Space-Saving Hooks for Organizing Clutter

A room-by-room guide to hanging up household items.

Entryway

What to hang: Jackets, bags, umbrellas, leashes, and scarves. A tote bag on one peg makes a convenient catchall for winter gloves and hats.

Where to mount: Maximize wall space and give kids easy access to their stuff by hanging two rows of peg racks, one above the other. Mount the top one about six feet off the floor and the lower one about 3½ feet up, a height that protects young kids' heads from protruding pegs but still allows them to reach their things.

To buy: Shaker Peg Racks, $10 for a four-peg, $15 for a six-peg; containerstore.com.

Tip: Make your rack blend in with a coat of paint that matches the wall (or contrasts with it, if you want your rack to stand out). First, place the hook rack on a drop cloth. Using an angled brush, apply one coat of an interior-exterior primer with a stain blocker (such as Zinsser Bulls Eye 1-2-3 Primer Sealer Stain-Killer, sold at hardware stores). Once it's dry, brush on two coats of a flat-finish interior paint such as Benjamin Moore Regal Matte Premium in Decorators White (shown; benjaminmoore.com for store locations). For even faster application, try spray-painting. Use Kilz Odorless Aerosol Sealer-Primer and Krylon Interior-Exterior spray paint in white (both at hardware stores).