What Is A House Tour?

If you wonder if your home organization can be better, or if you need some inspiration for that remodel you’re planning, you would likely be interested in attending a House Tour.

The Smartly Organized Team was recently invited to participate in the 2019 Chatham Spark Joy House Tour. This event, sponsored by the Chatham Parent Teacher Organization, supports programs at the local middle school.

During this event a select number of homes are open to the public for a half-day. It’s fun to walk through each house and be inspired by the unique interior design and architecture of each home, while at the same time supporting a good cause.

We had the pleasure of sponsoring the event and our team enthusiastically organized key areas for one lucky family of five.

We chose three high traffic areas – the pantry, the laundry room, and the master closet. These areas are key for setting the stage for smooth and easy family life. We’re sharing the complete before and after story along with all the details about what we did in each space to improve functionality and why. Scroll down for all pictures.

The Pantry: Before

Here’s how the pantry looked before our team swooped in and made it Smartly Organized.

BEFORE

The kitchen is the most used space in the home. Keeping it ship-shape can be a challenge. And, the pantry, usually behind closed doors, often suffers the most with kids and adults in and out every day. It can get out of control. It’s frustrating to find empty boxes, stale chips, or expired items.

But you don’t need a huge walk-in pantry to be organized. We love the set up of this pantry for a variety of reasons and it already functions well for this homeowner. But she wanted to go from GOOD to GREAT! And we were happy to oblige.

BEFORE

BEFORE

BEFORE

THE PANTRY: AFTER

This new construction home boasts plenty of storage space in the kitchen and butler’s pantry with a mix of cabinets and drawers located in the work triangle. Despite the beautiful custom features the space did need some tweaking when we arrived. We elevated the functionality taking it from GOOD to GREAT making feeding this family of five a breeze. Here are some of the things we did:

Removed excess packaging to reduce clutter and make more space (i.e. the box that holds the oatmeal packets or granola bars)
Defined drawer space using clear bins to hold individually packaged items
Grouped like items so you can see what you have
Installed Lazy Susan/Turntables to make access easier for items
Created a breakfast drawer for kids making mornings quick and easy
Segregated snacks from dinner prep items

Sorted sweet from salty snacks
Grouped and moved less frequently used baking items to an upper cabinet
Decanted baking supplies into clear storage containers and added labels for flour, sugar, brown sugar, etc.
Added chip clips to open bags to maintain freshness
Removed new bags and boxes to encourage finishing what is already opened
Inserted Bamboo drawer dividers to add some structure to deep drawers

Client Feedback: “Love the turntables – would never have thought of that! And, love how the drawer organizers and bamboo dividers keep items from being a jumbled mess.”

AFTER

AFTER

AFTER

AFTER

AFTER

AFTER

THE LAUNDRY: BEFORE

Here’s how the laundry room looked before our team swooped in and made it Smartly Organized.

BEFORE

Laundry for a family of five means daily loads. This centrally located, second floor space was a catastrophe of clothing, sports uniforms, and linens because it lacked systems.

Laundry won’t go away so we encourage clients to make the space enjoyable. As you can see from the before pictures, this laundry room was pretty sweet. The sink with storage above and below is everyone’s dream, the large window makes it light and bright, and the raised folding counter, well, what else can we say? Perfection? Nearly.

BEFORE

THE LAUNDRY: AFTER

Here’s how this space looks now and what we did.

AFTER

Improved access to the laundry products using traditional cookie jars
Utilized the under-counter space for laundry basket storage
Sourced elevated baskets on wheels to minimize bending, make sorting and folding easier
Maximize upper and lower cabinet storage by removing packaging to make access easier and visual assessment easier.

No need to close the door to this space when company comes.

Client Feedback: “Elevated laundry baskets on wheels are genious. Love the rug and the touch of greenery – so pretty”

AFTER

AFTER

THE MASTER CLOSET: BEFORE

Here’s how the master closet looked before our team swooped in and made it Smartly Organized.

BEFORE

Ah, the master closet. Most of us “can’t find a thing to wear” not because we don’t have anything, but because we have too many choices, items are tightly packed on hangers, pushed to the back of drawers, or piled high and out reach! There may be no rhyme or reason to how clothing, shoes, belts and bags are put away, making it a heroic task to find that one shirt that goes with that one sweater. We end up wearing the same things over and over because it’s easy.

This was really fun. Starting with a beautiful closet system certainly helps, but every system needs structure and maintenance to remain truly functional. Being a shared closet means the system needs to work for both. Our changes may appear subtle but they are powerful and support underlying organizing principles.

Here’s how this closet looks now.

AFTER

AFTER

AFTER

AFTER

AFTER

AFTER

Here’s what we did.

Added runner to dress up and define HER space vs. HIS space
Edited HER wardrobe. This should be done on a regular basis so space doesn’t get overcrowded. We removed 8 bags of clothing for donation/consignment
Tidied HIS wardrobe and removed dry cleaning bags
Grouped like items for easier dressing – casual vs dressy, seasonal winter vs. summer, etc.
Added uniform hangers to reduce visual clutter. A rainbow of colored hangers may be pretty but adds a cluttered feeling. When getting dressed we want to see the clothes, not the hangers.
Arranged hanging items from light to dark color helps to reduce visual clutter and make finding what you want easier and faster.
Using special purse hooks we hung floppy totes on a rod. Clutches were placed in their own acrylic stand making you more likely to use what you have. Both solutions are a better use of space.
Installed uniform rectangular baskets for small items make easier access. Grab the basket and find what you need making use of vertical shelf space.

Labels make it easier to recall what goes where and also make getting and putting items away a no-brainer
Inserted inexpensive “boot stays” keep boots at attention so they don’t take up more space.
Alternated shoes front to back takes up less space/allows more pairs per shelf, if needed, and allows the owner to see heel and toe when choosing.
Drawers: file not pile makes more space in the drawer – can absolutely fit more in each drawer and you are more likely to wear items vs. taking the same T-shirt from the top of the pile.
Created a drop zone for each person on top of drawers – everyone needs a place to empty pockets, remove jewelry.
Other favorite ideas: scarf and valet bars, jewelry inserts in drawers, different hardware (his and hers)

Client Feedback: “Would never have thought to hang my tote bags, those special hooks are so cool, and runner adds so much. I will really enjoy this space.”

BONUS: MAIN FLOOR CLOSET

Here’s how the main floor closet looked before our team swooped in and
made it Smartly Organized.

No, it wasn’t on our list but we had to save this closet! This previously undefined closet had become a catchall for everything without a home! Are you smiling knowingly because you have a space just like it? Was it a party closet? Costco closet? Cleaning supplies closet? General utility storage? This valuable real estate lacked a true purpose so everything was just tossed inside with no assigned homes. We couldn’t resist.

BEFORE

Here’s what we did.

AFTER

Defined its purpose as Overflow Pantry for Back Stock items
Used existing chrome shelves with baskets to corral small items
Removed plastic packaging on consumables for easier access (paper towels, toilet paper, tissues)
Placed lighter items high, heavier items low to avoid accidents
Relocated cleaning supplies to the laundry room
Edited out no longer needed small appliances
Combined party supplies with those found elsewhere in the home
Added baskets, clear containers, and a turntable to hold like items
Labeled the bins with general labels to maintain organization going forward

The family should shop this closet first then make their shopping list.

PRO TIP: Defining the purpose of a particular space will help determine what should live there and what should live elsewhere, making it easier to find and replace items.

Client Feedback: “So glad to finally have this space organized. I love the baskets, the labels, just everything. Thank you.”