I'm thinking about going on a recategorizing binge. For example, I have rugs that show up under plants or sculptures, and a lot of nice kitchen clutter in decorative.

I'm curious as to how others like to have their content categorized. There are sideboards in the tables category. Would you leave them, or move them to Surfaces/Misc?

I've also got a lot of cabinets to match counters. Several sets by Mutske. Would it be better to put those into collections and hide them from the catalog?

I'm always curious as to how others set up their game.

When I create, I will put items in the category I think makes the most sense to ME..as I am the person I create for. My carpets go in deco/carpets...
I could not tell about others, but do as you think is best, and recategorise whatever annoys you.

I usually stick plant-related items in the plant category, kids-related items in the kids category, food items in the appliances/misc category, bathroom-related deco in plumbing/misc, blankets and bed-related items in seating/misc, and generally try to keep the deco categories to a minimum, putting items in logical categories instead of thinking whether or not they're usable or deco. Unfortunately, this takes time, so this far I've mostly done it to things I've made. I also use collections quite a lot (but those could also need a cleanup...). If the items aren't usable but look like they might be, I tend to stick them in the misc categories, so I'm aware of their uselessness.

about creating collections; Sims2 also has that option for at least sims and sim parts.

when I clone an object, I generally keep the object in the same category/sub-category as the original.

If the object already belongs in a category, I keep it there. I'm just really tired of looking through some 300+ objects in the deco sculpture and misc categories to find a plant or some food deco.

I'm always recategorizing stuff. (And then sometimes forgetting where I put it. )

Rugs definitely have to go in Deco/Rugs; I get really mad if they're somewhere else. Deco/Plants is for plants and pots. Deco/Sculptures is for... I guess I'd call it "normal" objects, like books, candles, knick-knacks, etc., while Deco/Misc is for "weird" things like cans of paint, a giant statue of a snail, etc. Toys and dolls go under Misc/Children even if they're just deco.

Personally I prefer to move sideboards and things like that to Side Tables, since they basically serve the same purpose in game. If they were in Dining Tables, that would be really annoying. (Although, I like to put OMSPs and kitchen wall cabinets in Surfaces/Misc, so it's already pretty crowded in there. If you keep those things somewhere else, then it could make sense to move the sideboards and other big cabinets to Misc, separating them from the smaller pieces.) I like to put decorative blankets under Beds, but repriced really low so they're all at the front of the catalog. Cushions and pillows, on the other hand, I randomly threw in Recliners since it was really empty.

With OMSPs, I try to reprice them so they go from shortest to tallest; wall shelves so they go from bottom to top; and items in more than one size so they go from smallest to largest. But a lot of times I'm too lazy to keep up with that part of it, so they're not perfect.

On the subject of collections, the Collection Creator program (scroll allllll the way down) is useful for making object collections quickly, so long as you know what folders the stuff is in. (Sadly, it can't do walls and floors, those have to be added one by one in game. ) Although, I find myself not using collections very much even if I make them, with the sole exception of... walls and floors. *headdesk*

I do re-categorize as I DL lots of stuff and then its placement in the catalogues often doesn't make sense and I can't find what I need, or what I've just downloaded. My idea of ideal Sims stuff placement is similar to Phaenoh's Catalog Cleanup Mod V2, I use this one for Maxis stuff.
For deco objects, I move them where I think it's reasonable to have them - deco books, magazines, newspapers I move to Knowledge together with bookcases;
- any kitchen clutter goes to Kitchen-Miscellaneous;
- all sideboards go to Surfaces, all towels and bathroom clutter go to Bathroom-Miscellaneous;
- shoes, shoe-racks, entryway dressers, umbrella stands, hanging clothes etc go to Dressers;
- not only plants, vases or flowers, but also garden stuff, like empty flower pots, watering cans, water hoses, mini fountains etc go to Plants, I find it convenient to have it all there when I decorate the backyards, gardens or orangeries;
- only paintings go to Paintings, any other wall hangings go to Deco-Miscellaneous;
etc.
Personally, I find it very easy and quick to find proper objects this way and decorating is fun when you don't have to search all over the Buy catalogue or scroll thru the Paintings section searching for needed painting with dozens of kitchen upper cabinets, deco towels, deco hangings of all sort, hanging bathrobes, etc in the way.
It takes some time (days in my case) to re-categorize if you download lots of CC, but the result is worth every spent hour.

I also re-categorize custom clothing, like to only Everyday for example, or only Formal, instead of usual Everyday-Formal. Years ago, some clothes creators didn't even bother with proper catalogue flags for clothing and a casual outfit (or even underwear!) could be found in every category except for Tops and Bottoms, even in Gym clothes or outerwear, and I spent few days once re-categorizing my sims' wardrobes.

. I categorize my catalog this way too. I like to put signs and architectural building blocks like Buggybooz' niches, CycloneSue's arches etc. into the architecture tab. Deco books go in Knowledge and Deco sports items in Hobbies. I send a lot of random things that don't belong in a specific place to Sculptures, because a lot of creators use Deco/Misc. and mine is bursting at the seams. It takes so long for the collections to load that I never use them. Can the collections folder be removed?

I've recategorized my entire downloads folder, and I always check that before adding new CC, so it's all where I want it to be. I follow Maxis logic for almost everything. If it's decorative, it goes in whichever deco category fits best. Yes, my deco/sculptures and deco/misc are extremely long, but I've also adjusted prices of everything so it's not that annoying to find things since I can check by price more or less where an object should appear. I also have an extensive set of collections for deco objects, that sort them into where I might want to use them. If I want to clutter a room, I go to the collection file for that room.

The surface category is the least organized. Shelves/cabinets could be in surface/shelves or surface/misc. I haven't decided where I want to have them yet, so I let them be as long as they were in either one of those.

There are two places where I didn't follow Maxis logic. Kids, and kitchen stuff. Decorative toys are in kids category, not deco. While technically deco, I prefer to have toy-looking object in the kids category along with the other toys so that I see all of it when I'm selecting toys for the kids room. Decorative kitchen appliances I sometimes sort in kitchen rather than deco. Bread toasters, blenders etc. While not functional, I'd rather have them with the other appliances. Just like with kids toys, I prefer to see all my options at once when I'm designing the kitchen.

Great suggestions! I've already got Phaenoh's catalog clean-up in my game. I'm currently working on a recat. Cupboards from deco to surfaces/misc, kitchen clutter into appliances/misc, bathroom clutter to plumbing/misc, sideboards with coffee tables. Some content, such as Buggybooz's Folly Garden, I'm going to stick in a big fat collection and hide from the catalog because there is SO much of it. Same for all the OMSP. No need to have that cluttering my catalog.

Keeping my deco/misc for odds and ends like LDG's wall clutter, and Raynus' hot water heaters, etc, and all fireplaces that were in the buy catalog. I've got them all over currently; some in appliances, some in deco.

I'm glad to know I'm not the only person who likes everything in it's place! And Mara, thanks for the link! I'd been looking for the Collection Creator but wasn't having much luck.