You might have been looking for ways to make your kitchen to stay clean before and after cooking your meal. The key to a tidy kitchen lies in how you organize the space that you have. Here are a few tips that you can do to create a well-organized kitchen:
Start Over
To organize, you need to start from the beginning. Clean out your kitchen countertop, drawers, cabinets, and others. You can clean them too while you’re at it. From there, you will find items that you may want to keep or remove. Consider that the goal is to have a functional and enjoyable space for you to cook.
Keep the table top cluttered, with the container store’s over-the-sink drying rack, which can also do double duty as an extra large trivet for hot pans.
The cabinet drawers are sturdy enough to handle your biggest utensils, and slide out smoothly so you can easily grab a cooking pot or blender from behind.
A simple solution is to attach a hook under a shelf or cabinet and hang the mug by the handle.
Besides being very, very easy to install, the magnetic rack can of course be removed when you don’t need it.
Leave the small prep area you have on the counter by adding a shelf above the sink to dry your cutlery.
The inside of your closet doors is filled with storage possibilities. Attach hooks to store pots, lids, or serving and measuring spoons, or add a thin rack to hold pot lids.
Install rolling racks low-sided to keep items organized and easily accessible.
After starting over, you can start dividing your kitchen into areas. Examine your entire kitchen and plan where you want to put your items. You can group your items based on their category and define which area they belong to. For example:
Area 1: Everyday needs, put them in easy to reach areas (cups, cutlery, plates, etc.)
Area 2: Cooking, close to the stove (appliances, pans, knives and other cooking utilities)
Area 3: Cleaning goods, under the sink (hand soap refills, garbage bags, cleaning supplies, etc.)
Get creative and define your kitchen areas. Group your items and determine where to put them.
An open drawer with a built-in paper towel dispenser makes towels easy to reach but not an obvious part of the kitchen.
A set of columns on either side of the sink looks purely decorative, but very practical with pegboard-style storage.
Consider rearranging the cabinet interior shelves to accommodate plates of different sizes. If your shelves don’t move, nesting bowls and casserole dishes are great space savers.
Stack disposable tea bags, sweeteners and coffee beans in clear plastic trays for quick visibility and access.
Resist the urge to pile everything back into the drawer. Instead, make sure you can see and reach everything clearly without having to dig.
The joy of a floating shelf like this is that you can position it however you like, which makes it an ideal choice for small kitchens.
Arrange your kitchen utensils in a see-through basket and pull out to make it easier to see what you have and what you need.
Stop rummaging through the drawers for cooking utensils. Instead, attach the hooks to a thin wooden plank on the stove.
Try adding convenient hinges and trays to fake drawers as extra places to hide important cleaning needs.
Now that you have decided where which items go, you also need to think about their positions. For items that you frequently use at the countertop, it is a good idea to keep them at eye level. Group your items for each pantry or cabinet and make room so that you can easily see everything. If you find a position that is easy to access, place your frequently used items there.
Immediately after removing an item for use, add the item to the grocery list so that it never runs out of inventory.
Place pots and pans in the drawer just below the stove, and utensils in the drawer adjacent to the stove, to make cooking easier.
This organization makes preparation work faster because there is no need to search for items, it also makes cleaning faster.
Covering the bottom of a kitchen drawer with a piece of non-adhesive shelf liner prevents items from sliding and slipping when you open and close the drawer.
To keep kitchen ingredients well organized and useful, use glass jars of different sizes and label them.
Label items not only by their contents, but by the date they opened to help track perishable foods.
Move items from floppy bags and large boxes to smaller, more manageable containers. It’s easier to keep containers in hand, and less likely to spill.
After a month, you can review your kitchen and reevaluate if you found any discomfort or problems. Try to make a habit of putting things back to where they were, and don’t forget to it clean up every week.
