Rachel Jennifer Interiors

Master closet organization

Posted on May 1, 2016 by racheljennifer

This master bedroom closet had plenty of space, but lacked a system and some direction. We were able to achieve a transformation using the original simple wire shelving with some additions. This project was particularly rewarding, to bring some relief to a busy mom who deserved a beautiful space!

Here is where we started.

This closet shows that even if a space that has plenty of room, without a system and a place for everything, it can still feel small and overwhelming.

We added baskets to store seasonal and smaller items away but still within reach.

Vertical shelving allows for more shoe storage along the wall. Also, unlike cubby style shoe storage, these open shelves allow more flexibility for shoes of different sizes.

Designating different sections for hanging clothes and folded clothes makes this closet multi-functional.

And finally, all the extra storage in the closet freed up some much needed drawer space in the bedroom dressers.

I had a bit of a Marie Kondo moment when I rolled each pair of leggings and lined them up!

This is a great example of the way you can make inexpensive changes to an existing layout, and achieve a big difference in your space. Projects like this are also good to tackle before listing a home on the market! Imagine the difference between a potential buyer opening the door to a closet that is bursting at the seams, and stepping into a well organized, spacious closet.

If you are planning on tackling one of your troublesome closets this spring, I'd love to hear about it. Send pictures and let me know how it goes!

Organizing

I’ve got a blank space baby…

Posted on April 1, 2016 by racheljennifer

...do you?

We all know the saying:

"A place for everything, and everything in its place."

But what about the things that need to come into your home for a short time, that don't need a permanent place? Here are a few examples of what I mean:

Gifts purchased ahead of time

Extra groceries for a birthday party or BBQ

Clothing and other items to be donated or sold

These things are all on their way out, but if you don't have a place for them in the meantime, they often get in the way! The last thing I want to be doing when I'm trying to clean the house to have people over, is to be dodging and relocating extra bags of groceries. I know, first world problems. But truthfully, designating some empty space for those extra things, gives you the flexibility to accommodate those temporary needs for storage.

So, to put my money where my mouth is, so to speak, I'll share one of these "blank spaces" in my home.

We love having family and friends over to our home, and my husband loves to grill. Being that we have three growing children, we do not have a lot of extra space in our pantry cabinet. So especially when I get this extra food - hamburger buns, bags of chips, watermelons and cantaloupes, extra graham crackers for smores - I don't feel the need to try to find space for it in the regular food cabinet because it will just be gone after the weekend anyway!

There's this great corner cabinet in the kitchen, and it happens to have a clear glass door on it.

And although it's tempting, I don't keep anything in there permanently.

Okay well I keep one item on this shelf all the time - the coffee. Because this cabinet is right above the coffee maker, and...because coffee.

What I love about this spot, is that it has tons of storage, and I can see it all the time. So when I'm planning a BBQ or birthday party for the girls, I can very easily check on what I've already gotten and what I still need to find. Or, when the girls have very recently gone on an easter egg hunt, I can keep their little bags tucked away, out of the way, until they finish eating all of their treats.

Do you have a blank space in your home? Think about it, many of you probably do already. A corner of the garage where you keep items to take to donate, a shelf in your closet where you store the gifts so the family doesn't see them ahead of time? If not, then maybe it's time to create one!

Community

Welcome

Posted on February 29, 2016 by racheljennifer

Welcome to my blog page! From the time that I started my business, I went back and forth on whether or not I wanted to include a blog. Finally, I decided that there are topics I'd like to speak on beyond the short Facebook posts I already share. I plan to include projects that I've tackled around my own home, as well as tips and tricks I've utilized in clients' homes and other ideas. Please let me know if there are specific topics you'd like to see covered here!

For my first post, I'd like to focus on community. It has always been my intent to have a strong tie to our local community through my personal life as well as my business. As I work on de-cluttering my own home as well as my clients' homes, I am constantly reminded that we are fortunate to have everything we need and more. I find it is helpful to keep this in mind when deciding what to part with in your home!

A while back I shared some information about Sarah's House on my Facebook page. Sarah's House is a local homeless shelter just outside Fort Meade, that provides transitional housing for not just adults, but families with children as well. It is one of 4 county-funded homeless shelters in Anne Arundel County, and one of 3 Army sponsored shelters in the US.

Because of the supportive nature of the local military community, Sarah's House is able to offer a range of services to their residents, including educational resources and seminars, a licensed child care center, and transportation to and from work and doctors appointments.
For more information on this charity, as well as their wish list, please visit their website: http://www.catholiccharities-md.org/sarahs-house/

They also have an outreach program, which follows up with families who have moved out of the shelter and into their own homes. Which brings me to another wonderful organization I'd like to highlight today.

Hope For All is a non profit organization that supports individuals and families transitioning from shelters into their own homes. Their organization has two main programs. "Houses Into Homes" involves furnishing the spaces these families are moving into, and, as the name suggests, helping to turn that space into a home that the residents can be proud of. They accept referrals from Sarah's House, as well as other area shelters such as Arundel House of Hope.

I often hear from clients as well as friends and family who are looking for somewhere to donate bulky furniture items if they don't sell through Craigslist or other means. What's so great about this organization, is that they will accept drop offs, and they will also come pick up large, cumbersome furniture items! They furnish about 200 homes each year. So you can not only part with items that are getting in the way in your home, but ensure that they are being re-purposed in a really valuable way.

The second program they offer is called "Head to Toe." It involves providing presentable clothing for children to wear to school. Too often children who don't have access to multiple outfits will avoid going to school because they are embarrassed to have to wear the same clothes day after day. Hope For All clothes 3,000+ kids each year, giving them the confidence to go to school and focus on their education.
For more information on Hope For All, please visit their website: http://www.hopeforall.us/

So as you are making progress on your spring cleaning this year, keep in mind the families who would treasure the excess clutter that is getting in the way at your home. You can even schedule a pickup for right after your yard sale, so that nothing comes back into your house!