Dana is amazing and working with her was such a great experience. I have lived in my home for 11 years now and it was really helpful to have a fresh set of eyes to help get the space into a state that matched my current lifestyle. She met with me in person and offered a detailed plan to achieve the goals I had for my home. Dana helped me to let go of items that I no longer had a use or need for. This was difficult at first but she got me into the right mind set. She utilized existing storage space I did not even think of using and helped source additional storage items and make efficient use of the space. She recommended a custom closet solution that took into account my wardrobe and places for ties, suits, hats and shoes along with spaces for things I want to keep for the future but don't need right now. One of the best parts was that she used her organizers membership to get me a discount from the company that installed everything. I cannot say enough about my experience with Dana; my life is now less stressful and clutter free. 5+ Stars! read more

I had a few weeks before starting a new job and I wanted to get my cluttered, crazy house into a more maintainable state, as well as move our kids into a shared room, finally. I figured I could do it on my own, but asked Dana to come chat and give me a proposal. I was blown away by the proposal (and didn't quite believe we'd get so much done in such a short period of time), but she exceeded even what she claimed we'd be able to cover. My house is now a calm, organized, and decluttered space that I'm thrilled to live in, and thanks to the strategies she had to offer, I believe it's maintainable. She was a great listener, motivator, and had boundless energy. She really took the time to learn about how we actually live and flow through the house and rooms. She shared so many tips on organizing and decorating; I feel really empowered and excited about my home now. I may have to purposefully clutter up some corner of the house to have an excuse to work with her again. ;-) read more

Dana is a fabulous Organizer. Knowing her has inspired me and and my family in ways far beyond purging items and putting things away in an orderly fashion; although that part is extremely helpful. She is a fire starter; If you have something you are stuck and unable to get into, process or complete, then Dana is likely a good match for you. She has an intuitive way of getting to the root of household issues and offering solutions that really stick. She is professional, always on time, and has deep respect for our space and the life within it. If you are looking for an amazing organizer that will change the way you operate your home-life, call Dana. You won't regret it. read more

My husband and I hired Dana to reduce our stuff and create more simplicity in our lives for a move. She helped to sort through possessions we had kept in our storage unit for many years and assisted us in making decisions on what to keep, donate or sell. Some things were ordinary and others had strong emotional meaning, and Dana was kind and considerate in guiding us through the process of letting go. We found her very supportive! Dana matched the possessions we chose to donate with the appropriate people or organizations that were the best fit, and made the whole process easy and fast. She handled so much, and made an otherwise laborious process much easier! She's a real pleasure to work with and I'd highly recommend her. read more

Being organized is critical for us because we both have our own businesses (he's a general contractor, and I am an attorney) but with a 3 year old, and new baby, we just didn't have the time or bandwidth to take on the project. In fact, we had been living in our new home for more than six months but our files were still in boxes, our workspaces overlapped and we had no systems in place to manage our piles of paper. We hired Dana and were beyond pleased with her services, energy and inspiration. I was worried because the space is small but she carefully planned so that we have two organized workstations that don't feel cramped. Dana took the time to meet with us to figure out our needs and implemented necessary systems such as wall files and shelving file systems to help me keep my desk paper free, a big mail drop box (which used to pile up on our desks), a separate printing station and area for my husband to review plans. Dana always kept our budget in mind and creatively sourced products for us. Now, even though we're working in the office, my husband and I enjoy being there. read more

In the past two years, I have taken responsibility for three of my parental units. It has produced mountains of paper. While I had had a halfway decent filing system for my personal affairs and that of my business, this multiplied the level of paper unbelievably. It was just discouraging to look at! And I really didn't have the spare time to sort it all out. Dana came in and set up a system, not just for me, but all of my estate responsibilities, and helped me clean out my 8 years of boxed paper that I hadn't sorted - so I had space for the new stuff. She was very responsible in asking - do you need this or not - and following all of the paperwork retention guidelines. Not only that, she is very personable and high energy. Just what you need to get through a drudge task! I can actually see the top of my desk again. Yeah! read more

