Beautifully Organized: A Guide to Function and Style in Your Home

by Nikki Boyd

In Beautifully Organized: A Guide to Function and Style in Your Home, Nikki Boyd shares her best advice for how to create an organized, beautiful, and welcoming home. Nikki developed and honed her five essential steps to an organized home through her experience working as a professional organizer. In Beautifully Organized, Nikki teaches you to:

- ASSESS your home to transform the spaces within to enhance your lifestyle
- DECLUTTER and curate your possessions to keep what is useful and meaningful
- CLEAN with efficiency, adding an element of pleasure to everyday tasks
- ORGANIZE so you can find what you need, when you need it
- BEAUTIFY and decorate to create a welcoming atmosphere for family and friends

With her keen eye for detail and trademark warmth, Nikki guides readers through these steps, teaching how to graciously share your homes with family and friends to create treasured shared experiences and memories. Beautifully Organized is so much more than a home organization book—it’s a recipe for a beautiful, fulfilling life.

Genres: Nonfiction, Self Help, Design, Reference, Personal Development, How To, Adult

224 pages, Hardcover

First published April 2, 2019

About the author

Nikki Boyd is a professional organizer and founder of athomewithnikki.com where she helps bring beautiful order in homes around the world with her business, blog and YouTube channel. What began as a hobby is now a successful home organizing business, a popular blog, and YouTube channel, with thousands of readers coming to her site for creative and straightforward ways to beautifully organize their homes. She lives in Charleston, South Carolina with her husband and two puppies.

Reviews

[Amina · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book was fine. It had some good tips I will likely refer back to. I do think this is a book designed for a very specific person (read: wealthy) with a very specific taste (read: monochromatic elegance). I would have loved more pictures of a variety of spaces and examples, rather than just the author’s very particularly styled home. It was hard to imagine how some of her ideas could translate into my distinctly different preferences for living and decorating.

[Rachel Herschberger · Rating 3 out of 5]

I got a few good tips from this book, but overall it felt geared more towards empty nesters and not a busy household with lots of kiddos and activities. The pictures are lovely but I kept wondering where the normal "stuff" is that we all have and use. It had tips on organizing each space in the home, including guest bedrooms, media rooms, craft rooms, etc. I want to know how to organize when you have none of those and you live in an old house with no closets.😁 So, a lovely book but not especially helpful for the stage I'm in and the interests of our family.

[Heather · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book. I have such strong feelings about it - both strongly positive and strongly negative. Boyd's suggestion of family home meetings was the kind of suggestion I didn't know that I needed, and I can't speak enough about how powerfully instituting these weekly meetings have improved our family life. The weekly gathering has shifted all of the responsibility for family planning (schedules, meals, shopping, etc.) from me to a collaborative effort. Our kids are young (six and two) for these meetings, so they don't have much to contribute to things like the successes and struggles, but they now get to see both of their parents invested in helping the household run smoothly. Honestly, I was ready to go back to therapy because I was so unhappy with how disorganized the household was, despite being totally worn down by my efforts toward organization. I created two whiteboards that live on our fridge that we use for our meetings - one has the agenda for the meetings on it, and the other has meal plan for the week and possible sides for packed lunches on it. For our Teaching Topics, we've started using Teaching Tolerance's social justice standards for young children. A+++, would recommend family meetings.

I also enjoyed reading the book while my son was around. He asked me what I was learning, and it sparked some conversations about home organization and why it matters to me. I also appreciated the suggestion to beautify our entryway. We come in through the back door of our house, and the counter closest to the door becomes a repository for all things that we are carrying in - which then means that I'm greeted by an unorganized pile of stress every time I come home. Keeping that area cleared and sometimes adorned with fresh flowers has been a great move in the right direction.

