Take stock of what you have. Sorting your possessions according to their use -- and how often you use them -- helps you get a handle on what you need to store -- and how and where.

Fill bookcases with handsome containers.

Identify your storage needs. Define the scope of the storage dilemma you're willing to tackle right now. You can be as focused as We need a place to store magazines other than all over the coffee table or as ambitious as I want this kitchen clutter-free once and for all. The more specific you can be, the easier the problem becomes to tackle.

Ask yourself these questions to help you clarify your storage needs and come up with smart solutions:

• Where do I typically use this item? When and how often do I use this item?
  
• Do I want this item stored with or near similar items I often use with it?
  
• How essential is it that I have easy access to this item?
  
• What is problematic about where I currently keep this item?
  
• Even if my current storage system for this item isn't ideal, are there aspects about the system that are appealing?

Wheels and a coat of paint transform a wooden shipping crate into an end table, serving cart and portable bookshelf, all in one.

Condense your collections. If you have neither the time nor the inclination to make a clean sweep of clutter, ease your way into the task of paring down by simply getting rid of extras of everything.

This is where people hit a roadblock. They're afraid that condensing means a major and painstaking housecleaning initiative aimed at tossing out at least half of the clutter they've carefully accumulated and become attached to over the years. Here, 11 things most people have and can probably live without:

• Outdated phone books
  
• Carryout menus
  
• Expired medicines
  
• Games your family never plays (and/or games with missing pieces)
• Crushed or torn wrapping paper and ribbons
  
• Cans of dried-out paint
  
• Clothing that no longer fits
  
• Half-used and abandoned bottles of shampoo, lotion and other toiletries
  
• Expired coupons
  
• Old catalogues
  
• Duplicates of anything, from blow-dryers to blenders

A card catalogue and bookshelves act as a dining-room hutch for storage of candles, table linens, napkin rings and silverware.

Clarify the role of every object. Tailor your storage needs to the nature of the items to be stored and to your own habits and preferences when it comes to using them. What should remain within easy reach? Can something be tucked away within step-stool reach? What can remain in the open, on display? Does something need to be packed away for safekeeping, wrapped in tissue paper and boxed?

Separate. Many times, simply keeping items separated is the key to storing them neatly and efficiently. A drawer divided into distinct sections of rubber bands, paper clips, thumbtacks and staples, for example, is easier to navigate than one full of a nondescript mass of office supplies. Anything that helps segregate pieces into those helpful, partitioned sections -- from baskets, jars and bags to hooks and pegs -- can be thought of as compartmentalized storage.

Before you set out on a shopping spree for new containers, take an inventory of existing options you may have overlooked. You may already possess underutilized spaces and containers that are storage solutions in the making. A length of Peg-Board and some hooks, for example, could turn the inside of a door into the perfect holding place for cleaning rags, a broom, a dustpan and a folding step stool. And maybe you don't need brand-new containers for socks that have outgrown your dresser drawer. Some drawer partitions might be all you need.

Store buttons, needles and thread in sealable plastic bags, clamp with binder clips and hang from hooks or nails.

Need help determing what to contain? Follow these simple guidelines and everything will fall into place naturally:

Hide things that need to be protected or masked from view: Nothing works better to eliminate clutter.

Display items that double as decorative objects: Hang your hats from a series of pegs in the entryway or keep bath towels in straw baskets on a low bathroom shelf.

Built-ins are a blessing, if you have them: If you don't, equip existing closets with pegs and ledges and add freestanding storage units such as wine racks and drinking-glass containers.

Portable pieces like bookcases, carts and shelving units give you freedom and flexibility.

Match the size of the container to the items to be stored, and use compartments to store everything neatly and efficiently, whether by using drawer or shelf dividers, jars, bags, pegs, hooks, boxes or baskets.