How to Get Your Kitchen Organized. The Household Organization Diet has entered the kitchen! The kitchen is the heart of the home, where friends and family congregate and delicious meals are shared. An organized and decluttered kitchen makes it easier to find what you’re searching for, reduces meal prep time, and creates a more calm and enjoyable environment for your entire family to relax in.
AN ORGANIZED KITCHEN IN 8 STEPS
Are you ready to organize your kitchen? To get things done, follow these simple steps! Remember that everyone’s kitchen will be organized differently, so don’t be scared to experiment. Make organizational methods that work for you, your family, and your particular area.
STEP 1: CREATE A TIME FRAMEWORK.
The time it takes to tidy your kitchen will undoubtedly vary depending on its size and present clutter level. Some of you may be able to do it in a few hours, while others may require a whole day, and still others may require a month. The most important thing to remember when beginning the organization process is to create realistic time frames and set yourself up for success. If you haven’t organized in a while, start small with a cupboard or two and see how it goes – it may take longer than you think! Only take on tasks that you can COMPLETE in the time allotted. When your time is up, you want to see your accomplishment, not a bigger mess! Decide how much time you have available, set a timer, and begin to work.
STEP 2: DECLUTTER, DECLUTTER, DECLUTTER is the second step.
I think that decluttering the kitchen is typically one of the simplest areas to tackle because we don’t have as strong an emotional relationship to stuff as we do in other rooms. Most of the time, we can tell whether we really need something or not. And, if you do give anything away that you may need in the future, kitchen goods are simple to borrow for the occasional dinner party or huge family gathering. Be brutal in your decluttering efforts, and the rest of the organizing, as well as the upkeep!, will be much easier. When decluttering, I believe in totally emptying each place. Begin with these 20 items to tidy your kitchen right now. They may not all be applicable to you, but they will provide you with a solid starting point.
STEP 3: EMPTY THE SPACE COMPLETELY.
It may appear to be a lot of work, but entirely emptying out the places you’re arranging is well worth the effort. Taking everything out of your drawers and cupboards allows you to see HOW MUCH STUFF you have – and what you can truly afford to get rid of. When the area is clear, it is easier to see the various ways you could use your organization’s processes. If your present organization method isn’t working for you, try changing things up and moving things about until you find something that does.
STEP 4: DIVIDE AND CONQUER IS THE FOURTH STEP.
Sort the contents of your cupboards or drawers into five categories: garbage, recycling, donations, belongs elsewhere, and save. Keep your trash bags and recycling bins nearby so you can dispose of the stuff directly. To save time, you should just touch each item once. When you’re finished, get a large box for donating stuff and take it immediately out to your car. Collect any objects found in the kitchen that should go somewhere else in your home in a basket or laundry pail. Sort all of the goods you intend to keep into similar categories. Move rapidly through this process; you shouldn’t have to ponder about where each item should go too much.
STEP 5: CLASSIFY BY ZONES.
So it’s time to reintroduce those “keep” items into your cupboards and drawers. Organize all of your kitchen products in specific regions of the kitchen by function. For example, all of your baking supplies would be in one part, all spices in another, and any cleaning supplies in yet another. If you don’t like the functional organizing system or it just doesn’t match with your kitchen design, come up with another plan that works for you. Before you begin restocking your cupboards, make a basic plan in mind and attempt to put related products together as much as possible.
Consider where the ideal spot is in the kitchen to store products for convenient access. Keep your plates and glasses, for example, near your dishwasher for simple emptying. Dishcloths should be kept in a drawer as close to the sink as feasible. When keeping items in cupboards, keep the most often used items near the front and simple to reach. Less frequently used things can be placed further back and on more difficult-to-reach shelves.
Read: How to Avoid Clutter on Kitchen Counters
STEP 6: DESIGN A FUNCTIONAL CLUTTER-FREE KITCHEN COUNTER SPACE.
The kitchen counter is prime real estate in the kitchen, so only keep goods on it that you use on a daily basis. maintain the items on trays to create attractive yet functional displays, and aim to maintain the front two-thirds of the counter clear at all times to allow for prep work.
STEP 7: KEEP THE PAPERS IN CHECK.
Kitchen countertops and tables seem to attract papers despite the fact that it does not belong there! If you must keep papers in the kitchen, keep them in a designated file box or on paper trays in a corner. Create a kitchen command center if you have more space to keep stuff off of your counters and other flat surfaces.
STEP 8: MAKE THE MOST OF THE INSIDE OF YOUR CABINET DOORS.
Cabinet doors have a lot of unused storage space, so get creative with them! Attach adhesive storage boxes for water bottles or food wrap, attach command hooks for oven mitts or cooking utensils, or store recipes in office file holders. I’ve added storage to practically all of my kitchen cabinets, and it’s really freed up a lot of space in the cabinets.
Whew! You got through it! It may appear to be a lot of effort at first, but if you do it thoroughly the first time, it should only require minimal upkeep to stay decluttered and organized for good!