But for the rest of the book - I kept wondering who the audience for the book was. I'll just go ahead and say this - if you have an entertaining closet in your dining room with dishware that is organized by color, we are living very different lives. I mean, sure, white makes a nice palette for pops of color - like dirty handprints and crayons. THAT is the life that I live. I have scattered broken crayons throughout my entire downstairs with accent chunks of dried PlayDoh, not gold-plated scissors hanging from the pegboard of my immaculate (and non-existent) craft room. I also really struggled with the emphasis on guests, as if they are the primary reason to keep your house organized. Sure, we like to entertain and host, but I want my house organized because it feels chaotic to *me*, and I live here.

I get that an organizing book is going to have some suggestions that work for some people and that don't work for others, but as I read about how the author judged a family upon entering their house and seeing kids' toys throughout the downstairs, I became increasingly discouraged that she really doesn't get people like me. The book reeked of privilege - the privileges of money to spend on
"stor[ing] food with style" or a movie room within the house with gourmet snacks and time, something that is clearly lacking in my working-mom-with-two-kids-and-involved-in-my-community life. Any of her "simple" projects would take a childfree person a weekend, maybe. With kids in tow? I can just imagine: I've cleared my garage of all of the items, but then someone skins a knee and needs doctoring. And then it's lunchtime for everyone. And then the two-year-old needs a nap. And now I'm spreading a tarp over everything I own because it's out in my yard, but I can't possibly finish the project today, not the least of because any store with organizing products like pegboards is a 20+-minute drive away, given that we live semi-rurally.

Ultimately, I wish that the author just understood what life is like for the rest of us, who cannot have lovely racks of mugs at our coffee station because the two-year-old will pull them all out on a daily basis and chip half of them in the process.

[Jean MacLeod · Rating 4 out of 5]

Just reading the book was motivational. All that pristine white and airy space was soothing to the eye, but not the conscience. I'm determined again to get cracking on sorting and passing on my surplus.

[Daisy S · Rating 3 out of 5]

I learned a lot about organization by reading this, and I loved a lot of the author's ideas.

I rated 3 stars because so much of the ideas were very expensive to fully achieve. E.g.: the author recommends that one folds guest towels in such a way. The folding is interesting and practical. The author then goes on to suggest that one put disposable one-use lotion bottles in the towels. For me, I took the folding tip, but always skip the one recommending further buying of materials and unnecessary expense.

[Amy Verges · Rating 2 out of 5]

Skip this one and read these two instead: Homebody by Joanna Gaines and The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up by Marie Kondo. These two books accomplish what this one was trying to, but couldn’t.

[Julie · Rating 4 out of 5]

On the final page of this lovely book, Nikki writes “My goal with this book is to inspire you to think of home organization not as a task, but as a wonderful opportunity to cultivate a beautiful environment.......”
Well Nikki, you definitely achieved your goal and I love the beautiful photos that the books is filled with.
I have seen two criticisms of this book that I feel are slightly unfair and want to take a second to address each
* This book is targeted at empty nesters. I don’t agree with this as there is a section specifically related to children’s spaces. In addition, a craft room is multi generational. Suggestions are also made to get children to join in with cleaning their spaces and build routines to make this easy.
* This book is targeted at an American audience. Up to a point, yes, but while most U.K. households will not have all the rooms mentioned, the organization tips work for that category irrespective of its location.
Not only will you pick up many tips from this book, it will also beautify your home in itself.

[Marissa Morrison · Rating 2 out of 5]

The author is a control freak. I actually found this book a bit scary. Everything in her house is white or gray (except for her collection of turquoise cleaning supplies). Even the board game boxes have to be colorless. She calls family meetings to teach her kids how to iron and load the dishwasher. Yeeps.

[Claudia · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book had some good insights and tips. However, I wanted more from a professional organizer. It lacks those "industry secrets." It is well thought out and is a great read for anyone struggling with home organization. Not enough material for a habitual home organizer.

[Peta · Rating 4 out of 5]

Lovely book, but extra but at the same time comprehensive though I think very geared towards the authors lifestyle and preferences. Still a lovely inspirational book.

