential when it comes to storing other items around the home. Where else do you think you could use yours?
This post originally appeared on Apartment Therapy. See it there: Why You Should Keep a Toast Rack in Your Living Room (It’s So Clever!)