Kitchen’s are the heart of any Nevada County home. However, the kitchen is one of the most difficult places in the home to keep clean and organized. It’s high action do-everything-in-one-space kind of place. Not only is it a gathering spot, it’s also one of the harder spots to organize. Between your dishes, utensils and cooking appliances, you have lots of oddly shaped and bulky items to store. If you find yourself overwhelmed by all the stuff in your kitchen, or maybe just need a more efficient way of storing and organizing, consider these genius ways to tidy up your kitchen.
#1 Group Similar Items Together
Grouping items together according to their use is a sensible way to organize your kitchen. Categorizing similar items makes it easier for you and your guests to find things quickly. For example, dedicate a whole cabinet to plates and bowls. Keep those plates and bowls organized by size, color, or type. Make sure the more commonly used items are easier to reach. Expensive or rarely used items should be higher up. That way your special occasion plates aren’t being used as every day plates.
#2 Use Baskets to Store Commonly Used Items
Searching for commonly used kitchen items is frustrating. Rather than storing them in random drawers, use a simple wicker basket to corral and hold popular items. It looks nicer than just stacking utensils on the counter and it’s more organized than stashing them in available spaces. For example, if you find yourself using a spatula, whisk, and spoon a lot, find them a cute basket to stay on the counter near the stove. You can also repurpose an old Mason jar or some other nice cylindrical container.
#3 Install Slide-Out Pantry Drawers
There’s nothing worse than having to pull everything out of a drawer or cabinet to reach something you’re looking for. Rather than dealing with that mess, install slide-out pantry drawers or cabinets. Now, when you need a spice or are looking for specific dry goods, you can slide the entire drawer out. You can also see about installing a Lazy Susan in a cabinet. It’s another great way for you to be able to see everything without having to shuffle everything around.
#4 Use Open Shelving
There’s nothing wrong with showing off some of the items you own, like your formal dinnerware or antique teapots. The only challenge you’ll face is keeping it all straight and tidy on your shelves. Installing an open shelving solution will help you organize everyday kitchen items and bring an open, airy energy to your kitchen. As an added benefit, you won’t have to open drawers and doors to find the items you’re looking for. Just be sure to regularly dust and wipe down the shelf and the items on display.
#5 Explore Alternative Storage
Traditional kitchen storage is great, but sometimes alternatives are just as functional. Consider storing extra kitchen items in wooden crates, baskets and other containers. Do you have a movable kitchen island with space underneath? Use woven baskets to hold your plates and bowls below. You can always check out our Pinterest page for ideas on alternative storage ideas.
#6 Don’t Waste Space
If you’re struggling to find space to organize all of your cutlery, plates and other utensils, consider high-shelf storage. Remember to only store rarely used items, like your fine china or fondue pot, on high shelves. You may have to reorganize every once and a while as you find yourself using some items more than others. However, it is a lot easier than having to constantly climb a stool to reach things that you actually need and use.
#7 Cut Down When Necessary
The kitchen is one of the most popular places in the home to display knick-knacks. If your assortment of collectibles has outgrown your space, the easiest way to organize is to eliminate what you can’t put out on display. This cuts down on clutter and opens up the visuals of your kitchen. For example, you don’t have to have your themed cookie jars out on display for all to see if they are not being used. Go ahead and store the things that you do not use. If you end up finding that you need some things more than others, you can always swap items out. Sticking with the cookie jar idea, you can also swap items out with the seasons. For example, if you have a cookie jar that is winter themed, you can keep that out for the winter months and swap it out once winter is over.
Conclusion
These are just a few simple ways to improve the organization of your kitchen. It may take awhile to organize your kitchen in a way that you like and is efficient to use. Once you do you’ll never understand how you were able to live without it! With your newly organized kitchen, you can enjoy less frustrating meal preparation and less overwhelming visuals.
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