Tidy Tips

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Tidy News: Shannon Krause Interviewed on Room By Room Podcast - How To Organize Your Home For Guests

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Shannon was recently interviewed by Marie Stella on Room by Room: The Home Organization Science Insights Podcast.

With the holidays just around the corner, we dove into all things guest prep.

Here’s what we covered:

  • How to create a warm & welcoming environment for your guests without sacrificing your home’s functionality.

  • Clever tips for making space when you’re short on it.

  • Must-have products for a seamless hosting experience.

  • Favorite quick fixes to make your guests feel right at home.

If you’re gearing up for holiday hosting, this episode is packed with practical, stress-free tips to help you shine as the ultimate host!

The Guide to Organizing Your Home For Guests with Shannon Krause

Tidy Tips: 5 Things You Should Toss Before Hosting Guests

hosting, preparing for guests, organizational tips, decluttering

We love to host and frequently have friends coming and going. In general, we have a long list of ways to prepare for visits -- from food shopping (taking into account allergies), cleaning extensively (especially the kitchen), organizing and decluttering.

Today we’re sharing some tips that are not so glamorous but trust us, it goes a lot way. It’s important that your guests feel welcome and comfortable and we know these tasks help you to prepare for their stay!

5 things to toss before your guests arrive:

hosting, preparing for guests, organizational tips, decluttering

Garbage & Recycling

The kitchen garbage and recycling. The kitchen is the busiest room in the house and you're bound to spend time in there with guests. Smelly and unsightly garbage is a quick way to dampen the vibe. 

hosting, preparing for guests, organizational tips, decluttering

Bathroom Trash

Similarly, empty out any trash cans in the bathrooms and guest rooms. We want our guests to feel like they're at a B&B when they visit - and basic cleanliness is a must. 

hosting, preparing for guests, organizational tips, decluttering

Old Food

Throw out old food in your fridge. Our favorite guests are the ones who get whatever they need from our fridge because it means they're comfortable in our home. To that end, we don't need them seeing week old meatloaf.

hosting, preparing for guests, organizational tips, decluttering

Used/Expired Toiletries

Used and/or expired toiletries in the bathroom. For example, we're not fans of soap bars. We don't want to use yours, and we don't really want you to use ours either. Go ahead and toss the bar next to your sink and replace it with a soap dispenser. 

hosting, preparing for guests, organizational tips, decluttering

Pet Hair

Pet Hair. This one sounds strange because you don't necessarily think about 'throwing out' pet hair, but we throw out handfuls of it! It's essential to clean and remove pet hair from carpets, couches, blankets, pillows, etc... before having guests. Not only is it unsightly, but so many people have allergies these days. The last thing you want (which we've experienced) is a dinner guest with red eyes and the sniffles who can barely stay awake because of the emergency Benadryl dose they had to take.

Framed Photo of Guests in Guest Room

PRO TIP

Change out the framed photos in your guest room with photos of you and your guests together — seeing those memories always makes guests feel more welcome.

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Tidy Nest Featured Press: How To Organize A Kitchen In Readiness For Entertaining (Homes & Gardens)

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We recently shared some simple yet effective tips with Homes & Gardens to help you keep your home, specifically your kitchen, tidy and stress-free this holiday season.

FEATURED PRESS

Take a look at our other interviews with Home & Gardens over the years

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Tidy Nest Featured Press: 5 Things Pro Organizers Say Are Must-Haves In A Small Bathroom (Homes & Gardens)

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Bathrooms are tight on space so maximizing every inch of space is crucial. But regardless of the size of your bathroom, drawer organization is key to maintaining order which we explained to Homes & Gardens when they asked us about bathroom organization tips.

Plastic Organizers

We like to use plastic drop-in organizers because they are easy to wipe clean

Bamboo Organizers

Use bamboo organizers for a more eco-friendly option plus it’s a great win when they match the interior of the drawers.

FEATURED PRESS

Take a look at our other interviews with Home & Gardens over the years

disclaimer:

Photos from The Container Store & Amazon.

If you purchase from one of our LTK links, we may earn a small commission.

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Tidy Nest Featured Press: Where To Store Spices In A Small Kitchen– 9 Space-Saving Places To Stash Spices In Style (Homes & Gardens)

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There are so many ways to store spices in kitchens.

We spoke to Homes & Gardens and shared our most important spice organizational tip.

FEATURED PRESS

Take a look at our other interviews with Home & Gardens over the years

disclaimer:

If you purchase from one of our LTK links, we may earn a small commission.

