Easily Reduce Stress The Old Fashion Way – Part IV: How To Organize Your Kitchen!

How To Organize Your Kitchen:

Function & Flow:

The next space that we need to tackle for organizational purposes, is the kitchen. Here we’ll talk tactics of how to organize your kitchen for better flow and function.

Like your bedroom, this is an area of the home that much time is spent. Oftentimes, we don’t even appreciate just how much time is utilized in this space.

Kids lunches, dinners, evening snacks, a glass of wine and conversation. An organized and well functioning kitchen is an essential part of the home to maintain sanity.

Furthermore, the kitchen may be one of the most crucial places to also have function and flow. Even with a sparkling clean kitchen, without proper item placement and flow, can make for a “messy” (pun-intended) situation!

An article posted on yahoo, discusses “flow” as “strategic item placement that will make your cooking and cleaning routine, more seamless”.

A Word About Kitchen Size:

The concept of an organized kitchen is important regardless the size or dimensions. For instance, even individuals with large kitchens, need to pay attention to detail. Consequently, this will allow them to fully optimize there daily operations.

Tips For Organizing Your Kitchen:

What follows, include some simple tips geared toward achieving a cleaner, more functional kitchen. Nonetheless, will hopefully reduce unneeded stress in your life.

Tip 1: A Clean Slate

Firstly, make sure your mindset is for the long haul. Above all, make sure you have your sleeves rolled up and ready for what’s coming.

Specifically, we’re speaking about clearing out everything! Food, accessories, equipment, etc.

Consequently, this step alone, is a multi-part process. Here are questions to think about:

• What are my goals?
• Am I satisfied with just a deep cleaning?
• Deep clean plus a re-organization?
• All of the above plus a redesign?
• Better functionality? 
• Do I need help?

Secondly, think about the other people in your home. Have them voice there opinion for what may work and what may not.

Here are some questions for your household:

• Do you have ideas to better the functionality?
• What are your current frustrations with the kitchen and how it flows?
• Can it be a quick fix instead of a complete overhaul?
• Should we invest in new equipment, accessories, or glassware?

Tip 2: Categorize

Although referring to professional kitchens, an article published on NY times quoted C.E.O of Hedley & Bennet who stated, “when you have a place for everything, you don’t have to think twice”.

Surely, this philosophy can work in any space you’re reorganizing. Oftentimes it’s the process of choosing like items, and placing them in the same area.

For example, silverware with the silverware, pans with the pans, mixing accessories with the mixing accessories. Furthermore, placing items such as mixing supplies together or in close proximity. For instance measuring spoons, weighting devices, etc.

Tip: If there are items that you use for, “entertainment” purposes, you may want to group these together as well, and store them in a location that’s not with the regularly used items.

Tip 3: Think About Spacing

Think about how you can utilize and maximize space. While it may be true that some of us have smaller or oddly laid-out kitchens, it’s possible to make areas seem bigger or more well designed then they actually are.

Firstly, you can take advantage of vertical space. We discussed this concept in our post on “how to organize your closet“.

In like fashion, as it pertains to the kitchen, is to use wall space. Increase bang for your buck by optimizing wall space.

It’s about look, as well as function: To illustrate this, here are some ways to organize your kitchen using wall space:

1. A fold-down kitchen table, or desk?
2. A back splash that serves multiple purposes?
3. Thirdly, an idea is to make a handmade coffee display wall piece.
4. What about adding a stemware rack to the bottom of your cabinets?
5. Something as simple as adding a floating shelf?    
6. Add a cool looking pot rack!

Hanging Pot Rack

Tip: It’s about thinking outside the standard box that everything needs to be tucked away in the cabinet. There are tons of ideas out there on how to de-clutter your kitchen, be creative and choose something that fits the functionality needs of your kitchen and your daily needs.

Tip 4: Most Used Items

Another idea is to store items that are used frequently in easy to reach spaces.

This concept holds true in any space in your home. For both ease and functionality, place items in which you use often, at eye level.

Tip 5: Cleaning Supplies Don’t Mix

Oftentimes, cleaning supplies are placed underneath our kitchen sinks, but cleaning supplies just don’t mesh in the kitchen where we eat!

Furthermore, find a place in your house, or garage, to store all of your cleaning supplies, far away from where you eat.

We’ll discuss how to organize your garage in another post.

Tip 6: Divide the Space

After designating certain spaces, venture into further separating accessories by using:

• drawer dividers
• Tupperware lid organizers
• pull out cabinet drawers
• cookware organizers
• spice rack tiers

Do a quick search on Amazon for idea items.

Once you find that perfect spot, think about how you can maintain that area for the long haul and easily maintain a de-cluttered kitchen. Hence, this is how you can truly maintain order in the kitchen.

Tip 7: Maintenance is Key:

Finally, the maintenance stage. For this purpose, it’s about staying consistent, understanding that the process on how to organize your kitchen, is ongoing.

Your space will change, but at this point you’ll have a good starting point. Thus, from this moment on, changes will hopefully be much easier on you and your family.

Final Thoughts!

We are thankful to have you and hope you enjoyed this post.

Please share on social media, and have fun reorganizing your kitchen.

Additionally, if you have some of your own ideas you’d like to share, please do so here in the comments section!

Resources:

• https://www.yahoo.com/now/kitchen-flow-6-tips-getting-122800749.html?guccounter=1&guce_referrer=aHR0cHM6Ly93d3cuZ29vZ2xlLmNvbS8&guce_referrer_sig=AQAAAK6BO4YAAS9co3g3eH9_gkcEKgYqfhK-N1WhaAZur-O5bKQves9Fog7-a3iqWAPCYVPYMqmm9KPjMn3ekskh-a1EOjOvlBXddORb52HqePwu_9vwacElu_5CCia-iTFW3i-QIv_vIR7lWQQQIAdnkhHQ8yiRM5mO2dXlxmCUZXal
• https://www.nytimes.com/2019/04/03/t-magazine/kitchen-organization.html
• https://www.pinterest.com/pin/820077413369784255/?lp=true
• https://www.pinterest.com/pin/198299189821164320/?lp=true
• https://www.etsy.com/market/coffee_mug_wall_rack