Product Review: VASAGLE EKHO Collection - Storage Ottoman Bench

 

This is a storage ottoman/bench. It is not really a great ottoman unless you are going to use it at the end of a bed because, with the legs on, it sits higher than most couches, so it would be uncomfortable to use it as a footrest. It is, however, perfect for a front entryway or mudroom. It is slim (just over 47 inches wide) and is not as deep as some storage benches (just under 16 inches deep). However, it has enough room to store off-season coats, hats, and gloves (for those who live in climates that necessitate different spring/fall/summer and winter outerwear). 

The only required assembly is putting the legs on, which is more difficult than it needs to be. Instead of putting a threaded end on the end of the legs so you can screw them directly into the base, three small screws attach the legs to the base. The screws can be a bit hard to line up with the screw holes unless two people are working together, one person holding the legs in place and another person turning the screws. Once the legs are on, the bench is high enough off the ground that you can vacuum under it, whether using a regular or robotic vacuum. It is also very sturdy as a bench. Two adults can easily sit on it without an issue. Ultimately, it is a good storage option, especially if you have limited storage in a mudroom or front entryway. 

Product Review: Amazon Basics Upholstered Storage Rectangular Ottoman and Entryway Bench

 

This is a storage bench that is about the size of one and a half of those mid-sized plastic storage bins that you can get from any store. I use mine in my front entryway to store off-season coats, hats, gloves, etc. It is the perfect size for that. It is also something that you can easily put in a living room to store things like kid's toys, pet toys, or anything that you just want to keep out of the way and use as a footrest in front of a couch. 

The best thing about it is that you do not have to assemble anything. It is put together (including the legs) right out of the box. So, the hardest part will actually be getting it out of the shipping box. It is a great value for the money (as long as it is still in the $75-$95 range). If it is being sold for higher than that, then you may want to look for something else because I do not think it is worth more than $100. I definitely recommend it if you are looking for some kind of "hidden" storage solution.

Product Review: mDesign Plastic Tea Bag Divided Storage Organizer

 

I have a large box of green tea that I purchased at one of the warehouse clubs. The box from the store was huge and took up a lot of room, this is a much better option for storing the tea bags. It is large enough to store all the tea bags, and can easily be placed at the front of a cupboard or pantry for easy access. If the tea bags are larger, you may have to put them into the separations at an angle as there is no way to adjust the size of the inner portions that form the separate boxes. You could also use these for craft supplies, however the lid is not locking, so if you accidentally dropped it, or it fell from a shelf, whatever you put in it would go everywhere. But, this is a great option to hold individual tea bags.

Product Review: Value Combo: Bubble Cushioning Wrap Rolls(30ft/Easy-to-Tear) & 12"X 12" Foam Wrap Sheets 30-Pack

 

This is a combination pack that includes 30 foam sheets and a roll of bubble wrap. The foam sheets are not the kind with the pockets, which are good for dishes. These are best for putting between picture frames with glass fronts or wrapping around smaller items. You can, however, use them to separate glass plates as you stack them. The bubble wrap is pretty standard, has small bubbles, and is perforated so you can separate it into smaller sheets without cutting it. Definitely a good value for the money.

Product Review: Mighty Gadget Brand 3/16" Air Bubble Cushioning Roll

 

It is a pretty standard bubble wrap, with smaller bubbles. The roll has perforations so you can separate it into smaller or larger sheets, as necessary. The only drawback is that the perforations can be a bit hard to see, especially if you do not have great eyesight. Otherwise, it is very good for a small amount of bubble wrap to keep fragile items safe when you are packing them up.

Product Review: Premium Foam Packing Sheets (50 Count)

 

These are foam packing sheets that work much better than using newspaper to keep glass dishes and small fragile items protected when you are packing them up. They have pouches so you can place a bowl or plate inside, then stack them inside a box, so you basically have two layers of foam protecting your dishes. I definitely recommend them.

Product Review: PackageZoom Moving Boxes Medium 18 x 14 x 12 Inches 20 Pack

 

While these are medium-sized boxes, they are a bit smaller than the medium boxes at Home Depot or UPS (if you are going off that size). They are a perfect size to hold books, as they do not allow you to put so many in that the box ends up weighing 75 lbs and is too heavy to comfortably lift and move around. You will need to use strapping tape to put them together, but once they are together they are sturdy, and a decent value for a pack of 20.

