Is Now The Time To Reorganize Our Rooms — And Our Lives?

While we’re all stuck at home, house makeover shows and DIY tutorials are beginning to shine, and it’s not hard to imagine why. We are spending more time than normal indoor, alone, with nothing to keep us business other than the things surrounding us, while we scroll through TikTok and Instagram and peep the those that surround other people. Some of that viewing is more intentional (Architectural Digest’s home tour with Dakota Johnson felt like the quirkiest salve as we were just barely settling into our new common) and then some is much less so (like whenever we all learned that Charlie Puth doesn’t habitually make his bed). Yet all of it appears to reactivate the earworm Marie Kondo planted deep in our psyches: clean up, get organized, and lose the things that aren’t sparking joy — and get it done before your next Zoom chat. Or better nevertheless, document your room makeover for that quarantine YouTube channel you’ve been meaning to launch.


With our work meetings, happy hours, and Tinder dates all taking place over FaceTime, more people than regular are joining us indoor our homes. So is it time we all take our interiors from drab to fab, or is it better to live in our proverbial sweatpants in all areas of our lives?


Welcome to Cross / Pop, where MTV News navigates pop culture's biggest questions with logic, reason, and personalized preferences. In this week's edition, Social Media Manager Virginia Lowman and Colleague Producer Sunni Valentine welcome you indoor their New York City apartments to debate whether now’s the time to reorganize our lives.


You are both undergoing some sort of reorganization assignments while we’re all social distancing. What is the extent of your project, and what inspired you?


Virginia: I turned an empty space into a residence home business so I can “leave” work and actually feel like I’m separating work from my personalized space, yet I’m also reorganizing my apartment as a whole, because right now that I’m spending so much time here — and scrolling through @MyDomaine and @SomewhereIWouldLikeToLive on Instagram — I’m realizing there really are changes that I can that could make the apartment feel more intentional and more zen.


Sunni: I’m turning my apartment into a center for inspiration. I’ve put together a Pinterest board that reflects my expectations for how I'd like to reorganize the space. @BLKVintage is one of my preferred places to visit for inspiration. They have a wide number of heirlooms and collectibles that make my place feel more homey. Also, Package Free is another preference, they remind me to create changes that positively affect the environment.


There's been a surge in people searching for "room makeover" videos on YouTube. Is YouTube a supportive resource for you? And do you find watching every step of someone else's process to be intimidating or invigorating?


Virginia: I’m more focused on photographs, however occasionally, I like to refer to YouTube for series like Refinery29’s “Sweet Digs” or Apartment Therapy’s “Small Spaces.” The search is much less focused on “room makeover” and more focused on how millennials decorate their homes as a whole. I don’t need to be able to see every step of the process.


Sunni: YouTube is probably the most accommodating resource for me. Watching someone begin and finish an assignment and share it with us all inspires me a ton. I’m not handy at all, so seeing other girls complete small tasks — installing lighting fixtures, laying flooring, or painting — makes dialogue all of the more fun to watch. I am obsessed with Shalom Blac’s washroom makeover. She literally tore the place up and began over. That part was intimidating, yet the outcome was worth it!


Why did right now feel like the time to start?


Virginia: I think a lot of young New Yorkers get an apartment they feel comfortable in, although they don’t spend very much time in them — that’s just the nature of living in New York. Although staying residence and practicing social distancing feels like such a reset that I wanted that feeling to permeate my living space, also. With so much chaos outdoor, I wondered how I would make my residence feel like a respite without breaking the bank. I’ve noticed there really are small things that bring me fantastic joy — flowers, playing with organic light in my apartment, using negative space and getting rid of excess.


The downside, nevertheless, is that you just be with space that will inevitably look cluttered with things you intend to give away yet can’t, since we’re sheltering in place. For me, that place is my spare closet, which is becoming more and more packed with items I intend to give away. I don’t expect to have joy as soon as I open it — things are getting manic beyond those doors! However getting rid of (or, hiding) clothes I haven’t worn, the surplus of aesthetics products I amassed as an aesthetics editor, and the 32 mismatched forks my last roommate left in back of (yes, 32) feels good.


Sunni: Honestly, this is the most time I’ve spent in my apartment. I’m habitually on the go and spend more time outdoor than I do in my apartment. I’m also a borderline hoarder, however I’ve come a long way. At the office, my desk is all set up to get things done. At house, not so much. The clutter was stressful. Since having to work from residence, I’ve had a little bit added time to get rid of things that no longer compliment my aesthetic or things that are distracting. It has been a little tough since donation centers aren’t taking items now, however I can hide them away up until things are back to regular. In the meantime, may as well make my atmosphere as work-from-home friendly as possible — with a splash of “oh that’s cute!”


Do you like seeing indoor celebrity homes while in this time?


