Welcome to 2025! Each new year brings with it new hopes and goals, but one thing is certainly a constant: becoming more organized.
With the holiday season in the rearview mirror and the kids heading back to school, now is the time to get started. For some, overcoming organizational challenges is easier said than done. When you don't know where to start, the project often feels overwhelming.
Houston organizational expert Carroll Cartwright recognizes this Neat & Co. has some tips and tricks for organization and tells you where to buy your favorite organizational supplies locally.
Cartwright founded Neatly & Co in 2020 when, like so many others, she was working her corporate job from home. What started as a personal quest to clean out their own closets and closets has grown into a 10-person business that served 158 clients in 2024 alone.
“It turns out I really love it,” Cartwright tells CultureMap. On top of that, she's great at it. Their thoughtful and practical storage solutions put Cartwright on the radar of top interior designers like Kara Childress and Benjamin Johnston, who consult Neatly & Co. in the planning stages of their new construction and remodeling projects to ensure their clients are truly satisfied with tailored solutions that provide beauty harmonize with functionality.
“Most customers want to feel like they are walking into the Four Seasons Hotel when they come home,” says Cartwright. It is this revelation that led Neatly & Co. to offer comprehensive move management in addition to their organization services. These stress-free transitions are what clients expect when working with top interior designers, and Cartwright and her team fit seamlessly into this turnkey space. Organizing, packing, and unpacking ensures customers have a chaos-free experience during what could otherwise be a stressful experience—and Cartwright is a pro.
Here are Carroll Cartwright's eight key steps to getting organized in the new year:
- Start with a plan: Write down every area in your home. Identify areas that feel most stressful or discouraging. This is your to-do list!
- Choose your priority: Evaluate how much time you have and choose a project that you can complete in that time frame. Thinking that you can build your house on your own in a day is not realistic! When you start, aim for an easy win! Starting small (e.g. under the sink or a single cabinet) will help you build momentum and then move on to other areas of the home.
- Create a central sorting zone: Before entering an area, designate a place for the cleanup items you will donate, sell, or throw away. When you're done with an area, take care of the stacks before moving on.
- My foolproof method for organizing any area:
Clean – Start by removing everything from the room and letting go of things you no longer use, need, or love.
Categorize – Group similar items together to understand what you have and how they fit into your space. Now that you have your categories, do a second pass and reduce any additional duplicates that you don't need. Of course there are exceptions, but you really don't need more than 1 or 2 of a single item!
Consolidate – Combine similar items to organize your belongings and ensure everything has a clear place.
Curate – Carefully choose which items you want to store and arrange them in a way that makes them functional, purposeful, and visually appealing. - Complete each area completely: Always complete one area before moving on to the next to avoid feeling overwhelmed and leaving areas unfinished.
- Make it functional: Organization only works if it makes sense for your lifestyle and daily needs. Store frequently used items in sensible places. For example, your cutlery drawer should be near the dishwasher so you can empty it easily. Create designated areas for frequently clutter-free areas such as countertops and mail.
- Use dividers and organizers: Divide drawers and cabinets with dividers to group items by category for easy access.
- Daily maintenance for clarity: End each day by tidying up surfaces like countertops and desks. This provides a clear mental space for the next day. Starting the day with a clean environment increases productivity!
If custom cabinet, cabinet, and drawer inserts aren't in the budget, fun, off-the-shelf items work great.
“Depending on what you’re looking for, I love Rejuventation, Restoration Hardware, Kuhl-Linscolmb and The Container Store,” she says. “It's more fun to be unique when searching for products! I'm also always looking at hardware stores like Biscuit Home for fun storage items, or at antique stores around town for trash cans or an antique dish drainer for the laundry room! Makes it more individual and sets you apart from others!”
Whether reusing items from around the house or scouring the city for fresh new (or antique) finds, one thing is certain: the only way to finish a project is to start one. Good luck!