I needed help staging an older home. I wasn't quite sure where to start so I picked up the phone and called Interior Chicago. I'm glad I did! From start to finish, they made the staging process simple, professional, and time efficient. I wasn't sure what to expect initially. However, I did have a goal, to sell the home as quickly as possible. Taking our goal into consideration, and listening to our needs, Kate deployed a swift plan of action. Her attention to detail was impeccable. The beautiful accessories Kate used throughout the home, paired with modern furniture and other design elements, brought the home back to life - a creative masterpiece. It truly was a stunning sight to see. I'm happy to report that the home sold quickly! Thank you, Interior Chicago for listening, caring, communicating, executing, and designing the perfect experience for us. If you are looking for a stager/interior designer, I highly recommend Kate and her crew at Interior Chicago. read more

Kate is a creative genius - she completely revamped our apartment and successfully accomplished the mission of taking a one bed River North rental and turing it into a "home." In addition, she pulled off the near impossible and organized our bathroom, kitchen and bedroom - it no longer takes me 78 mins to find my socks each morning. What truly makes Kate special is her ability to collaborate and come up with design and organizational solutions that sync with her clients personality and vision - she has absolutely no ego and is one of the smartest, kindest and fun people my wife and I have ever had the privilege to work with. It is without hesitation that I recommend Arranging Order - Kate and her team will exceed your expectations! read more

Arranging Order is actually one relatively inexperienced designer, the proprietor. I won't name her in this review because I have nothing positive to say about my experience using Arranging Order. 1) The proprietor is completely disorganized, which is ironic considering the name of her business. Case in point, she lost/misplaced over $2,000 of receipts in purchases during the project. The ones she bothered to retain were crumpled and smudged. In both cases, I had to contact the vendor to obtain copies. You don't need to be a Master of Craft to hold onto a receipt. Heck, when I buy someone a Christmas present, I manage to keep the receipt for a week or two. 2) She nearly doubled both the timeline & the budget. Again, ironic because she touted herself as "specializing in people working on a budget". After wasting my time and money... 3) ...She quit! She literally walked off the job less than halfway through. 4) She exhibited little understanding of design. I'm not speaking of aesthetics, which is subjective. The new designer I hired returned 80% of her purchases, remarking Furniture Wasn't To Scale For The Space. Isn't it common sense to measure a room, measure the furniture and make sure it fits?! 5) She's rude. The other professionals who were forced to work with her (property manager, realtor, executive assistants), commented on her poor attitude. I was embarrassed for hiring her. I wouldn't recommend Arranging Order to anyone. read more

We can't say enough great things about Kate and Arranging Order! What a gifted and professional person she is. We have used Arranging Order for interior design purposes in our new home and were very satisfied with Kate's work. You know you have found a talented person when they are able to bring to life your real-life and aesthetic personality and character. Kate really "got us," as you say, and was very caring and a great guide throughout the whole planning and implementation phases. We were so impressed by her and her work that we used her again to do our nursery and we love it. Everybody who comes to our home always comments on how great the colors and decor play off each other. We truly feel at home in our place and couldn't be happier with what Arranging Order and Kate have done for us. She is dependable, always conscious of her client's needs and budget, has great vision, and is just overall a joy to work with. You don't find this type of customer service bundled together with expertise and passion anymore these days and we are thankful to have found her. Great job! read more