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Tidy Nest Featured Press: 10 Alternative Ways To Contain Your Culinary Tools (Homes & Gardens)

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Can you imagine having a kitchen without drawers? While it’s uncommon, we occasionally come across this design choice which requires us to get a little creative.

Check out our go-to hack for storing kitchen utensils in a kitchen without drawers in the latest Homes & Garden article below.

Our Favorite Countertop Utensil Storage

Farmhouse Pottery Crock

Let’s be honest we love just about everything from Farmhouse Pottery. This crock is beautiful to contain utensils, kitchen tools or even flowers.

Le Creuset Utensil Croc

If you’re looking for something fun and vibrant, this is it! We love these crocks for the variety of gorgeous colors they come in.

Williams Sonoma Marble Partitioned Utensil Holder

Our favorite thing about this crock is the divider inside. It keeps your favorite tools separated and easier to remove while prepping, cooking and serving.

Crate & Barrel Acacia Utensil Holder

Sleek and minimal, this is a great accent to your counter and fits a good amount of utensils! We love that they have matching canisters too.

FEATURED PRESS

Take a look at our other interviews with Home & Gardens over the years

disclaimer:

Photos from Le Creuset, Food52, Crate & Barrel & Williams Sonoma

If you purchase from one of our LTK links, we may earn a small commission.

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Tidy Nest Featured Press: How To Organize Your Home Without Spending Any Money– 8 Pro Tips (Homes & Gardens)

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One common misconception with organizing is that you have to spend a lot of money on products.

That is so not true.

If you’re the DIY type, raid the recycle bin for discard boxes and follow the step below.

FEATURED PRESS

Take a look at our other interviews with Home & Gardens over the years

disclaimer:

If you purchase from one of our LTK links, we may earn a small commission.

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Tidy Nest Featured Press: Decluttering Makeup And Skincare– 10 Ways To Streamline Your Stash Beautifully (Homes & Gardens)

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Bathrooms are generally tight on space and can get unruly if the space isn’t edited frequently. We encourage frequent editing of this space by checking expiration dates, identifying duplicates and unnecessary products. We try our best not to dump everything in the trash and so we have found creative ways to repurpose and recycle products and the packaging.

We shared one of our favorite ways to repurpose mascara wands with Homes & Gardens.

If you feel inspired to tackle the bathroom this weekend, we have a step-by-step guide linked below to help you along.

FEATURED PRESS

Take a look at our other interviews with Home & Gardens over the years

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Tidy Nest Featured Press: 7 Things To Declutter Before Summer Starts– For A Stress-Free, Organized Space (Homes & Gardens)

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It’s Summer (woohoo) and that means lots of outdoor activities. To be properly prepared requires just a little bit of planning, and that little bit of planning can make all the difference in creating your picture perfect summer.

We shared with Homes & Gardens some of our favorite summer organizing tips to get you ready for the grill, the beach, road trips and picnics.

FEATURED PRESS

Take a look at our other interviews with Home & Gardens over the years

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Tidy Nest Featured Press: How To Declutter Books – 10 Novel Ways To Streamline Your Collection (Homes & Gardens)

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Books tend to be the hardest for people to edit. We get it - we’re book worms too!

We encourage our clients to gather all their books in one place and start sorting by genre. Once the books are categorized by genre, begin editing easier categories first like novels, specialty cookbooks, fad diets etc. Once you’ve determined what you’re keeping, decide how you’d liek to display these books - by genre, by author, by colored spine, etc.

We recently shared some tips on decluttering books with Homes & Gardens - full article is below!

FEATURED PRESS

Take a look at our other interviews with Home & Gardens over the years

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Tidy Nest Featured Press: 12 Home Organizing Products From Amazon That Professional Organizers Swear By (Realtor.com)

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The amount of organizing products that are on the market is overwhelming. It’s hard to determine what’s useful vs. what’s a marketing ploy.

We frequently find organizing supply graveyards at our clients home - piles of products that won’t fit their spaces, that are poor quality or that are not functional. So we spoke to Realtor.com and shared some of our favorite Amazon organizing products for tackling counter top and drawer cutter.

FEATURED PRESS

Take a look at our other interviews with Realtor.com over the years

disclaimers:

If you purchase from one of our LTK links, we may earn a small commission.

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Tidy Nest Featured Press: How To Fold Clothes For Packing– For Wrinkle-Free Results And To Free Up Space In Your Case (Homes & Gardens)

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Fun fact: Shannon is so good at packing for vacations that clients hire her to pack for their vacations. So when Homes & Gardens asked for packing tips, Shannon jumped on it right away.

