The garden bench is a fixture of outdoor furnishings. We rely on them as a resting place and a meeting places when we visit our yards, city gardens, and even amusement parks. This outside staple has been adapted for our homes, and now, it's a great idea to put an indoor bench in almost any room in our house.
A logical place for an indoor bench is inside the front or back door. It's a place where we can sit down to change our shoes or put on our boots. If it's got the proper storage, we can use it to tuck away the backpack that too often goes missing in the morning, or the library books that have to go back before we pay a fine. It becomes a regular stopping place when we get home or just before we leave for the day.
The kitchen is another place where an indoor bench makes sense. In my own kitchen, I replaced the two side chairs in the rear of my breakfast nook with an upholstered storage bench. It's easy to slide onto the bench rather than move the chairs in and out of limited space. It easily fits three teenage girls so we can have more fun around the table. And the seat lifts up when I need to grab some place mats or fancy cloth napkins from their secret hiding place. Dining benches have become popular alternatives to side chairs for seating in the dining room, too.
The family room never seems to have enough seating. Now, you can add storage ottomans that look like a mini indoor bench, and that double as storage. Remove the seat, and use the space inside to store a throw blanket, books and magazines, coasters, and whatever else your family deems as essential for everyday life. Other benches come with upholstered seats that reverse to trays, so you can use that indoor bench as either seating or a coffee table.
This multi-tasking bench has also evolved into a media bench, where you place your flat-screen TV. The media bench is designed with storage cubbies below to place all the essential electronics and store the DVDs you want to keep handy.
A bedroom has always been a welcome place for a bench. Sit down there to slip your shoes on and off; there's no need to mess up a freshly-made bed. Place your suitcase on the indoor bench to pack and unpack without straining your back. If it's a bench with storage, keep your spare sheets and blankets inside.
A kid's room never seems to have enough storage to keep it tidy and organized. Still, an indoor bench with storage baskets gives them a place for storing those fashion dolls and tiny race cars. An indoor bench with a deep storage space is the perfect place to put away dress-up costumes. And you can neatly lay out tomorrow's school clothes on the seat so the morning rush is a little less complicated.
The bathroom is another place where we rarely have enough room to store all the essentials. Add an indoor bench with deep storage, and you have a perfect place to store towels, rolls of bathroom tissue, and spare bottles of shampoo, conditioner, bars of soap, and shower gel. Even if you have only enough room for a small vanity storage bench, use the space inside to store your hair dryer, flat iron, and combs and brushes.
A simple piece of furniture that can work in so many ways... When you add an indoor bench to any room of your house, you bring the best of the outdoors in.
