The kitchen isn’t called the heart of the home for nothing. It’s where we prepare the meals that fill our family’s bellies. It’s where people hang out, visit, and work together. It’s probably the hardest working room in your house. But that very fact just highlights how important it is to keep an organized kitchen so you can find enjoy the time you spend here.
No one wants to start preparing a meal in a kitchen that’s dirty. And if that kitchen is also disorganized then cooking is even more of a chore.
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Tip #1: Clear counters, sink, and trash every day
Clearing off kitchen counters, making sure the sink is empty, and carrying out trash are daily activities that make a big impact in your your kitchen looks and functions. If you’ve ever walked into the kitchen to make breakfast and been greeted by the mess from last night’s dinner then you know what I mean.
Yuck! No one wants to have to clean before they start making the next mess.
I understand that sometimes everyone is tired and taking care of the dinner mess at the end of a long day isn’t likely what anyone is jumping up and down to to. I get it because I’ve been there – too many times.
But here’s something I’ve found to be true: it generally doesn’t take as long to clean up a fresh mess than it does to start from scratch and clean up and old one.
Think about it. Washing dishes that have just been used for dinner means that they are easier to clean. Whereas in the morning, any residue has had a chance to harden into what often feels like concrete.
The same is true with the pans and utensils you used to cook. Washing them is much easier (especially if you’ve tossed them into a sink full of dishwater as you go – or at least rinsed them off – than if you have to start scrubbing them in the morning.
I’ll give an example from my own house. I scramble eggs several morning a week for breakfast. I find that if I go ahead right then and use a stainless steel pad to clean out the pan then cleaning it up only takes seconds. But if I let it wait till the eggs have dried, then I’ve got to spend several minutes scrubbing…and beating myself up for being lazy and creating a tougher mess for myself.
The same is true with counters and trash. Attending to these daily and putting things back in their place keeps this a small job. But if you wait several days then there is more to do and it takes longer.
My nana always said that it was easier to prevent little messes from turning into big messes.
As usual, our nanas are always right.
Tip #2: Get rid of unnecessary items
Now I live with a man who never met a spatula he didn’t like. He’s got every size whisk known to man. I mean, the man loves kitchen gadgets.
However, in the kitchen as in the rest of the house (or in any space, for that matter),
you cannot put an infinite number of items into a finite space
Most of us have some space limitations which means we’ve got to make some choices. What items are the most important for us to keep? What do we regularly use? What items have we brought into our kitchen that end up collecting dust or that didn’t work as promised?
This isn’t to say that you need to get rid of your slow cooker or your cookie cutters. In fact, I’d never tell you to get rid of anything specific. But I do encourage you to be honest with yourself and to honestly access how much you love or use something. If you do, then it stays. If it doesn’t, it’s time to let it go bless someone else.
And for what it’s worth, that’s how I look at it. The things I donate I don’t think of as tossing. There’s no sense berating ourselves or being angry over past purchases. If you choose to think of your donations as blessings you can pass on to someone else then it helps make it easier to let them go…guilt free.
Besides, there are others who may love, adore, and desperately need what is just taking up space in your cabinets.
Tip #3: Group like with like to keep an organized kitchen
This is a good rule to follow in pretty much any space in the house. But in the kitchen it’s especially important.
Go through items and put things into groups: baking dishes, soup bowls, serving pieces, etc. You get the idea.
As you do this you may find items that have gotten stuck into odd locations. This increases the likelihood that those items never get used. Either put them with the other items in their category so they’ll get used, or let them go.
Having items in groups makes it so much easier when it’s time to prepare a meal, to set a table, or to put items away. It also makes it easier for those who work in the kitchen with you to know where to put things away. Trust me, it’s no fun to hunt for your favorite baking dish because the last person who put it away tucked in someplace you can’t find it.
Tip #4: Clear containers make kitchen organization easier
I’ve got a set of clear canisters that I got from The Container Store ages ago. The thing I like best about them is that I don’t have to open a lid to determine if I’m getting low on something. I can tell immediately with a quick glance.
I also do the same with other dry goods. I use acrylic or glass containers for things like dry pasta, rice, and mashed potato flakes. I use clear acrylic boxes for those pouches of mixes: spice mix, marinade mix, and gravy mixes.
Probably the best little box I use holds those individual drink mixes. We love those little tea mixes and flavor packets. But I hate having a bunch of half-empty boxes around. Simply put the pouches into one container and toss the boxes. Looks nicer and takes up less space (and I’m more likely to use everything I’ve bought.)
The same is true for items that you use to store leftovers in the refrigerator. If you’ve ever had the unpleasant experience of discovering mold after finding a container that got shoved to the back of the bottom shelf, then you know how easy it is to put things in the fridge and forget about them.
However, if leftovers are in see-through containers, they’re a lot more likely to be used. And I’d rather someone at my house eat the food than for me to scrape it into the trash while holding my nose any day of the week.
Tip #5: Find kitchen organizing products that work for your space
It seems there is always some wasted space in kitchen cabinets. In our previous home we had a space that required a contortionist to get to. It was part of a peninsula that had been added on and the corner was dead space unless you had one of those pull out organizers that have you easy access.
But even in cabinets where you don’t have to twist into a knot to access, there are lots of good organizing products that make spaces even easier to access. For example, my dad and hubby both have problems getting to the bottom shelf on the bottom cabinets. Their health issues make this a dead zone unless they can pull the shelf out.
Assess your own cabinets. What spaces are difficult to reach? Which spaces could simply be easier to reach – and therefore keep clean and organized with the right product installed?
Yes, some of the products aren’t cheap. But perhaps you could create a list and add these over time as your budget allows.
Tip #6: Don’t forget about vertical space
My mother had the tiniest kitchen during my growing up years. It really was meant for only one person to work in. It was a tight little U-shaped kitchen that we managed to learn to zig and zag in. We’ve got pictures of her, my grandmother, and me all in there at once working on a holiday dinner but it was workable only because everyone stood still where they were working on lest they bump someone else.
This isn’t atypical for lots of people. Those who live in apartments or smaller homes are going to have smaller kitchens. Therefore, anything you can do to make use of the vertical space you’ve got is helpful.
My mother didn’t have room for a pot to hold her cooking utensils. So she hung then on the wall behind the stove.
My daughter doesn’t have enough drawers to hold her kitchen mitts and hot mats. She’s got them hanging on a Command Hook inside one of her cabinet doors.
Don’t forget to look high and low to see what space you may be overlooking. Do you have space between the top of your cabinets and the ceiling? This could be a place to store items that don’t get used very often like the holiday platter or the roasting oven you only use at Thanksgiving.
And for more unsightly items, you can find a pretty box or basket to use in this space.
Don’t forget about your ceiling either. Lots of beautiful kitchens have ornate pot racks hanging above an island. But yours doesn’t have to be ornate or terrible expensive to be useful.
Tip #7: Watch your habits
Unfortunately, keeping a clean and organized kitchen isn’t a “one and done” thing. Since we use the kitchen every day, it requires daily attention to keep it clean, tidy, organized, and presentable.
The little things we do (or don’t do) every day matter here. If we get into the habit of putting dishes into the dishwasher immediately after getting them dirty, then we won’t have a sink full of dirty dishes to look at.
If we clean up spills when they occur, we won’t have to scrub a sticky mess later on.
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I’m a retired educator, mom of three adult children, cancer warrior, sandwich generation member, and lover of life!
I help older women create & live a life they love through radical self acceptance, unapologetic goal pursuit, and relishing the joys of home.
Light & Yummy Grape Salad