Virginia: I’m more curious about landscape and architectural features in celebrity homes than I am about what they have in them, however Drake’s piano hood is pretty incredible, and I fell in love with Kesha’s fireplace. However there really are plenty of strangers who I follow on Instagram just because their Architectural Digest feature showed that they have a sunken living room in their house, or I love the quantity of organic light their space has (I’m looking at you, @tylerjoe). I’m actually more curious about the homes of everyday people, like those on @ApartmentTherapy, because they’re typically curated by the dweller and not someone who makes homes immaculate for living. You get a higher class of sense of the person. Although I am going to mention that people who don’t feel the need to tidy up any time video chatting, celebs included, I find… fascinating — along with a little bit rude. It’s sort of like inviting someone over for dinner and serving them on dirty dishes, or asking them to move your laundry off to the side so they can sit on your sofa. At the same time, I think how you live is a reflection of your life, and people stage name stress differently. Some people decompress by cleaning up, others pick to adapt and stay in it.


Sunni: I like seeing homes overall — I watch HGTV religiously, Green Living, Buy or DIY, Beautification and most recently The World’s Most Extraordinary Homes on Netflix — however it has been a breath of fresh air to be able to see how usual celeb homes look throughout this time! I love as soon as I’m watching celebs at house in their organic habitats and I realize that we have similar items in our place. I too have a salt lamp on my corner table along with a fiddle leaf fig tree near my desk! Tracee Ellis Ross’s videos made me feel more humble. I don't know why I expect all of those to have these luxurious spaces; a lot of those look pretty common. Not all celebs have a plant-friendly inside pool area, like Chrissy Teigen. Seeing several of those celeb homes was proof that making your place feel like house is pretty priceless.


Is there a point where house content becomes also much and begins to feel discouraging?


Virginia: Yes and no. There really are a lot of things I would love to change that just aren’t cost-effective in a space that I don’t own. There’s a vacant room that I would love to convert into a “den” of sorts. I’d love to get rid of the weird nightstands my landlord has mounted on the walls of the bedroom, install backsplash tile in my kitchen and redo the cabinets, and update the washroom. Nevertheless I don’t own the space. Escapism has been big for me. The cost of real estate in New York is depressing, however I balance what I can do right now and what I want to do however can’t afford with vision boards. Any time Once I visualize something in a space that I like on Instagram, I save it or screenshot it and add it to the vision board I’ve created on Photoshop. (Screenshots are another thing I need to work on reorganizing, however phone clutter isn't a beast I’m willing to stage name although) If anything, I use what could be disappointment from not having the means to live as extravagantly as I’d like as a source of inspiration, to psych my brain into realizing that these are things I plan to have in the future. Shay Mitchell’s home is one that I particularly love — exposed beams, warm hues, some woods, marble, and Moroccan tile. #Heaven


Sunni: Yes, thinking about how much rent I pay and what I may would be investing is discouraging, although in the event you could pay rent in New York and still manage to create a couple of changes to your space, you aren’t doing so bad. That’s the reminder I use for myself. And yes it turns my space revamp into a fun challenge. Maybe I can’t have a Ernie Barnes oil on canvas now, nevertheless I will assist up-and-coming artists with similar beauty and use this time to design a mock of what I would like my house to be in the future with some inspiration from house content. Plus, it’s not routinely about purchasing new things. An eas rearrangement can have a large significant impact. As an example, you don’t habitually have to purchase anything. Make the most of your existing pieces. Move things around to other parts of your place where they can assist elevate the look. You’d be happy to know that several pieces you already own are so versatile.


Do you visualize an end in sight for your reorganization assignments, or does it seem like whenever you fix one segment of your life, another possibility pops up?


Virginia: No, I don’t think there’s an end in sight. I’m reorganizing my residence, nevertheless this is just an extension of an ongoing reorganization/renovation of my life. Personalized betterment is constant. As you evolve, so, also, will your needs, how you live, and what brings you joy. That’s not necessarily a bad thing, although the thought of it might be tiresome some days. Once I’m reorganizing, I ensure that I have at least one “safe room/space” that can serve as a haven from the chaos of clutter, so that whenever I’m overwhelmed I can go there and decompress.


It’s a case-by-case scenario for each person. Clutter and disorganization stress me out, so things like making my bed each day or organizing my fridge/freezer by food order so that I never have to hunt for things, are acts of self-care. I don’t think you have to give into the pressure to take on added assignments like reorganizing just because it feels like the world is slowing down. Unless you have a partner or a roommate, in which case, you’ve gotta compromise, fam.


Sunni: I do visualize an end to this reorganization project because I don’t own my space, so there isn’t much I can do without violating the terms of my lease, which isn’t fun! Although, I love DIY anything and improving my lifestyle. Also, my mother is a sustainable interior designer and I'm routinely on call for an assignment with her! I’m currently helping a friend become more eco-friendly with house choices. It’s really exhilarating and feels good to know I’m helping someone who once felt overwhelmed due to all of the unnecessary things that have been hoarded, similar to why I began reorganizing. I find reorganizing very therapeutic. Some would mention that’s building a mess, and if it isn’t damaged don’t fix it. I mention redecorating is living in your most up-to-date truth.


Consensus says:


Your house is your sanctuary right now more than ever, and then some added business can be relaxing — that is, in case you find organizing to be relaxing. Although for those with tight spaces or tight budgets, undertaking a massive reorganization project while several donation centers remain closed might leave you stranded with a chaotic pile of knick-knacks in a joyless corner of your house. Some days, the perfect we can do is turn to our vision boards and manifest our aspirations into being.