Yes you can.

 

Four ways to find success this weekend.

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1. The paper pile on your kitchen counter? 

You can sit down this Saturday morning and go through it. Trash, File/Put away, To do. Those are you three categories. Then:

• Toss the trash

• File the keepers

• Put the hammer where it belongs

• Pay the bills or fill out the forms

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2. The bags or boxes of items to be donated? 

You can make one more 15 minute round through the house, add a few more items to the bag, load them in your car Friday morning and drop them off on your way to the grocery store or on your lunch break.

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3. The toy room overflowing with unneeded toys that other kids would love? 

You can grab your kiddos on Saturday afternoon, tell them they have a special opportunity to let go of their toys for other kids less fortunate by picking out 5-10 toys, place them in a box, and the nice men & women at the closest donation site of your choice will take care of the rest.

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4. The bathroom closet/medicine cabinet with expired meds, unused beauty products, and scattered items?

You can get a trash bag to fill with the unusable items, purge any products that friends or family might like, and see what’s left. Once you know what you have, it’s easy to pick up containers like these from Target to contain items just the way you need and add a label to the front to make things easy to find!

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Here are four little ways to make a big difference in your living space. They may not seem like much reading them on this blog, but trust us, we have experienced it personally and with clients time and time again.

Remember it only takes one little rock to start an avalanche. Who knows what organizing one small space in your home or workspace could lead to?

As always, if these tasks sound just like what you need but time is limited, HYD would be honored to help you along your journey to order in your space. 

Call us at 865.245.9080 for a free consult today.

living well in shared spaces

While many of us have Pinterest boards full of our "dream homes" that we will one day decorate with all the beautiful things and zero clutter... your living situation today may be a rental home or apartment with roommates. Whether you live with family, friends or roommates - there is an art to living well in a shared space. 

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In your own space. 

TIDY AND TASTEFUL.

Your bedroom may be the only space you can call your very own. That's why it should be your haven and retreat. This is the place you wake up and begin each day, the place you go for rest and sleep. While having systems of order are important, your personal design taste is equally as important. Displaying things that inspire joy (from art to family pieces to colors and textures) in your bedroom, is just as important as the particular way you store your clothes and accessories. If coziness is important to you, pick pillows and sheets and blankets that create the bed of your dreams. If art is important to you, create a gallery wall today. If your book collection is special, refresh the way they are displayed by color or subject. Images below from Apartment Therapy.

SUBTLE STORAGE.

Are there storage containers and bins in your room that are taking up prime space, without adding a lot of functionality or visual appeal. There could be better ways to "store" your stuff, that adds personality and your taste to your room. Instead of cramming blankets into a bin or drawer of your dresser, find a wooden ladder and repurpose it to vertically display your favorite throw blankets and purge the extra ones.  For the keepsakes that pile up, check out local yard sales or antique stores for a vintage trunk that would hold them while also offering a little seating or surface for your favorite lamp. We believe that storage pieces should be working double time - offering storage and additional functionality in your space.

CLOSET CONFIGURATION.

Before jumping in, or giving up altogether it is important to think about creating a system that works for you instead of against you. What are the things you wear daily or even weekly, those should be given the prime location in your closet or dresser. How do you decide what to wear each day? Do you think in terms of color - organize by colors. Do you think in terms of style/type - organize by category (professional, casual, dressy, activewear, etc). Let your closet work for you, not against you! 

Closet by HGTV.

MEMORIES.

Choosing which photos and memories to display might not be easy for you. Instead of a wall full of concert posters, pick your favorite one or two and consider switching them out seasonally for a refreshed look. A gallery wall is a great place to hold your family photos, postcards, historic maps and more. Find frames you love, to create an orderly and contained display of these special pieces. It's tempting to want every memory to have a place on your wall or bookshelf, but if you completely fill your space with things from the past there won't be room for the new adventures to be displayed. Pick your favorites and remember switching a photo from a frame is very doable. 

SOMETHING GREEN.

Image from Bellamumma. 

There is something life-giving about a little live (or artificial) green in your living space. It reminds us that we need nourishment and we're growing daily. The Farmer's Market is a great place to grab some beautiful fresh blooms or succulents. If you aren't sure a little plant would survive, there are faux flowers and plants that add the same feeling in your room. Look at Target or Home Goods for one or two that you love! 

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In the shared spaces. 

DECOR DO'S & DON'TS.

Image from Everygirl. 

It's important to remember to consider the people you're living with before going decor crazy in places like the living room or kitchen. It might take some communication on the front end, but talking through how each person plans to use and enjoy the room will help everyone feel at home in the shared spaces. Try a few furniture arrangements and see what works best for your group of roommates or family. Challenge yourself to see a room through someone else's perspective, you may end up loving it! Remember a blended space is just that, a blend of different needs and personalities - it can be eclectic and beautiful at the same time. 

