The Home Edit: A Guide to Organizing
by Clea Shearer, Joanna Teplin
At a glance
About the Author
Clea Shearer, Joanna Teplin1 book reviewed
LuvemBooks Verdict
Best for
Readers who want to overhaul their home room by room and are drawn to the idea that organizing and interior design should work together — especially those who have already encountered The Home Edit through Instagram or the Netflix series and want the foundational methodology in book form.
Worth it if
You want a structured, visually rich, room-by-room organizing framework that treats aesthetics and function as equally important goals, and you're willing to invest in matching containers and uniform systems to achieve the intended results.
Skip if
You're looking for minimalist, low-budget, or purely utilitarian organizing advice — the signature high-design aesthetic and product-dependent systems may feel aspirational to the point of impracticality for readers without the time, budget, or space to implement them wholesale.
What readers & critics say
Econogal praised the authors' "straightforward approach to editing your home life," noting the conversational first-person voice makes the book feel like a dialogue with Shearer and Teplin directly. Times of India described the book's core premise as the belief that "every space in our home or at work has a potential to function and also look beautiful," highlighting the signature method of grouping items by how they "flow" through a space.
Sources: Econogal, Times of IndiaAsk LuvemBooks
Was this helpful?
- Is it worth reading?
- For readers drawn to the intersection of home organization and interior design, The Home Edit delivers a well-structured, visually rich resource grounded in Shearer and Teplin's real professional experience with a wide range of clients. Its New York Times bestseller status, coverage in Architectural Digest, Real Simple, People, House Beautiful, and Good Housekeeping, and its role as the foundation of a Netflix series all reflect a reception that extended well beyond the organizational book category into mainstream lifestyle media. The caveat is practical: the book's aspirational visual standard — developed in celebrity household contexts with high-profile clients like Khloé Kardashian and Gwyneth Paltrow — may not translate directly for readers seeking low-resource or purely functional solutions.
- Similar books
- Readers who enjoy The Home Edit's blend of organizing and aesthetics will find strong companions in the curated titles below. Marie Kondō's The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up is the genre's other defining text, though it takes a more minimalist, philosophy-first approach rather than a design-forward one. Toni Hammersley's The Complete Book of Home Organization offers a similarly comprehensive room-by-room structure for readers who want thorough coverage. For those drawn to the style and interiors angle, Emily Henderson and Angelin Borsics' Styled: Secrets for Arranging Rooms, from Tabletops to Bookshelves and Joanna Gaines' Homebody: A Guide to Creating Spaces You Never Want to Leave both lean into the design-as-lifestyle sensibility. Myquillyn Smith's Cozy Minimalist Home: More Style, Less Stuff bridges the gap between aesthetic appeal and a less-is-more approach.
- Who should read this?
- The Home Edit is best suited to readers who want a structured, room-by-room organizing framework and are motivated by visually aspirational results — particularly those who have already encountered The Home Edit through its social media presence or the Netflix series Get Organized with The Home Edit and want the foundational text. It is also a strong choice for readers new to intentional home organization who prefer step-by-step written guidance paired with clear photographic targets. Readers whose priorities are purely functional, who are working with tight budgets, or who prefer minimalist or low-product approaches may find the style-forward methodology — developed in celebrity household contexts — a less natural fit.
- Tell me about the Netflix series
- The Home Edit book anchored a broader media franchise that includes the Netflix series Get Organized with The Home Edit, in which Clea Shearer and Joanna Teplin bring their signature organizing systems into real homes — including those of celebrity clients. The series shares the book's core philosophy of merging organization with interior design, and both have been recognized as New York Times bestsellers (the book) and mainstream lifestyle media successes. For readers who discovered The Home Edit through the Netflix series, the book serves as the foundational text behind the methodology seen on screen.
- Where should I start with Shearer and Teplin?
- The Home Edit: A Guide to Organizing and Realizing Your House Goals is the recommended starting point — it is the original and primary statement of Clea Shearer and Joanna Teplin's core methodology, establishing the room-by-room, design-meets-organization philosophy that underpins everything they have published and produced since. The follow-up volume, The Home Edit Life: The No-Guilt Guide to Owning What You Want and Organizing Everything, builds on the foundation laid here and is best approached after reading the original guide.
- What's the tone like?
- Architectural Digest describes The Home Edit's approach as a 'streamlined philosophy that's often delivered with some hilarious punch lines,' and the book carries that sensibility throughout — Shearer and Teplin's humor-inflected tone is widely noted as one of the qualities that makes the subject approachable rather than intimidating. The publisher emphasizes that the guide is designed to make organizing feel achievable and even fun, and the combination of conversational writing with extensive photography keeps the reading experience grounded and visual rather than dry or purely instructional.
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Age & Reading Level
Recommended age
Adult
Reading level
Adult
Skip if you're looking for purely functional, low-resource organizing strategies with no emphasis on aesthetics or product investment.
Editorial Review
Published by Clarkson Potter on March 19, 2019, The Home Edit: A Guide to Organizing and Realizing Your House Goals is a New York Times bestseller from Clea Shearer and Joanna Teplin, co-founders of The Home Edit, that delivers a room-by-room organizing philosophy built on merging conventional organization with interior design — complete with the color-coded, aesthetically driven systems that made the duo famous among celebrity clientele and social media audiences alike.
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