Do you have organized kitchen cabinets and drawers? Are you maximizing every inch of your space?
Most people need to do at least a little tweaking to their kitchen to make the most of it. All it takes is a little shift in thinking (and a little effort) to make your kitchen more efficient and user-friendly.
Problem #1- DIsorganized Kitchen Drawers
I’m betting there’s an ongoing crime being committed in your kitchen. You have space thieves.
They are in your drawers, and they take up valuable space. They are making it hard for you to find the things you ACTUALLY need. The offenders: a candy thermometer, a turkey baster, and a ridiculously shaped potato masher, to name a few.
These were the “offenders” in my kitchen because I rarely used them. And, yet there they were in the same drawer as my often-used spatulas and wooden spoons.
Your “offenders” may be different than mine. If you make mashed potatoes once a week (heck, once in two weeks), your masher is not an offender; leave it in the drawer.
But…if you’re like me and only make mashed potatoes on Thanksgiving and only baste a turkey once a year, put that masher and baster elsewhere.
Maybe you rarely bake or make eggs. In that case, your offender is the chubby whisk. The other space thieves are those weird gadgets and tools you only use once in a blue moon.
For example, I have wooden skewers, an apple slicer, and corn on the cobb holders. I still like to have these on hand, but I don’t want them in a kitchen drawer.
For the longest time, I would open a drawer while cooking and start digging through a ridiculous mound of utensils and gadgets to find what I needed.
I repeatedly asked myself, “why is this even in here?” I wanted organized kitchen cabinets and drawers, so I got very discriminatory about what I allowed to be stored in the spaces I used most.
The Solution- Edit Drawers
I purchased some storage bins with bamboo lids, labeled one “utensils,” and went through every kitchen drawer.
I pulled out every oddly shaped, rarely used “offender,” and put them in the bin. Then I donated duplicate items that I didn’t want and threw away anything old and broken.
The new utensil bin lives in my pantry, with the other bins holding miscellaneous household items. Now the only items in my kitchen drawers are things I use regularly.
I added bamboo drawer dividers to the drawer to separate the utensils. The items are categorized (wood utensils, spatulas, whisks, etc.) and organized.
I still have a lot of utensils, but I cook a lot and use them all. Yet, I don’t have so much that it’s hard to open drawers.
I no longer dig for what I need. Moreover, if I ever need to mash a potato or slice an apple, I know where to find it.
Problem #2- Disorganized Cabinets
Space thieves also live in your cabinets. They are rarely used appliances, old pots and pans, and party platters. The questions I want you to ask yourself: Do I ever use this? if so, do I use this often enough for it to be in this cabinet?
If not, you need to either move it, donate it, or throw it out (if it doesn’t work anymore). I’m guessing in most cases you’ll want to move it.
The problem in my kitchen is that the cabinets are too tall! I’m very short, and that space up there is of no use to me when cooking or putting away clean dishes.
The Solution- Edit Cabinets
It’s very important to me to keep the things I use regularly in the cabinets I can reach. The higher shelves get the items that get used rarely (like champagne flutes and mason jars.)
Depending on your height, you can plan your kitchen in this way as well. Put the cabinet items you use daily at the height that is most comfortable for you to grab (or put away) easily.
I don’t fill my lower cabinets to the brim, either. Granted, I have a lot of space and can spread things out. But I’ve found that the more space a person has, the more they tend to fill it.
f you have an ice cream maker you pull out once or twice a year, it needs to go elsewhere. Put it into a higher cabinet or anywhere you have extra space (maybe garage) that you don’t need to get to regularly.
Don’t stuff a bunch of appliances in the cabinet with the pots and pans you use every day. Obviously, if you use your air fryer twice a week, you’re going to want to keep that in an easily accessible area. But try to have that one cabinet (or drawer) dedicated to those pots and pans you use daily and weekly.
If you have a small kitchen, and very few cabinets, you need to be very discriminating about what you allow to stay. How many coffee mugs do you actually need? How many plates? In this scenario (when space is at a premium), it is important to use good organizing products. You can add a lot of useable space with cabinet and drawer organizers.
Not only will this make things easier to find, but it will also be much more pleasing to the eye.
How does it feel when you open that cabinet and all the Tupperware lids come tumbling out? Not great. On a bad day, that little annoyance can be enough to send you over the edge.
If you go through each cabinet and drawer with these tips in mind, you’ll be able to streamline your spaces. Kick those space thieves out, or at least relocate them. You will have organized kitchen cabinets and drawers and you will be able to find what you need easily.
One thing I’d like to mention is that many of the organizers I have in my kitchen cabinets were found at thrift stores. Oftentimes, you can find them for less than $2.00. Wipe them down with a Lysol wipe, and they are good to go.
Organizing doesn’t have to be expensive. You just have to spend a little time to find what you need. However, if you would rather have brand new, these items won’t break the bank either.
I hope this post inspires you to streamline your drawers and cabinets. You won’t regret it, and it will help you work more efficiently in your kitchen.
What area of your kitchen needs the most organizing? Share in the comments.
Thanks for reading!