TEAMWORK. 

It's all about communication. We live full and sometimes chaotic lives. If you and the ones you share a home, apartment, condo or RV with can create systems up front that reduce extra stress, your home will be a place you can relax and be refreshed. Maybe even seasonally, you each commit to purge the excess in your closets as well as the shared household things you don't need anymore. Individually and collectively you have the ability to create and maintain a home that works well for you instead of against you. 

PANTRY PUZZLE.

Image from Indulgy.

No one wants to search through a full pantry on their way out the door for the day. Baskets, bins, containers, trays... containing items that are similar is key. If there are shelves, grab some colorful tape and outline specific areas that are for each person. In order to do this fairly among different shelf sizes and heights, draw the dividing lines vertically. This is another place that labels will serve a great purpose, because you are more likely to maintain order while unloading from the grocery store if there are labels telling you what goes where. Same thought goes for the refrigerator. If pantry space is limited, pick a kitchen cabinet that could serve as extra storage. 

MAIL MANAGEMENT. 

Image from Everygirl. 

Whether it's a basket, a shelf or a side table there needs to be a designated place for daily mail to land. If it begins to pile up, it might be helpful to sort through and discard ads and junk mail. This is a great place for labels in order to cut down on confusion and missing mail. 

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One last thought that will go along way in shared spaces: be quick to extend grace. We're talking about grace for your (sometimes messy) roommates and for your (sometimes messy) self too. As much as we wish we were tidy super organized individuals all the time, we just aren't. Stuff piles up, so when it happens remember: you got this! 

Is your storage unit the best investment?

We get it. Sometimes life comes at you in ways you never imagined and you find yourself needing to make a quick move either to a smaller place or for a short period of time. Storage units can be the best route if you don't have a family member or friend to let you store your extra stuff while your in transition. BUT......

this blog is for all of you that don't fit into that category. : )

Today, storage units can range anywhere from $40/mo up to $400/mo depending on how big and how nice a unit is. At first, this can be easily added into the budget for some folks. Others, it's a bit of a stretch. Oftentimes, it all makes sense to store that piece (you really don't like) from your grandma or the dining room table and 6 chairs that you used at your first house but don't need now or the really nice bed frame you hope to use someday but haven't yet because it never seems to match the style of your current home. But then you do the math. Say you've had the unit 4 years now. And say you're just paying the average price of a unit in Knoxville, TN which is about $90/mo. That is $4320. Yes, Four-Thousand Three-Hundred and Twenty dollars.  Woah.

Like we said earlier, you may have very good reason to need that extra space for a transition period. We get it. But, if the "transition period" has lasted so long that you don't really remember what's in the unit, it might be time to reconsider that extra monthly expense. 

HYD would love to help. As you've heard us say before, taking someone along when you're ready to find new homes for items you no longer need is definitely the way to go. If you've got a friend ready and willing, grab 'em and go for it! If not, HYD would be honored to be that helping hand as you decide the best way to find the right spot for all those items in your storage unit. Who knows? Some of it might be just what you need in your current space but you'd just forgotten you had it! We can help with that too!

Don't let another month go by spending money that could be much better spent on family, friends, travel, and life that you can enjoy! Make a valuable investment of a bit of your time and a small investment in HYD services and enjoy the freedom from the monthly storage expense as well as the peace of mind that comes with letting go of items you don't need and others do.

Helpful Resources

This week we wanted to give you a closer look at some of the most helpful local resources for all of your purging, organizing and styling needs. We have amped up our "Resources" portion of the website and wanted to share with you. Consider the links below as "tools" in your tool belt of organization. This page is actively updated as we learn about new services available in our area...so stay tuned! These are just a few highlights from our full resources page.

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DONATION SPOTS

• Goodwill : There are plenty of locations all around Knoxville. An organization that helps fund job training programs for East TN is something we can gladly get behind.

• YWCA : They serve a wide variety of individuals from middle school girls and boys to women of all ages. A current "wish list" can be found on their website.

• Angelic Ministries : Located in north Knoxville, they accept any furniture, clothing, or household items in good condition. Ongoing needs include twin mattresses, box springs and bed linens.

• Ladies of Charity : This is another north Knox donation spot that accepts items ranging from clothing to household items to furniture. If you're unable to physically move your furniture, they'll arrange to come and get it from your home.

STORAGE & MOVING

• Knoxville Box and Container, Inc : We can't speak highly enough of this local company that is committed to delivering quality products with unmatched customer service. Give them a call with your box and container needs.

• Moretz Moving : Are you or someone you love moving soon? These are the folks to call; trusted and dependable. They also offer a free estimate!

