Thanks for the house tour, it makes me smile to see everything so perfectly organized! I love it! So beautiful! I do have a question that has been on my mind since I read your first book. When you wear your shoes outside, and then put them back in your beautiful closet, how do you clean the bottoms so your closet shelves don't get ruined? I know this sounds crazy to ask, but I live in Toronto and we have messy, snowy, rainy weather a lot and I want to keep my California Closet shelves in perfect condition.
I actually get this question a lot! We keep boots and walking shoes either outside on the porch (my daughter's muddy soccer cleats are also out there) or in a sideboard by the entry. The rest do live in our closet shelves and we haven't had an issue with the shelves getting dirty. Other organizers I know wipe their shoes with antibacterial wipes or just paper towels before placing on shelves but we're pretty low key about it to be honest! x
Had the same question! I'm in Ottawa and outdoor shoes need to be cleaned seasonally before being put away to keep the salt and sand out of closets. And given our -30C temp winters, leaving boots outdoors isn't really an option -- would be a recipe for frozen toes!
Ha! I keep an oversized basket in the living room for dumping mail, bills, and school forms. My kids do crew (no gear!) and soccer and keep their uniforms etc. in their rooms. x
This was wonderful ❤️. And I love your down to earth personality that comes out in your writing. We are a family of 8 in 850 sq ft., so I'm always on the hunt for better ways to maximize our space! I wondered what you do when you have guests stay over?
WOW! Now I want your tips! Both of our families are local so we rarely have overnight guests aside from teen sleepovers all over the living room floor! x
Being a larger family in CA really kinda forced our hand in regards to sq footage 😊, but we wanted to be near family, and I have come to appreciate the way it has drastically caused me to look at my consumerism, carbon footprint, financial freedom, etc. Often I feel those things are naturally symbiotic with one another? Of course I dream of grass (we have no backyard 🥴), but am grateful for what we have been given until then.
And perhaps because you were wondering the logistics lol, we have three boys in one room, three girls in the other and my husband and I have a Murphy bed in our living room 🙉🙈🙊🥰
It sounds like you know what is important to you and your family. Being close to family and having more financial freedom because you have a smaller home is a choice I can totally understand. Thank you for your response, I really appreciate how open you were willing to be with a stranger on the internet. I am always facinated by small space living and how different people use their space. Have a lovely weekend.
I don't know why I never saw this Ana, but thank you so much! Truly. It's amazing to see how much weight was lifted when I was willing to be honest and (somewhat) vulnerable with others about how we live. In a world where the American Dream is defined by the size of your house, I could feel shame creep in. But finding your people who get it, feels like sunshine I love your heart. Thank you for sharing it with me ❤️
This is so helpful! Great ideas that I’d like to transfer to my own small bungalow rental. Could you link to those bins (are they metal?) and any other items that are storing your art supplies? Also that’s the Room & Board sectional that I’ve decided on too. What fabric did you go with? Thank you!! Leah
The art bins are thick cardboard and not sure I would recommend. The other bins are these white nordic baskets: https://go.shopmy.us/p-7850548 - we picked Tatum Grey for the color / fabric. x
I love your cozy minimalist home tour and the peaceful inner calm it radiates! We also live in a smaller home after downsizing when our two flew the coop! My motto is: quality over quantity, more of less and less of more!
Hi! Love your home tour! I have little kids (newly 2 yrs old and 7m) and live in a 1200sf two br rowhome. I was wondering how you dealt with kids stuff when they were little. I’m a little sad they don’t have a designated playroom, it’s the main thing we dream of more space for!
We never had a playroom either - instead, we made the city our playground - museums, hikes, picnics, ice cream dates etc. and make our home the spot to relax. For the toys and games we did have I used oversized floor baskets in the girls' shared room. Hope this helps! xoxo
Hi Shira! Love the tour and appreciate that you mentioned where those misc items like a printer, mementos, swimsuits, and suitcases go. Also love the insights on teen girls growing into their own. Such a fun time for them! I am also very impressed that your laundry hampers are so small.