Product Review: Homz 34-Gallon Durabilt Plastic Stackable Storage Organization Container Bin

 

I got these for storing things in my garage to get ready for a renovation and wanted sturdy bins that are moisture and pest-proof. These are large bins with lids that lock much better than some of the less expensive bins out there. They are a bit overpriced on Amazon compared to a 55-gallon version of the bin that sells at Home Depot for $25. But, you can keep them in a garage without worrying about mice or water getting into them and damaging the contents. 

Product Review: Whitmor Set of 2-10 x 10 x 10 inches-Turquoise Collapsible Cubes

 

I got these to keep my pantry organized. They are great for packets (things like taco seasoning, dry mixes, etc.), bagged items like chips, or other things that you want to keep together but do not really sit well on a shelf or in a cupboard. They are reasonably sized so they do not take up a ton of space (as long as your shelves are at least 10" deep) and are simple to set up (just unfold them and put the support across the bottom). I definitely recommend them as an inexpensive storage solution for a pantry or a closet.

Product Review: Evelots 2 Pack VHS Storage Bag

 

If you are those who shelled out quite a bit of money on Disney VHS tapes over the years and do not want to part with them but want to store them out of the way, these are perfect. They are much like the DVD storage bags Evelots put out with three sections because of the inner plastic pieces that reinforce the seams. They will keep dust and water out, allowing you to keep them organized and stored on a shelf or in a closet without taking up a ton of space.

Product Review: Prepac Locking Media Storage Cabinet

 

This is a pre-fab media storage cabinet. One person can put it together in about an hour and a half. You really just need a Phillips screwdriver, a hammer, a drill, and a small drill bit. It is mostly put together using screws and cams, and then a particle board back that you hammer nails into. The doors are put together so that you can put three rows of DVDs, blu rays, or CDs in each door, and then three rows along the back of the cabinet. It would be nice if they would have made it about 2 feet taller so that another row of DVDs would fit both in the middle compartment and each door. They provide three shelves for each door and the center compartment, but there is dead space because whether you use the third shelf or just put DVDs on the bottom of the cabinet itself, you can only get three rows of DVDs/blu-rays in each door and the center. If it were a bit taller you would be able to use the third shelf, and then put a fourth row on the bottom and end up getting another 40-50 in it, which would be nice for those of us who have a large movie collection, and have not ditched the physical discs just to stream everything.

The only other piddly point for me is the locking mechanisms. Each door has its own lock, one side uses a key and turns a thin plastic piece into a grove in the top, and on the other door you have to attach a latch that you physically move up and down when the door is shut (you have to reach inside when the other door is open to engage it, then shut and lock the other door) to lock that side. It should be made so the key lock is in the middle and will lock both sides simultaneously. And you have to lock the doors to keep them from swinging open. The doors are hinged, and they will not stay closed if you leave either side unlocked. I have also discovered that the doors can warp over time (especially if you slide them across the floor (even with the doors shut) while they are full) so that the doors will not stay locked even when you turn the key. That is a bit of a double-edged sword because the doors stay shut now even when it is unlocked, but the locking ability is basically useless.

Those issues are what knock it down a few stars for me. If not for that, it is easily a five-star product, especially given it is something you have to put together yourself and is relatively inexpensive. Once it is put together it feels very sturdy. It does not feel like a good gust of wind will take it apart, which is sometimes the case with the put it together yourself furniture.

Product Review: mDesign Narrow Dresser Storage Tower Stand with 4 Removable Fabric Drawers

 

This is a very small set of drawers, perfect for a relatively small space. It comes with everything you need to put it together (the screws are put in using a supplied Allen wrench). The only thing that is kind of a pain is that the drawers are folded up and when you first put them in, the sides collapse inward, so you have to put something in that is somewhat stiff (I used mass-market paperback books) until they stop doing that. Otherwise, it will work perfectly to hold socks, underwear, and t-shirts or smaller items like pens and paper if you are using it in an office. It is the perfect size to set next to a dest or bookshelf.

Product Review: Zober Under Bed Storage - Pack of 2 Under Bed Storage Containers

 

These are perfect for storing out-of-season clothes under a standard bed. They are long enough to fit under a full-size bed without being noticeable. If you have a queen or king even more so. They are pretty durable, although I would not say they are so durable that over-packing them would be wise. They are definitely, a good choice if you are light on closet space.