TECHNOLOGY LIFE-SAVERS

• Neighborhood Nerds : General computer help for your families technology issues. They help with phones, desktops and laptops. Their team is passionate about teaching you to use your technology well.

• HappyMac : Local company you can count on with all of your Apple products. HappyMac team members really know the ins and outs of your favorite and most used products- after all they have been servicing Knoxville since 1994.

DIGITAL PHOTOGRAPHY

• Fleetwood Photo & Digital : Need your old family photos or home videos archived? They can do it. They turned old forgotten pages of recipes into a beautifully bound cookbook for one of our clients. 

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Knoxville is fortunate to have local organizations that make great use of our outdated or excess treasures. And we are huge fans of the local companies that provide the service and supplies we need to carry out our organizing jobs for our clients. 

We hope that some of these resources will give you the direction you need to get going on your next project! 

Keys to a Peaceful Summer

A big hooray for students, teachers, volunteers and parents who worked hard this school year!

Kids have been counting down the days; eagerly awaiting pool play time, road trips, and freedom to roam the neighborhood day & night. While summertime is sweet it can also add some chaos to our homes and cars. Here are a few tips to keep peace in your home & car this summer while the fun summer activities ensue!

1. Fill a small tote with the summer outdoor essentials and keep it in your garage or laundry room (easy access to grab and go). Fill it with these items: outdoor/picnic blanket, sunscreen, bug spray, band aids, frisbee, and the ever useful Eno hammock.

2. Designate a section of the pantry and refrigerator for kids snacks and drinks. Make sure to pick an easily accessible shelf for your kiddos. These snacks and drinks will take up more room in the summer than they do during the school year, so it saves everyone from clutter and hunting for the right snack to designate a specific shelf.

3. Plan some free family fun - check out these local hikes from Outdoor Knoxville. Be sure to check the weather forecast, grab some snacks & hit the trail together. This is a great alternative to more expensive indoor activities. You could even incentivize the hike by allowing your kids to invite a friend if they consistently keep up with their chores around the house for a week straight!

4. Check out the Children's Festival of Reading hosted by the Knox County Public Library. This Saturday, May 21 is the free kick off event at 10:00 AM! The library is a great resource to continue education and reading throughout the summer, especially on those rainy days.

Happy summer to you! 

Organizing Kids Rooms

Playrooms and kids' rooms are often some of the hardest spaces to organize. Finding a good balance of knowing when the toys are taking over but also keeping a wide range of options to foster creativity and fun is a challenge. Organizing for kids is a hard task. While respecting what an individual child enjoys playing with, there are ways to purge without ending up with lots of tears over toys that are missed.

Image from Houzz.com

1. Talk with your kids about what happens to toys that they let go of. Help them see the story that they play a part in when they donate toys to children that may not have toys to play with like they do. If you have a child that gets excited to participate in the process of purging, let them be a part of the process. Ask them which toys they would like to share with a less fortunate child.

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2. If your child isn't as willing to let go of things, take a few weeks to intentionally notice what toys they spend the most time playing with and which toys are neglected, or maybe they have grown out of. For children less willing to purge when the toys are taking over, try boxing up all of the toys that you believe they are done with. Keep the box in a hidden location for two weeks and if they haven't noticed or don't seem to mind that the toy is gone, give it away. Concentrate on helping your children value relationships more than things.

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Koloro Magnet Set

3. Specific toys to keep: Try to keep toys that help foster creativity, furthering education, and thinking skills. Art and Craft supplies, dress up clothes, building blocks, games, etc.

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4. If your kids share a room, help them make their own space feel special. Sometimes kids need their own space and sometimes they need to learn how to share space well. Whether your kids share a room or have their own, making an effort to hang their favorite poster, frame their best art creation(s), create a reading nook, or frame a photo of your child with their best friend can make them feel proud of their own space and, hopefully, lead to taking more responsibility of keeping it in order.

Photo: James Henry / bauersyndication.com.au

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5. Kids clothes.
It's amazing how quickly kids grow out of their clothing. This is an ongoing process. Each season, go through each closet and toss or donate items that are worn out or no longer fit. If you have younger kids that will grow into things in the future, just keep the well maintained items & box up clothing by size and sex and store somewhere other than their closet if you have the storage space available. When it comes to kids closets, make sure items are stored in a way that makes it easy for them to become more independent. Can they reach the things they need to? Is it obvious where things go?

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6. Kid storage.
Coming up with a way to organize toys and games that is conducive to kids can be complicated. Bins can be a great help as a solution. This unit has the ability to do both store in bins and on shelves which can be helpful with multiple shapes of toys. Getting items off the floor and onto shelves or in bins is a must.

