Alison Appelbe, a freelance writer, interviewed Linda Chu of Out of Chaos. The article is entitled “How to Give Purpose to a Multi-Purpose Space.”

Many of our homes harbour a “catch-all” room where literally anything goes. It’s a kind of black hole of accumulated goods and clutter. In what we originally intended to be a bedroom, den, or garage, we place objects we only occasionally use. We unwisely hoard or would rather forget about them. Collectively, they can accumulate until a once-useful space becomes overwhelmed.

If we furnished the space for multiple uses — maybe a home office, guest bedroom, or a quiet retreat for hobbies — the accumulation of “stuff” may have sacrificed its uses and become a place of hopeless disorder.

“If your stuff is crowding you out of its primary functions, you’re rendering the room useless,” says Linda Chu. Linda is a Vancouver-based professional organizer whose business is aptly titled Out of Chaos. And you’ll know for certain the room is no longer serving your needs when, for example, you move the sewing machine or computer to the kitchen table.

“It’s convenient simply because it’s there,” Chu says of a room that people treat with an “out of sight, out of mind” approach. “It’s just one thing after another, and the pile starts. You tell yourself, ‘I’ll deal with it later.’ But it’s always ‘later.’ I call it delayed intention, meaning that for the moment, everything else takes priority.”

The Challenge

The challenge, then, is determining how to sort out the mess, reclaim the room for what we need, and ensure that what we store there is accessible, and therefore useful. Professional organizers say it takes careful planning, small, regular amounts of time, maybe a few organizational furnishings, and — to prevent a recurrence of chaos — a modest infusion of discipline. And, by the way, you needn’t hit yourself over the head because of the mess you created.

“It can simply point to a busy lifestyle,” assures Elinor Warkentin. Elinor is another professional organizer whose Vancouver business is called Goodbye Clutter. “A multi-purpose space that becomes a dumping ground is not necessarily a sign of failure. For many people, 80 or 90 percent of their home is well organized. But for things that they aren’t sure where they should go, this is the one room where the rules don’t apply.”

Solutions

Key to the rescue and creating order in an out-of-control room is planning, says Chu. Begin by deciding how you want to use the room, and establish “zones” for those uses. Then make an inventory of every item: maybe seasonal sports equipment, Christmas decorations, games and puzzles, or family photos. Or a sewing machine used only from time to time, or toys that visiting children will want regularly.

“Sort and determine the usage,“ Chu advises. “Categorize. Measure. Be exact. Once you do that you will determine the volume of everything you have. And when you see duplicates or an item you’re keeping for purely emotional reasons, revisit your intention and see if it has a place in your life now. Then purge. That’s de-cluttering.”

At the same time, remind yourself of the room’s intended purposes and decide what items you will need access to. “If it’s not accessible, you won’t use it,” Chu points out. “How easy it is to access stuff will determine how useful the room will ultimately become. It will also determine where and how you store everything.”

And don’t rush out and buy lots of costly containers, Chu emphasizes. “There’s a whole container storage industry out there willing to take your money. But it doesn’t mean that they will sell you what you need.”

Rather, determine the type of storage you need by considering the nature of the items you need to store, and the people who will use them. For example, says Chu, children relate better to an “open system.” Choose one that requires little more than dropping something into a bin or pulling open a drawer, than a “closed system” that may entail a latch or lid.

Because when it comes to locating things, functional storage allows you to find what you want “in a reasonable amount of time — and with as little stress as possible.”

Home-outfitting stores sell bins and boxes of every configuration — often stackable — cabinets (both “open” and “closed”), myriad shelving systems and “modular” storage units with box-like “cubes” outfitted with decorative drawers or wicker baskets.

Form Before Function

“Concentrate on function before you throw endless money on form,” advises Chu. In other words, know what you have and how you want it stored before you splurge on storage fixtures that simply look good.

Then label or colour-code those boxes, drawers, cupboards or shelves. “The more visual, the better the storage,” says Chu. She uses the analogy of kindergarten, where children learn (with the help of signs and pictures) where everything from boots to crayons is correctly stored.

Nor does reorganizing need to be time-consuming, Chu insists: “Do it 15 minutes at a time, five days a week, and you can get through the pile.”

Warkentin experienced household efficiency early. She grew up in a large Manitoba farm family where her father’s well-ordered farm office doubled as a child’s bedroom. Today she’s a “totally hands-on” organizer who gets down on her knees and sorts with her client while talking them through the principles of organization.

Once you have sorted through a room and returned to its intended functionality, she suggests adding wall art that reinforces its primary uses — “subtle but strong” pieces that hint, for example, that this is a home office or a room for games.

She suggests adding appealing personal touches, like a favourite mug to hold writing utensils, rather than an uninspiring office-like holder: “Because if it’s attractive to you, you’re more likely to put things away.”

Warkentin works with a client whose “multi-purpose space” is devoted mostly to shelves and drawers filled with quality paper objects, wrappings and future gifts for friends and family. Kept in good order, the room functions well.

“One of the reasons the room works,” says Warkentin, “is she’s clear about what she values, people and gifts. And she’s clear about what she wants to use the room for, and she sticks to it.”

If you need help re-purposing your multi-purpose space, contact Out of Chaos today!

Image by Karolina Grabowska on Kaboompics.