The kitchen is arguably the place most in need of a great system of organization, the place where the most family members spend lots of time and core family activities take place. This is prime real estate in your home! A well-organized kitchen can help you get out the door on time, save you hours when preparing meals and improve the flow of your life. If your kitchen isn’t working for you, it’s time to rethink and reorganize.Begin this project with a written plan: Create a simple drawing of your kitchen or take large digital photos of each section and print them. Now, make an inventory of everything you need to house in your kitchen.
Next, focus on your drawing or pictures as a blank canvas. Don’t think of your space like you have before, see it with new eyes. You have to start thinking outside the box. Things may or may not go back into the same spot they always were. Just because the cabinet designer put a spice cabinet there doesn’t mean you have to use it there! Consider the makeup of your family. Do you have children helping with dishes? Things may need to be put down lower for them. Dishes can go on shelves or in drawers.
Next, focus on your drawing or pictures as a blank canvas. Don’t think of your space like you have before, see it with new eyes. You have to start thinking outside the box. Things may or may not go back into the same spot they always were. Just because the cabinet designer put a spice cabinet there doesn’t mean you have to use it there! Consider the makeup of your family. Do you have children helping with dishes? Things may need to be put down lower for them. Dishes can go on shelves or in drawers.
On your plan, draw a line between the stove, refrigerator and sink. This "magic triangle" is your prime working area and your major food activities probably take place within this space. Keep that in mind while organizing.
Divide your kitchen into zones: Most kitchens have a prep area (housing small appliances, bowls, knives, cutting boards, etc), cooking center (pots, pans, utensils, etc), eating zone (dishes, glasses, silverware) and clean-up area (cleaning supplies, towels, etc). You may also have a baking zone (appliances, bowls, measuring containers, baking pans, utensils, food); lunch center (boxes/brown bags, baggies, peanut butter, a marker for the bags); kids zone (sippy cups, plastic dishes, bibs, etc). Begin to assign these zones on your plan, labeling the general areas first and then assign your list of items to specific cabinets and drawers.
Once your plan is on paper, empty the kitchen cabinets, clean and begin to reassemble (some really peppy music is helpful about now!) Here are a few tips to help you:
Be sure that things used often are in the most convenient spots (inside the "triangle" and/or within arms reach high or low) and things used less often are up higher, down lower or in the back. If space is especially limited, you may need to consider housing some items in the basement or garage (such as canning equipment or things you don’t use regularly). And be realistic about what you actually use, throwing away those items you don’t actually use (the automatic potato peeler, the bagel slicer, etc).
Use supplies like lazy Susans, mini-shelves, stepped shelf organizers, wire mesh baskets (which stand up to tough wear), square plastic containers, silverware dividers, hooks for doors, shoe organizers bags or anything else that helps you make the best and most organized use of your space. In my spice cupboard, I have borrowed 4 wooden blocks from the toy room to create "steps" so that I can see small spices behind. Be creative – think outside the box!
Contain things. Never let silverware, utensils or small tools just float around in a drawer! Put small appliances such as a food processor and all it's accessories in a box. Use large drawer dividers for large utensils, measuring cups and spoons. Compartmentalize to help things stay put.
Put similar items together: Keep pastas, rice, potatoes and their sauces together, soups (canned or dry) together, breakfast foods in one spot. Put your flour, sugar, baking soda, together in your baking/cooking center. Throw out stuff you don’t or won’t use.
Contain and repackage foods. Rather than keep 4 boxes of different half-empty fruit snacks, keep them all in one plastic container. Croutons in another canister. Give small gravy and sauce packets a home together in a box or container.
And a word about junk drawers. . . ELIMINATE THEM! By using drawer divider or boxes, organize those kitchen odds and ends, making sure they really don’t have any other place to go. Create an "office supply" drawer (or box on a shelf) with scissors, markers, tape and so forth.
Be sure that things used often are in the most convenient spots (inside the "triangle" and/or within arms reach high or low) and things used less often are up higher, down lower or in the back. If space is especially limited, you may need to consider housing some items in the basement or garage (such as canning equipment or things you don’t use regularly). And be realistic about what you actually use, throwing away those items you don’t actually use (the automatic potato peeler, the bagel slicer, etc).
Use supplies like lazy Susans, mini-shelves, stepped shelf organizers, wire mesh baskets (which stand up to tough wear), square plastic containers, silverware dividers, hooks for doors, shoe organizers bags or anything else that helps you make the best and most organized use of your space. In my spice cupboard, I have borrowed 4 wooden blocks from the toy room to create "steps" so that I can see small spices behind. Be creative – think outside the box!
Contain things. Never let silverware, utensils or small tools just float around in a drawer! Put small appliances such as a food processor and all it's accessories in a box. Use large drawer dividers for large utensils, measuring cups and spoons. Compartmentalize to help things stay put.
Put similar items together: Keep pastas, rice, potatoes and their sauces together, soups (canned or dry) together, breakfast foods in one spot. Put your flour, sugar, baking soda, together in your baking/cooking center. Throw out stuff you don’t or won’t use.
Contain and repackage foods. Rather than keep 4 boxes of different half-empty fruit snacks, keep them all in one plastic container. Croutons in another canister. Give small gravy and sauce packets a home together in a box or container.
And a word about junk drawers. . . ELIMINATE THEM! By using drawer divider or boxes, organize those kitchen odds and ends, making sure they really don’t have any other place to go. Create an "office supply" drawer (or box on a shelf) with scissors, markers, tape and so forth.
As you reorganize your kitchen, be sure to label everything! I like sturdy and removable labels such as strips of index cards. Label shelves and drawers as well as containers. This will help you and your family know where everything goes. (Okay, it’s confession time: Yes, I did give my family a 4-page written test---which they were required to pass---on my new kitchen reorganization when we moved into our home. . . but no one could say they didn’t know where things went!)
Now, as you begin to use your new kitchen system, make sure it works for you. You may find that you need to make adjustments to your plan and that’s okay! (And yes, it is true that when I move things around, I leave a little post-it note in the cupboard with a forwarding address — "The cereal has moved and is now located in the cupboard next to the refrigerator") Enjoy!
