"The number of women who wanted to organize their closets was greater than the number who wanted to lose weight." Rubbermaid survey on organization
Now back here in Los Angeles, I've just returned from a surprise Halloween visit with my best friend Scott. Scott and his partner Michael have been renovating their wonderful turn-of-Century home in lovely Manayunk, Pennsylvania, a neighborhood in the northwestern section of Philadelphia. The work is dirty, tough and expensive, but they continue making amazing progress each time I visit. But a new surprise emerged as they planned their new garden room addition...
On Monday, between dinner and decorating the front porch for Trick-or-Treaters, Scott and I spent some time reviewing the new garden room addition. A contractor will rip off their illegal add-on to their house (which never had a proper foundation and constructed decades ago by a former owner.) We reviewed the addition's new bathroom, laundry, sun and seating areas. Of course being a Professional Organizer, I urged Scott and Michael to take their elaborate plans to the next level by carefully reviewing their options for storage, something I saw lacking in the overall impressive design. Why?
Where were Scott and Michael going to put clothes baskets, hanging clothes, food and laundry cleaning supplies? Where will they iron? I even urged Scott to consider bench-seating with removable or hinged seats to hide their out-of-season rugby, softball, swimming and rowing gear. Why not build or plan adequate lounging space for their three beagles?
The list is long and budget tight. But with the right planning, their storage woes could be shelved for good. Always consult an expert space planner before building.
Motley Fool's Dayana Yochim wrote a great article published Monday about storage and her recent home renovation. While reading it yesterday, the piece reminded me of Scott and Michael's own renovation and storage journey. You can read an excerpt of Dayana's dramas below, or click here to see the entire article (it's very worth the click-and-read.)
"In the middle of my renovation, I woke up one night from a nightmare in which I was unpacking all of my belongings in the new place: Where was the Swiffer going to go? The stepladder can't stay out in plain sight! What about my toolbox and the two plastic bins labeled hardware/lightbulbs/glue products. And the winter coats!
The next morning, I called my contractor, and we plotted two additional closets to fill the dead space in the corners of my entryway (check No. 628). One has four shelves for cleaning supplies, dog stuff, hardware, tools, and file boxes. The other has room for winter coats, the stepladder, and the Swiffer."
