P's playroom

Yesterday, I worked on P's playroom. They have two active little boys and just needed some help with getting the playroom organized. We went out and chose some pieces that would work best for them - one being a tall shelf to put things higher up where the things aren't always available to little hands. :) Once we got back, we worked all afternoon and into the early evening to finish the room. I finally purchased another label maker and had P's oldest help me label things in the room. He was very excited for me to peel the paper off the back and stick it on the containers. My type "A" personality had to go back a couple times after he wasn't looking to straighten the labels out. He was such a big help. He would tell me what each bin should labeled, I would type it in, and he would cut it with the "inside scissors" on the label maker. All and all, it was a very productive day and we got them organized!

BEFORE:

View from living room

Not enough room for storage

The boys' "firehouse" - Mom kept the "untouchables" (markers, paints, glue scissors, play-doh, etc.) up on the table to keep little hands from getting them. We needed to find a better way to store these things.

Toys, games, and books

AFTER:

We found a shelf to put the things that Mom didn't want them getting into everyday up high.

I chose clear bins so the family would be able to easily identify where things go when getting things out or picking things up and putting them away.

LABELS!!!!

More labels!!!

Everyday toys that the boys can play with now all have a place.

More everyday toys...

We moved some things around in the room to create a better flow and give them more room to play.

Mom already had these shelves in the room. They had stuff covering the top of them. All the things that were on top of it when I got there, now have their own "space."

Finished playroom!!!

Finished playroom!

Finished playroom!

Finished playroom!

***Tip: Children create beautiful artwork everyday. However, you cannot keep all of it. Choose a few pieces that you really feel exemplify your child and their personality. Keep them in a scrapbook, some sort of file, or display them somewhere around the house. If you try to keep every piece that they make, it will overtake your home! Don't feel guilty about getting rid of other "everyday" artwork.***

Jenny's House

I went over to one of my great friend's house yesterday to work on some closets in her house. I only had a short amount of time, so I didn't get everything quite done how I wanted it, but it's do-able for now. She has a lot of storage containers already, that haven't been put to the best use, so I used those for now. Jenny blogged about it today on her blog. Check out what she wrote. Scroll to the bottom of her blog.

http://epm11.blogspot.com/2009_08_01_archive.html

Thanks for checking back. More to come...

L.L's Space

I had the pleasure of going over to L.L.'s house this past week. Her family has just recently moved into their house and she is pregnant with baby #2. She had asked me to come over to help get her kitchen in order. Turns out, her closet needed a little help, too. I felt like it was just calling my name. It seems the closet had turned into the place where you just put things when you aren't sure where to put things, and you need them out of the way. I worked the morning and afternoon away and her space has been simplified! I took a few pictures before and after to show what a change we made.

CLOSET - BEFORE:

CLOSET - AFTER:

She had a great idea to have this dresser in the closet for some of her son's toys and for other storage. I "freshened up" the drawers a bit and ended up having quite a bit of extra space! Below is one of the drawers.

KITCHEN DRAWERS - BEFORE:

KITCHEN DRAWERS - AFTER:

Look how much extra space she now has in all these drawers! We really didn't throw much away. We just got it organized.

Simplify the Space

Welcome to my new business venture. With the encouragement of family and friends, I have decided to start my own business. I am hoping to help people with one of the most daunting of tasks....organizing! To begin, let me tell you a little about myself. My name is Amanda Keel and I live in Austin, TX. I am an elementary school teacher, and have been for the past 5 years. I definitely enjoy what I do. I have also always enjoyed organizing and cleaning from a tender age. I remember taking all of my money out of my Coke bottle bank to sort by monetary value, and then cleaning in a solution of vinegar. Also, I would often line my stuffed animals and books up by height to create a sense of "order" on my shelves. This love of organization has carried on to my adult life, and I have come to find myself very happy helping family and friends organize their own homes. I am hoping to continue this love of organizing on to you.

I know how overwhelming getting your rooms/drawers/entire house organized can be, and I want to help! Often times, it can be paralyzing not knowing where to start and what to do. That’s where I come in. With your help, we will pull everything out, make piles, find adequate storage, and put it all back in – organized and ready for every day life. I do need your help in this process. We have to figure out what works for YOU! You won’t need to be involved for the entire process, but I will need you for part of it. I will come in for a free consultation to determine the amount of time needed and draw up an estimate. There will also be the cost of storage containers, as well, that is not included in the estimate. There are many venues to purchase these from, and it is up to you on how much you want to spend. I would love the opportunity to simplify your space! I will be updating this blog in the future with jobs that I've completed and more information about the business. If you have any questions, feel free to contact me at Amanda.Keel@simplifythespace.com Please be sure to check back often! -Amanda