I have a hate-hate relationship with traditional storage. Not only is it usually an eyesore, but it’s also often overpriced. In my many years as an intrepid thrifter, I’ve discovered (and hoarded) quite a collection of unique vintage storage options. These are my favorite picks that are oh-so-easy to find.
Food & Cookie Tins
Butter cookie tins are notorious in sewist households, but food tins in general make perfect storage. Think crackers, popcorn, cookies, and more. They’re metal, so they can take a small beating, and most come with a lid so you can keep your bits and bobs extra tidy. For instance, a large Planter's Peanuts tin holds many of my straight knitting needles like a pro.
Mason Jars
I can’t talk about vintage storage without mentioning mason jars. I swear that you can’t step into an antique store without finding at least one vintage mason jar filled with buttons, marbles, or thread. They just make perfect shelf-sized storage and are really easy to clean.
Snuff Boxes
Snuff isn’t as popular as it once was, so you might not recognize these pocked-sized boxes at the thrift store. Yet, these lacquered, engraved, and enameled boxes are decorative enough to want to put on display. They’re ideal for small treasures you want to keep in a special place.
Silverware Drawers
Silverware drawers of all kinds make awesome art and craft supply caddies. Vintage plastic pieces from the 1970s and 1980s are great for painting supplies or inks. Meanwhile, my antique velvet-lined fancy silverware drawers are just deep enough to hold many of my fiber arts supplies and tools.
Letterpress Typeset Drawers
If you’ve ever seen long drawers with unusually tiny compartments, there’s a high chance that it’s a letterpress typeset drawer. These drawers held the movable type you would use in a printing press. If you love to collect small tchotchkes, spools of thread, etc. this one is made for you.
Bottle Crates
Plastic bottle crates capture that oddball charm of the 1980s perfectly. While they’re not the prettiest storage, they’re tough as nails. My two bottle crates will probably outlive me. If you’re lacking shelf storage, these work like a charm.
Backgammon & Checker Sets
I’m more of a chess gal than a backgammon or checkers gal, but portable backgammon and checker sets are great for storing art or writing supplies. With a little crafty spirit, you can also turn them into portable writing or art desks.
Cigar Boxes
Both simple cardboard and elaborate wooden cigar boxes work well as storage. Need to throw your guitar picks, extra chargers, or spare change somewhere? Look no further than an antique cigar box.
Ceramic Powder Boxes
Powder boxes are divine if you love delicate decorations, particularly ceramic ones. While I have several ceramic trinket boxes, I love my powder blue shell motif ceramic powder box just a bit more. As someone who loves jewelry, I’m always looking for more places to store stuff, and this powder box works like a charm.
Sewing Boxes
I love vintage sewing boxes, especially Wilson caddies from the 1960s & 1970s. They hold so much stuff. One of mine is dedicated entirely to cross-stitch materials, while the other holds a lot of my sewing notions.
Sewing boxes are super handy and easy to store in your cabinets, under your bed, in your closet, and more. If you have a lot of small things you need to keep in one place, sewing boxes are the way to go.
Picnic Baskets
Picnic baskets — especially lined ones — have a certain charm you may love. They work just as well as sewing boxes but have a more romantic vibe to them.
Candy Dishes
Candy dishes aren’t nearly as popular as they once were, but they’re an elegant junk drawer substitute. One of my sisters gifted me a green Depression glass candy dish years ago, and I still use it to toss in spare change and random hair accessories.
Hat Boxes
If you’re not a fan of vintage accessories, you might not recognize an old hat box at first glance. Hat boxes are usually circular or slightly oval in shape and taller than they are wide. Because they’re so deep, they’ve got a lot of room to store things inside.
If It Fits, It Sits
The key to thrifting storage is using your imagination. Anything with some space inside and a lid (if you’re lucky) can transform into the perfect resting place for some of your treasure trove. So, keep your eyes open and your imagination turned on because you never know what great finds you’ll discover next.
