When it comes to organizing your kitchen, it may sound like a tremendous amount of work. However, you can reduce some stress by focusing on each task at hand rather than on the whole project. Follow a few of our tips that will help you navigate your way through decluttering and organizing your kitchen while staying motivated.
Extra Extra
For starters, try to purge any items you do not use, or have not used for quite some time. Hoarded items may be difficult to get rid of, however, keeping only the necessities will help make this process much more efficient. If you have four one-cup measuring cups, donate one, or even two of them. Keep the amount of cutlery that fits in your dishwasher and store away only the necessary amount for if you are hosting. Sentimental items may be the hardest part, but by only keeping a few of your favourites, you will eliminate the clutter in no time. Make sure all your Tupperware have their corresponding mates, and the solo riders are taken out.
Countertop Clean
Having a clean and empty countertop is a common aesthetic most people desire, but sometimes is not practical. Keeping your toaster, coffee maker, and utensil holder on top because you use them every day does not take away from a clean counter. For the items you do store, try to sort each section by category. Have all your beverage essentials in the cabinet above where the machine is. If you are a mug collector, hold onto your few preferred ones.
Remember to keep items in their designated spaces in order for your kitchen to stay tidy. Allow yourself to sort based on how you and your family live. You do not always need to have a whole cabinet with various sizes of bowls. If the members of your household use a small bowl occasionally, only keep a couple.
Shelf Life
Make your way around your kitchen by starting in your pantry, or your designated food cabinets. Check expiration dates for spices, baking items, and non-perishables, and remove all expired ingredients. Try not to keep purposeless items. For example, a spice that has been in your cupboard for a meal that you found online but never actually made. Purge as much as necessary. From here, separate your baking and cooking essentials and try to organize alphabetically, by size, most likely to use, or the style that suits you best. Tip: This works for the decluttering and organization of medicine cabinets and vitamins as well!
Out With The… Rarely Used?
While small kitchen appliances are handy and unique, many go unused. Electric grills, skillets, fryers, mixers and blenders are just a few of the forgotten items. Try to only hold onto appliances that you use often. If you have a juicer you have utilized once, it is probably best in the hands of someone else. Gadgets are another tool that can be fun, but they too are only taking up space if they have not been touched in a few years. Ask yourself, would I buy this today? Or, have I used this in the last six months? A year? If the answer is no, it is probably best to send these tools to the donation box.
Starting in the middle of a cluttered space can cause you to feel lost and discouraged. By taking on tasks one at a time, instant gratification will be frequent, and continuous, enabling you to persevere. Remember to only hold onto what you need and often use, and to return your necessities to their designated homes.
