Meet Ester: The Story Behind Curated
Every business has a beginning, and the story of Curated started at home.
During quarantine, Ester found herself doing what many of us did: looking around the house and deciding there was suddenly a lot that could go. She began purging, organizing, and creating order in her own home. At the same time, her kids were getting older and needing her a little less, which got her thinking about what might be next.
Going back to work had been on her mind, but starting a business? That came with a few more questions. And a few sleepless nights. Eventually, she decided to go for it.
The Kitchen That Started It All
Like most new beginnings, Curated didn’t start with a big team or a perfectly mapped-out plan. It started with a first client and a very nervous Ester.
She remembers feeling almost guilty charging for that first project. But she did it, organized the kitchen, and celebrated afterward with a Chick-fil-A sandwich. Then came the text from her client: the kitchen looked amazing, and she should probably be charging more. It was a small moment, but one that gave her a little confirmation that maybe she really could do this.
From there, one project became another. With each home, Ester learned a little more about what people needed from their spaces and, just as importantly, what kind of business she wanted Curated to become.
An Unexpected Turning Point
There came a point when Curated could no longer be a one-woman operation.
Ester still remembers the day she hurt her back in the middle of a session and had to leave the project unfinished. She cried on the way home, frustrated that she couldn’t finish what she had started. The client welcomed her back for future appointments, but the experience made it clear that she couldn’t keep doing everything on her own.
Bringing in help started as a necessity, but it became a turning point. Suddenly, there were people working alongside her and depending on the business too. Today, Ester calls her team the backbone of Curated, and the business has continued to grow right alongside them.
Ester’s first time working with an assistant, and she loved it.
“We were so busy organizing a closet, we managed to miss a total solar eclipse!”
Different Homes, Same Story
Over the years, Ester has worked inside homes of all shapes and sizes, from around 700 square feet to 7,000. And for all the differences between them, she’s noticed something funny: most families want many of the same things.
They want their homes to feel peaceful. They want less stuff taking up space. They want systems that make everyday life easier. And they would really, really like everyone in the house to put things back where they belong.
That perspective has shaped the way Curated approaches organizing. A system can look beautiful, but it also has to make sense for the people actually living with it. Different routines, personalities, and seasons of life all play a part in what will work long after the organizing session is over.
The People Behind the Projects
When you’re invited into someone’s home, you often get to know much more than their pantry or closet. Along the way, clients have shared pieces of their lives with Ester, and some relationships have stayed with her long after a project was finished.
There are clients she still thinks about and moments she remembers years later. For Ester, the relationships she’s built are what make each project meaningful.
More Than a Pretty Pantry
One thing Ester wishes more people understood is how much thought goes into professional organizing. There’s choosing the right products, thinking through how a family uses a space, and creating systems that are realistic enough to maintain.
And at the end of the day, it still has to work. Because a beautiful pantry is great. A beautiful pantry that still works on a busy Tuesday morning is even better
An early Curated project and, according to Ester, her “first and last” paper-organizing job.
Some Things Are Worth Keeping
Curated looks very different today than it did after that first kitchen project. There’s a team, years of experience, and hundreds of spaces that have been sorted, simplified, packed, unpacked, styled, and given a fresh start.
But there’s one part Ester doesn’t want to change: the way Curated cares for the people behind those spaces. She genuinely believes Curated can make life at home a little better for the people they work with, and that same sense of care has stayed with the business as it’s grown.
Maybe that’s the sweetest part of Curated’s story. It began during a season when Ester was figuring out what was next in her own life. Somewhere along the way, that became a business centered around helping other people make room for what’s next in theirs.
And to think, it all started with a little purging, a lot of nerves, and one celebratory Chick-fil-A sandwich.