[Lacasadideborah · Rating 3 out of 5]

It's a beautiful inspiring book with great pictures, however if your into these kind of books like clean my space, marie kondo, clutterbug etc. It does not bring a lot of new tips... Also it focuses mainly on rich(er) big(er) (American) homes although sometimes there are tips for small homes, so glad I checked it out but not a keeper for me...

[Ashley · Rating 2 out of 5]

I read this cover to cover, but . . . it was really just okay. I love home decor and organization, but this book is really just Nikki Boyd's house. All white and gray. No color, except for some matching (!) turquoise cleaning supplies. My quibbles:

1. Too many pouches, containers, and bins: I love a streamlined look as much as anybody, but if I have to find the bin that contains the pretty zippered decorative cloth pouch that contains a band-aid, I'm going to have blood all over the place before I find what I need. And then you have to put it all away again! And why transfer your fruit and veggies into pretty, matching containers? You're just creating more work and dirty dishes. And you know what? The fridge door is not see-through. NOBODY WILL KNOW YOUR GROCERIES ARE NOT COLOR-COORDINATED.

2. Lack of color: Boyd's personal style is elegant, monochromatic, clean. Fine. But she's a professional organizer. I would've liked to see photos from her clients' homes, perhaps. Something to show a wider range of how Boyd's ideas could play out against different home decors or styles. Me, I'm all warm earth tones at home. Corals, olive greens, mustard yellows, oranges. COLOR.

3. I call B.S.: Boyd argues that a neat, tidy, beautiful home will create lasting happiness and personal fulfillment. Oh, please. I'm a HUGE believer in the home being a place of sanctuary, peace, and order. But lives need to be built on something firmer than an organized pantry. The joy of a clean pantry comes AFTER you have your sh*t together.

Nonetheless, a few take-aways. As I Marie Kondo'd much of my abode a couple years ago, I internalized her anti-storage device advice. Instead of buying things to store our things, we need fewer things. This made sense to me, so I eschewed anything that might be found at The Container Store. And you know what? The cardboard pieces salvaged from the recycling bin have worked just fine keeping my sock drawer tidy and organized. But Boyd goes far in the other direction, so I opened my mind a wee bit. Perhaps SOME storage devices are worthwhile. I bought, on Boyd's suggestion, a pretty bamboo tea organizer. Now all those random, cluttery boxes of tea bags are gone. And selecting a tea in the evening is a lovely ritual. So there's a win.

I also bought an organizer for the lids of our pots and pans. SO much more efficient (and tidy) than stacking.

Also? She suggests buying under-the-bed storage containers for kid crap. Yes, it stores stuff they can't yet part with but don't use, BUT IT PREVENTS KIDS FROM SHOVING STUFF UNDER THEIR BEDS WHEN CLEANING. Brilliant.

Overall, not a lot of new ground is covered here, but there are few tidbits that might make it worth the read.

[Sussu Leclerc · Rating 4 out of 5]

A beautiful book with unique ideas such as planning gifts for the guests at the entryway or storing shoes under a coach. I love the pictures. The organization ideas are methodic and make sense. Many a time this type of books don't show where to start but only unveil tips. This book takes you from A to Z through the decluttering-rearranging stages. Some of the ideas sound awesome, but not very practical as you might well expect. However, they do a great job at putting things away in a beautiful way, but to keep it that way would require not having kids around or spending a lot of time checking everything is in place. Nikki does a great job warning the reader that the whole family needs to be on the track in order for an organization to work. She does insist on family meetings and how to proceed from there. I just love the way she decides what stays and what goes and how she recognizes that the responsibility stands on everyone's shoulder in a house. Well done, Nikki. Worth reading.

[Meg Mirza · Rating 4 out of 5]

Flawlessly elegant and sophisticated, Nikki Boyd draws on her organization expertise gleaned from multiple moves as a military spouse to show off a home that is sparkling clean, refreshing, homey and perfect for entertaining. A consummate hostess, I was amazed by the lengths Boyd goes to make visitors feel welcome in her home, truly elevating any visit to a spa-like experience for her guests.

