Get Your Kitchen Organised Once and for All!
Kitchens are my favourite room in the home to organise because you get such a high value return for the time spent. An organised kitchen = less food waste and therefore money saved, it’s also going to be quicker and easier to prepare meals and far easier to keep clean.
The good news is that you don’t need a large kitchen with a walk-in pantry to be organised – it’s just about efficiently using the space that you have.
What You’ll Need
Time – it usually takes me 4-6 hours to organise a whole kitchen. If you can’t spare too much time in one go, break your project into manageable chunks, for example, you can tackle a cupboard or drawer a day.
Tape measure – “measure twice, buy once” is my motto for purchasing organising products- I’ve learnt the hard way!
Pen & paper – for taking notes, stock checking and jotting down measurements.
Post-it Notes – are a must for sticking on drawers and cupboard doors as you are planning where things will go. It’s also a good idea to leave them up for a few days if you have made big changes so that everyone in the household will know where things are and where they go back.
Sturdy boxes or bags - for collecting items to discard, donate or recycle.
The Review
Grab your pen and paper and take a walk through your kitchen, ask yourself the following questions and jot down your answers:
What is the main reason that I want to get my kitchen in order?
What works well, what could be improved and what doesn’t work?
How do I and other members of the household use the space?
Is it also being used for other activities such as working or crafting?
What are the areas where clutter has naturally accumulated?
What are my pain points?
Where a lot of organisational projects go wrong is not having an overall strategy and plan for your space. Having answers to these questions and your end goal in mind will help you to put a logical plan together.
The Prep
Remember that you will be decluttering and organising the room that you will need to prepare meals in. Therefore, a good time to start is after breakfast, preferably with your beverage of choice and some good music!
Make a sandwich for lunch and have some snacks to hand, so that you are not dealing with trying to make food at the same time as organising. Keep the kettle and a mug handy.
The Edit
Start by clearing the dining table or a work surface so that you have somewhere that you can pull out everything.
Take everything out (don’t be overwhelmed at this point – trust the process!)
Check the use-by dates and discard expired food.
Bin any irreparably damaged or broken items.
Donate any equipment that you no longer use. If the spiraliser is coated in dust and hasn’t been out since that 2015 health kick you were on – it’s time to let it go to a new home!
If you have things that are used infrequently, like that special bowl for the Christmas pudding, consider whether these could be stored somewhere else in your home.
The Organising
Group items together into categories such as pots, pans, gadgets, utensils, glasses and crockery and with food you can use groups such as snacks, baking, dry goods, tins, pet food, kid’s snacks etc. With categories, I’m not too prescriptive, just go with what makes intuitive sense to you.
Now, look at what you have and the space you have before putting things back. Think about how you can plan the area to be more efficient, e.g., putting the mugs and tea bags near the kettle or making sure that the cupboards/ drawers nearest your dishwasher are for crockery and cutlery, so you’re cutting down on walking from one place to another. If you have children, you’ll need to decide if there are food items that you would like them to be able to get themselves or prefer to keep out of reach.
As a rule, when organising a kitchen, the things that you use less frequently should go on the top shelves, and the back of cupboards, with the everyday items kept easily accessible.
Putting everything back can be a bit of trial and error. When I’m working in a client’s kitchen, I don’t usually hit on the perfect spot for everything at the first pass. So don’t give up and don’t be afraid to keep moving things around until it all falls into place. It might be that you want to live with the new setup for a few weeks and if there’s something not working you can always change it later. Organising is not something that is ever set in stone. The main thing is getting the basics right, then you can refine them over time.
Next, it’s the fun part! Now that you know what you have, you can go ahead and purchase any baskets, bins, and storage items you need. Stuck with a tricky space or need for some kitchen storage inspiration - check out my Top Kitchen Organisation Hacks.
The Finishing Touches
The final step is to label your baskets, bins and containers. Once you have items grouped in their final locations, my top tip is to label the edge of the shelves of drawers. Not only does this help you to retrieve things quickly, especially if you need to stock things behind each other, it’s also a reminder for you and the rest of your household as to where to put everything back!
