During an appointment earlier today, I was pleasantly surprised and so proud! As one of my younger clients, this high school student decided to take charge, reinvent and de-clutter her bedroom on her own. Since we had worked together in the past to create an organized and spacious bedroom, this client already knew how good it felt to sleep and study in a clutter-free environment.

So, after a few months of watching piles grow and cover every surface in her room, she decided to go for it and create space on her own. She persevered, made hard choices and kept the vision until she finished. She did a fantastic job!

Because we had already developed a basic structure of what should ‘live’ where and how much of each item was appropriate, it was probably easier for her to get back to “normal” and create a comfortable space where everything, once again, had a home and every drawer was able to close without effort.

This is why she said that she made the decision to get organized once again:

“My life in all aspects was starting to feel cluttered. I wanted to clear space so I decided to start with my room. It took me eleven hours but the relief that I felt and the burden that was lifted was well worth the time and sweat. I am so excited to walk in my room now!”

This case study, developed without any help on my part, proves the point that once you have a well thought out and structured system in place, it is fairly easy to get it back to ‘normal’. Organizing is always an ongoing project.

Since the clutter in this room had been building during a super busy school year, it took a bit longer to de-clutter. The good news is that the more often we get our space back to ‘normal’, the less time it takes to make it perfect. This client now has the skills and knowledge to maintain a clutter free dorm room which will be a handy trick in a year or two! Good job to ‘Miss Organized’ and her parents, all of you should be very proud!

This scenario is common in many instances of folks with hoarding tendencies. The bed had only a very small area on which to sleep and the rest of it was covered with papers, books and other items.

The scariest part of this situation for me was that there were several electrical items including electric blankets and heating units also in and around the bed. Most were in disrepair and therefore a very dangerous fire hazard. I am very glad that the family intervened and helped this client move into a better living situation where she could get the care she needed.

This is what the bedroom looked like after addSpace,  my colleague Mishele Veiera and The College Hunks cleaned it up to be put on the market for sale.

Situation: This guest room had fallen prey to typical problems. Without use, rooms like this often become disorganized dumping grounds for whatever items do not easily fit into other parts of the house.

Challenge: A son was moving in for a few months and we needed to get the room organized and ready for him to live in. Where does everything now go and how do we also create enough closet space for the son?

Solution: We cleared out the hall linen closet and the master closet to make enough room to move out the extra items that were in the guest room. In the end, we were able to set up a nice space for her son with a computer desk, stereo and even room in the closet for his clothes!

Situation

Life was too busy to put things away. We all know the drill, we work long hours, we come home exhausted and simply heave whatever is in our hands onto the nearest available surface.

This is what happens to all of us if we do not take the time to create landing zones for our possesions.

Solution

Create zones for most used items. Take a minute to distribute your items to these zones as you fininsh with them. It takes only a few minutes more to put your belongings away than it does to drop them onto the first elligible horizontal surface.

In fact, after you spend a precious weekend morning putting these loose items away, you might just decide to do it as you go after your bedroom is once again organized! It is much easier to spend a few extra minutes a day than to lose an entire morning or afternoon on your day off!

Never fear, life happens. Realize that once you are organized, it will take less and less time to get your room back to normal when you fall back briefly into your old disorganized habits.

Situation
A bedroom that had become the default dumping ground for all things that would not fit in the closet, the spare bedroom or other areas within the home. This challenge was partially a result of other rooms in the house not functioning: specifically the home office.
When papers had to be stored, the only area to store them was the bedroom. Additionally, the closets in this bedroom were overstuffed and could not hold the extra clothes or linens.

Challenge
Creating space in other areas of the home to store the items that were not related to the bedroom. There was  also wall-to-wall furniture surrounding the parameters of the room.

Solution
We spent time getting rid of the wall to wall furniture and other unnecessary and unrelated bedroom items.  We then sent them off to a charity in need.

I removed the excess furniture and moved the remaining furniture into a more user friendly and space saving configuration. We also created a sustainable home office in another room that provided a place to move the important papers.

We purged and organized the two large closets in this bedroom so that clothes and other keepsakes had a space to live.

Before / After Case Study:

( Move mouse over picture for after )

This bedroom had been thrown together after moving in and never reorganized. Before addSpace arrived items were frequently added to the large shelf without thought and the closets were underutilized. We decided to give it our full attention and turn the entire bedroom into a refuge.

After removing the items that did not belong in the bedroom, we created groupings of objects on the large shelf. The most treasured books were kept on the bottom shelf and the others moved out to the living room.

The bed and carpet was turned 90 degrees so that there was room to move around the room. Panels of colored fabric were added to the windows and walls to create a more relaxing environment.

The dresser was moved and reconfigured with an additional shelf from another part of the house. We used a small open shelf to keep sweaters within arms reach. The closet was reconfigured and after reorganizing, all of the clothes fit inside with room to spare!

What Our Clients Say:
“Kathi and I listened and communicated well with one each other. We
combined our ideas, and she came up with many things I hadn’t even thought of.”

R P San Diego

Before / After Case Study:

( Move mouse over picture for after )

Challenge:
This space was turned into a bedroom when the owner’s dog became too weak to get up the stairs to the master’s bedroom. After having slept at the end of her bed all of its life, the owner felt that she needed to move her bed downstairs to be with her beloved companion.

Solution:
This den was a makeshift bedroom until I redesigned the space and repositioned the furniture. Moving the bed into a semi-secluded nook, and adding a partition for a headboard and another to add privacy created a private bedroom. We also brought in dresser drawers from upstairs.

We began by purging excess books and collectibles. Some were donated to charity and memories were placed into plastic storage bins. We kept the built-in shelves intact in case the house is sold. They served as handy side shelves to surround the bed with favorite books.

Bedroom#1 Before and After

Kids Bedroom Before and After

Your bedroom is your refuge away from the busy life you lead throughout your waking hours. This area should be a haven of peace and tranquility. Everyone needs a space to decompress and forget about the affairs of the world and their busy daily schedule.

The bedroom is the most natural space to unwind, have privacy and spend moments “doing a bunch of nothing” as I like to say. This is the room to sleep and rejuvenate for the next day of your busy life.

There is no room for clutter in the bedroom. Your bedroom should only contain items that help you prepare for the day, clothes etc and items to help you unwind at the end of the day. This sacred space is crucial to your well-being and attitude.

Get started and take a look around your bedroom. Discard or relocate the items that don’t belong in this room. Bring in items that you love to look at to help you to unwind and become restful. When you are finished clearing your clutter and reorganizing, paint the walls a new color and enjoy in your new-found refuge!

What Our Clients Say:

” I love my new space! It is the best present I have received in 20 years. Thank you- you are incredible.”

Peri Ness, Encinitas

“Kathi was indispensable. She changed the whole feel of my home and I’m not afraid to come home anymore. I knew I wanted to change but didn’t know how to start. She gave us the jump-start and the direction we needed. She rocks!”

Tiffany Taylor, yoga instructor”