Family Homes

Here are just a handful of nonprofits and organizations that are doing good on the ground and sending funds to where they’re needed most.

Forget January. Back-to-school season is the best time to declutter.

My daughter loved it at 7 years old, and she *still* loves it at 16!

My 12-year old three-seater sofa looks nearly as good as new thanks to its washable slipcovers.

The end result looks so much more expensive than it actually was.

That tub of Crisco will save the day TWO different ways!

Combining soda and vinegar won’t hurt anyone — but don’t expect the mixture to do a good job cleaning, either.

Backyard camping just got a whole lot better.

Dear Readers,It’s been almost exactly two years since we started Cubby, and I climbed back into the saddle to write a weekly column for the new site. It has been wonderful to feel connected to you all, respond to your questions and plumb the depths of my memory for insights gleaned over the years that could be of use. It has also been really fun. I love writing. Now, however, it is time to take a break and hand the spot over to someone else.

Here are 5 reasons I think this might be the best microfiber mop you can buy.

There's a new bin in town, and it's great for teens.

It's hard not to be inspired when you see the end result.

I keep finding myself trying to tell my daughter to do something, but it turns into a question. For example, “Put your clothes in the hamper… Okay?” Do other parents do this? BrittneyDear Brittney,When I was in teacher training this came up often.

The result? Our small living room doesn't feel so small anymore.

Stuyvie was an old friend. We went way back in the summertime as kids at the beach club and day camp. But he was older than me and, for some reason, whenever we were back in our elementary school in the city our summer friendships suddenly turned off. It was often that way with my friends.The Buckley School was a small boys school, with a coat and tie dress code and a fierce sports program.

Here are five different ways I've put this tip into practice around my home.

I am in desperate need of help.  I live in a 2bd 2ba apartment, along with my 5yo son Abel. He is back and forth from here and with his mom, but lives here the majority of the time. I also have two older boys, David 17, and Matthew 15, that live with their mom and are here on weekends, and lastly is my dog, Toby, a Lhasa Apso. My apartment faces the south, and gets all day sun throughout the year.

More of this, please.

Turns out, it's not great to use hydrogen peroxide on cuts and scrapes. Here's why — and what you should do instead.

The genius of this hack is that it solves not one but two common problems.

Last week Baki asked: “My house is a living, breathing mess of my two kid’s clutter, and, especially with school coming up in a month, I need to get control of it. Any help would be appreciated.” This is a continuing answer! Dear Baki,This is my third, and last, little chapter that I hope might help you with your kids clutter problems – especially as school approaches.

These will help ease those back-to-school morning woes.

Including a super smart way to store board games!

Last week Baki asked: “My house is a living, breathing mess of my two kid’s clutter, and, especially with school coming up in a month, I need to get control of it. Any help would be appreciated.” This is a continuing answer! Dear Baki,I’m answering your question indirectly with a number of “tools” that I find really helpful and which can easily be applied to children at home.

My house is a living, breathing mess of my two kid’s clutter, and, especially with school coming up in a month, I need to get control of it. Any help would be appreciated. BakiDear Baki,I’ve been working on bringing my first book, Apartment Therapy: The Eight-Step Home Cure, to video over the past two months and it’s got some great tips in it that I’ve updated and which I think you might find helpful.

Take it from a sewer professional.

It's an OG product for sure.

Your kids' shelves will inevitably runneth over, and here's one smart way to handle it.

Tempted now to do it in all our closets.

A decade later, here are the products from my first baby registry that have stood both the test of time and the more rigorous test of outlasting multiple children.

Smelly washer crisis averted.

It's a $13 fridge organizing hack.

Quite possibly some of the best we've seen.

This summer my son keeps complaining that he’s bored and it’s driving us crazy. We’re trying to keep him off his video games. Isn’t it good to be bored as a kid? Paul & GraceDear Paul and Grace, Yep, boredom is really good for kids, but it’s because it usually precedes them breaking through into the next phase, which is deep interest and/or presence with something that they’re doing.

We've got every color of the rainbow.

Let's do this.

It’s so hot where we live we’re going to be going to the beach on the lake a lot. Got any recommendations for beach gear so kids are comfortable? ElaineDear Elaine,My parents never really did the beach and really left us on our own growing up at the beach club and the day camp there. We just had a towel and a suit and that was it.

Sometimes you have to first live with something to learn what you can live without.

Over time, I let my guard down, but it's time to get serious again.

This is what I know now that I didn't know then.

You can bid those bugs goodbye, for real this time!

It's a must-have for white Converse.

Because what’s cooler than a built-in lounge space?

My daughter is in sixth grade, school starts early but has trouble falling asleep at night so she’s exhausted every day. Any recommendations? LucyDear Lucy,I have insomnia myself so I’ve wrestled with this for years. As a kid I used to lay awake in bed and listen to my clock radio for hours before falling asleep.

Now it's a dream family kitchen, with an amazing circular window.

Seasonal decluttering now only takes a few minutes.

In other words, how to get your kids to hang up their clothes.

Making the most of all tight spaces.

This is one bit of party "etiquette" that really needs to stop.

Close Pinterest, seriously.

It's the little cleaning habits that ultimately make a big difference.

There's more color on the horizon.

They help immensely as I'm sorting through our belongings.

We at Apartment Therapy Media and our three brands — Apartment Therapy, Kitchn, and Cubby — are deeply grieved over the shocking gun violence of the past weeks. We mourn for the victims of the Buffalo supermarket shooting, the Laguna Woods church shooting, and those of the Uvalde school tragedy. We also mourn for the thousands of others who have been killed in mass shootings — a daily reality for far too long.

It's a great way to preserve memories.

NOTE: These short memory stories, dropped in as they are to my Ask Maxwell column, do serve a purpose. While definitely different, my aim is to provide context for what we were thinking when we were children, which will help us to understand our own children. I find that in going back into my own childhood and sharing stories of my own struggles and what I was thinking at the time has been very helpful in connecting with my own daughter as she has grown.

My laundry products need to be simple yet effective. Here's what I always keep on hand.

Unsurprisingly, the founder of The Jungalow has a colorful, plant-laden home that gives all the good feels.

They keep our family meetings short, but are focused enough to bring out any concerns.

How to get that chic, cozy, yet clutter-controlled comfort in your own home.

Kids will clean almost anything if you make a game out of it.

How do I choose a wall color for a kids’ bedroom that gets very little daylight?JelisaDear Jelisa,I hope my answer is helpful, because I’m not going to say that I’d recommend painting a bright or reflective color that will make it seem brighter!

It would look especially great in a kid's room.

For starters, your dishwasher uses less water than if you were washing dishes by hand.

"The stylist in me wants everything to be beautiful, but the mom in me wants everything to be functional and practical, too."

They're the best I've found for storing small toys and art supplies.

My partner and I have a wonderful daughter, and our family feels complete. However, when we tell others that we’re “one and done,” the reaction is often one of dismay. The message for a single-child household is often one of deprivation; that our daughter won’t have enough family when we’re gone, or we’re keeping her from enjoying siblings. How might you address some of this internal parent guilt (not to mention, the single-child naysayers)?

Help is on the way!

She wanted to do it herself, so here's how I helped her.

It's no longer required to climb off the top bunk for a glass of water.

I’ve always loved buying presents for my two kids, but now that my older daughter is 13, it’s hard. I’ve seen some of the things I’ve given to her end up in the bottom of her closet. What do presents even mean, at this rate? Emily(Good morning! I’m taking three weeks off for a little summer vacation, so I’m going back into the archive to share three questions that seemed very helpful this past year.

It's time to free the fridge.