Hi, I’m Emily, founder of POTHOS Organizational Design.

I started my organizing career nearly a decade ago while working as a preschool teacher, and organizing homes on weekends and during school breaks. After more than 10 years in early childhood education, I eventually realized that the two things I loved most – understanding how people use their spaces and finding creative solutions to everyday problems – could come together in a career of their own.

Today, I bring that perspective into the homes I organize.

I ORGANIZE FOR PEOPLE, NOT JUST SPACES.

No two homes, or families, operate exactly the same way. That’s why I don’t believe in one-size-fits-all organizing.

Before creating a system, I take the time to understand how your family actually lives: your routines, preferences, habits, personalities, challenges, and the little quirks that make your home yours. I want to know what’s working, what’s not, and what you’ve already tried.

From there, I design a system that makes sense for you.

My background in early childhood education is an especially important part of this approach. Working with young children taught me to pay close attention to how people move through their environments, how they learn and develop, and what helps them feel confident and capable. I bring that same perspective to family spaces, by considering accessibility, independence, developmental stages, routines, and the fact that children and families are constantly changing.

When appropriate, I also invite children into the process. When children have a voice in how their spaces are organized, they can develop a greater sense of ownership, independence, and confidence in caring for their belongings and their environment.

MAKING MORE SPACE OUT OF THE SPACE YOU ALREADY HAVE.

I live in Boston’s South End with my husband and our three-year-old son in an 800-square-foot apartment. Living in a relatively small space has given me a personal appreciation for the creativity that comes with making every inch work, and sometimes making one space serve several purposes.

It’s also shaped the way I approach organizing for my clients.

I love finding ways to reimagine the space you already have and repurpose things you already own. Sometimes the answer isn’t another storage bin, a bigger closet, or a bigger home. Sometimes it’s simply looking at the space differently.

I especially love solving the organizational puzzles that come with small, challenging, or hardworking spaces and finding solutions that are both functional and realistic.

WHAT EVERY POTHOS PROJECT HAS IN COMMON

Everything should have a home.

But I also believe a home should have room to grow.

I don’t create systems that require perfection to work. Life is messy. Children are messy. Schedules change. Families grow.

A good system should be intuitive enough to maintain on a busy Thursday, not just beautiful on the day I leave.

Sometimes that means creating a designated home for something that doesn’t quite have a home yet. Sometimes it means leaving room for a future need. And sometimes the best organizational solution isn’t another bin or basket at all – it’s rethinking how you’re using the space you already have.

My goal isn’t to create a home that never gets messy.

It’s to create a home that’s easier to navigate, easier to reset, and better suited to the people who live there.

A home that supports your family instead of working against it. A home that feels good to live in.

THAT’S THE POTHOS APPROACH.

Thoughtful. Personalized. Practical. Your home. Your family. Your system.