Should I Go Shopping?

Actually…YES. But not for bins.

There is nothing worse than carefully measuring a space and all the items within, mapping out product that will hold everything, and then returning for a session with your client only to discover they have double the amount of items in their pantry.

When we are assessing the project, it should be in it’s normal, everyday state. If you regularly shop at Costco, we need to see that. We can come up with a sleek and stylish way to hold the three rolls of paper towels you showed us, but if you normally have 24 on hand, we haven’t planned for that.

Don’t tidy for the tidier. We are there to see the pain points, not the polished version. If you come to us saying you have trouble getting out the door on time, but you hide your vanity that’s groaning under the weight of a thousand cosmetics and your fridge scattered with overripe produce and expired eggs, it’s harder for us to see where the problem lies. Don’t be shy! We have seen it all. Show us your worst, so we can get you to your best.

Should you shop for organizing products? NO.

I know. The WOW factor comes from sleek coordinating products that make your closet look like a showroom. But you can’t know what type of storage you need until after you declutter. And here’s a pro secret: the real WOW factor is negative space. “Before” photos showing shelves crammed with bags of chips and boxes of crackers don’t magically look amazing because baskets were added. In fact, baskets reduce the amount of available shelf space. What looks striking is the covered-up clashing labels and the empty space between the baskets. Between those photos there was a deep declutter.

No amount of product from The Container Store can fix this.

I’m not a basket-basher, deep down. I prefer to hide brightly colored labels and logos to reduce visual clutter. Some products improve function, like shelf risers that make the most of vertical space, or turntables that keep you from knocking over five glass bottles to pull out your olive oil. But I don’t recommend running out to buy goodies before you’ve pulled everything out, sorted, edited, and prioritized.

While baskets and opaque bins cut down on visual noise, they aren’t for everyone. Filling any space with product is a major investment, and if hiding things behind water hyacinth means you don’t know what you have in stock and constantly over shop, that investment costs even more.

The real WOW factor is function and systems that last. Even if you go through the process without the help of an organizer, it costs you time and effort (and I know you’re going to buy pretty storage no matter what I say, because that is the fun part). I’d recommend grabbing one reasonably priced item in each style and living with it for a couple weeks. Did you let something in the basket expire because you couldn’t see it? Do clear bins look too chaotic with visible branding and then a label stuck on the front?

So beautiful! But…when do these expire? If you don’t regularly use all these items, is this practical for you?

Contrary to Pinterest and HGTV’s big reveals, organization is bespoke. What works for one family may throw another home into chaos. Before you spend hundreds, do a trial run on a small scale. And take into account your housemates - I hated to look at bright labels for kids’ snacks, but my children could make their own choices in the pantry when they could see their goodies in clear bins, so I kept them clear until recently. Now, they are older and taller and can see into baskets. They also go through food like a swarm of locusts, so I recently got a big basket to hide backstock.

Needs change, families change, tastes change, and your home will need to be adjusted or refreshed from time to time. That’s easier to do when you haven’t spent a mortgage payment on product that doesn’t serve you.

So yes, go shopping! Don’t clean up for your organizer. We are tending to active spaces, not still life paintings. What does this countertop look like when kids get off the bus and throw homework all over the place? But don’t run to the organizing aisle. First declutter, then store. Decluttering and creating negative space will improve function and aesthetics without breaking the bank.