Below are some of her favorite packing tips for clothing.

FEATURED PRESS

Take a look at our other interviews with Home & Gardens over the years

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What We're Reading: Simple Shui for Every Day: 365 Ways to Feng Shui Your Life by Amanda Gibby Peters - April

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We’re on a 3-month streak sharing our monthly tips from our favorite book Simple Shui for Every Day: 365 Ways to Feng Shui Your Life by Amanda Gibby Peters. Below are some of the feng shui tips we incorporated throughout the month of April.




The short version is Amanda is the "Martha Stewart of Feng Shui". Amanda makes Feng Shui more digestible and accessible with a "home improvement-meets-self empowerment” approach. 

Here are some of the practices we incorporated in our home throughout April:

April 1

Adding water to your front door will welcome more money into your life, so we pulled out the birdbath and added it to the right of the front door. 

April 9

The kitchen nourishes and replenishes you so it should be free of clutter. We did a quick edit of the kitchen, tackling easy wins first - expired items, take-out utensils and sauce packets, mismatched Tupperware. 

Take a look at our quick decluttering checklist for more inspiration

April 12

A mirror amplifies what it reflects so make sure it’s dusted and that it’s reflecting something inspiring or beautiful, not a pile of laundry or stack of papers. We’re guilty of this so we moved that laundry basket far away from the mirror’s reflection. We don’t need to double our to-do list.

April 17

When you’re an entrepreneur it’s hard to shut off your work brain. And it’s even harder when your office is in your home. Try shutting your office door when you’ve clocked out for the day. This will keep your work from spilling into your personal life. 

April 21

Keep the toilet seats down and covered to eliminate energy drains. 

April 22

Add more red to your life and home. It’s a power color that promotes energy, courage, and attraction. We have bright red kitchen chairs that we were going to replace but we’ll keep them for a little longer now that we know this! 

April 24

Your clothing relates to your identity and personality so when we’re working with clients' wardrobes we always ask them to think about who they want to be and how specific clothing makes them feel. If the item doesn’t make them feel their best or doesn’t represent the version they want to be then we encourage them to let it go. Amanda suggests leaving a little open space in your closet to attract new things - a fun tip we started using this spring. 

April 28

Our backyard is one giant hill and it’s very challenging to use (it’s a real uphill struggle - ha!) Amanda’s remedy to counteract this energy - adding a flag pole or a weathervane to the property! So now we’re on the hunt for a funky weathervane - any ideas? 

April 29

Ah, our favorite April suggestion….Get rid of 27 things! Yes, 27! It’s the quickest way to change the energy of your space. Why 27? It’s a powerful number in feng shui - we can talk more about that later. If removing 27 items from your life seems too daunting, try moving 27 items instead. 

disclaimer:

If you purchase from one of our LTK links, we may earn a small commission.

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Tidy Nest Featured Press: How To Fold Blankets – Easy Ways With Space-Saving Style (Homes & Gardens)

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If your feeds are anything like ours then you have folding tutorials popping up on Instagram, TikTok, YouTube, etc. 24/7. While they are fun to watch, they are also super helpful. In this article for Homes & Gardens, we shared our favorite blanket folding techniques so say goodbye to those unsightly mountain of blankets on your couch.

Do you want to see a video tutorial on folding blankets? Let us know below!

FEATURED PRESS

Take a look at our other interviews with Home & Gardens over the years

Tidy Tips: Decluttering Your Home

Decluttering can be overwhelming when you try to tackle your entire house in one weekend. 

So we’re breaking it down for you - not only by room but by the main categories*  that collect clutter. 

You can work with this document a few different ways:

  1. You can tackle one room at a time, working down the list

  2. You can start in one room and focus on just one category during that session. 

The key is to take a break from decluttering before you get decision fatigue (yes, it’s a real thing). 

*These main categories were determined based on our experience working in these spaces.*

 

Kitchen

-Expired food & spices 

-Condiment packets 

-Plastic utensils 

-Vases

-Menus 

-Tupperware

-Plastic bags 

-Countertop

 

Bedrooms

-Mismatched / torn socks

-Stained / damaged clothing 

-Old shoes

-Broken jewelry 

-Hats & gloves 

-Nightstand drawers 

-Hidden items under the bed

-Miscellaneous items on top of dresser

 

Family/ Living Room

-Magazines 

-Games / puzzles

-DVDs

-Candles

-Old electronics 

-Miscellaneous wires

-Books

-Throws & throw pillows

 

Bathrooms

-Expired medicine 

-Expired beauty products

-Empty products 

-Samples / travel sized items

-Towels 

-Nail polish

-Products in shower

-Countertop

If you’re on a roll and looking to tackle more spaces, take a look at our decluttering CHECKLIST below!