Two questions about the kitchen:
1) how does a kitchen rug work? Does it slide around? Does it not get dirty from spills and crumbs? And how do you feel confident that a rug from Etsy will work - that the colors will be accurate as photographed?
2) what dish drying rack do you use and where does it go?
1. The rug is old and vintage so hides dirt, etc. very well and we have a cordless vacuum that can make crumbs disappear in two seconds!
2. I am anti-dish rack! We wash and dry our dishes after dinner and wipe counters down for a fresh start. SO lovely to wake up to in the am even though we never feel like doing it!
Your home gives me so much inspiration! Also, I heartily agree that it’s great to follow your friend Amanda Cercone’s chic style… She is fabulous and her bags are just wonderful!! I have already bought several :-)
Your home is beautiful and inspirational. Living in SF this gives us so many ideas on how to live in smaller spaces where you have magically created a beautiful and serene home. Thank you for sharing.
I loved this tour and have some inspiration to take with me. Can I ask what white paint you used for your kitchen? The link was not working. Thank you!
Love your home 💕 I live in a tiny home too (1924 sears home) and although I’m a minimalist myself, we had a baby this year so our closets and cabinets have become our “hiding place” for all the things. This was a good inspiration to clean up and let go of a few things! Thank you! Also I loled at “before the revolt” hahaha
Hi Shira,
Thanks for the house tour, it makes me smile to see everything so perfectly organized! I love it! So beautiful! I do have a question that has been on my mind since I read your first book. When you wear your shoes outside, and then put them back in your beautiful closet, how do you clean the bottoms so your closet shelves don't get ruined? I know this sounds crazy to ask, but I live in Toronto and we have messy, snowy, rainy weather a lot and I want to keep my California Closet shelves in perfect condition.
I actually get this question a lot! We keep boots and walking shoes either outside on the porch (my daughter's muddy soccer cleats are also out there) or in a sideboard by the entry. The rest do live in our closet shelves and we haven't had an issue with the shelves getting dirty. Other organizers I know wipe their shoes with antibacterial wipes or just paper towels before placing on shelves but we're pretty low key about it to be honest! x
Ok thanks Shira!
Had the same question! I'm in Ottawa and outdoor shoes need to be cleaned seasonally before being put away to keep the salt and sand out of closets. And given our -30C temp winters, leaving boots outdoors isn't really an option -- would be a recipe for frozen toes!
Fun to see! Thanks for sharing. Are there no piles of school papers, permission slips and soccer and dance shoes?
Ha! I keep an oversized basket in the living room for dumping mail, bills, and school forms. My kids do crew (no gear!) and soccer and keep their uniforms etc. in their rooms. x
I love that you got them to love a sport with no gear! Well done!
Won the lottery on that one!
This was wonderful ❤️. And I love your down to earth personality that comes out in your writing. We are a family of 8 in 850 sq ft., so I'm always on the hunt for better ways to maximize our space! I wondered what you do when you have guests stay over?
WOW! Now I want your tips! Both of our families are local so we rarely have overnight guests aside from teen sleepovers all over the living room floor! x
Appreciate the reply! 🥰
That is impressive! You need to tell people how you manage to fit so many bodies in such a small space. Well done!!!!!
Being a larger family in CA really kinda forced our hand in regards to sq footage 😊, but we wanted to be near family, and I have come to appreciate the way it has drastically caused me to look at my consumerism, carbon footprint, financial freedom, etc. Often I feel those things are naturally symbiotic with one another? Of course I dream of grass (we have no backyard 🥴), but am grateful for what we have been given until then.
And perhaps because you were wondering the logistics lol, we have three boys in one room, three girls in the other and my husband and I have a Murphy bed in our living room 🙉🙈🙊🥰
It sounds like you know what is important to you and your family. Being close to family and having more financial freedom because you have a smaller home is a choice I can totally understand. Thank you for your response, I really appreciate how open you were willing to be with a stranger on the internet. I am always facinated by small space living and how different people use their space. Have a lovely weekend.
