Designing Organization
Do you wince every time you walk into a room or open a closet door? Does your heart palpitate when you can’t find what you’re looking for?
Disorganization creates a kind of dis-ease in a home. Organizing all the stuff inside it can be a daunting task, but has big a payback. There are lots of resources out there to help, including professional organizers, but if you need a little humor to get you started, I highly recommend George Carlin’s monologue on Stuff : (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MvgN5gCuLac)
Marie Kondo advises keeping only the things that spark joy -which is great advice. Purging one’s household of joylessness is often a necessary first step. The less stuff you have, the easier it is to organize. Yet, still, you have to figure out where the toilet plunger and screwdrivers go.
Simply put, Step 1: Figure out what to toss and what keep.
Then step 2: Have a place to put everything.
Never as easy as it sounds though, is it?
Home organization is not just about purging and having enough closet space. It’s also about motion, the kinetic side of organization. This is because the human brain always prefers the easiest route; the fewer motions and steps required, the better. An organization strategy that requires as little energy as possible is the most effective one, especially when it comes to staying organized.
All the space and pretty storage containers in the world will do nothing to improve home organization unless you take movement into account. Remember the kitchen triangle? Within a well-designed kitchen you could draw three lines between the sink, stove and refrigerator. The point was to create efficiency of movement while in the kitchen.
While this type of kinetic organization approach rarely gets out of the kitchen, it can serve you in just about every room in the house. The idea is having a place for everything with easy and intuitive access. It’s built on movement and how you flow through your day, which is the very foundation of functional design.
Closets are great, but if they’re too small, or in the wrong place, finding space to put things requires too much energy. Organizational chaos ensues.
The only coat closet in this home’s entry foyer was too small and located several steps around the corner. And what appeared to be a closet, was actually the service door to the garage. What’s a person to do?
By stealing a bit of garage space for a spacious new 8 ft closet, and then relocating the service door, this front entry was transformed. It’s now a more welcoming space with lots of storage within easy reach.
With all the coming and going in your life, a well-designed home can be a place of order and peace. I love choreographing beautiful strategies to organize the necessities of life.
If there’s a place in your home that isn’t serving you well, CLICK HERE for your free 15 - minute discovery call and let’s talk about how I may be able to help!