Because most families spend the majority of their time in the kitchen, it is not a surprise that this is often the most cluttered and chaotic room in the house. We all have at least one of those drawers in our kitchen that is full of so much junk we prefer to just ignore its existence rather than open it and risk what might fall out. There is no need to live that way. With just a few small adjustments, you can take your kitchen from chaotic to calm and return it to the inviting heart of the home it should be.
- Purge, purge, purge: Step one in creating a calmer kitchen is to get rid of all of the junk. This is easiest accomplished by going drawer by drawer, cabinet by cabinet and taking inventory of what you have. If it is an appliance or utensil that you have not used in the past year, chances are you do not need it, get rid of it! Check food for expiration dates and pitch expired items. If there is food that you know your family will not eat and it is not expired, donate it to a charity.
- Smart storage: By using clear storage bins, you make it a lot easier for everyone to quickly identify what is being stored. One smart way to do this is to use a hanging plastic shoe bag over the door in a pantry and using the individual pockets to store like items such as hot cocoa packets, tea bags, or oatmeal packets. Labeling these will make it even easier for your family to quickly grab and go.
- Build upward: Vertical storage can add lots of space in your cabinets. Adding a stemware rack under a cabinet, for example, can free up an entire cabinet that was used to hold wine glasses. Hooks under the cabinets can also hold mugs. Consider a hanging pot rack above an island to really free up space in your cabinets.
- Go lazy: Lazy Susans really help to maximize space in a kitchen. Many homeowners use these to hold spices to allow easy access. They can be installed in pantries as well to hold food and give you quick access and easy visibility to your most commonly used items. A Lazy Susan can be used to store Tupperware or other storage containers and their lids (which we can never seem to find) and eliminate a lot of hassle when putting away leftovers.
- Whiteboards are not just for school: Keep a whiteboard or chalkboard near the refrigerator or pantry. Make an ongoing grocery list that family members can add to throughout the week to make grocery planning much easier and help with inventory control. You can also keep track of those hectic family schedules with a similar method.
These are just a few easy tips to get your kitchen to a more organized, functional space. Check out more ingenious ideas here. Ready to transform your kitchen even further? Kitchen Kraft can work with you to create the kitchen you have always wanted, and we guarantee you will WANT to keep it organized.