Dana has been a godsend to our home and collective peace of mind! She is efficient, thoughtful, organized, and fun to work with. She makes the hours fly and you feel so accomplished by the end of session and like you want to inhabit and use a space again. We have used her awesome services for a large garage re-org project and for other sessions for our office, our kid / mail / life processing flow both physically and time-wise, and for other various rooms from dining to mud-room and in between. She's great with both me and my partner in thinking through cost effective ways to trial new systems before spending money on more stuff, building on the way we already do things, etc. We love love working with Dana! read more

Dana brings a great sense of fun into everything she does. She helped me with a few places in my home where I was feeling stuck, and her process of bringing in order and calm was renewing. read more

My wife and I started working with Dana in August of this year doing some home organization. After the first session all I could do was say... How could I have waited this long? Working with Dana is part physical labor (if you've got as much junk as we did) and part stuff therapy. She never pressured me to get rid of stuff, rather just asked questions in a gentle manner that led me to just be real about whether I would use something or not. During each four hour session, I'd feel myself spinning out and Dana would see it and make me take a break. Also at the end of sessions she took stuff for disposal... Like garbage, recycling, donation etc. That really cushioned the blow at the end of the session because I have trouble actually putting things in the trash. My relationship to things has improved and I now find myself asking do I need that or how can these things be used more effectively. The result of the work w Dana and Dao Living is better living through streamlined and functional organization of stuff. I now own my stuff rather than it owning me. read more

A million stars! After just a few hours of work, Dana transformed my room and closet from a terrifying death trap into a spacious, organized place to live. She is able to make method from madness and sort items into rational categories so that finding them isn't a fool's errand. I also learned a lot of skills from her on the fly that I hope to retain, like how to easily fold a fitted sheet. The fact that she takes all the garbage and donations away with her is the best! Definitely worth every penny--we probably removed a couple thousand dollars' worth of stuff that cluttered up my room over our two sessions together, much of which was wasted on repeat purchases from not knowing what I had already owned. Can't recommend her enough. I feel better about my whole life because of her help! read more

My choice to work with Dana was an easy one. I've been working with her regularly for the past 3 months and am soo happy I made the call to meet with her. I feel like we were able to connect on the... sorry.. Mom level. She understands my constant battle to attempt to find balance between all the roles in my life, mom, wife, housekeeper, business owner, and self. Her ability to challenge me to create more order in environment and routines is brilliant. Each time I feel uncomfortable I am reminded that this is progress and the results I achieve are wonderful. Home: My pantry is easy to stock and maintain, my kitchen is welcoming and I even feel like I want to do dishes because everything is so easy to access. Work: We've reviewed and revised my processes and my workspace. I feel more in control of my time and less reactive to the stresses that come with owning my own business. Mom: She respects my Parenting Philosophy (Like a Snowflake we are all Unique) and helps me to create a space and life that supports it. Self: Dana has helped me to remember that my time is important and I feel like I can take sometime for myself knowing my other responsibilities are being maintained. All in all, Dana is supportive, kind, and very energetic. I am excited to continue working with her. Each time I meet with her I learn something new, I feel empowered, and I am proud to have chosen her to be apart of my Mommy Support System. Worthy Investment - For Sure!!! read more

Dana was referred to me by a friend and I can't recommend her enough! I contacted her about two weeks before our baby boy arrived feeling somewhat desperate and anxious that we were no where near as organized and ready as we should be. Dana's friendly, warm and energetic personality made me feel at ease and confident that she could help us right away. After assessing our needs and timeline, she sent as a thorough proposal with a few different options of how we could work with her. We decided on two 3 hour sessions and they were AMAZING! Dana is extremely efficient, but also takes time to listen to your needs and doesn't push if you aren't ready to get rid of something, (although in most cases, it made sense to get rid of it--she asks great questions about why you want to keep something and moves you through sorting a pile of stuff very quickly). She worked with us to reorganize and set-up our office/nursery, as well as our living room. She had great ideas and advice to put systems in place to keep us organized. Ten months later I can say that we are still using the systems that she set-up, (and could probably use her magic touch in other areas of our house now too!). At the end of the session Dana takes away anything you've decided to get rid of, which is great. I definitely felt much more ready to take on life with a newborn after our sessions. Hiring Dana to help us get organized was really the best money we spent getting ready for baby! Do yourself a favor and hire Dana, if you want to make your space feel cleaner, lighter and more efficient, and have fun in the process. read more

