We’re at pains to admit it, but it turns out that our mothers were right in the end: a tidy home does, indeed, equal a tidy mind.
Our parents were nagging at us to tidy our rooms way before Marie Kondo came onto the scene. While we may not have taken much notice in our teens, now we’re under our own roof we get it.
From the front door to the garden shed, home should be a retreat away from the world, but one can hardly feel serene when tripping over piles of shoes every time you want to leave the house or go to answer the bell. Trainers, flip-flops, heavy boots, fancy heels and more; there must be a way to organise them properly to maintain their lifespan and reach what you need quickly.
Well, there is, and while it’s nothing revolutionary, it is life-streamingly helpful: a shoe rack or a dedicated shoe cupboard.
Either will help bring order to the chaos that is your hall or bedroom floor. These clever organisers can stack your solemates vertically, taking up as little floor space as possible. Some are skeleton designs while others store shoes and boots out of sight behind doors.
If you’re considering a cupboard, don’t forget to anchor the back to the wall to prevent it from becoming a fall hazard - particularly prudent with young kids and pets roaming around.
See our favourites below
John Lewis ANYDAY Fold Out 3 Tier Shoe Rack, Dusty Green
There are three closed drawers to utilise in John Lewis’s shoe rack, available in white, grey or a calming blue-green hue. The compact piece is part of the department store’s budget ANYDAY range, which aims to offer household essentials at decent prices. Use one alone, or if you’re a big household, line a few of them up together to create an unobtrusive storage rack.
Buy now £75.00, John Lewis
Fernleaf Sheringham 6 Pair Flip Down Shoe Storage
The last thing you want to do to wet trainers or boots is chuck them in a closed drawer where their own funk can cannibalise them. Fernleaf’s Sheringham design comes with vented drawers so you can hide away shoes while allowing them to breathe too. There are three tiers in this design, each comfortably holding two pairs each. Stow lower-height shoes like flip flops and slippers underneath where they’re easier to reach.
Buy now £72.99, Wayfair
Bamboo Folding Shoe Rack
Serving as both a shoe rack and a front door in-tray, this vertical open rack is crafted from bamboo, a highly sustainable material. There are six levels in the collapsible design to make use of but each one can only hold one pair of shoes, so this is one best suited for the minimalist individual.
Buy now £36.99, Amazon
Vida Designs 3 Drawer Shoe Cabinet
You’d have no idea that this sleek black unit was a shoe cupboard until you pulled down one of the handles - that’s why we like it. It comes in a variety of colour and finish combos, meaning it's easy to pair with your existing layout or dream hallway look. Its only 24cm deep, so it won’t protrude too far out from the wall and become a hindrance.
Inside the shelves are adjustable and can accommodate all sorts of designs from ballet slippers to hiking boots.
Buy now £46.99, Amazon
HOMCOM 2 Drawer Shoe Cabinet
An easy flatpack project to do one weekend, the juice is worth the squeeze when you’re talking about hallway storage. Homcom’s two-drawer is one of the nicest we’ve seen on Amazon with two flip drawers that can hold up to 12 pairs of your favourite footwear in total. The shelf on the top is also a useful place to put house keys and post where you can easily find them.
Buy now £73.99, Amazon
Like-it 3 Tier Shoe Rack, Grey
This magazine rack-style option is ideal if you’re trying to encourage young kids to independently choose and put their shoes on. The low-level racks make it easy for them to pick their pairs and put them away at the end of an outing. Consider adding a small flip-down wall chair to motivate them further.
Buy now £25.60, John Lewis
John Lewis Bamboo Shoe Seat
A seat and shoe-storing cupboard all wrapped neatly in one, this is a great option to set up either in the hall or in a bedroom. There’s only one compartment to put shoes, so if you have a lot of pairs, you can rotate new favourites or most-worn ones in.
Buy now £160.00, John Lewis
KARE Design Shoe Container
Made from slim, hardwearing metal and available in a range of fun, bright colours bring joy into storage with Kare’s space-saving design. This shoe cabinet comes with three pull drawers with room for two adult pairs on each level.
The cabinet also comes in a five-drawer design with each option reaching only 15cm deep.
Buy now £129.65, Amazon
JosephJoseph Shoe-In
Get more storage out of your floors with this angled rack which slips up to three pairs on top of one another. Surfaces are ridged to prevent slipping and you can store it in a wardrobe as well as out in the open hall. Not bad as far as budget buys go.
Buy now £12.00, Amazon
Dunelm Georgi Double Shoe Drop
Statement storage comes easily at Dunelm, where this shoe drop cabinet is waiting. Available in a neutral palette as well as a deep black, there’s a handy drawer to keep essentials like dog leads, work passes and other bits and pieces. The shoe drawers are deep with an extra shelf in each one to store even more pairs. You should be able to get eight pairs of adult shoes here, depending on style.
Buy now £199.00, Dunelm
Dunelm Charnwood Large Shoe & Boot Locker
Whether you’re lucky enough to have a dedicated cloakroom or not, this retro-look shoe storage cabinet gives you space to store everything from trainers and loafers to wellies, making it an option that you’ll be thankful for all year round. We love the rich walnut hue and the label holders which you can fill in if you’re trying to get kids to take ownership of their shoe wearing.
Buy now £549.00, Dunelm
