The Horderly Experience with Ali from Inspiralized and The Container Store

“I’m actually a very organized person, I just don’t have the time to organize my space right now”

“I already organized my closet, but I got tired before I made it to the drawers and now it feel like everything is just as messy as it was in the first place.”

“I don’t want to spend money on organizing when it’s something I could just do myself”

“My (office, baby’s room, closet, kitchen, etc) isn’t picture perfect but it works just fine.”

“I love The Container Store, I’m there all the time! I’ve got tons of organizing products in my home, I’m all set!”

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There are all sorts of reasons people decide not to hire a professional organizer, these being some of the most common. Over the years of working with clients ranging from skeptical to enthusiastic to obsessive, I’ve found without exception that almost all hesitations and misconceptions about going the professional route comes from a lack of insight into what organizing actually entails.

Which makes TOTAL sense. “Organizing” is a broad term which can be used to cover all sorts of tasks both large and small. So we wanted to share with you what Organizing means to us, and why we think organizing the Horderly Way is the way to go!

What we do… and why!

Step 1: Full Pull-Out and Sort

Yep, you guessed it! We go into the target area and pull out everything. And I mean EVERYTHING! Every stale Cheerio stuck in the back of the drawer, every loose sock tucked in the back of the closet, every Q-tip hiding under the sink.

This is a time and energy consuming stage, but one of the most important. Without understanding what exactly is in your space, there’s no way to maximize its potential. On your own this can be an overwhelming and discouraging task (and one that is tempting to skip or skimp on). But trust me, it is one of the most valuable. By combining “likes with likes” as we pull everything out, you very quickly discover how dysfunctional your space may have been.

“I had 5 deodorants this whole time? I just bought a new one!”

Without the proper systems in place it is easy to lose track of what you have and what you need which leads to over-buying and over-spending. When you know what you have, you save yourself from spending money on what you don’t need.

Step 2: Editing

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The most common feedback we get from clients is that they have already, or are planning on doing this step before we arrive. We are never against editing but we do find that it is much easier and faster to edit while we are there, with everything pulled out and helping you with those hard decisions. More than most, we leave a session with the client saying, “Wow! I got rid of so much more than I thought I would!” or “I can’t believe how much I got rid of – I just went through this!”

We touch on every item (yes every single one!). This is another step which often gets skipped over when working by yourself. Yes, you look at your closet every day! But how often are you actually SEEING what is inside it? Often just having someone there asking how often you wear black T-shirts will make it clear that since you wear them only once a month you can pick your favorite two and donate the rest. (We also take care of those donations for you so you can be free from clutter as soon as possible!)

Editing is also so much more than simply getting rid of some stuff. This is when we walk through all those neatly sorted categories and get to know you, your things, and how you use them. All information we gather goes towards creating systems that are going to make the most sense to YOU and are easy and enjoyable to maintain.

Many clients worry that a professional organizer is going to come in and make them throw away a bunch of their favorite things, but that couldn’t be farther than the truth! We want you to keep the things you use and love. By helping you weed out the clutter and the excess in your space you’ll be able to use and enjoy the things you do keep to their fullest potential.

Step 3: Strategizing Systems & Implementing Products

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This is one of the biggest perks to having a professional working in your space. Our associates are working in spaces of all shapes and sizes and layouts 7 days of the week. The Container Store is our second home. We can narrow in on the perfect systems and products for your space quickly and efficiently, saving you time, energy, and money! Believe it or not, we love problem-solving irregular spaces. (Thank you New York City!) Rather than stressing over a weird corner shelf or an impossibly narrow drawer, let us problem solve while you spend time doing something YOU love.

A perfect system reduces the frustrations and anxieties that come with misplacing and losing track of items. When everything has a home, everything can be easily found. Think of the time you spend daily searching for the things you need. Now think of all the fulfilling things you could use that time for once we strategize and implement the most functional and flawless system for you. Enough said 😉

Once we have strategized the perfect system for you and your space, we turn dream into reality!

Step 4: Review, Perfect, Finalize

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This is YOUR space! We want you to be excited to be in it, and feel fully satisfied when we walk out the door. While we have our opinions on what we think is the best based on our experience and our understanding of you and your space, our method is not a cookie-cutter “one size fits all” approach. We will make any adjustments necessary to make sure you are as excited about your newly organized space as we are.

Once we review with you, we make any necessary adjustments and perfect your space. Because we don’t believe your space should be anything less than perfect.

In Conclusion…

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Organizing is not cleaning. Organizing is not tidying. Organizing is not buying the hottest new organizing product. Organizing is understanding what you have, what you need, what you don’t need and implementing systems that empower you to enjoy your home in the most functional and aesthetically pleasing way possible. A home should flow seamlessly from room to room with no excess. No clutter. Working with our team of professionals will get you from where you are to where you want to be in the most time, energy, and cost efficient way possible.

We have put together a video to give some further insight into how Horderly can help you. In addition to glimpses into our process, you will hear from an entrepreneur, wife and mother on her experience through working with Horderly! We want to thank Ali from Inspiralized, all the great folks at The Container Store for helping us put together this video and the wonderful Leo Rising Productions. Follow their Instagrams (@theconatinerstore, @inspiralizedali) and check out Ali’s blog post about her experience working with us!

Everyone has something they’re great at and we are proud to say this is what we are great at! If you have any lingering hesitations, reach out and let us clear them up so we can get to work.

xoxo

Horderly