There is a gadget for everything now days. But do you really need all of them? I love to watch HGTV they have a show on kitchens and they are huge, but why? One kitchen was 1200 sq ft? I think why do they need that much room, are they opening a restaurant? My whole apt is that big and I still have empty cabinets after living here 5 yrs. Am strange one or is there really a reason?
Look around your kitchen. Go ahead open the drawers and cabinets. Are there cabinets you can’t reach? Bet there’s stuff in there you haven’t seen in years. If I ask you to find me a battery, a whisk or a wine bottle opener how long would it take you to find these 3 things? Did you know seasonings don’t last forever? Or that an open box of pancake mix can grow bugs if left open? Yuck! And just what is that science project in the back of your frig? Do you check cabinets before you go shopping and make a list or just go only to find when you get home you already have 5 boxes of crackers?
Not a pretty picture is it? So let’s do something about it.
Starting back in clutter buster 1 we gathered all your purging supplies together. Only this time set it up closer to the kitchen. Since the dining room is so close we might as well do that too. You will need an extra box for these rooms mark it “to other rooms”.
Before you get started sorting measure all your cabinets and drawers. Plot your kitchen into Zones. Think about grouping things you use at the same time together. Keep in mind keeping things you use often in easy reach and things you only use for special occasions in those cabinets you can’t reach easily.
Some suggestions for grouping would be:
Every day dishes, glasses and silverware should be near the sink or dishwasher so they can be put away easily. Do you have different sets of dishes or mismatched dishes? Are some of them keepsakes? Special dishware should not be stored in your cabinets by your everyday dishes. Do you really use these dishes ever? Or just once a year? Personally I sold my china for a nice profit. I found no use in keeping something that took up so much space that I only used once or twice a yr. To my family Chinet is just as good. I have a china buffet in my dining room and instead of china I have party supplies, paper plates, napkins, plastic silverware, party glasses and plastic table clothes for a wide variety of holidays. Everything is in plastic bins that stack and fill the whole cabinet. All are in easy reach yet out of the way of everyday dishes, making more room in the kitchen. Keepsakes should be displayed or safely packed away. As with everything there is a limit to everything. Do you really need 2 dozen misc coffee cups? Or Sippy cups for kids that are now teens. Think about your cabinet size and plot out how many things you can fit in and toss the rest.
Set up a coffee station by putting the coffee pot by the microwave. Then get a nice tray to put on top of the microwave and set up your coffee/tea supplies. Limit your supplies to fit on the tray only, 6 Coffee cups, tea, creamer, sugar, and honey should be all you need. Extra supplies for refills should be in close reach of the area.
Pots and pans should be close to the stove. Every day pans should be stored in the kitchen. Anything you use yearly can be stored with Holiday supplies. If you bake on a regular bases create a baking area remember to keep all powdered products in plastic sealed containers or zip lock bags to prevent bugs.
Cooking utensils really need to be kept to a minimum. Weed out triples and put the ones you use daily in a crock by the stove and those you use once in a while in a drawer by the silverware. I found a double tray for silverware that I store small utensils in the bottom and silverware on top.
Keep counter tops free of clutter. Extra appliances should be kept in cabinets and only then if you really use them. Most cabinets have those short shelves in the back of the cabinet I found these are great for holding appliances you only use once in a while.
Food Pantry should be sorted into categories and if at all possible try to keep all food items together. So when you’re writing your grocery list you only need to look at one cabinet. Open boxes should be kept in a zip lock bags or cut out the directions and store the food item in clear sealed plastic containers.
In the cabinet over the stove or next to the stove I keep 2 lazy Suzann’s with my spices on them. I don’t buy more than I need and never buy new until the old is completely gone. Spices have a short life span and should be tossed after the time listed : Shelf Life: Whole spices--2 to 5 years, Ground spices--6 months to 2 years, Leafy herbs--3 months to 2 years, Dehydrated vegetables--6 months. I keep oils and no-stick there too so it will be handy for cooking.
So you have plotted and zoned you kitchen now comes the fun part, purging and putting the plan into action.
Let’s start with those drawers, you know the ones that are bottomless and no one knows what’s in there. Just take all the drawers out and pour them on a sheet or tarp. Does it answer yes to the following questions?
1. Have you used this in the last yr?
2. Is broken or need of repair?
3. How many of these do you really need?
4. Do I only keep it because someone gave it to me, but I don’t like it?
5. Does it belong to someone else, or I was asked to store it, or just never returned it?
6. Is it really a kitchen item or should it go to another part of the house?
Go wash out the drawers, put new liners or get some cool dividers for each drawer. If you don’t have enough drawers in your kitchen then purchase a plastic drawer unit and dividers for at least the top drawer. Try to find a drawer unit that will fit inside one of the bottom cabinets.
Line up the drawers all clean and ready with the new dividers in your sorting area. Put a paper label on each drawer with a list of things that will go in each drawer and start sorting. Put things that don’t belong in the kitchen in the box marked “to other room”. Follow the same steps for cabinets and pantries.
The same rules follow as with the other parts of the house. Deal with each section one step at a time and reduce everything to a realistic amount. For more information on de cluttering your kitchen see; http://organizedhome.com/save-time-cut-clutter-kitchen-declutter or http://flylady.com/index.asp
More Clutter Buster to come.
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