Eric and Lisa's Kitchen

I got to meet the coolest couple who live in LA through a mutual friend. They had just moved in and were in need of organizing their kitchen. They have a tight network of friends who come over and help them cook, so, they needed a system to keep their kitchen organized so that anyone would be able to cook in their kitchen by finding things easily. 

Here are some Before and After photos from their kitchen- Enjoy!

The couple wanted to keep their counters as clear as possible and have a clear labeling system for all their utensils and foodstuffs.

Before

After

Pots and Pans find their matches: Their pots and pans needed to be kept in the same place and easily accessible to find the correct lid for its matching pot. I purchased a rack to store all the lids and placed all the pots and pans in a cupboard next to the stove.

Before

After

A new home for the Spices: Their spices were all in a cupboard stacked on a tiered rack, but every time they would bring a spice down, other spices would be knocked down. To remedy this problem I placed dividers in a drawer next to the stove and laid the spices on their sides in alphabetical order. 

Before

After

Cleaning Supplies: Under the sink can get messy with all the different cleaning supplies. I placed all the supplies in a plastic tub to keep it all in one place and to be pulled out all at once if needed. The couple also needed a place to store plastic bags, so I purchased a nice bag receptacle to attach to the back of the cabinet door.

Before

After

Improvised Pantry: Their kitchen didn’t have a formal pantry to store all their foodstuffs and storage items; so, I used cabinets under the counter and organized it with different bins. I used pull out bins for easy accessibility. 

Before

After

and

Cooking Utensils: Their drawers were unorganized full of kitchen tools that the couple wasn’t using. They had friends giving them duplicate tools that they never used, so I had them keep what they actually use and donate the rest. I then placed like items in a utensil tray.

Before

After

Solace

What does Solace mean?

Noun: something that gives comfort; alleviation of distress or discomfort

Verb: to comfort, console or cheer; to alleviate or relieve (sorrow, distress, etc.)

How do you pronounce it?

Saw-less

What is Solace?

Solace is a dream of mine to help people who want to be empowered to organize their lives by starting with their living and work spaces.

Why Solace?

I have personally experienced the positive effects of having a room and workspace that is organized. I used to be a pack-rat. I would save every little piece of paper I jotted a note on or anything that was sentimental to me, but really of no use. I was finding there was no room to store everything and honestly, the note that I saved, I never looked at after I tucked it away in a box and forgot about it. And, those clothes from high school I was saving… I was never going to wear them again, so, why was I keeping them? So, one day, I decided I needed to clean out my room. As I got rid of things I didn’t need and organized the things I was going to keep, I began to feel lighter. This was great! The days after I cleaned my room, I felt empowered and at peace! I knew where everything was and knew what I had. It just made me feel so much more peaceful.

I’ve helped friends organize their closets and love seeing how it changes their countenance. While I am helping them through the process of organizing, in reality, it’s them making the decision of what to keep, what to give away and resolving to keep up the organized closet.  They are making the change and are being empowered in the process as they learn they can keep their closet organized. And it doesn’t have to stop at their closet; it can be in their bedroom, workspace and life! 

The Journey Begins... One Can at a Time

One of my favorite memories my mom has shared with me from when I was a little girl is us walking down a grocery store isle and her catching me moving a can of beans to its correct place on the shelf. 

Even at a young age, I was organizing grocery store shelves so that the food items were in a place where someone would be able to find it easily. If the beans were in the canned fruit section, it probably wouldn’t be found. It could have debuted in a mean seven layer bean dip! But alas, it was lost in the canned fruit section, carelessly misplaced. But, the beans don’t have to be in the canned fruit section! That is the beauty of organization! This beauty is what has inspired me to start Solace.

I can’t pinpoint what it is about organizing that I love. I’ll name a few and will add to it in the future as I delve more and more into it.

• The people I get to work with
• The satisfaction of seeing everything in its place, easily found and accessible
• Probably my favorite: the excitement, contentment and peace that is seen on a client’s face upon seeing his/her organized space
• The challenge of making a space efficient, clean and personal to the client
• Researching different organizing tools
• Finding great deals in organizational storage items- I love a good find!
• Fun label makers

 And so, the Journey Begins… One Can at a Time