[Madeline · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book is beautiful, and would be great if you are very wealthy with a lot of space and time on your hands. It’s not super practical for families, and particularly families without a ton of space to work with. It’s fun to look at, and has lots of information, but I’ve read a lot of organizing books, and this one felt very overwhelming to me in terms of detail.

[Autumn · Rating 5 out of 5]

Lots of gems! I came away with a long list of projects to start and tips to implement:)

[Vicki · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is actually a 3.5 for me.

Although Nikki's decorating style was quite different than my own, she uses a lot of white in all of her decorating and is very focused on guests/entertaining, I did find some interesting information in this book. I have included a few excerpts that stood out to me and my thoughts about them below.

Pros
Not new or exclusive to this book, I have found the concepts to eliminate excess and "shop" the items we already own useful. So often we already have what we need to beautify our space, we just can't see the beauty and or functionality of what we already have through all the clutter.

She nails it with her "causes of clutter"
Sentimental Syndrome
I May Need It Later Syndrome
Shopping Habit
Learned Behavior
Feeling Overwhelmed

I liked the "only one backup" rule and the concept of setting a time limit on when you are going to use an item and if you haven't used it by that time to part ways with it.

Lastly, the concept of not just decluttering (negative connotation), but curating to create an elegant and beautiful space (positive connotation) is a positive spin on the efforts required to "strive for your best life. Especially at home."

Cons
This is written from the perspective of wealthy empty nesters.

There were a few minor editing misses as the book progressed, but not obvious or distracting enough to reduce my enjoyment of the book. Still a shame in such a beautiful and well-written book.

[False · Rating 2 out of 5]

I checked this out of the library thinking "maybe" it was have some organizational advice that I'm not already aware of in decorating and organizing a home. It didn't. Using her own home as a style point, it is way too much samey throughout the rooms: read "silver, chrome, gray, white, so much so the rooms look antiseptic and cold. They also look "done" as in "no sense of the people living here." I guess I had perhaps conjured up unrealistic expectations for it. Having read many a book on this topic I was expecting "Aha moments" with ground breaking life hacks, however, this certainly is not it. Most things in her book, while they likely work well for her, simply are common sense notions that I think most of us just struggle at finding the time to consistently implement. Would have liked to see more suggestions for homes that lack a linen closet or other features. She could probably do a revision with newer more innovative suggestions. I'm not sure who could find this book useful for its value besides as a coffee table book. I will give her this, her home is beautiful, I just do not believe it is functional for my family's needs.

[Em · Rating 2 out of 5]

Eh, another blogger with a book.

I'm grateful to my mother who understood that creating a home meant you could have style and comfort and do so without hiring decorators, and spending money on matchy-matchy, trendy, and mass-produced furniture and decor.

I know nothing about the author. Her book came up in a library search for "storage in the home."

This book seems targeted to the suburban family with space, money, and a desire to keep up with the Joneses.

If you're new to keeping a home, you might find this helpful.

Oh, and the photos - ugh. Who wants to live in such a monochromatic color scheme: white, gray, silver, and occasional pops of green plants, turquoise in the kitchen, and fake gold in the office? It looks like it was decorated from trips to Target. I don't understand this obsession with gray.

The author is no Martha Stewart or Marie Kondo.

[Panda Incognito · Rating 3 out of 5]

Every room in this woman's entire home is white and grey. This doesn't appeal to me at all, but she has some good organizational and cleaning advice to offer, so I skimmed through the book. I like her idea of storing documents in labeled binders instead of file folders, and even though this book is geared towards people with large and luxurious homes, she doesn't assume that everyone has plentiful space. For example, in her chapter about the guest room, she gives suggestions for how people who don't have a permanent, exclusive space for guests can still create a welcoming environment for visitors within a dual-purpose room. Overall, there was nothing spectacular about this book, but the author gave tips that I haven't seen elsewhere and maintained an accessible, non-elitist tone.

