As the days grow longer and the weather warms up, it’s time to shake off the winter blues and embrace the spirit of renewal that comes with spring. One of the best ways to welcome the new season is by giving your home a thorough spring cleaning. While the whole house could benefit from a refresh, there are specific areas that often get neglected and could use some extra attention. Here are five key areas of your home that deserve to be organized and decluttered this spring

The KITCHEN is often the heart of the home, but it can also be a magnet for clutter. Start by tackling the pantry, tossing expired items, and organizing shelves with labeled containers to make meal prep a breeze. Clear out cluttered countertops by stowing away small appliances that aren’t used regularly and investing in space-saving solutions like hanging racks or magnetic spice jars. Don’t forget to give your refrigerator and freezer a deep clean, wiping down shelves and tossing any expired or freezer-burned items.

Spring is the perfect time to swap out your winter wardrobe for lighter, breezier clothing. Take this opportunity to declutter your CLOSET by sorting through clothes, shoes, and accessories. Donate or sell items that no longer fit or bring you joy, and organize the remaining items by category or color. Consider investing in closet organizers like hanging shelves or shoe racks to maximize storage space and keep everything neat and accessible.

Over time, BATHROOMS can accumulate a surprising amount of clutter, from half-empty bottles of shampoo to expired medications. Take stock of your toiletries and toss anything past its prime. Invest in drawer organizers or baskets to corral small items like makeup, skincare products, and hair accessories. Don’t forget to clean and disinfect surfaces like countertops, sinks, and shower tiles to keep your bathroom looking fresh and inviting. 

Whether you work from home or use your HOME OFFICE for managing household tasks, keeping this space organized is essential for productivity. Start by clearing out old paperwork and filing important documents in labeled folders or bins. Tidy up your desk by clearing away clutter and investing in desk organizers like trays or caddies to keep pens, paper clips, and other supplies within reach. Consider setting up a designated charging station for electronic devices to keep cords and cables from becoming tangled.

With warmer weather on the horizon, now is the time to get your OUTDOOR SPACES ready for lounging and entertaining. Sweep away debris from patios, decks, and porches, and give outdoor furniture a thorough cleaning. Assess the condition of your gardening tools and equipment, sharpening blades and replacing any damaged items as needed. Consider planting fresh flowers or herbs to add a pop of color and fragrance to your outdoor oasis.

 

By tackling these specific areas of your home this spring, you’ll not only create a more organized and inviting living environment but also set the stage for a season of renewal and rejuvenation. So roll up your sleeves, put on some upbeat music, and let’s get cleaning! Take the first step towards simplifying!

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The truth is, getting organized isn’t about willpower or finding the perfect storage system on Pinterest. It’s about having the right approach. Here are my top tips for getting started — and making it actually last.

1. Declutter Before You Organize

This is the most important rule in home organization, and the one most people skip. It’s tempting to run out and buy bins and baskets and start building beautiful systems — but if you haven’t first decided what genuinely belongs in your home, you’ll just end up with organized clutter.

Go through each room and ask yourself honestly: Do I use this? Do I love this? Does this belong in my life right now? The things that don’t make the cut can be donated, sold, or thrown away. The less you have, the easier it is to organize and maintain.

2. Make a Room-by-Room Plan

Trying to organize your entire home in one weekend is a recipe for burnout and half-finished projects. Instead, take it one room — or even one zone within a room — at a time.

Walk through your home and make a list of every area that needs attention. Then prioritize: Which spaces cause you the most daily frustration? Which areas would make the biggest difference in your life if they were finally under control? Start there, and give yourself permission to fully finish one space before moving to the next.

Completion builds momentum. Finishing your pantry gives you the energy and confidence to tackle the kitchen cabinets next.

3. Invest in the Right Storage — After You Declutter

Once you know what you’re keeping and where it needs to live, then it’s time to think about storage. Good containers — bins, baskets, boxes, drawer organizers — can make a huge difference in how functional and tidy a space feels day-to-day.

A few principles I follow with every client:

• Measure before you buy. Too many people purchase bins that don’t fit the shelf or drawer they’re meant for. Measure twice, buy once.
• Choose clear containers for frequently accessed items so you can see what’s inside without digging.
• Use uniform containers where possible — matching bins create visual calm and make a space look intentional rather than chaotic.
• Don’t over-buy. You don’t need to fill every shelf with a container. Empty space is okay — and it leaves room for things to breathe.

4. Label Everything

Labels are one of the most underrated organizing tools there is. When every member of your household knows exactly where things live — and where they go back — systems maintain themselves much more easily.

They don’t have to be fancy. A simple label maker or handwritten labels on masking tape work just as well as any decorative set. The important thing is clarity: anyone in your home should be able to find something and put it back without asking you first.

5. Build Simple Maintenance Habits

Even the most beautifully organized home will fall apart without maintenance habits. The key is making those habits small enough that they don’t feel like a chore.

