Most of us have a ‘doom room.’ This is the awkward, spare room in our homes where we store random items that don’t have a permanent resting spot elsewhere, and it quickly becomes a dumping ground for forgotten things.
And while there are so many things people with tidy homes always have, the doom room is a very niche corner of the home that often gets ignored during regular tidying and organising sessions. But although it can be easy to shut the door and pretend the mess inside doesn’t exist, that isn’t always practical when this spare room also needs to serve as a guest bedroom, home office or hobby room.
So, take this as your sign to give it some TLC! This is what you’ll need to turn your doom room into an organised, practical space that works with your needs rather than against them.
1. Wardrobe or clothes rail
It’s important to understand your own storage needs when tidying a doom room, and if your spare bedroom always becomes an extension of your wardrobe, you need to add storage solutions that tackle this problem - instead of just piling your clothes on the bed or the floor.
And while it may sound counterintuitive to add a wardrobe to what is often one of the smallest rooms of the house, opting for a closed wardrobe can help you maintain consistently tidy clothes and offer storage space to store organised boxes, suitcases, and other items you want to remove from the floor of your doom room.
However, if you’re worried that the closed doors of a wardrobe will encourage you to simply hide mess, I’m a huge fan of clothes rails like this Argos Home Kevin Double Clothes Rail (£46 at Argos). In fact, I’ve previously written about how my clothes rail helps me stay accountable and tackle mess as soon as I spot it.
This wardrobe is big enough to house your extra clothes, but not so big that it'll take over your entire room. It comes in a choice of three colourways, too.
If you're on a much tighter budget, this clothes rail could serve you just as well. It even has a shelf on the bottom for shoes.
This smaller unit will suit smaller spare rooms, offering space for (short) hanging items - and even some extra drawers for folded clothes.
2. Sleeping space with storage
A doom room is never going to be perfect. But if you want to create a temporary guest room for friends or family members in this room, it’s important to choose your sleeping setup wisely. And in this case, it’s well worth opting for a small-space-friendly bed - with extra storage for your own use, if possible.
The best sofa beds are a great option for those who want their doom room to become a multi-purpose space where they can craft or catch up on their hobbies, and I can’t recommend the Ascot Ottoman Storage Bed (£299 at DUSK) enough. This is actually the bed I have in my own bedroom, and the roomy storage is perfect for storing extra bedding, towels, and even shoes.
If you have a slightly larger spare room and don’t want to scrimp on a proper bed for your guests, just make sure you choose a bed frame with space underneath for underbed storage boxes, so you can keep items you need readily available but don’t want on show.
Our Sleep Editor, Amy, has crowned this sofa bed the 'best under £500.' It's a comfortable three-seater in sofa form, but a basic-but-brilliant double in bed form.
If you already have a bed but want to maximise the space available, underbed storage bags like this can help you store items and keep them off the floor.
Still compact but suitable for two guests, this sofa bed is the perfect happy medium. It's ideal if you want a sofa bed that doesn't actually look like a sofa bed.
3. Over-the-door organisers
One of the best ways to create order in smaller homes and spaces is to utilise vertical space, and door organisers are ideal for doom rooms. They also don’t require any drilling or permanent hanging, so can be used in rental accommodation and even be moved from room to room if you have guests and need to quickly tidy up.
The beauty of over-the-door organisers is that there are so many different types to suit the items that you may be storing in your spare bedroom. For example, you could use this SAVERHO Over The Door Shoe Organiser (£11.99 at Amazon) to store and organise all of your family’s shoes.
There are so many more options, though, with door organisers designed specifically for towels or accessories, or with larger pockets to house anything you may need. Just remember to declutter these items regularly to ensure you’re not holding on to anything you no longer need.
This over-the-door organiser is ideal for coats and accessories, and comes with 14 hooks for all of your goodies.
This organiser is incredibly versatile, and offers five tiered shelves. Each shelf can also hold up to 3kg - which is pretty impressive.
With 20 slots for your shoes, this organiser will slip over your doorframe and instantly add storage to your doom room.
4. Stackable boxes
While I love nothing more than a pretty-but-practical storage baskets that serve both storage and decor, they might not be suitable for doom rooms where you need to store a lot in a small amount of space. In this case, stackable storage boxes may suit you better.
The beauty of these stackable storage boxes - like these Really Useful 3 x 62L Plastic Storage Boxes (£33 at Argos) - is that you can stack them on top of each other to minimise the amount of floor space they take up. They also come with handles, so you can easily grab the one you want and move it, or pop them in a cupboard if you have one.
These boxes are ideal for things like seasonal decor, paperwork, and everything else that doesn’t really have a proper home organised and tidy. I’d just make sure you use labels like these Large Labels for Storage Boxes (45 pack for £6.99 at Amazon), so you know exactly what’s in them.
Coming in a choice of seven different colourways and four different sizes, you can choose the storage boxes that work best with your room here.
These stackable boxes can either be used separately or slotted together to make your own little chest of drawers for your doom room.
Cheap and cheerful, these boxes are ideal for storing anything you need - and then stacking them on top of each other to keep them out of the way.
5. A multi-purpose desk
Whether you work exclusively from home or your kids need somewhere to do their homework (that’s not their bedroom or the dining table), a desk is always a good idea. And while the spare ‘doom room' is a good place to put it, there’s no denying that they take up a lot of space.
This is where multi-purpose desks come into play, with many options to choose from. Hideaway desks like IKEA’S BILLY bookcase with a foldable table serve as a temporary desk when you need it, but offer permanent storage in the form of a traditional bookcase. This means you don’t have to live with a full-size desk cluttering up the space.
You can also buy wall-mounted desks, or a compact dressing table that can double as a desk for when you need to take your meetings. Whatever option you choose, opt for something compact, multi-purpose, or with hidden storage you can use.
This looks like a normal, compact shelving unit. But when you pull out that wooden section, you get to enjoy the full effects of a desk.
Key to a tidy office - even if it's within a doom room - is proper cable management. And these clips will keep all your wires in check.
If your doom room is a home office and dressing room, this piece of furniture will tick both boxes. There's even a drawer to keep surfaces clear.
Remember, a doom room is never going to be perfect... but you can always make it better!
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