We are welcoming in our “Love Your Home Month” theme with warm, welcoming entryways and mudrooms we can all love.
We all want our guests and family members to feel welcome and comfortable in our homes right from the first impression. (And it certainly doesn’t hurt if we hear “I just LOVE what you’ve done with the place!” as soon as someone steps inside!)
We’ve asked professional organizer Bonnie Shay of Mariposa Creative Solutions to give us some advice for creating the perfect entryways and mudrooms and to share some of her organizing expertise in general.
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- We all love to welcome guests into our homes but we often don’t love our entryways. Do you have any specific advice for us on organizing the entryway of our homes?
“Have as few surfaces available to rest stuff as possible. And the surfaces you do have available, use them for specific intentions (e.g., a basket to collect the mail before it gets reviewed, a small chest of drawers to accommodate hats and mittens available as you run out the door.)”
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- How about specific tips on transforming our messy mudrooms into rooms that we love to use?
“Limit what you keep to one season’s worth of items so that you can better manage what you store in the mudroom area. Mudrooms often get a lot of miles put on them, so regular maintenance is critical to keeping things organized.”
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- How do you help people love their homes?
“I restore visual peace and calm to their spaces when we de-clutter and let go of things they don’t need/want. I edit closet contents to only what my clients LOVE and feel good wearing and I reacquaint them with what they have that has been hidden amid the clutter and overabundance of stuff.”
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- What services do you offer?
– Room by room organizing and de-cluttering.
– Move preparation and help when elderly parents pass away and there is a whole home of possessions to manage.
– Home office organization (filing systems, etc.).
– Photo organizing (printed and digital photos).
– Email management.
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- What do you do best?
“I make order out of disorder, whatever shape it might take. I help my clients get unstuck and not overwhelmed during the organization process. I help people ‘lose weight’ without going a diet, by shedding pounds and pounds of stuff they no longer need in their lives. I absolutely LOVE what I do. I am wired to do this kind of work (there must be an organizing gene) and I am so grateful to make such a difference in my clients’ lives. What could be better than loving to get up each morning and go to work?”
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- What makes you unique?
“I make the process as low stress as possible and even make it fun. (Really!) I help my clients deal with the emotions that might surface during our work together. I provide leadership for the many decisions that need to be made during the process.”
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- How do clients prepare for the initial meeting with you?
“There is no homework for the initial meeting. I like to reduce stress, not add stress, so I ask my clients to leave things as they are so I can see their ‘normal’ state of being. I want new clients to just feel the relief of having called me and made an appointment.”
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- Is there a long wait?
“I can typically accommodate a new client within a couple of weeks time from when they call. I often work on a weekly basis with clients, so I’m not booking too far out in the future as I like to leave space on a week to week basis.”
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- What is the best way to contact you for help?
“Phone at 847-494-0636 or email at [email protected]”
See more ideas for stylish and organized entryways and mudrooms on our pinterest board.