ORGANIZATION+DESIGN=SALVATION! What I learned from Arranging Order (the short list) 1. Work with what you already have I kept asking Kate: "What do you want me to buy to get organized?" Her response 99% of the time was: "Nothing! Let's work with what you have and go from there The result: I already had most of what I needed! I bought 1 jewelry organizer, 2 bins for shoes and some floating shelves. And that was for her work in 4 rooms of my home. 2. It's all about you and your needs My first session with Kate was all about me! She asked me endless questions about how I lived in my home, what I needed, what kind of life I lead and my aesthetic. She gave me doable homework assignments between sessions and designed a system that worked for my life and needs. I love it! Furthermore, I was shocked when I got an email post session asking how everything was going for me. Kate kept saying: "Remember, this has to work for you." 3. Systems=sustained organization I am still telling my friends about the strategy suggestions for upkeep that Kate suggested. Because she spent so much time learning about me, the strategy suggestions made me WANT TO ORGANIZE. Example: she spotted my wine rack and cocktail cart and told me: "when you have a night in, just pick a pile to go through while you are having a cocktail." Even I can do that and love it! 4. It was all about me! I know I mentioned that above. But after my organization sessions, Kate worked with me on interior design. Again, she created an design/office solution that is no less than amazing. (I didn't want a traditional desk/office set up). And she applied her keen design eye to rearranging my bedroom furniture in a way that still has me smiling. The scale of the furniture I placed on either side of my bed was cramped. Honestly after the first night of sleeping in my new bedroom I felt a difference. Who knew?? And she did it ALL using resources I already had in my apartment. Again, utilizing the same mantra: "Do you like it? Does this work for you?" Honestly, at one point she reprimanded me with a "You have to love it and use it, not me! " when I wanted to know if she liked how something looked. 5. She worked her organized butt off Kate was always on time. She always engaged me at a strategy level to ensure what she was doing worked for my needs and worked well within my budget. After I finished my last project she emailed me with another design idea and resource for my space. She also took time "off the clock" to help me with some iphone organization and tricks because she saw me struggling while she worked on my space. I cannot say enough about this budget friendly, accommodating, resourceful superwoman. Her customized approach, professionalism and care have made me an (organized) believer! Thanks to the usable systems, easy upkeep and tweeking tricks Kate taught me, I've been able to maintain the work she did for almost a year now. And everyone who visits my home (which i now LOVE) thinks I am anal! Thank you, thank you, thank you! Kate, you changed my life! read more

In a word, AMAZING. I can't say enough about just how wonderful Kate is. I hired Arranging Order to help me turn chaotic closets and drawers into something I could live with. Kate was beyond helpful, completely exceeded my expectations! She came to my house for a 30 minute consult and gave me some "homework" and ideas for cheap organizational accessories to buy to really maximize our time together. I have a crazy schedule and had to reschedule with Kate 3 or 4 times, and she was INCREDIBLY flexible, patient, and really focused on making sure our time together would be the most productive it could be. And then the big day came... Kate didn't waste one second and immediately rolled up her sleeves and got her "hands dirty." She is a machine of efficiency - I'd turn around and next thing I knew she'd be completely done turning an overwhelming mess into organized bliss. She and I worked together and I still can't believe how much we accomplished in four hours. The total: 10 bags of trash, 4 bags to donate, and 2 boxes to send to a consignment store. I came home from work the next day and breathed in this amazing feeling of serenity - I LOVE opening my closets and drawers now, they look so beautifully organized. Everything (and I mean EVERYTHING) has a home, I don't waste time rummaging through piles of crap to find what I need. Kate is TRULY an amazing, professional, and efficient organizing professional. It was the best money I have spent in a decade! I worked with another organizer a few years ago and she was not nearly as quick and efficient as Kate - Kate really goes above and beyond to make your experience perfect. read more

We had a fantastic experience working with Arranging Order. We just moved from a small condo in Evanston to an apartment in the South Loop that is twice the size. The new space was a blank canvas; we brought virtually no furniture with us. Suffice to say until we hired Arranging Order, we were feeling rather overwhelmed. So many of the interior design companies you find online come off as intimidating or out-of-your-league so to speak. We wanted someone to help us make style / layout / furniture decisions with not only good taste but with some modesty too. We contacted Arranging Order and within a day or two, Beth reached out to us. She came out to our new apartment to meet with us and assess our needs. She is a great listener and pai attention to our timetable, preferences and budget. Within a short time, we received a great booklet with several options for each space. From that point on, it's simple - you say what you like, what you don't like - they adjust - and you start purchasing items. I have to say, Beth had some super ideas that we would not have thought of on our own, while at the same time being receptive to our feedback to other items. As you can tell we were very pleased with our experience. They are responsive, fairly-priced, unpretentious and most important - great interior designers. read more

After moving from a small one bedroom apartment to a larger three bedroom condo, I needed help! I know what I like, but I have a hard time actually doing the "design" part of the equation. Kate worked tirelessly to help me pick the paint colors, furniture, and accessories to make my condo into a "home". I was a bit unsure about some of her "bolder" choices, but now I love them so much! Kate is down-to-earth and funny, and a pleasure to work with. I'd highly recommend Arranging Order. read more