Tidy Tips: Our Guide to Editing

When it comes to decluttering and editing, we are constantly asked: 

“How do you know how to get rid of stuff”? 

We have an in-depth process when it comes to editing with clients, but we wanted to share some important questions to ask yourself when you’re decluttering. 

 

When you're decluttering, ask yourself:

-Is it useful? 

-Is it something I use?

-Does it currently serve a purpose?

-When was the last time I used it?

-Would I buy this again today? 

-Do I have similar items / duplicates? Do I need multiples? 

-Does this item make my life easier?

-Have I tried to get rid of this item in the past?

-Do I need more space for new items?

-Can this item be replaced if necessary?

When you’re editing clothing, ask yourself:

-Does the item still fit? 

-Is it in good condition?

-Does it make me feel good when I wear it?

-What kind of maintenance does this item require? 

-Does this item remind me of a negative time / experience?

When you’re editing memorable items, ask yourself:

-What memory does this spark for me?

-When, where and how did I acquire this item (or wear this item)? 

-How does it make me feel to see (or wear) this item?

-Who gave me this item?

-Why have I been saving this item?

 

Sometimes we find clients associate the item with a memory and if the item leaves then so will the memory. 

We have a few exercises to try that may help you get rid of the item while still honoring and preserving the memory associated with the item.

Take A Photo

Snap a photo of the item and create a digital album for “special treasures”. Add the answers to the questions above in the caption of each photo. 

Create A Journal

Create a journal for all your special treasures. Add a photo of the item, draw the item or simply describe it. Answer some of the prompts listed above. 

Do It With A Friend

Invite a friend over and share the stories with them. Have your friend help you donate or find new homes for these items. 

 

Tidy Tips: Energy Clearing

Everything you’re bringing from outside will impact the energy of a space, including guests (invited or uninvited!) The events within the home will add energy- an illness, strong emotions like anger, grief or depression, or a party, celebration or other kind of ritual.

Have you ever had an argument and felt the tension in the room sort of lingering afterwards?

We ask a lot of our spaces, energetically and functionally, especially now that we’re spending more time in our homes. Our home, our office or any space we spend significant time in, should bring peace and positive energy. But let’s face it, we dump a lot of energy into these spaces which can already have old, stagnant or even negative energy that is hard to shake. Whether it’s a home that still has the previous owners energy, a cluttered space you just can’t get ahold of or a room that just witnessed an argument, spaces need to be cleared frequently.

There are many ways to do this and there are no right or wrong techniques. Below are some ways we like to clear energy in a room.

 
garbage bag

Remove Trash & Clutter

Remove obvious trash, clutter and broken items. Clutter drags down the energy in a room. Trash and broken items create difficulty for energy to flow through your space.

Open The Windows

Open the windows and allow fresh air into your space!

lemon oil

Use Lemon Oil

Wipe down surfaces with a mixture of lemon essential oil and water. Don’t forget door knobs, door frames, window sills and window frames - doors and windows are where outside energy enters your home so it’s important to keep these spaces clean. Plus any citrus scents are energizing and purifying.

Burn Herbs, Wood Or Incense

Burn your choice of herbs, wood or incense - just make sure it was sustainably sourced as many of these smoke cleansing tools have been harvested unethically. We like to start in the doorway of the room and walk around counter clockwise to clear negative energy wafting the smoke in all the corners of the room and then again clockwise to bring in positive energy.

Ring A Bell

If you’re sensitive to smoke/ smell, try ringing a bell or even clapping three times in each or the corners to break up the stagnant energy.

Add Crystals

Add a piece of selenite to your windowsill, an amethyst in your bedroom or black tourmaline by your entryway.

 
 

Add Salt

Add a small bowl of salt to the corners of the room and let it sit for 48 hours then discard back to the earth. The salt can act as a magnet pulling out any negative energy that is lingering.

Create Intentions

Create an intention for each space and recite it while doing one of the techniques above. Think about the intention of each room when creating your mantra. For example: “I release the stagnant energy from this space and invite in new opportunities for my best and highest good.”

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