Help! Please Make Over My...

“I kept putting them up without ever throwing anything away,” says Bevin Tierney of the permission slips, schedules, invitations, and more that were thumbtacked three layers deep on her family bulletin board. “And I could never find a calendar that was large enough to handle all our family’s activities.” Among the papers that had to go: three summers’ worth of swimming-lesson schedules, eight school lunch menus, and an expired $100 spa certificate.

Out went Bevin’s small board and in came a roomy three-by-four-foot one. Simple index cards turned it into an easy-to-update monthly grid. Keys, tacks, and pencils hang to its left, while clear containers (labeled by family member) corral papers and random items below. For more details, see Before and After: Family Bulletin Board.

“It was out of sight, out of mind,” Rachel Weinblatt says of her overstuffed refrigerator. “You couldn’t see the mess with the doors closed, thank goodness. Nothing smelled funny, and food wasn’t spilling out, but I could never find what I was looking for.” Not hard to believe, given the array of items that had to be tossed, including 32 ketchup packets, 30 soy- and duck-sauce packets, and one empty bottle of ketchup.

Juices and other drinks in hefty gallons were transferred to tall, slender carafes. Bins on low shelves have clear lids so you can see contents from above. Stain-resistant glass store microwavable leftovers; plastic containers stow foods that don’t need reheating. In the freezer, bulky packaging was replaced by compact, airtight plastic containers that stack. For more details, see Before and After: A Refrigerator Makeover.

When friends visited Sonya Young, she would panic if they approached the coat closet—a.k.a. the dumping ground (for a bowling ball, hardware supplies, drapery rods, phone books, a golf bag, even a bathroom scale!). “There was no room in there for guest coats,” says Sonya. “It was so daunting, I couldn’t face it.”

In a single day, Real Simple and Gia Russo, a cofounder of the organizing and design firm MiGi, overhauled Sonya’s closet, allocating half the area to hanging items and half to shelves. Gia mercilessly edited its contents (with Sonya’s help) and restocked it with just-right-for-the-job containers: storage boxes, canvas bins, and baskets. For more details, see Before and After: A Front Closet Makeover.

With just an awkward nook off the entryway to work with, Yalan Connell imagined a cheery bill-paying space that included a homework spot for her oldest daughter. Was that possible?

Real Simple thought so. Making use of all that vertical space, adjustable shelving went up to create two workstations and plenty of room for storage. Matching canvas boxes now hold formerly messy piles of paper; in-and-out boxes by the door are a natural spot for permission slips and other school-related paperwork. For more details, see A Home Office Makeover.

Wendy Odabashian found her old, 50s-style kitchen only about 50 percent functional—and often overtaken by clutter. Tag-sale trinkets crowded the counter and the windowsill. A too-big dish rack hogged precious space. Cabinets were so full, overage landed on the counter.

Clearing photos and papers from the refrigerator and doodads from the windowsill gave the room breathing space. Pull-out racks in the deep cabinets offer efficient storage for cooking gear, and a bigger stove fills the awkward gaps left by the older, slimmer model. A new shade of powder blue on the walls blends better with the gray cabinets, original to the house. For more details, see Real-Life Kitchen Makeover.

Jennifer Hochman had an enviably large walk-in bedroom closet, but with no linen or coat closet in her home, she resorted to using it to stash everything from bedding to art projects. Found there: seven power suits (with shoulder pads) from the 80s, an electronic coin counter, a fake potted orchid, a back massager, six winter coats from her college years, and a graduation robe. Jennifer hated going in her closet: “I’d grab what I needed and shut the door fast.”

No surprise, all the useless castoffs went out, and floor-to-ceiling shelving went up. Lined baskets now hold bedding; guest sheets are zipped in soft gray bins. A celestial fixture replaced a flat fluorescent overhead, while light blue walls bring a much-needed sense of calm. Additional storage comes courtesy of a dresser that accommodates all those B-list items that used to clog up Jennifer’s main bureau: yoga clothes, bathing suits, beach cover-ups. For more details, see A Bedroom Closet Makeover.

“The previous owner had a hard time parting with the house, so we told her she could just leave behind anything she didn’t want," says April Celli of her home. "That included a slew of paint cans, roof shingles, old tools, and bathroom tiles. We followed suit and filled every corner with our own junk, too.” The result: A mishmash of renovation supplies, kitchen goods, and sports gear—anything from a dead computer hard drive to a dozen old cans of paint—crowded the space.

The basement is transformed from a clutter catchall to a real room with the help of smart “furniture” picks. A glass-front black steel pantry now holds canned foods, bottled water, and other household provisions. A metal workbench keeps tools accessible; red plastic bins hide supplies. And a tall red metal bookcase stows woven-nylon bins that hold miscellany organized by category (summer items in one, home repair in another). For more details, see Before and After: Basement.

The McKenna family needed to find a place for every piece of equipment owned by its very active members. Without an organizing system, the kids left their gear wherever it landed. Bikes were strewn everywhere, sports gear teetered sloppily in hampers.

In the spiffed-up space, each sport has its own area: Baseball bats live in a wooden holder, lacrosse sticks in a proper caddy—and bikes and scooters have discrete parking spots. Off-season items, like ice-hockey sticks and snow shovels, hang from ceiling hooks, freeing up footage. For more details, see 3 Great Garage Makeovers.

Carolyn Weber and Eduardo Aponte wanted to carve out two distinct zones in their garage—one for potting (hers), one for fixing (his)—plus leave room for their car. With bulky equipment (wet-vac, riding mower) pointed this way and that, the garage was hard to navigate, and finding small items (hammer, nails) was almost impossible.

Zones were what the couple got—with a potting station, a sitting area, a tool depot, and seasonal storage (on shelves). Bulletin boards now hold project plans. Tools are suspended neatly from pegboards. A real potting bench not only adds charm, it makes a practical work area for Carolyn, who had taken to repotting plants on the front stoop. And though the slip-resistant mat cozies up the space, it also catches gas spills from the riding mower. For more details, see 3 Great Garage Makeovers.

Although Pascale Le Draoulec envisioned remaking her small garage into a combined workshop and playroom, it was junked up with unused flea-market furniture and long outgrown toys and bikes: an overwhelming combination.

Once some items have been cleared out, the garage’s rustic charm shines through. And there’s plenty of storage space for project materials, garden tools, and more: pegboards, freestanding shelves, bins, and baskets. For more details, see 3 Great Garage Makeovers.