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7. Kids books. The best advice here is have lots to choose from on shelves that your kids can easily reach. Color coordinating can be a fun project for kids and is much more practical in re-shelving than alphabetically.

Mini-Library by Oeuf

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8. Art supplies. Which supplies do you want them to be able to access without you present? Which supplies do you only want used with adult supervision? This changes with age so reorganizing is necessary over time. Going through and tossing broken, dried up etc. Storing in a way that allows kids to participate in clean up process. I've had great success over the years with a small chest of 4 drawers. It has grown with the kids starting with a drawer for play-doh, one for wooden puzzles, one with all kinds of paper to now holding all sorts of markers, paints, clay & older kids art items. 

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As always, HYD is here to help if you're needing a little boost to get these projects started. Just drop us a line at info@helpyoudwell.com or call us at 865.245.9080.

Keeping Order

Finishing up an organizing job in someone's home or office is a thing of beauty. It's satisfying to know we've helped a client find a bit of freedom from their clutter or good homes for unneeded items. We also leave hoping our clients can maintain the new found order.

The thing is, life happens again. There is so much to manage in our daily lives and often people come first, work outside the home next, activities around town after that, and our homes only get us when we're wiped from all the life we've been busy living. 

HYD wants to help keep your home a peaceful, ordered space you can rest, entertain, create, or simply be in... any time. We are now offering a monthly organizing service.  Let us help you in areas like these and then some...

• Kitchen Cabinets and Pantries

• Mudrooms and Laundry Rooms

• Linen, Coat, and Guest Room Closets

• Bedroom and Kids' Closets

• Basements and Attics

• Garages

• Potting Sheds and Barns

• Kids' Bedrooms and Playrooms

• Home Offices and Family

• Art, Sewing, or Craft Rooms

• Rearranging a Room or General Decor Changes

The fee is $85/mo with a one-year commitment or $975/yr if paid in advance. The fee includes up to two hours of organizing each month, one free donation drop off each month, 10% off any additional hours, and unlimited e-mail access to HYD for personalized consultation.

We look forward to serving our clients in this new capacity. If you're interested or have further questions, please don't hesitate to call 865.245.9080 or email us at info@helpyoudwell.com. 

Spring Cleaning Tips

Image via Terrain

For a few days there it felt like Summer and then I had to pull the ice scraper back out for my windshield in the mornings. Thankfully, I think we've had our last frost now and we couldn't be more ready for some sunshine and warm weather. I find myself more motivated when Spring comes to put a little extra effort into things. We've found a few links from around the web to inspire you for the season.

1. Three looks for Spring

2. Spring Cleaning Decluttering Inspiration

3. The prettiest cleaning tools you've ever seen

4. Prepping your garden for spring

5. Dogwood Arts event calendar: If you are looking for things to do around Knoxville. Dogwood Arts hosts a wide variety of events celebrating spring and gardens all over Knoxville.

Thoughts on Labels

Image from LiaGriffith.com

We've experimented with a number of different labeling techniques when organizing for folks and have found that it really boils down to personal preference and category of items.

Obviously, pretty labels make a space look nice but we've found that different kinds of spaces, for different ages of people work best.

For pantrys, home offices, and general areas that are either out in the open or used mostly by adults, we love finding nice looking labels that help create uniformity and cohesiveness rather than adding distraction and chaos to your belongings.

Image from A Cultivated Nest

For labeling files or purely functional items (think office supply rooms for commercial properties or basic garages) label makers are the way to go. Everything is uniform in type and size and the labels are very readable. We recommend "Brother" brand label makers for this type of thing.

Image from pinterest- original source unknown

We've found that for young kids, it's often helpful to label toy bins, craft storage, or kid closets with pictures along with words. We like having both because it encourages word association, reading, and spelling while it makes it easy for pre-reading age kids to take charge of the clean up & put away process.

Here are a few websites where you can find free printable labels to use in your own home.

General Labels

Bath and Body Labels

 Pantry Labels

Clothing Closet Labels

What kind of labels do you use in your home?

Garden Shed Organizing

Image from archilovers.com

Spring is right around the corner and we've gathered some tips from around the web to help you purge, organize, and restock your garden shed. Sometimes it's hard to find the motivation to get a jump start on your yard and garden plots but having an inspiring potting shed definitely makes it easier. If you don't have a shed, think about possibly creating a gardening/lawn maintenance corner in your garage.

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Image by Creative Organizing

1. There is nothing worse than rusted, dull gardening tools. To keep tools sharp and shiny, try storing them in a sand filled bucket or clay pot and mix in a little bit of oil. Your tools will be well kept and easy to grab on the go.

