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Makeover Monday::Curb Kitchen Chaos

November 7, 2016 by Heather Filed Under: Home, Organize, Organizing Projects, Systems & Techniques Leave a Comment

This kitchen is a great example of ample storage but lack of good organizing and storage systems. This family wasn’t really seeing the potential for re-arranging items to better maximize the drawers, cabinets and pullout storage they had. We tackled the family “command center” first, a corner nook that seemed to capture everything from flower vases to cereal, kids medicine to keys. This area had become a “dumping ground” and was looking and feeling very cluttered. We talked about how this space could best serve the family’s needs and started by moving the items that didn’t belong out. This process will usually create a bigger mess initially than you have to begin with. The chaos of pulling things out and not yet having room to put them away can really turn people off …but hang in there!

We transformed what remained by corralling small items like kids art supplies (cute glass jars), keys (on command hooks), kids medicine (in clear bins), sun/glasses (small basket) and frequently used phone numbers (for the babysitter/nanny etc). The nearby desk drawer became more effective storage for everyday office supplies like pens, pencils, tape, scissors, the check book and the families paper calendar for quick reference.We used the larger upper shelves for less used items like serving dishes etc. e used the nearby desk drawer for everyday office supplies like pens, pencils, tape, scissors, the check book etc. This area also included a family paper calendar for quick reference. In this case, we spent two 3hr sessions on the kitchen and tackled strategic zones working our way from one end of the kitchen to the other, finishing with the fridge (no photo’s-sorry). The pull out storage cabinets were limiting in some ways due to their narrow size and shape so we took careful measurements the first session for storage supplies that would help contain smaller things like sippy cups, lids and measuring items. We moved larger items out of the pull out units into deeper cabinet drawers and created specific zones for items like breakfast, baking, spices and cooking condiments.

Kitchen After

I generally create a system based on zones for any kitchen if possible, taking into account what the client likes to do (lots of baking but not a lot of cooking or vice versa). In the end the kitchen functions much more smoothly. Thanks to labels on all the shelves and drawers everyone knows where things belong. If your kitchen needs a bit of order, try re-thinking where you store items and create zones for more efficient use of space. Your time in the kitchen will be so much more enjoyable!

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ABC Eye Candy

April 8, 2016 by Heather Filed Under: Art & Design, Home, Inspiration & Education, Textiles & Pattern Leave a Comment

I wanted to share just a bit more inspiration from my March trip to NYC…I spent at least two hours in one of my favorite places, ABC Carpet & Home. This store almost feels like a museum to me, with two buildings (near Union Square) and 5 floors of home furnishings, accessories and more to explore. When I went they had a whole theme of “In Pursuit of Magic“, from their displays to product selection, to the message on their bags…it did feel pretty magical.

What I loved most…the color combinations! I have been really anti neon (having lived it the first go round in the 80’s!) but no more! I saw such amazing unexpected color combinations using neon’s, pastels and earth tones. I couldn’t help but fall a little in love with Neon all over again!I always went to ABC when I was a textile designer because I knew they would be leading trends and showcasing textiles and carpets of exquisite design and quality. I still love to go for that very reason, to be inspired in what I might design or create. Just take a look through this slide show of some of the beautiful textiles include handmade lace, net-like structures, traditional woven overshot, totally modern digital prints and woven structures that enhance color through the use of texture.

ABC Carpet-Textiles

Finally I want to share some of the products I found for organizing and keeping your home beautiful. There was such a wonderful collection of kitchen and household items including wire baskets (both vintage and new), hand crochet baskets, hand thrown/built pottery, glassware in a rainbow of colors and the combinations of textures, colors and patterns invites us to play with combining our old and new together in a fresh way. Throw out the rule book and use what you love, in any combination!

ABC

Makeover Monday::Playful Organizing

December 28, 2015 by Heather Filed Under: Art & Design, Home, Organize, Organizing Projects, Systems & Techniques 1 Comment

This year I had the pleasure of working with a family household (parents, 2 kids under 5 and a dog:) who wanted more general order all around. They were not in a horrible situation, just looking to improve upon organizing systems and create some where none existed. With busy families I often find that things fall apart because there are only partial systems in place or none.

This house has a great family room, open to the kitchen which allowed for family time and meal prep to all be in one space. With two little boys though, the play area got messy quickly and mom and dad’s kitchen space was often overtaken by toys and their own daily “landing pad” stuff (mail, purse, laptop, kids art etc). We decided upon our first session the kids play area would be priority number one with the kitchen to follow. Following the SPACE system (created by Organizer and Author Julie Morgenstern) we Sorted, Purged, Assigned, Containerized and Equalized the kids play area.