• Spend 10–15 minutes each evening doing a “reset” — returning things to their homes before bed
• Designate a specific time each week for a light tidy of the main living areas
• Do a seasonal declutter of closets, the pantry, and storage areas at least twice a year

Small, consistent habits beat intensive occasional purges every single time.

6. Use Your Vertical Space

One of the biggest untapped storage opportunities in most homes is the walls. Floor-to-ceiling shelving, wall-mounted hooks, and over-door organizers can dramatically expand your usable storage without taking up any floor space at all.

This is especially valuable in older Minneapolis homes and Twin Cities condos where closets are small and square footage is limited. Think up, not out.

7. Start Where the Pain Is Worst

When everything feels like a mess, it’s hard to know where to begin. My advice: start with the space that causes you the most daily frustration or slows your morning down the most.

For most families, that’s the kitchen, the master closet, or the entryway. Organizing these high-traffic areas first gives you an immediate quality-of-life improvement — and the motivation to keep going.

8. Make It a Family Effort

Organizing your home is a team project. If the people you live with don’t know where things belong or feel invested in the systems you’ve created, those systems won’t stick.

Involve your kids at an age-appropriate level. Assign clear zones. Make sure storage solutions are accessible enough that everyone can actually use them independently. When organizing is a shared effort, it becomes a shared habit — and that’s when it really changes how your home feels.

Ready to Get Started — With Some Help?

If you’ve tried to get organized on your own and it keeps not quite working, you’re not failing. You may just need a personalized approach and someone to work through it with you.

I work with homeowners and families across the Minneapolis–St. Paul metro to create organizing systems that fit their real, actual lives. Every project is different, and every solution is built specifically for you.

Let’s talk about your space. I’d love to help.

— LaRae, Aligning Spaces

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5 ways to create space in your living room.  ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌ ‌

Before you decide how to divide up your space, take a look at your floor plan. Older homes have much more restrictive floor plans with kitchens, living rooms and dining rooms located in very designated spaces. Modern floor plans tend to have a more open concept, which offers more flexibility to owners. But it’s important to still use your furniture and other living room decor to help give each space its own purpose. Breaking up your space will help you get the most out of it without making any one area feel too cluttered. 11753 Lower 31st St N Lake Elmo, MN 55042, USA Unsubscribe or Manage Preferences

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As a professional organizer serving families and homeowners in the Minneapolis–St. Paul area, I’ve helped transform hundreds of living rooms from overwhelming to open. Here are five of my most effective strategies.

1. Start by Removing What Doesn’t Belong

Before rearranging a single thing, do a sweep of your living room and remove every item that doesn’t genuinely belong there. Old magazines, kids’ toys that have migrated from bedrooms, random mail, decorative items you no longer love — all of it should go.

This step is surprising in how much space it instantly creates. Most living rooms are crowded not because they lack square footage, but because they’ve become catch-all spaces for things without a real home elsewhere. Once you’ve cleared what doesn’t belong, the room has room to breathe again.

Pro tip: As you remove items, resist the urge to just move them to another room temporarily. Commit to deciding where they actually live — or whether they should leave your home entirely.

2. Rethink Your Furniture Arrangement

Most of us arrange furniture the way it was set up when we moved in, and then never question it again. But the layout that made sense five years ago might not be the one that works best for how you actually use the space today.

A few simple moves that often open a room up:

• Pull furniture slightly away from walls. It seems counterintuitive, but floating furniture away from walls creates visual depth and often makes a room feel larger.
• Remove a piece. If there’s a chair nobody sits in, an end table that just collects clutter, or a second sofa that crowds the space — consider removing it entirely. Less is almost always more.
• Clear the traffic paths. Make sure there are clear, open pathways through the room. When people have to navigate around furniture, the room instantly feels smaller than it is.

3. Choose Multi-Functional Furniture

Every piece of furniture in your living room should earn its place. Multi-functional furniture lets you get the storage and utility you need without adding more pieces to the room.

Some of my favorites:

• Storage ottomans that serve as a footrest, extra seating, and a hidden compartment — perfect for blankets, games, or kids’ toys
• Coffee tables with drawers or lower shelves for corralling remote controls, books, and everyday items
• Media consoles with closed cabinet doors so cables, gaming equipment, and electronics disappear from view
• Nesting side tables that spread out when you need them and tuck away when you don’t

When you’re shopping for furniture, ask yourself: does this piece do one thing, or can it do two or three? The more each piece pulls its weight, the fewer pieces you need overall.

4. Use Your Walls

Floor space is precious in a living room. Wall space is almost always underused. Shifting storage vertically — up off the floor — immediately makes a room feel more open and intentional.

Ideas that work especially well in living rooms:

• Floating shelves for books, plants, and meaningful objects
• A wall-mounted TV to eliminate the media stand entirely (or downsize it significantly)
• Built-in or wall-mounted shelving flanking a fireplace or along a blank wall
• Hooks near the entryway for bags, jackets, and everyday carry items that otherwise end up draped over chairs and couches

When items are at eye level or above, they read as intentional decor rather than clutter — even when they’re doing functional work.

