Clean Sweep — Season 1, Episode 25: So Many Books, So Little Storage
44 min • 2 seasons, 121 episodes • ★ 4.5/10
Episode synopsis
Peter and Sarah Rutenberg have been married for 31 years and have two kids: Meg and Arie. Their bedroom is filled with books and piles of stuff, while the guest room / office is so full of clutter that it simply has no purpose. Peter is fed up with it and organizer Shelli Alexander is there to help out. She shows them how to deal with the clutter, particularly the books, by explaining that if they part with what they're not using they'll have room to grow later. Angelo Surmelis redesigns the guest room / office with a denim color scheme and a trundle bed. A new desk is added and the closet is reorganized to accomodate both office needs and those of the guests. The bedroom is given bookshelves and a special build by Eric for new books. A new desk and a seating area are also added.
About Clean Sweep
Clean Sweep was an American television series that involved a team consisting of a host, an organizer, designer, and carpenter who help homeowners clear one or two rooms of clutter in a two-day process. Original episodes of Clean Sweep aired on TLC in 2003 through 2005. In each episode of Clean Sweep, the host meets with the homeowners in the rooms to be cleaned. The production crew then moves the entire contents of the room outdoors. The host then assists the homeowners with an initial half-hour sort of all the items into three areas: “keep”, “sell” and “toss”. The process is then repeated by the organizer, in a much more thorough manner. Meanwhile, the designer and carpenter renovate the rooms, usually painting the rooms and constructing storage units such as closets, entertainment units, or cabinets. On the second day, a yard sale is held to dispose of the items in the “sell” category. The homeowners compete to sell the most, with the loser having to give up a sentimental item from the “keep” category. Once the rooms are renovated and the remaining items from the “keep” category moved back into the house, the homeowners are brought in to be surprised by the final results.