Dana was recommended to me by a good friend to help me organize my home. Dana was amazing. She made everything so easy and motivated me to keep going after she left. I worry about things getting recycled properly and I had total confidence that she found good homes/places for my junk. I feel like a big weight has been lifted off me and I feel so happy when I open my cabinets and see all my organized things. read more

We found Dana to help with our cluttered home office, which became a dumping ground after our kid was born. Dana was AWESOME to work with, efficiently coaching us through the purging process, ensuring we were making progress without getting caught up on sentimentality. She then helped us plan out new storage solutions and desks for our reorganized office, and the overall result is a room we look forward to spending time in, rather than avoiding like the plague. One of the most helpful things is that Dana is happy to load up her car with your unwanted junk -- and finds new homes for everything! I need to wreck another room in my house so we can get her back! ;) read more

10 STARS!!! After working with Dana I feel like I reclaimed at least 10 years of my life back by giving away all those "projects" I had around the house and in the basement. Additionally, I can now clean any room in my house in 10-15 minutes rather than 30-60 minutes. I'm saving so much time not looking for stuff and not moving piles of stuff from here to there to clean. Every corner we worked on not only looks, but feels so much better and it's staying that way. Dana did an absolutely beautiful job and I am so happy with the results! I tried organizing stuff myself but after 2 attempts where I spent an hour making little progress I knew I needed professional help. I knew I did not need a countertop or closet temporarily straightened, and I did not need my house to look like a department store. Dana came to my house for a consultation and in doing the walk through she spoke to organizing my space and setting up systems to maintain organization in just the way I had been thinking but didn't know how to do. When we started working together I was amazed at how fast the process went. Going through your own stuff can get sluggish with too much contemplation but she kept the pace moving and we plowed through every book, every piece of clothing, and every pile and bag of stuff with great efficiency. She had solutions for anything I had angst about giving up and created brilliant storage solutions out of objects I already had. The best part was that she hauled off and recycled everything I no longer needed, and for everything I kept she put it all together in a way that's both beautiful and functional. I feel a huge weight lifted off my shoulders and could not have found a more perfect person with whom to go through this process. If you need your home, office, basement or garage organized and beautified I highly recommend Dana. read more

Dana helped me organize and design a beautiful, clean, and functional space in my bedroom. I was really impressed with how everything came together. It feels like living in a new place, and staying on top of stuff and organized and clean is a lot easier and actually enjoyable now. read more

Dana and I are working together to simplify my life. Working with Dana has allowed me to feel more at ease within my living space. The process is collaborative. It's not about Dana and her desires for the space; rather it's about how I actually use the space and creating systems I can trust and maintain. Dana knows when she should "push" a bit, but. equally importantly, Dana knows when not to push. Put another way, I feel very comfortable working with Dana, as she allows me to be myself, working with me as I am, rather than trying to change me. Dana has a great ability to simplify and her solutions make good sense; she enjoys being an organizer and her enjoyment and enthusiasm are infections, making her a great pleasure to be around. read more

For years I have thought to myself, I should be able to organize this on my own! But Dana knows how to look at a space and re-organize it in order to get the maximum potential and use out of that space. She comes up with fresh ideas and organizational systems that help me work (bills, filing, cleaning, storage) more efficiently in my home. She has helped me get out of that "stuck feeling and placing house hold items in an 'I-will-deal-with-that-later-pile-pattern". She has helped me replace that "stuck feeling" to internalize her organizational strategy so that when she is not around, I am using her techniques to organize new areas of my home. When I first started working with Dana, I did not understand the depth of how her expertise would impact me. Especially on a "I can do this" motivational level. She breaks the big piles of "stuff" down and helps me to get rid of the clutter that was no longer or never a benefit to me. read more

