And after some thought, I said, "The Kitchen." Here's why:
- The kitchen is the most shared utilitarian space in the home, where everyone eats, cooks, cleans, and gathers multiple times in a day. People refer to it as "the hub of the home."
- Planning your meals means you will be likely to eat more healthfully at home– saving money, reducing stress about money and time, and over the years possibly even resulting in lower medical costs.(Better for your arteries than a daily fast food run!)
- Knowing where things belong means that every person saves time locating things every day. This time savings really adds up.
- Organizing your pantry and refrigerator so that only fresh, edible food is available and visible means that you will save money and have less waste.
- Having a kitchen that accounts for workflow patterns and logical placement of tools and equipment means that it's easier to cook and clean, which means you'll do it more often and more willingly.
- Usually other functions are included in the kitchen, such as mail sorting and communications, that add to the importance of getting this space right.
The home office and primary wardrobe closet come in a close second, because home office disorganization can relate to finances which is definitely related to stress… and an organized closet helps you start every morning with less stress, get ready faster, and make smarter purchasing decisions.
If you are moving into a new home, remodeling your kitchen, or just want to start all over again organizing it, I invented a product that helps with that process called the SpaceScaping® Kitchen Organizing System. When I was doing a lot of client move-ins, I started printing out my own removable adhesive stickers, so that we could take all of the categories of a kitchen and plan it out by sticking them all around the cabinets before we started moving things around. After strategizing it fully, we used the stickers as a guideline to moving things where they belonged, and after finishing, we left the stickers up for a while to help the family get used to the new arrangement. They just pulled off the "Post-It"-like adhesive whenever they felt ready. My clients LOVED these! So I made them into a product to help other people and other organizing professionals. The set of labels is only $6.99 and you can read more about them here.
What do you think? What are your top three choices? Do you agree with mine? Share in the comments!
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Kitchen is my #1. We all cook and things are labeled and returned to their spots. Laundry is my second choice. Laundry can quickly get backed up, if you don’t stay on top of it, and we hang everything to dry, so it takes lead time to keep everyone in clean clothing. Home office would have to be my third choice – bills don’t get paid if I can’t find them. But bathroom is right up there, too – we have five people (4 of them women) in a single-small-bathroom home. I have strict rules about what can be left in the bathroom, and we literally schedule bathroom time on busy days. If I had a Fairy Godmother, I would ask her for a second bath for my poor beleaguered husband.
Wow, tricky question. Home Office is near the top of my list, if not the top. And if your question was “clutter-free” rather than “organized”, I’d actually vote for the Master Bedroom. When life gets busy, it’s really important to me to have one serene, beautiful place to escape to.
I definitely agree with the kitchen and home office. They tie for #1 and #2. After those two, my 3rd pick has to be my craft and movie storage room. If I can’t find what I need when I need it, I get cranky. I always have something crafty to work on. We frequently watch purchased movies – yes, we watch most of them many times – because we do not choose to invest in TV enhancement beyond a simple antenna.
Hmm.. A pondering question for some thought.. Yes, the kitchen is definitely #1, Master Bedroom #2 for comfort and a relaxation for stress free time and #3 my quilting studio, if items are not in place I get irritable rather quickly since I only have a limited amount of time for my time.
The kitchen is #1 but the hardest for me.
The dining room is #2 seems all the clutter ends up on the dining room table and then the table has to be cleared off before anyone can use it for anything and inevitably something gets lost or misplaced causing much stress and tension. The stairwell/entry area are #3.
That area is a point where things just accumulate constantly waiting to go to the basement, the attic or out the door to the van. I have been trying for TWO YEARS to get the home office area under control. I get so close and then it gets all cluttered up again. Hopefully I can get it under control this year!
I only have 2: kitchen and office because those are where your most picked-up/put-down stuff lives.
I would say the lounge as this is where you entertain guests and it should be a tidy and comfortable room for the whole family, too-(ideally).
I would say kitchen is #1 because thats’ where everyone gathers and where the food and eating utensils are stored. After that, I’d say home office and maybe bedroom. As another poster said, when life gets chaotic, it’s nice to have a serene place to come and relax.
I would vote kitchen as well. It’s the heart of the home…Our information center, computer, etc. are also in the kitchen.
I use magnetic message boards which I design as part of my home-based business in the kitchen and at the entrance doors to try to keep coupons, grocery lists, etc. organized.
Thanks for your website and tips. I need all the help I can get.
My vote is for kitchen, too, as this can attract pests more readily than other household areas, and needs to be healthy enough to prepare food in. (Nice that I had a kitchen blitz yesterday, then read this today. Makes me feel good!!)