I just worked with Beth for the third time at our home to completely reorganize our kitchen and prepare our new baby's room. She is so efficient, easy to work with and smart. The feeling of having every organizing headache crossed off my to-do list is euphoric! I've worked with other organizers, but really, Beth is the best in the business. She teaches how to organize, label and then keep things organized! Money well spent! read more

After recently moving to Chicago and a much larger apartment I was in need of some design advice to take my new place up a notch and to reach its full potential! So with that being said, I am so excited to write this review after using Arranging Order to help me update my bedroom and put some finishing touches on my apartment. From the first contact (which was responded to quickly) to consultation, design and final product my designer Beth was wonderful. She is friendly and took her time in my apartment to get a feel for my style and communicated with me during the planning and design board stage. When I was presented with the recommendations I was blown away!! Her plan for making my bedroom stylish and peaceful and her attention to details made my apartment feel like home. She was easy to talk to, work with and it felt like we were a team!!! The professionalism and quality of work from Arranging Order makes it easy to recommend their work and hard not to brag about it :) read more

Kate Marengo from Arranging Order helped us get organized before our first baby arrives this fall and we love our newly organized spaces. Kate was so helpful in determining our needs and making the most efficient use of our urban space. She came over to our house three different times over the course of the project - the first consultation she listened and offered suggestions of ways we can improve the use of the closet space in our home to make room for the baby. The next appointment was for measuring our spaces and selecting storage solutions. Then, Kate created a shopping list for us using links to Amazon.com - this was SO easy and she chose affordable pieces that we could put together ourselves. My husband and I assembled everything on our own and then our final appointment with Kate involved using our new organizational pieces in the closets and moving things around. Working with Arranging Order was a wonderful decision - it was affordable but really made a difference in our use of space. Kate was wonderful to work with! read more

Kate and her team are a dream to work with. I'm constantly recommending this talented team to my clients and friends. Kate helps to make her clients visions a reality. read more

Arranging Order is a company that will make your life easier in every way! My first experience was a design project for my new apartment in Chicago. I needed to move in and be settled and ready to return to work within 2 weeks. I was overwhelmed and really did not know where to begin. Since I was starting a new chapter in my life, I needed everything from furniture, kitchen ware, and several trips to Target for everything from paper towels to a step stool! The only thing I had plenty of was racks and racks of clothes.......and of course boxes with shoes and purses that I had collected over the past 10 years. This was an overwhelming time and I needed help! At my first meeting with Kate, I babbled off lists and lists of items that needed to be purchased and miscellaneous tasks that I needed help with to coordinate the move. She did not interrupt me and listened attentively taking notes and nodding confidently. When I finally paused, she had a warm smile on her face. She assured me that everything would get completed on time and she would find ways to cut costs to complete the project and fulfill all of my design and organizational needs! Within the first 10 minutes, I felt calm and relieved. I knew I was in good hands and had chosen the right company. Kate was able to grasp my sense of style and identify what was truly a priority during the following days. Her ideas and suggestions were going to save me money and allow for me to add other items to my many lists. The colors, fabrics, accents and pieces of furniture were presented to me as we collaborated together. She narrowed down my choices, so that I was able to make a decision knowing that Kate had done all of the leg work! Kate somehow was able to find the "best choice" in my price range for each and every item! Day by day my apartment began to transform into a real home. I was able to be involved in the project when I had a few hours to spare, or go to lunch while relaxing knowing that Kate had everything taken care of. I was amazed when the last piece of furniture had arrived. My apartment turned out better than I ever imagined! The closet was by far the most surprising part of the whole project. Kate knew that the huge walk in closet was an extremely important component of the apartment. She chose colors and lighting that made the closet come to life. Her ability to organize in a way that would make sense for me was going to change my life. I would actually be able to find something when I wanted to wear it! It was a wonderful experience and left me wanting to hire Kate for many other projects in my life. Her experience in design, business, and organization sets her apart from other professional organizers. She is honest, sincere, enthusiastic, creative, and well-rounded. Kate Marengo can handle any job large or small! read more