Whether the tiny home craze inspires or scares the heck out of you, it is so interesting to see how individuals manage to really EXPERIENCE LIFE when they don’t have to worry about excess STUFF.

I recently worked with a client who lives in a one-bedroom home in a really cool little pocket of Indianapolis called Fountain Square. This lucky gal is within walking distance to work, groceries, restaurants & bars. Dream life, right?!

However, this 600-square foot home has just one closet (located in the bedroom), so she’s had to be very creative when it comes to housing all of her possessions. Upon move-in she opted to have the stackable washer/dryer removed so that she’d have one more space to keep belongings.

Well, this space has become her true catch-all. In her words, “The only spot I have for major storage had become a black hole for odds and ends in my house.” She had quite the mix of electronics, toiletries, gift wrapping supplies, sheets, towels, games and and memorabilia all craving to be organized.

I’m excited to share how we tackled this space and worked to maximize the storage in her home. Here is a glimpse of the space before getting started:

With a hefty amount of work ahead of us, we began the process by pulling everything out of the closet – and I mean everything.

From there, we sorted through items, including everything that was living inside of storage containers. She actually made money during our session as we uncovered a stack of gift cards tucked away in a forgotten envelope.

Using these handy-dandy labels for each of our piles, we decided what we would KEEP, DONATE, RECYCLE, TOSS and SELL.

We ended up with a few large piles of items to donate, toss and sell – in fact, almost half of the items fit into these categories. Once we’d made decisions on each item, it came time to put the closet back together.

Grouping like items together and creating containers for “Utilities,” “Technology” and “Memories” this client was left with a space that she could easily maintain moving forward. We also pulled off the packaging on her paper towels and toilet paper and arranged them on this cute little tray – an instant facelift for these toiletries.

The best part was her reaction…and I think that her testimonial sums up the experience perfectly:

“With The Baer Minimalist at the helm I was able to decisively determine what needed to stay and what needed to go. Beyond determining what to keep, Maria provided the ultimate time-saver by clearing out all the donated items from my house right after we finished, saving me from a trip to multiple types of donation sites.

Before, I would walk past my hallway storage at twice the pace, trying to ignore the mess. Now when I walk by I feel organized and like I have a handle on my living space. I couldn't be more thrilled with the time I saved and how relieved I feel after shedding so much junk!"

And now for the BIG reveal of an organized + stylized LITTLE space....

Do you have a space that is craving to be organized? Let me help - whether it is creating a system you can maintain, helping to manage donations or finding the perfect storage containers to maximize your space, I'd love to help you cross this project off your to-do list.