5. Add a Mirror

This is one of the simplest and most impactful changes you can make in a tight living room. Mirrors reflect light and create the visual impression of more depth and space throughout the room.

For maximum effect, hang a large mirror on the wall opposite your main window so it bounces natural light back into the room. Even on gray Minnesota winter days, this trick makes a noticeable difference. Glass-top coffee tables and mirrored accent furniture work the same way — keeping the space feeling light and airy rather than heavy and closed-in.

Keep in mind that mirrors reflect everything, including clutter — so pair this tip with the decluttering steps above for the full effect.

Ready for a Living Room That Feels Like a Retreat?

These five strategies are a powerful starting point. But sometimes a living room needs a more hands-on, personalized approach — because every home is different, and the system that works beautifully for one family won’t necessarily work for another.

If you’re in the Minneapolis–St. Paul area and you’re ready for a living room that finally feels calm, spacious, and easy to maintain, I’d love to help. Reach out here to start a conversation, or explore how we work together on the Packages page.

Your space is worth it — and so is your peace of mind.

— LaRae, Aligning Spaces

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June is Take Charge of Change Month

How are your 2022 New Year’s resolutions coming along?   We are half way through the year and it’ s a perfect time to reflect, ask yourself if you feel you are on track.  If a goal you set was to take charge of your home and let go of the things you don’t want or use any longer but maybe you haven’t  started or have started but progress has paused…you are not alone!  Start by looking at the things you bought and don’t use, gifts you have received from others, kids outgrown toys and clothes or the objects passed down from a family member.  All of these can simply be overwhelming by just seeing them daily.  Now add emotions to the mix and we have a whirl wind going on in our heads. Our busy lives make the feeling of organizing  or purging items in your home nearly impossible, especially with out a plan.  Don’t feel guilty or beat yourself up, the feelings and this cycle are more common than you know.  Many clients share their own struggles trying to find the perfect balance.    Listed below are the top five clutter causes.  Ask yourself which ones can you relate with.   Inherited from your parents You might need it “someday” Clutter is a part of your identity You’re bombarded by “more is better” reasoning Clutter fills a void in your life Working with a professional organizer is a great way to help you get things done.  Not only do you accomplish your goals but learn tips and new ways of looking at the things you own.  These tools can be applied down the road so you don’t end up in the same place, or if you do, you have the tools to get back on track.  We are here to help guide you and lead you to your goals.  Staying one step ahead and working side by side each step of the process. Email or sign up to get a helpful 30 day house declutter checklist. Email Us GIFT CERTIFICATES Give your wife, sister, mother, friend, employee or neighbor the perfect gift of help from a Professional Organizer!  Our busy lives and packed schedules can make it difficult to get things done.  This causes anxiety, stress, unnecessary spending and guilt!  Working with a Pro will ensure there is a goal in mind with a plan that leads to success.  The process is structured to help support and guide people with the intention of creating and sustaining a system.   Purchase THANK YOU REFERRAL PERK When you  refer a friend who then becomes a client, you’ll receive one FREE hour at your next organizing session AND be entered in referral quarterly drawing where you can win an organizing prize! Thank you for your business. We appreciate referrals and love clients like you, so please tell your friends about us! Take the First Step towards Simplifying your Life. Contact Us Follow Us On Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Pinterest Instagram Email You are receiving this email as you signed up for our newsletters. Want to change how you receive these emails? You can Unsubscribe or Update your preferences Authorized representative: Christopher Savoie Email address: legal@topherrae.com Phone: 651-390-1100 Address: 11753 Lower 31st St N. Lake Elmo MN 55042 Tax Identification Number: 86-1545475

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1. When was the last time I used this item?
2. How did I feel when I first acquired this item? How do I feel about the item right now?
3. Am I holding onto this item for practical or sentimental reasons?
4. If I came across this same item in a store today, would I buy it again?
5. Does seeing this item truly make me happy?
6. Is this item broken, faded, cracked, stained, torn, missing pieces or parts, or is otherwise damaged?
7. Does this item take up too much space in my home?
8. Does the cost of fixing this item exceed the current value of the item?
9. Do I feel comfortable and enjoy using or wearing this item?
10. Is this item a good fit for where I am in my life at this point in time?
11. Do I own similar or duplicate items that could do the same job as this item?
12. Am I holding on to this item “just in case”?
13. Am I holding onto this item just because it was a gift?
14. Does this item take up a lot of my time, energy, money, and attention?
15. Will this item truly help me reach my current goals?
16. If I am going to keep this item, how specifically am I going to use it and where will I store it when not in use?
17. If this item suddenly went missing from my home, without my knowledge, would I even miss it?
18. Am I holding on to this item for my benefit…or for someone else’s benefit?
19. Does this item help make my home beautiful, warm, and welcoming?
20. Do I really want to keep carting this item around with me for the rest of my life?

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