Julie Morgenstern's Cook Nook

By devoting time to careful planning and drawing on her years of experience as a professional organizer, Julie was able to recreate her kitchen as radically as if she'd started from scratch.

Treating herself as she would any client of her home-organizing business, Julie says she started by asking pointed questions and following strict guidelines as she worked with a consultant at the custom-cabinetmaking shop. The two spent three months drafting (and redrafting) plans before any work actually began.

Here, her galley kitchen used to be closed off from the rest of her apartment.