Category Steward

Left: TikTok still of a couple in their car before their first Costco haul. Right: a shopping cart full of groceries (Unsplash photo by Karsten Winegeart).

First-Time Homeowners Tackle Their Very…

Oct 3, 20265 min read

Moving into a first home means an empty kitchen, and creator @ashlyntworek…

woman shopping in grocery store aisle

Mom Documenting Her Ongoing Series…

Sep 20, 20265 min read

A mom who posts as @lifeinprogress26 has spent this year running an…

a woman standing in a kitchen preparing food

Woman Who Kept Blowing Her…

Sep 20, 20264 min read

A TikTok creator who posts as @carrr_uhhh says she broke a habit…

Real estate agent in a white kitchen opening cabinets and reaching for the microwave, with the caption about seven things sellers can legally hide

Real Estate Agent Breaks Down…

Sep 20, 20263 min read

A real estate agent’s explainer reel on seller disclosure law lands on…

Real estate agent walking down a staircase and standing in a kitchen, with the caption about buyers finding every light fixture gone

Real Estate Agent Walked Her…

Sep 20, 20263 min read

A real estate agent says her final walkthrough before closing turned up…

A floor safe dial set into a closet floor with 1985 written in the concrete beside it, from the @vaultcracker TikTok

Homeowner Who Inherited a Floor…

Sep 19, 20264 min read

A floor safe that hasn’t been opened since 1985 doesn’t come with…

Thrifter reacting to her find, beside the carved wooden bust on a Goodwill shelf

Thrifter Digging Through a Random…

Sep 19, 20264 min read

A heavy statue marked at a few dollars on a random Goodwill…

Two frames from the @lacedbyleas TikTok: left, the creator covering her face under a smoky sky during the Eaton Fire; right, her flashing a peace sign in front of the newly poured foundation slab

Homeowner Who Lost Her House…

Sep 19, 20264 min read

Twenty months ago, the Eaton Fire tore through more than 14,000 acres…

Homeowner standing in his gutted room with stripped walls and drywall debris during his renovation

Homeowner Renovating His Own New…

Sep 19, 20264 min read

A homeowner working through renovations on a property he’d just bought started…

Creator walking through a hallway and a bathroom while listing renovations that lower a home's value

Homeowner Who’s Watched Dozens of…

Sep 19, 20264 min read

A creator who has walked through dozens of renovations up close says…

About Me
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Madison Cates

Mom, Wife, Minimalist.

Join me in my journey to declutter my life and live a simply beautiful life.

Gallery

A thrift shopper in a store with a red cart on a video cover beside a stock photo of a pink knit sweater and yarn, for the story of a 1970s poncho and a vintage maxi dress thrift haul
A smiling crafter on a video cover beside a stock photo of an organized closet with drawers, for the story of turning cereal boxes and toilet paper rolls into closet and dresser organizers
A thrifter in a vintage coat on a video cover beside a stock photo of vintage fur and leather coats, for the story of a vintage Emilio Pucci coat thrift find
A creator's video cover beside a photo of donation bags and boxes, for the story of charities paying by weight to haul unsold donations to the landfill
A thrifter holding secondhand jackets on a video cover beside a stock photo of plaid flannel shirts, for the story of flannels being the easiest thing to find secondhand
A decluttering creator's video cover beside a photo of items set out to sell or give away, for the story of giving unsold items two weeks to sell before giving them away
Thrifter finds a vintage Lisa Frank stuffed unicorn at Goodwill for under $2
Home coach keeps her kitchen clean with a 5 minute daily reset plus one small task
Mom admits her 10 year old rug is falling apart and picks a replacement at the last minute