Product Review: CorLiving Bakersfield TV Stand

 

I got this to put a 55" TV on. It does seem pretty sturdy once you get it together, but the instructions are not the greatest (due in part to the fact that the pieces are not labeled very well) and it was not easy to tell what all of the pieces were just by looking at them and matching them up to the instructions.

I ended up getting it together with some pieces backward, so the inner pieces that act as separators in the lower part would not go in. Instead of taking it apart and putting it back together I just left it as is. It has been stable and the TV fits on it (although just barely, so if you have anything bigger than 55", depending on the stand that acts as the base of the TV, this will probably be too small). With those provisos it is decent.

Product Review: Evelots 2 Pack CD Storage Bags

 

If you grew up in the era before streaming music, and/or just prefer the physical media (and chances are most of the people making up those two groups are the same) you most likely have a collection of CDs taking up space somewhere. Given that if you subscribe to Amazon or Apple's music service, or just search for a song on YouTube, you can find almost any song from any album in seconds. However, if you are like me, and spent a good chunk of money on CDs back before every song was online, you hate the thought of throwing away perfectly good discs. 

These are great for keeping your CDs protected and provide a way to store them in a much more efficient manner than sticking them on a shelf or in a bunch of boxes (which could end up weighing a ton). Each box comes with 2 bags, each of which can store about 45 single CDs. You would be able to get a few more in, except that inside each bag there are two plastic dividers that separate the inside into three sections. They are along the seams where the handles are connected to give them added support so it is not a good idea to cut them. That is really the one drawback (if you can even call it one). I definitely recommend these.

Product Review: LocknLock Easy Essentials Pantry Airtight Rectangular Tall Food Storage Container, Pasta Box

 

This is a great storage option for Spaghetti or Lasagna noodles. It will keep the pasta much fresher than it will be in the box (or bag) once you have opened it. The container is not completely airtight like a vacuum seal would be, but there is a seal between the lid and the container, and there are notches on the container that the lid flaps lock onto when you fold them down. So, once the cover is on and closed, you do have to worry about it coming loose or the pasta spilling out if it falls over. Nor do you have to worry about pests getting into the container. It is definitely a good storage option.

Product Review: SET OF 2 VHS STORAGE CASES ; STORE UP TO 34 TAPES

 

While there are probably not many of us left who have both a working VCR and some VHS tapes laying around, if you are in your upper 30s or older you may have some. I do not have many, but I do have the original Star Wars movies (without the updates added in), a couple of movies that never got a DVD release, and a handful of home movies. These are a good way to store standard-sized VHS tapes (they will not hold the larger cases like those the Disney movies were packaged in) that is easily transportable. You get two bags that each hold about 17 individual VHS tapes. The bags are fairly sturdy and can be zippered closed to keep out water and dust. They are definitely a much better storage option than just having them in a box. So, if you are one of the few people who still have some VHS tapes and you can find these at a reasonable price, they are a good pickup.

Product Review: Magazine Protectors Set Of 3

 

These are decent magazine holders and can store about 20, give or take, individual magazines that are regular-sized or smaller. They will not, however, hold something the size of the older Life and Rolling Stone magazines that were oversized. Also, they are not extremely sturdy. You absolutely have to pick them up by both handles or they will rip at the seams, and I even put one hand underneath them while I hold both handles in the other hand. That is what drops them down a couple of stars for me. But, if you are a person that still has a lot of print magazines, these are a good way to keep them protected.

Product Review: Akro-Mils 10144, 44 Drawer Plastic Parts Storage Hardware and Craft Cabinet

 

I purchased this when I was working on an Electrical Engineering degree to store various components for my labs. This has a combination of smaller drawers that are perfect for holding items like resistors, capacitors, LEDs, etc. Or, for those of you who craft, can easily store beads, small spools of thread, or things like that. The larger drawers can hold larger items like small scissors, small wire cutters, solder spools, or things of that size. When I purchased it I paid $28 for it. At that price, it is a good deal. I would not pay $50 for it however, so I would definitely do some price shopping.

Product Review: Akro-Mils 10164, 64 Drawer Storage Cabinet

 

If you have a lot of small objects that you need to store and sort, this is a good option. I used it when I was in school working on an electrical engineering degree to keep resistors and capacitors of various sizes sorted so I could find them easily when I needed them. It would also work well to sort beads or any other small craft items that you are likely to have a lot of. The drawers are not very large, but they are big enough to store many small items without overflowing.