Kids Play Area-Before

The kids play area off the kitchen had ample storage for a reasonable amount of toys in this space but it was awkward, narrow, hard to reach, overflowing and partially unusable. Our first step was to modify the cabinets (done by a professional) by changing the configuration and height of shelves, installing additional shelves and removing the door from the area under the stairs to create a “garage” for the boys cars and trucks. With the toys purged and sorted and the cabinet modifications in place we measured and ordered specific containers based on the types of toys needing to be stored in the space. These included clear “shoe boxes” for smaller toys, an alligator bin for larger toys under the stairs, translucent totes for inside cabinet shelves and oval ‘chalkboard’ labels for everything. Books and musical instruments were moved to additional cabinets nearby but separate from the rest of the toys.

Kids Play Area-After

This whole project could have been done with existing storage containers but because this area is so widely used by both the family and for entertaining, it made sense to invest in specific storage containers and create a system that was easy to use, clean up and maintain. The finished space is beautiful, functional and FUN! In the new year, during GO-Month (Get Organized-January!) I’ll be sharing the kitchen makeover from this home.

My Big Inspiration Wall

March 9, 2015 by Heather Filed Under: Art & Design, Home, In the Studio, Inspiration & Education, Organize, Organizing Projects, Systems & Techniques

I am blessed with a spectacular studio that overlooks the marsh with windows on 3 sides…lots of natural light, palm trees, Spanish moss and resurrection ferns dripping and hanging from live oak branches.

I’m not short on inspiration but what I am short on is wall space (because of said windows). This has been a challenge for me since we moved in and the one wall I do have is brick which is difficult to attach anything to. After researching several options, I finally made a request of my handy husband to help me solve this challenge.

Design wall’s that quilters use involve a lot of fleece and I’m not a quilter (although I dabble in quilting techniques) so I felt the expense and effort of all that were un-necessary. I also considered cork, again, a resource I didn’t want to waste especially since I planned to paint the wall to blend in…Finally I settled on inexpensive Fiberboard after realizing this is what is used in many schools (my studio at SCAD included) and it would be just the thing to help me go vertical…Here my handyman Mr. B puts the finishing touches on the painted fiberboard before handing it over for me to “play” with.

This piece of fiber board is 4′ x 6′ (cut down from 4′ x 8′) and was only $9. It sucks up paint like crazy so you might want to use a primer-sealer (like Kilz) so you don’t have to apply a million coats). We attached it to the wall with Washers (painted) and screws (into the morter-this brick was so hard it destroyed 2 of my husbands masonry bits).

What a delight it is to have a space to hang both design pieces I’m working on and inspiration for future work! Above and below are details of what’s now currently hanging on my wall. I’ve got quilt blocks I’m kind of stuck on (not knowing what to use them for or if I need to make more), indigo shibori, yarns, mixed media, photography and other bits of inspiration and work in various stages of finished/unfinished.

I’m by no means a minimalist but I don’t love it when my space is too visually cluttered. With this new wall hung I can corrall all sorts of things that have been floating around my studio into one space to feed my inspiration and allow me to step back and see the pieces that I’m stuck on from a different perspective. Do you have the luxury of a inspiration or design wall in your art or office space?

Trend Tuesday::Organizing the closets

February 17, 2015 by Heather Filed Under: Closets, Home, Inspiration & Education, Organize

Lately, I’ve noticed a few closet organizing trends for design and organization that are fun, functional, and stylish. For some they may be a little over the top but for fun let’s take a peek into some of these closets. A few are more like Boudoirs of the old days than any closet I have encountered! Below are a few trends and the takeaways I think are helpful from each of these examples.

Monochromatic; using colors that are “signature” such as this palette of purple, grey and neutral. This makes the whole look less distracting and easier on the eye. It’s a great way to incorporating clothing into an “open closet” wall of a room.

Above and below; jewelry displayed in the closet. Whether it’s in the closet or on a wall in your room this trend is a lovely way to better see what you have and decorate empty wall space!

Above (Lonny Closets) and below; fun, funky and stylish furniture in the closet. I love how both of these pieces are being used for functional storage but also bring a sense of style and sophistication to these spaces. The closet becomes stylistically a part of the larger spaces.

Below; most of us probably don’t have this many jeans and yes this photo was probably taken from a shop display but I using S-Hooks in all sort of unconventional ways is a brilliant idea for the closet and lots of other spaces!

Give some of these fun closet organizing trends a try in your own space and let me know if you find any other fun ideas! If you want to see more Inspiring Organization check out my Pinterest Board here where you will also find links to all the photo’s above (hover over images for credits). For more closet inspration, check out this post.