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Image from bhg.com

2. Be resourceful. Think outside of the box and repurpose items you already have. Use a chick feed as a shelf, use an old shutter as a shelf, mount old rusted tools to the wall to hang things from. Once you start thinking creatively you'll find you have all kinds of things you could probably put to good use.

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Image from bhg.com

3. To help keep track of when to plant what, try displaying your seeds by month. We love this idea of using ribbons and clothes pins. Seed packets are so pretty it's like displaying informal art.

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Image and tutorial from Turtles and Tails

4. If you have limited space and you're sharing real estate in a garage, use this handy pull down table to create space for potting plants when you need it.

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Image and tutorial by Instructables

5. Need seating and storage as well? This step-by-step tutorial walks you through how to create these tasteful and useful benches when storage is limited.

HYD hopes these ideas give you reason to get outside, get a little dirt under your nails, and enjoy the spring that's on it's way!

Happy 2nd Birthday To Us!

HYD is officially 2 years old!

Image by Texture Photo

We've done a lot of organizing, staging, planning, selling, and moving since we started. 122 individual spaces or projects are represented in the graph below which is CRAZY to think about! It's been two years full of wonderful people and amazing homes and we couldn't be more excited about where our third year will take us.

Thank you for encouraging us, hiring us, welcoming us into your homes, and joining us in the journey to bring peace and order to homes all over Knoxville. Cheers!

Today, grace.

It's Thursday.
HYD would love to share a tidbit of organizing wonder or a story filled with real life goodness.

View fullsize

Image by: Watercolor Devo

But, instead... you're getting a confession. It's too-late o'clock and my body and brain are ready to call it quits. I started to dig down deep and pull together something worth reading, but my dear husband suggested I give our readers the truth instead. He's real smart like that.

First of all, my season is one I wouldn't trade for the world. I've got a three school-age, active, healthy, fun-loving, tree climbing, soccer ball kickin', musical, gymnastic-ing, fort-building, craft making, treasure collecting, sleepover having kids. My minivan tears up the K-town roads like you wouldn't believe. Many days it's full of kids until 8am, then discarded items from clients until 3pm, then kids again until the last lesson, practice, meeting, or carpool drop-off has finished.

I mean that too about not wanting to trade this season for anything. I truly do love watching these kiddos grow into their own unique individuals. I thank God I get to be present for so much of it. And with that, I say thank you for the grace to let this be HYD's post for the week. The last couple of weeks have been so full of kids and clients, that my time at my computer just didn't happen.

I also want to extend that same grace to you today. You're off the hook. Real life happens. And the good news is, there's always tomorrow. 

The Dreaded Paper Piles

If you have paper piles everywhere, feel overwhelmed with starting a filing system, or feel like your current filing system isn't working, we have a few ideas for you...

1. Create an active set of files that are easily accessible (not in your file cabinet). Use this to keep track of the paper that come in regularly. Think school, sports, events, and other family/kid related paperwork.

2. Each year, go through your file cabinet top to bottom and shred the things that are no longer relevant or needed. If you're not sure, check this list to see what's safe to toss and what you need to keep.

3. Move things online- many services offer the option of going paperless. Take the time to switch your regular service bills to online billing methods to save paper and save space in your file cabinet.

Image from Space for Living Blog

4. Start with an efficient and organized set of tabs. Half of the battle of paper organization is figuring out how specific to be when creating labels and tabs to keep things in order.

5. Figure out what system works best for your stage in life, time, and personality. Maybe simple is best for you- try this 4 file system. There isn't an end-all-be-all best way to file, so finding a system that works for you is really important and will make all the difference in being able to stay organized.
 

Lastly, If you can't imagine facing the paper on your own, give us a call and we will work through it with you!

Home Organization Projects | Before & After

Recent Home Organization Projects by Help You Dwell

January has been full of fun for HYD. We've had the privilege of organizing two home office areas, several closets, a couple of kitchen pantries, creating a playroom, overhauling a sunroom, and we're in the middle of helping organize, pack, and remove items from a mother-in-law's former condominium.

Every job has had it's own challenges and each homeowner had their own ideas and plans for the space we worked in. This is the part of our job that calls us to be good listeners and creative problem-solvers. We want to invite you to join us through our journey with some of January's clients thus far & let you see some of the photos and the reviews & quotes we received along the way. Because maybe you'll see yourself or a loved one who could truly benefit from a helping hand like the one HYD can give.

HOME OFFICE

Our first stop is a home office redo of a working mom of three school age kids. She's got a great space to work with, a tight budget, and an eagerness to get a system. Our goal was to not only create the space, but put in place routines that will help keep it ordered and functional while not breaking the bank on all kinds of new gadgets, storage containers, etc.

Before - Home Office

In the before, you'll see lots of extras lying around that aren't related to the office. With a little clean-up, purging, and rearranging (plus finding a fantastic donated shelving unit) we were able put together a much more functional area for the whole family to utilize.

