Last week, we organized a spot that is in dire need after the holiday season: the refrigerator. How is your refrigerator looking this week? Sparkling and organized? Did the kids already gulp down all your perfectly aligned juice boxes? I know mine did. 🙂
I want to spend the next two weeks in the kitchen (maybe I will venture to the bedroom if I get sleepy) because the kitchen can be a big task. This week let’s concentrate on organizing kitchen cabinets and drawers, and next week we will move on to the pantry. I told ya…big challenges but totally doable.
The first step to any organizing project is to de-clutter.
1. De-Clutter your cabinets and drawers.
Clear your kitchen table or counters to make space for the items that you will be removing from the cabinets. You may also want to bring in a laundry bin or large box so that you can place items that you want to give away. There are so many appliances, gadgets and plates that we meant to use but didn’t. These items should not be cluttering up your kitchen. Let’s only keep the items that we love and know to be useful. Just because you spent a lot of money on an appliance does not mean that you should keep it. Consider whether you will ever use that bread machine that takes up half a cabinet. Will you ever use that place setting that is incomplete? Always keep the end result that you want for your space in mind when deciding what to keep.
2. Organize your cabinets and drawers by choosing the best placement for your kitchen items.
After you have sorted all your cabinets and drawers, re-think whether the items should remain in their current spot. We can become so accustomed to having items in one spot that we don’t even consider moving them. For example, maybe dishes and utensils could be stored by the dishwasher to make putting them away easier; maybe you prefer them by the dinner table. Maybe the cutting board should be close to the garbage can or to the sink. Placing pots and pans by the stove is another idea. Also, consider placing heavier items in lower cabinets, keeping frequently used items easily accessible and rarely used items in upper shelves.
3. Add organizers and dividers to your cabinets, if necessary.
If you have a lot of plates or limited cabinet space, consider adding dividers and/or organizers. Here
4. Add liners to the drawers.
Adding liners to the bottom of the drawer helps items stay in place and it makes the drawer pretty – those two reasons are equally as good in my book.
5. Organize under the kitchen sink.
Don’t forget the kitchen sink cabinet. This area gets messy pretty fast and can always use some tidying up. You can find a detailed post on mine here.
6. Tame the Junk Drawer.
Lastly, the junk drawer. This one needed it’s own mention as it can be the messiest drawer in the kitchen. You can find a detailed post here.
I think this is enough work to last all week, don’t you think? On a related note, I totally want a breadmaker machine but after writing this post, I am reconsidering.
Happy Organizing!
Maria
If you missed it:
I love your white dishes. Where are they from?
Ann, in the first picture, the dinner plates at the very bottom are from Williams & Sonoma (their everyday collection), the small bowls next to them are from Crate & Barrel. The shelf above it has a mix from Crate and Barrel and CB2. If there is a specific dish that you are interested in knowing where it’s from, let me know. That is the great thing about white dishes, you can buy them anywhere and they still match.
xo,
Maria
Love your beautiful white dishes. So pretty. I need to incorporate some drawer liners, stat!
I love under the kitchen sink. I was planning on buying an official under-sink contraption but the mdf shelving looks much better.
I almost bought an “official” one too before trying this out.
I just found your website last week, and I love it! I really like this week by week organizing project. Many other times, I have seen something similar, but it is a new task every day, which I don’t have time for! This is great, thank you!!
Thank you Christie!!
Thank you so much Christie!