It’s easy to get caught up in the hustle and bustle of the back-to-school season, between sporting events, meet-the-teacher nights, and your own social outings. August into October feels like a whirlwind of elevated pacing, and it’s easy to get into surviving, not thriving, mode. We don’t quite realize the importance of a well-organized home during all the back to school chaos until we find ourselves without one.

Every home needs designated spaces to help keep it as organized as possible. Keeping on top of your family’s organizational needs will help your life run smoother, overall. And, you’ll be able to maintain a home that’s as stylish as you are, without adding any extra chaos to your already hectic lifestyle.

Up next, we’re sharing our four favorite spaces in our hope to inspire your back-to-school season styling, so you can start your school-year off with a very-well organized, bang!

A Beautiful and Functional Mudroom

You can’t survive without some sort of contained area for the family to drop off their backpacks, football pads, shoes, and dirty laundry. And an area that you can close the door to so you can hide such things is even better.

What is this magical space we speak of? Behold… the mudroom. When done right, you can have a room dedicated to being messy (hence the name) without actually looking like it’s hiding all your dirty laundry… and quite literally doing so. A mudroom should be stocked with cleaning supplies and lovely built-in storage.

We know our way around a mudroom! If your home is in need of a mudroom update, or you’re looking for a few ideas to give your existing mudroom a sprucing, click here for our designer expertise to get your mudroom in tip top shape.

A Kid-Friendly, Yet Still Stylish Space

Whether it’s a playroom or a gameroom, your kiddos need somewhere to stash their gaggle of goodies.

The Lego, the art supplies, the Barbies, the endless LOL Dolls, whatever your kids are into, if you don’t give them ample storage space, and room to use said toys, then they’re going to slowly creep into other areas of your home. So, giving your children a place for their “supplies” to call home is an absolute must. It’s one of our secrets to maintain a smart, stylish and fun home without having to constantly run around like a human vacuum, picking up everything your kids put down.

You can see some of our favorite kid-friendly projects here, along with a few of our go-tos for how to keep your home kid-friendly without sacrificing an ounce of chic-ness.

A Designated Teen Oasis

You know the drill here. If you make too big of a deal out of your teens having their own space, they’re going to revolt and just not use it. But, if done carefully, and as nonchalant as possible, you can avoid teen drama and give your teenagers a space that you’re even a little envious of.

When it comes to teen spaces, you need to make sure it fits the “cool” vibe, but also has low-key function. You have to make it easy for teenagers to use the space how it’s intended to be used, and to keep it organized, but you don’t want them to feel like it’s their idea. Again, you have to out-teen the teens.

To build a space that your teens will love, and actually use, you’ll need to do a little research and plan on collaborating with your teenager. It doesn’t have to be as scary as it sounds! We’ve designed many successfully maintained teen spaces in our day, ones that the teenagers of the household love, as do their parents! Our guide to teen spaces is right here, so you can read up and make sure your teens have their own area.