Home Office - After

The only purchased items to finish off the space were the woven file box on the bottom shelf of the shelf unit and the wire tray on the desk for active bills, school papers, and to do items. All the other baskets, frames/photos, etc the homeowner already had. We look forward to checking back in with her to see how things are going.

“I actually sat in here and worked this week!”

“Money well spent!! So great to have these ladies help organize my space and take control of my domain again!!”

SUNROOM

First of all, what a wonderful space to work in! This client was overjoyed to get to cash in her gift certificate she won in our December giveaway by asking for our help in creating a sunroom for reading, thinking, snuggling, and just enjoying. We were more than happy to help. Having just moved into her new home with her husband and two littles, she was very open to suggestions and ideas of how to make the space work best. She had lots of family furniture pieces to work with along with a wonderful selection of plants given to her by her late grandmother.

Sunroom - Before

Again, such a fabulous room to work with but it can also be a challenge when you have so much room to want to fill it up with furniture, plants, and accessories just because you have the space. If we're going a peaceful getaway type room, cozy and comfortable are part of the goal but order and simplicity must be included as well. The plants also bring great color and life to the room but too many can cause the room to feel messy. We took great care to find the right plants for the right spaces throughout the house so that each one can be enjoyed and properly cared for.

Sunroom - After

Once we walked through the house and basement to see what furniture pieces we had to work with and where some of the extra plants could be enjoyed in the house, we then started the great rearrange! Creating a breakfast nook for quiet mornings, a desk near the windows for thoughtful contemplation, a couch and seating area for great conversation, and added a much needed bookshelf (located on the left wall) to house all the books for snuggling up and reading.

“HYD was SUCH a gift to my house! They created space where there was only plants and stuff mashed together. They created atmosphere by giving important items a perfect place to fit in the sunroom. HYD also gave me “permission” (you know how you cling to things that should be let go of?) to get rid of. Now I can’t help but to walk into the room and just look around in awe, loving my new space, and enjoying sharing it with whoever drops by. Thank you SO very much HYD! I will be recommending you many times over (and asking you to come again for sure!)”

PANTRY

The last leg of our journey today takes us to a home of a family with two little ones and twins on the way! Lots to prepare for here. As mom and dad plan ahead, they know systems will be one of their greatest allies in surviving four little ones. HYD took on the kitchen pantries. With limited cabinet space, these homeowners need to make their two pantries work well. Our job was to make sure everything had a home, it was easy to access, and the littles had kid-friendly items down low so they could get their own snacks, etc. Below are the before shots of each pantry.

Once we got a good look at all the items in each pantry, we realized that we needed to consolidate, purge, and regroup many of the items. We designated the pantry on the right as the snack and non-cooking pantry. It's full of the grab-n-go items like snack bars, juice boxes, dried fruit, crackers, nut spreads, etc. Easy for the babysitter to find what he or she needs to feed hungry preschoolers.

The pantry on the left is now the designated appliance and cooking pantry filled with appliances, canned goods, pasta, root vegetables, cookbooks, and other small appliance-type accessories like batteries and light bulbs now contained in clear storage bins for easy access.

Adding the storage containers to the grab-n-go pantry was key. It's much easier to access the items, see what you have, and if labeling is your thing, the blue area on the front of each container is a dry erase area for easy labeling. 

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This is just a glimpse of what we've been up to this month. We hope you've gotten inspired to find that space in your home to tackle and bring new life to. Creating order where there was once none can be such a springboard for freedom in other areas of your life as well. Don't wait, make room in your schedule today to purge, reorder, and create the space you've always longed for. If you need help, we'd be glad to give it, whether it's a little or a lot. 

New Years Resolutions vs. Life Changes

Drawing by RabbitWifePen&Ink

Do you make resolutions each year? If you are like me, I usually make a few but rarely keep them. What's interesting is that I often find myself making the same resolutions that I tried to keep the year before. Change takes time, especially big changes. Here are a few tips on how to make changes for life rather than new years resolutions.

1. Involve your people. Whether your tell your friends, family, or co workers, make sure that your community knows what you are working on. Feeling a sense of accountability often helps keep you on track.

2. Be realistic. Think about what your current "normal" is and take that into account. Don't set your self up to fail. For example: I have a goal of walking 10,000 steps daily but in general my daily average is more like 4,000. My life goal will be to be active for 1 hour (aka 10,000 steps) 3 times a week. Once I get to a place where that is my normal, then I can adjust to make it more of a challenge and say maybe 5 days a week until I work up to 10,000 steps daily. Focus on small steps to create a change of lifestyle over time that's sustainable.