[Rogue Reader · Rating 2 out of 5]

I am unfamiliar with this ethic, so reading and thinking about this book is not an easy task. All white, perfectly staged with no discordant elements. Cold, lacking emotion, a photograph of a moment in time, not real life, not a lived-in home. More stuff to buy to conceal and disruption. On the plus side, it took a lot of thought and work to get to the point when these photos could be taken, the photos are of the organizer's home rather than some random client. Also on the plus side is the process that is consistently applied in each living area: assess, de-clutter, clean, beautify. That is a method, and one that makes sense. Also covers some areas that might not usually be addressed, a pet space and the garage. What about the basement and attic? Only kidding.

[elle · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book has some really nice ideas and motivational tips for organization, but there are a few issues I have with it. First of all, it is not geared at all towards a family home with small children. There is now way I could keep my house this clean and organized with a toddler running around. Secondly, while the pictures of her house are beautiful, they’re very cold and impersonal. It looks more like a rental home or a house that belongs on a magazine cover. While I did take some good things away from this book, I think overall this is a very unrealistic expectation for many homeowners.

[Emma Sotomayor · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is the guide to home organization that everyone needs. Excellent for a bridal shower gift or a housewarming present, Beautifully Organized contains the key to making every room in the house aesthetically pleasing, practical, and peaceful. The book contains chapters organized by room for easy reference when cleaning out the house and also includes styling tips to make a home welcoming.

Boyd clearly knows her craft; this book contains everything one might need to create a beautiful home environment. I will probably be purchasing it once I buy my first house!

[Venessia · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is not just a beautiful coffee table book. It's a great resource for people who looking to organize or just spruce up their home decor. I follow Nikki on Youtube so a lot of these tips she's shared there already but this book was a welcome addition to my coffee table and full of helpful tips. I love buying black and supporting black women and businesses in any way I can so I didn't mind purchasing this book in the hardcover version.

[Janelle]

I really would have appreciated more photos of different types of houses using her methods. She writes about clients she has worked with but all the pictures are from her very white, quite large, empty nester home. While in a lot of ways I liked her approach better than the other organizing book I looked through recently (Home Edit) I actually got more ideas from that book since there were a lot more pictures of different houses from different stages of life.

[Lauren Gillespie · Rating 3 out of 5]

A decent book for clutter queens like myself who are disorganized and overwhelmed! I wish that the author had given more specific organizational ideas at certain points rather than offering up the banal suggestion to simply get rid of things you don’t use. Not written with maximalists in mind, but definitely a great start when you feel like you’re living in the Grinch’s lair and need something to cling to.

[Triska · Rating 2 out of 5]

I was hoping to get in-depth tips and tricks for organizing but this covered the basics and then went into some very tangential areas. Anything past the basics was more focused on entertaining or buying little “extras” to serve as nice surprises for guests. While there were some good tips, many things were more excessive/consumeristic than I really need or want. If you’re trying to organize and live more simply/consume less, this isn’t the book for you.

[Maddie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Inspiring easy to put into practice ideas, like family home meeting agenda items and teaching topic suggestions, with the aim of involving the entire family to ensure a home stays organized. Somewhat out of touch with sections on specialty spaces and an entertaining closet, a few pages on kid spaces, and only a few passing notes on green living.

[Janet · Rating 2 out of 5]

Beautiful book. In fact, a bit too bland & beautiful for my taste and the way I realistically live—much more colorfully and messy. She has a few good pointers, but the overall sense I got is that you need to buy lots of bins and baskets and put everything in its neat little place when you’re done with it. Ah, if only.

[Kate · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book is really pretty and I like how she has things laid out, but I didn't find it as useful as I anticipated. Many luxury spaces and products and not very child friendly. That being said, it is still a nice book that may appeal to a certain niche. The author's voice is very personable and makes it a fun read overall on the more applicable spaces.