Maintaining an Organized Home

Apile of cords on the kitchen table. That stack of forgotten birthday cards on the desk. The dog toys scattered across the living room oor. ound familiar s much as you love your home, it can be difficult to eep everything neat and organi ed with a busy schedule. ith these simple tips, you can transform the chaos into a calm and clutter-free space.

Get Creative

Organizing is a perfect time to set your creativity free here are sorting bins in every color of the rainbow choose your favorite f bins aren’t your style, you could also use wall-hanging bas ets or drawer organi ers, or invest in new cabinetry. our organi ational style should be an extension of your personality and your home, so choose whichever style fits you best.

Involve the Kids

pril mys of pril tar nteriors suggests that the best way to eep a house with children organi ed is to get them involved ids love to help with pro ects when you let them, so get them involved by making labels with markers or pens in a variety of colors. hen they help, they are more likely to remember where things go, and you can also explain the purpose and importance of organi ation while you wor .

Know Your Family

Create realistic organization methods that complement your family s routine. f your family ust won’t fold the blan ets on the couch, get a bas et instead for them to throw the blan ets into. f your daughter always leaves her purse on the itchen table, add a hoo near the door for easy storage. hanging too much about the way we naturally do things in the spirit of ‘staying organized’ can create more stress than peace,” says Anna Abrams from Built to Last Custom Closets. Take notice of your family’s habits and design your organizational system around your daily routine.

Make the Most of Your Space

As a closet designer, Abrams sees a lot of underutilized space. Closets are meant for organization, and yours should store as much as it can! Instead of weak wire shelving, opt for adjustable, well-designed materials, Abrams suggests. This way, each of your personal items will have a home where you can easily find it.

Embedding outlets into drawers is another way that you can make the most of your space. Even though charging cables are necessary for a busy, modern life, they can detract from the aesthetic of your home. A drawer will easily hide plenty of cables and provide easy access to all your electronics.

Tidy As You Go

No matter how many baskets you have or hooks you add, little messes will be inevitable. The best way to avoid these is to tidy as you go. “Make sure at least one routine-based organization task is completed every day,” recommends Caroline Moynihan of Twin Cities Closet Company. “Small, manageable, and repeatable tasks make keeping your home organized way less daunting.” When you wake up the next morning, you can start your day fresh with at least one task completed.

a ing the first step in a new organization routine can seem difficult, but these tips are a simple way to create a stress-free environment.

Tips For Selecting Window Coverings

BY TAYLOR HUGO

How you decorate a space after a remodel is just as important as the remodel itself. Torndown walls may open up a oor plan and freshly painted cabinets can brighten a kitchen, but it’s the finishing d cor elements, li e window coverings, that bring a room to life and infuse the homeowner’s personality.

“Windows play a central role in d cor, says aniel ogin of otcha Covered. “Whether it’s the living room or the family room, windows are the centrality of a room. You see the glass and see the light coming in, and now your next question is, what are you going to put on the windows to address the functionality or the d cor to fit the room or example, if you have new ooring you want to keep from fading, you might want UV-protection shades. Room-darkening curtains can help young kids sleep, while motorized shades are ideal for elderly people who plan to age in place. In the Midwest in particular, cellular or honeycomb shades keep rooms comfortable during cold winters and hot summers. “Form follows function,” adds Gotcha Covered’s Gressa Schroeder. “Form, meaning the aesthetics, comes after the function of the product.”

From curtains and shades to blinds and shutters, there are countless options to fit your needs, style, and budget. ere, ogin and other win Cities design experts offer their tips for choosing window coverings for your newly remodeled home.

1 Plan ahead.

Window coverings shouldn’t be an afterthought once construction wraps on your remodeling project. “You should consider your window coverings as you’re making your remodeling plans for two reasons: One, you might run out of money if you don’t budget for custom window treatments. The other reason is so you can get that coordination and cohesiveness with the design of the rest of your home,” says Kathy Raph of Gotcha Covered.

If your remodel will take your walls down to the studs, involving a design consultant in the planning process also gives you the opportunity to install wiring for motorized shades and helps mitigate window-covering challenges you might face if you choose specialty-shaped windows.

2 Consider your needs first. While you want to love the look of your window coverings, they also need to meet your needs. “Before you even start to get into the discussion of aesthetics, it’s really important to know what the purpose of the product is so that we can guide the customer to the appropriate products,” says Chris Kartschoke of Gotcha Covered.

3 Think about aesthetics. You don’t have to sacrifice aesthetics for functionality. Once you hone in on what your window coverings need to achieve for you to feel comfortable in your home, consider how you want them to look and feel. “I always like to ask homeowners if they want their window treatments to pop or if they want them to blend in,” says Nathan Manthei of Gotcha Covered. “Maybe they have some cool backsplash or accent wall, and they want to keep that the focus. Other times, they might want to highlight the view out the window, and they’re looking to add some texture, color, and interest with what they put on the windows.”

Window coverings can also be used to change the look of a space. Ceiling-height installations that bring the eye up and down create the illusion of higher ceilings. Layered neutrals, on the other hand, soften the appearance of hard-surface blinds and shutters. “Draperies literally transform a room,” says Elizabeth Cohen of

Studio M Interiors. “Layering creates interest and dimension.”

4 Create a cohesive look. Remodeling projects are all about seamlessly blending old with new, and window coverings are no exception. A good rule of thumb to create a cohesive look is to match products across spaces that are simultaneously in your field of vision, says Kartschoke.

This could look like hanging matching curtains in multiple rooms or using the same fabric for drapery over a patio door and a valance over a kitchen window. “Sometimes creating a cohesive look doesn’t involve using the same exact product,” says Schroeder. “Color or texture are two things that can be used to create a unified loo as well.

5 Don’t forget the hardware. A lot of focus is placed on material or fabric when choosing window coverings, but hardware can also add personality and cohesion. “Drapery hardware comes in varying metals, woods, and custom colors that can help with your overall aesthetic in a space,” says hannon carrella of irshfield’s Décor Divisions.

6 Work smarter, not harder. Smart home technology has expanded from lighting and thermostats to now include window coverings. “Brands have introduced Bluetooth technology into window treatments, so a push of a button on your phone can open, close, or move your window treatments,” says Scarrella. “We can set timers on our shades, just like we would with our interior lights, or we can ask Alexa to do it.”

7 Hire a professional. The designers agree: The best advice is to seek professional help from a company that specializes in window coverings, which should be in your remodeler’s Rolodex. “There’s only so much expertise you can have in anything. If you’re a home automation specialist, window treatments might be something you do, but it’s not your focus,” says Manthei. “Window coverings are our focus. We can bring a lot to the table with this specific product.