3. Figure out your motives. If I have a goal of losing weight or of eating differently, it's important that I understand why I have that goal. Do I believe that I will be more loved or admired if I attain this? Am I doing this because I feel pressured by someone else or by a physical problem? Am I searching for happiness or fulfillment? I've found that my motives usually make or break a change.

4. Come up with reminders for the life changes that are hard to remember on a daily basis. One of mine is to drink at least 64oz of water every day. I am doing a few things as reminders or as motivation. I bought a water bottle that has measurements on the outside, I track my intake through an app on my phone, and I must always accept when someone offers me water. These little things help me stay on track.

Purchase here

5. Schedule a monthly check in with yourself. Make a list of your daily, weekly, monthly, and quarterly commitments and re evaluate whether or not you are able to fully commit in a way that is meaningful. If not, start eliminating. When your schedule is maxed out you are less likely to be able to add new changes into your routine.

image by allaboutami

6. Make a plan for how you will accomplish your life goals. For example, if I want to begin the habit of storing my clothes in my closet or dresser rather than all over my bedroom floor/furniture, then I first have to purge my closet and storage space until all of my clothing fits into the designated area in a manageable and comfortable way. Once I have a spot for my clothes I'm much more likely to hang them back up or fold them to store in my dresser. Often times our bad habits make sense. If my closet is jam packed and has no room or order, then I'm likely to leave my clothes on a chair where I can easily find them BUT if my closet it organized, I'm much more likely to make use of it.

Did you make resolutions this year? How are they going? Any tips or ideas you would like to share?

Gift Wrap Organization

Image via Farm Chicks

We consistently find that our clients and friends struggle with finding ways to organize gift bags and wrapping paper etc. Typically, it all ends up in a jumbled mess thrown in a closet, smashed in a drawer, or scattered all over the house. We have some ideas for you that might make the Holiday Season and wrapping all those Christmas presents less stressful.

We have come up with ideas to work with any space.

If you would like to keep your wrapping supplies in a closet, try out one of these ideas.

Image via Southern Scraps

Image via Krazy Coupon Lady

If you don't have closet space, what about a dresser?

Image via Real Simple

Image via Ballard Design

Under the bed storage options...

Image via Iheartorganizing

Underbed storage tote from The Container Store

Free standing storage options... 

Try a decorative laundry basket or trash can (Image via Smart School House)

Repurpose a bar stool (Image via Princess Pinky Girl)

We are interested in your ideas as well? How do you keep your wrapping materials organized?

Old North Knoxville Home Tour

Image from Victorian Holiday Home Tour 505 East Scott Ave.

Each month we try to feature a home tour on our blog. We love being able to hear about what "home" means to different people and we treasure the relational aspect of being invited into someones house. This month we offer you something a little different. If you have never attended the Old North Knoxville Home Tour, we highly recommend it. We attended this past weekend and have pictures and ideas to share with you. Although each of these homes was built around the same time period, in the same Victorian style, it was neat to see how each homeowner's personal taste and style came out in the decor.

303 Oklahoma Ave

302 E. Scott Ave

We asked each home owner two questions,  "What do you love about your home?" and "What makes your home unique?". We got a wide variety of answers and loved hearing about the many renovation experiences and processes of restoring historic homes. Below are a few of our favorite responses. Enjoy!

"What we love most about our home is that we were able to take something neglected and dirty that most people would turn away from and rehab it into the gorgeous home it was intended to be. " (Leslie M.)

Photo by Alan Sims : Inside Knoxville 204 E. Oklahoma St.

"Our home is unique because it has a distinct juxtaposition of modern and traditional features. We kept the rooms in our house segmented (vs. an hgtv-esque open concept) because each room in our house serves a specific purpose. All of our doorways are very tall and wide, so our rooms still feel open without sacrificing purpose. We believe that old homes should be maintained to serve their original purpose, and at the time of construction, our home would have been very modern and featured the best of the best. We tried to echo this in our renovations and do a modern interpretation of a Victorian home- we put new light fixtures where original light fixtures were placed, moved walls and doorways to original locations, and designed the home so that the purpose of each room was consistent with the original design. Maintaining historical features was very important to us, and we kept this in mind as we gave modern interpretations and new life to our home." (Leslie M.)

"We rarely ever turn a light on during the day. The huge windows let natural light abound and breathe such life into these old walls and hardwoods. That's what I love most." (Jenna V.)

302 E. Scott Ave

302 E. Scott Ave

302 E. Scott Ave.

"The thing we love most about our home is the neighborhood! Old North, with its gracious front porches and proximity to Happy Holler businesses means that you are always meeting a friend or neighbor as you walk down the street. Everyone here is so friendly and we love having impromptu dinner and drinks on our front porch with friends.  (Cat S.)