I don't know why I never saw this Ana, but thank you so much! Truly. It's amazing to see how much weight was lifted when I was willing to be honest and (somewhat) vulnerable with others about how we live. In a world where the American Dream is defined by the size of your house, I could feel shame creep in. But finding your people who get it, feels like sunshine I love your heart. Thank you for sharing it with me ❤️
Oh
This is so helpful! Great ideas that I’d like to transfer to my own small bungalow rental. Could you link to those bins (are they metal?) and any other items that are storing your art supplies? Also that’s the Room & Board sectional that I’ve decided on too. What fabric did you go with? Thank you!! Leah
The art bins are thick cardboard and not sure I would recommend. The other bins are these white nordic baskets: https://go.shopmy.us/p-7850548 - we picked Tatum Grey for the color / fabric. x
You really live the concept of only keeping what fits in your home! Brava! Beautiful and serene home.
xoxo
You have such a beautiful home 😍 and I love the emphasis on one coat!
Thank you so much! x
I love your cozy minimalist home tour and the peaceful inner calm it radiates! We also live in a smaller home after downsizing when our two flew the coop! My motto is: quality over quantity, more of less and less of more!
Amen to all of that! x
Thank you for the tour! Do you keep your sheets and towels inside the bins in your linen closet? Our closet is a bit of a hot mess
We keep our backup sheets in the bins and just have one nice towel per person which are stored on hooks! x
Thank you for replying! I just read Minimalista and loved it! Can’t wait to read your other books
I would love the deets on that printer. Mine is huge and takes up so much space I don’t have to give.
Ours is the HP Tango - super compact and works like a charm! x
Thank you!
Hi! Love your home tour! I have little kids (newly 2 yrs old and 7m) and live in a 1200sf two br rowhome. I was wondering how you dealt with kids stuff when they were little. I’m a little sad they don’t have a designated playroom, it’s the main thing we dream of more space for!
We never had a playroom either - instead, we made the city our playground - museums, hikes, picnics, ice cream dates etc. and make our home the spot to relax. For the toys and games we did have I used oversized floor baskets in the girls' shared room. Hope this helps! xoxo
Hi Shira! Love the tour and appreciate that you mentioned where those misc items like a printer, mementos, swimsuits, and suitcases go. Also love the insights on teen girls growing into their own. Such a fun time for them! I am also very impressed that your laundry hampers are so small.
Two questions about the kitchen:
1) how does a kitchen rug work? Does it slide around? Does it not get dirty from spills and crumbs? And how do you feel confident that a rug from Etsy will work - that the colors will be accurate as photographed?
2) what dish drying rack do you use and where does it go?
Thank you!
1. The rug is old and vintage so hides dirt, etc. very well and we have a cordless vacuum that can make crumbs disappear in two seconds!
2. I am anti-dish rack! We wash and dry our dishes after dinner and wipe counters down for a fresh start. SO lovely to wake up to in the am even though we never feel like doing it!
LOVED this home tour. Plenty of ideas to borrow for my own life.
Re the cozy grey sweatshirt - I managed to get the Doen x Gap one from their collaboration and I plan to live in it all winter. It's the bees' knees.
Fabulous! Nothing like a good gray sweatshirt! x
Your home gives me so much inspiration! Also, I heartily agree that it’s great to follow your friend Amanda Cercone’s chic style… She is fabulous and her bags are just wonderful!! I have already bought several :-)
Oh I love that so much!! She is THE BEST :)
Your home is beautiful and inspirational. Living in SF this gives us so many ideas on how to live in smaller spaces where you have magically created a beautiful and serene home. Thank you for sharing.
That makes me so happy! Truthfully, I prefer a smaller home and sometimes dream of going even smaller though not sure my family would be on board ;)
I loved this tour and have some inspiration to take with me. Can I ask what white paint you used for your kitchen? The link was not working. Thank you!
Yes! The kitchen walls are painted Light Pewter (a very pale gray) and the ceiling, cabinets, and moldings are Snowfall White - both Benjamin Moore. x
Love your home 💕 I live in a tiny home too (1924 sears home) and although I’m a minimalist myself, we had a baby this year so our closets and cabinets have become our “hiding place” for all the things. This was a good inspiration to clean up and let go of a few things! Thank you! Also I loled at “before the revolt” hahaha