Dana helped me reorganize my kids playroom. While I'm generally a good purger, I worried that whatever I got rid of would be what my kids would look for the next day. Dana helped me rethink how the kids use the room and how to make things more accessible for them. She also helped me rethink my organization system so that clean up didn't require a manual to get things back in their proper place. Dana is high energy and effective while still being compassionate as there is often a lot wrapped up in getting rid of things. I highly recommend her! read more

Dana helped me to organize my garage. The garage had become a dumping ground for all the items that were excess to need or I was holding on to. Dana listened, worked with me to sift through and categorize the items into groups. Everything is now in clear plastic bins, labelled and very easy to find. Dana arranged for large furniture items to be picked up by a local charitable organization and old paint tins to the toxic waste dump. Dana is high energy, very personable and fun to work with. She is incredibly efficient, the process ended up taking less time than anticipated. I am so happy with the final outcome. I am so glad I gave Dana a call! read more

Dana completely changed the way I work in my office. When we met, I worked from a system of piles, the chords under my desk were stressing me out and I did not feel that I had enough space to do what needed to be done in my office. We started by establishing my needs and goals for the space. She listened to what I had in mind and also made suggestions to fill in areas I hadn't considered. We created a filing system that I am proud of, but most of all, I can find what I need and everything has a home. She incorporated principals of feng shui, which was cool. She thought about the space and its needs from the moment I entered the room. She suggested a mail drop and other ways to utilize the wall space since surface space was limited. I never would have thought of that and it makes so much sense. Since I read plans for my work, she suggested a drafting table. I loved the idea, and she found one at a great price. She also helped me to separate my work papers from my home papers and that has helped to keep both worlds so much simpler. Overall, hiring Dana to help me organize my workspace has been nothing but beneficial. Since we re-did my office I've been able to run my business much more efficiently. read more

Combining two households contents, turning a bachelor pad into a family home while expecting a new baby seemed like a daunting task. This is when I turned to DAO Living for help!!! Dana was a life saver!! We had so much stuff with what seemed like not enough room plus having to make room for our new addition. From our first meeting, Dana made us feel relaxed for taking on such a large task while working with our very hectic schedules. Dana took to heart our needs and wants for our space and came up with a detailed step by step plan. She came up with very creative storage solutions and really helped us optimize our space. She was able to incorporate many items of existing household but also came up with awesome new design ideas. She was able to source some amazing new pieces for our home at a fraction of the cost. She turned the bachelor pad into a beautifully designed family home. We love our newly designed space which we can welcome our new family member into!!! read more

Dana and DAO Living was recommended to me by a friend and I'm so happy that I reached out to Dana! I started working with Dana in July 2015, after my husband and I had moved back to our home following a long home renovation, and I was also pregnant. We needed help going through all our boxes to settle back into the house, and organize the various rooms. We opted for the more extensive 9-session organization package, and we've used 6 sessions so far. I'm a very organized and tidy typically, so why would I need help with home organization? Dana is fantastic, energetic, and she's like a personal trainer for home organization. She helps keep you focused (e.g. helped me avoid sentimental trips down memory lane when I would stumble upon a box of memorabilia) and works with you to come up with a strategy for each session. She's realistic and gives great advice. As I worked with her through my pregnancy, she was so helpful about doing all the heavy lifting and ensuring that I was not doing anything too physical during the sessions. I wanted to put in an organization system in the office closet and she went with me to Container Store and helped me to design a great Elfa system for our needs. The best part is that at the end of a session she helps you get rid of all the stuff you don't want by carting it off to the various places for you! Overall, we got through so much in a short amount of time, she's been a lifesaver! We unpacked a large room full of boxes, organized and unpacked several areas (kitchen/pantry, guest bedroom, office closet, hall closet), and have a great strategy for the remaining sessions. We're very happy with Dana's work and would recommend her any time! read more