221 E. Oklahoma

221 E Oklahoma

221 E. Oklahoma

"Our house is filled with art and antiques, made by and gifted by family and friends. We also have many souvenirs of our travels together as a family. We think that these personal touches bring warmth to the space, and remind us of our favorite people and places every day. Our house is unique in that it hasn't been "remuddled" like some Victorians--we enjoy the original fireplaces and woodwork of the home and all of its original bones. We are also lucky to have an unusually wide front porch, which means that it can function as an extra room in our home--we have a "living room" with a sectional and a dining area out there that we use all the time when the weather is nice!" (Cat S.)

225 E. Oklahoma St

225 E. Oklahoma St

225 E. Oklahoma St.

We loved seeing how creative people were able to get with their space. Some of our favorite ideas were using old mantels to create faux fireplaces, making great use out of porches and outdoor areas to extend living spaces, using a ladder as vertical (and pretty) storage to hang blankets, and utilizing architectural salvage as art and decor.

If you would like a home by home review of the tour, check out Inside of Knoxville's blog. Pt. 1 &  Pt.2

These 5 Things : November 2015

Image by Sarah Musgrave

 1. Check out this excellent guide to styling your shelves. If you don't follow Emily Henderson's blog, it's a good one!

2. 6 Ways to Speed Clean to a Clean Enough House. A few time- saving storage pieces and ideas for getting the whole family involved in cleaning habits.

3. This list of 15 Holiday Hosting Shortcuts is chock full of good ideas to keep stress low and let the good times roll.

4. Instead of decorating for the seasons, try layering to build warmth in your home.

5. It can be a major challenge to incorporate a TV into your decor. Check out this blog entry for a few ideas. 

Thanksgiving Prep Time

Three Thursdays from today is Thanksgiving and HYD wants to help you get ready!

We know that spending time with all the people you share this meal with can bring great joy or may have it's own challenges. Either way, being prepared will make Thanksgiving more enjoyable for everyone! Today we're focusing on the main event of the day, the meal . Getting a game plan for the meal in place now; finding recipes, cleaning linens, inviting any extra guests, and then finally scheduling when to shop and cook are all things that can be done ahead of time and you can have control over.

As always, HYD likes to help make your planning pretty. We found this cute downloadable Thanksgiving checklist designed by Jessica Reed Designs for Kristen Duke at Capturing Joy. It's a great place to start your meal planning and starting now let's you be a bit more creative with your food choices. Grab a few magazines off the shelf this week or search around on Pinterest to see what's new for the Thanksgiving table this year that might be a new tradition for your family.

While cooking is not really HYD's specialty, we do know the great benefits of getting it done ahead of time. If cooking is your specialty, but preparing your home is not - that's where we really shine. Let us know if you need any help!  

865.245.9080 -- info@helpyoudwell.com

Chair Rehab

I've noticed something interesting lately....

A lot of people have a chair problem. What I mean by chair problem is that a lot of people can't pass up a good deal on chairs, have too many chairs, dream about chairs etc. Confession... I'm a chair addict. There have been seasons of life where my chair problem is in check but I realized a few days ago that I've bought 8 chairs in the last month. Hear me out, it was two sets of 4 and I have a place for all of them :)

We recently remodeled our porch ceiling and I'm so excited to finally make our porch an extension of our living space (I know, I know, I should have done this in the spring but it just didn't happen).

Before -this was hiding under a layer of vinyl siding

After

Our porch runs across the front of our house and around one side and I have a plan for the space. The front will be living and hanging out space and the side will host a table for 4. I'm working on a fairly tight budget so I'm trying to get creative and I've got a furniture rehab project up my sleeve.

Last year I bought an amazing table at Mid Mod Collective's Salvage Sale for a steal. I've been using it inside but happened upon an amazing little vintage 4 seater for $30 at a garage sale last week that I'm going to put in its place. The round table is making it's way to the porch but I needed chairs.

 The Salvage Shop posted this lovely set on facebook last week and I ran over to buy them before they got snagged.

Image by The Salvage Shop (Chairs purchased from them as well)

Now I know what you are thinking, "Won't bamboo get destroyed outside?" and as a friend put it "they kinda remind me of old ladies playing bridge" (haha) but a little DIY makeover will fix all of that. I'm going to treat the wood with an outdoor sealant to protect it and I'm going to recover the seats and chair backs with oil cloth.

Here is where YOU come in... I would love to get everyone's opinion. There are so many great options. I know I want something kind of vintage inspired and I'm thinking I want something pretty colorful. Which one would you pick?

Option 1

Option 2

Option 3

Option 4

Option 5

Option 6

P.S.  We highly recommend both The Salvage Shop & Mid Mod Collective for one of a kind, vintage, and eclectic treasures.