The coming new year is one many of us are hoping will be healthier, enabling us to open our homes to family and friends once again. Caring for our homes and wellbeing has taken on new meaning in recent months. One thing that can be worked on moving forward is organizing and creating a more enjoyable and less stress-inducing living space.
Kira Coopersmith, who operates Sensible Sort in Greenfield, shared helpful tips to help with home organizing.
Coopersmith moved to the area in 2014 from New York and revamped her life in response to family health issues. Formerly working as an insurance broker, Coopersmith, in a visit to Colorado to see her future husband’s sister who had cancer, saw how much organizing can help someone mentally and emotionally.
“Her place was trashed because she had been so sick,” she said. Knowing she had a knack for organizing, she dug in to help. Coopersmith’s husband was then diagnosed with cancer after they married and had moved to Greenfield. During the time spent with her husband undergoing chemotherapy, Coopersmith decided she wanted to “do more than look at Facebook all day. I wanted to occupy my mind and organizing makes me feel so good.”
She also realized once her husband was well, she still wanted to be home more she said. She trained with The Institute of Professional Organizers and launched her business in 2016, a month after her husband was fully well.
“The kitchens in New England often have no pantry and they are often laid out strangely,” she said. Given that, Coopersmith said her “number one tip is to use Lazy Susan’s as much as possible.” (A Lazy Susan is a round turntable.) She added that they can be used in a variety of cabinets to make it easier to find everything you need and make good use of a smaller space. Coopersmith said the next most important thing to do when organizing your kitchen is to “lay it out intuitively. If someone came into your kitchen they would just know where to logically find something,” she said. For example, having coffee cups within easy reach of a coffee maker, or dishes and silverware close to the kitchen table.
Another consideration is having a kitchen that “suits your style,” she said. “If you are someone who never cooks, having 1,200 pieces of cookware isn’t helpful.” For someone who likes to bake, Coopersmith suggests having five or six good quality pieces of cook wear. “Have a good pie, tart, or Bundt pan and have your pantry well stocked with the ingredients you use often,” she said. Coopersmith said a part of organizing your home is becoming more aware of who you are and what you want to actively show the people and guests in your home.
“Sometimes, we hold onto things that aren’t current with who we are. We can get lost in the expectations of others or outdated expectations of ourselves,” she said. Coopersmith helps her clients work with how mental and emotional states integrate with the environment we create.
Coopersmith also recommends getting rid of those old crusty pans that seem to collect over time. “When you are looking for something else, they are there in the way, creating a kind of negative energy, like a background buzzing stress,” she said.
“I love the living room most of all. It’s one of the most important spaces. It should be a sanctuary,” said Coopersmith. Once we are no longer being affected by COVID-19, Coopersmith said the living room will again be a place where we not only entertain but share quality time with family. “I have often walked into homes where the living room is full of plastic children’s toys and I ask, ‘Where is the adult space?’”
While she said some clients are reluctant to set aside a play space or room for children, doing so tends to benefit the whole family
Storage in the living room can be managed by having furniture that doubles as storage such as trunks, ottomans and even some couches that have storage built-in. Coopersmith said having the living room organized cuts down on a potential sense of chaos when you enter the room. “If your home and living space is chaos when you walk in you just never relax. It’s a background loop of stress,” she said.
Coopersmith said she frequently runs across another oddity of New England homes — strangely laid out bathrooms.
“In my own home, we have a bathroom with a linen closet. We couldn’t open the door to it because the vanity was in the way,” she said with a laugh. In this case, Coopersmith took off the door and put variously sized baskets on the shelves. “With bathrooms, I feel less is more,” she said. Coopersmith noted people tend to hold onto products like shampoo and face cream that “didn’t work out,” leaving them cluttering the bathroom space.
Besides using baskets and shelving, Coopersmith suggests rolling towels in wine racks or firewood holders. “You can get really creative, but the best thing is to pare down what’s in there as much as possible,” she said.
Coopersmith said the bedroom is like the living room in regards to creating a “sanctuary.” Her first and “most important” rule is to make the bed every morning. “That way, you start every day with a win,” she said. Coopersmith feels the bedroom is a space in the home that’s especialy important to invest in so you can feel more rested and peaceful.
“One thing you should definitely do is have an actual bed with a headboard and footboard as well as attractive, comfortable bedding and pillows,” she said. Coopersmith said it doesn’t have to be a huge financial investment, it just helps to put more thought into what you are walking into at the end of your day.
Coopersmith said another quirk of New England homes is the lack of closet space. She suggests using hooks in a variety of spots, even using plant hangers in closets that are very small and hanging clothes vertically. Under the bed storage is also helpful to keep the space less cluttered.
For more information, Coopersmith can be reached at 213-1017 or sensiblesort.com.
Cris Carl is an avid local gardener, licensed therapist and certified herbalist. She is an experienced journalist who has written for the Recorder for many years. Reach Carl at cstormfox57@gmail.com.