Absolutely phenomenal! Highly recommend. Dana has helped us move gracefully into our home, merge two lives into a streamlined space, and set up systems for continued success in organization. Thank you so much! read more

It has been a pleasure to work with Dana, she is highly efficient, organized and flexible when it came to scheduling. We have 4 kids and I needed help getting rid of excess toys and clutter from our home. Dana came in and got the job done, even when I looked at the room upon her arrival and said "you know this is going to take a couple of days' ....nope - it didn't, she's quick -- but here's the trick - YOU - the one who is trying to declutter and get your life in order - you have to make that, sometimes difficult decision, of letting go! Let it go! it's so Freeing!!! Thank you Dana! read more

Dana is heaven-sent! I hired her to help get our 1300 square foot condo under control. We had toys everywhere and hadn't ever organized some of our living spaces after moving in eight years prior! I was totally overwhelmed and didn't know where to begin. Over the course of six productive and therapeutic sessions, we went room by room, closet by closet and carefully and meticulously processed, analyzed and re-organized every room in our house. We are absolutely THRILLED with the outcome and now, over six months later, the systems and processes that Dana helped us set up are still in place. Not only does our home look better, it FEELS better to be in it. I used to feel stressed out by all the "stuff," but I'm so much calmer being in my home now and if there are toys everywhere, it's no biggie because I know where they belong (and so do the kids)! Clutter is a very personal thing, but Dana was so calm, patient and non-judgmental - she made the whole process so easy and really fun. I thoroughly enjoyed the time with her and really looked forward to all our sessions. Not only did she help get our clutter under control, but she had some excellent tips and tricks with our furniture to create a better flow. I would use Dana again 100x over - she is a gem, and a wonderful person too. read more

We had a storage closet that we hadn't used in the four years time we lived in our house. It was dark "dead" space filled with things I didn't understand (paint, leftover construction materials, gravel etc). I never wanted to open *that* door. Dana came through with her blast of wonderful energy and in under two hours I had a clean, organized, bright space that I want to go into and use. She cleared out things we didn't need, organized items that made sense to keep and made room for happiness. Dana is sweet yet extremely professional and efficient, such a pleasure to work with!! I'd use Dao Living for all my organizing projects. read more

Dana has been awesome!! She has a great energy and is very efficient with her time, and my time as well. We moved into our home several years ago and it had become a disaster with stuff all over the place. Dana came over and managed to help me out with organizational tasks that were driving our family crazy and that I couldn't fathom doing alone. The inertia ended after my first 4 hour session with Dana. She basically helped me organize items and get rid of other items that have been sitting around for years. I highly recommend Dana's services! read more

Working with Dana has been life-altering. We relocated to SF from out-of-state (with a 6 month old baby) at the end of last summer and intentionally downsized to force us to deal with our overflow and cleanse our life to make room to breathe with our new baby, in a timely fashion. (2 artistic people, decades worth of stuff - you can say making our space 'work' and flow in an organized fashion with proper household systems (like mail, archived stuff, family files, etc.) and setting up a new system to organize my patterns and related materials into - just covers the tip of the work we achieved together. I purchased the maximum package (although she was doubtful that we would need it - but I HAD a paper problem! And although her prices were not the least expensive I was quoted, they were not the highest - and seemed fair. I felt the VALUE was heavy in our favor) and now still have 'checkins' on occasion to make sure we are staying on track and tweaking things to run more efficiently. She is easy to work with, quick to adjust to our quirks (I like everything to be white, silver metal or wood) and is creative with how space can function and flow in ways I'd never considered (including staying mindful of our new walker). We overhauled our whole lives and I can't thank her for relieving that burden enough! In a way, working with Dana is like working with any other professional to help us maintain our lives: Checking in when we feel ourselves sliding off track or are confronted with more stagnant piles and need to hit "refresh". read more