Organizing The Heart Of The Home

While moving isn’t any fun at all…I have to say that moving your kitchen is the most tiresome part of the process. When unpacking a kitchen you can’t simply toss items into a closet and walk away. Everything needs to be thought out, planned, sometimes measured, and put away in a methodical manner that means the space is easy to use.

Confessions

This took a long time. Let me be upfront with you. None of my kitchen gear had been used in years (we had a fully furnished apartment), so everything needed to be washed before it was put away. This slowed the process down significantly.

I didn’t get it right the first time. There were times where I SWORE something was where it should be. Then, I changed my mind and moved it to another cabinet. It’s the nature of unpacking. I found this to be true, especially when I could find more of something than I thought I had, like glasses.

Things might change. This is the way I want things right now. It’s working for me. However, I might change things down the road. I’ve been cooking light summer meals and once I start cooking more food, or doing large amounts of meal prep, I might want to change things up.

My Plan

So I started off with a general plan. I looked at the cabinets I had and how they were located in relation to my dishwasher, sink, preparation space, and stove. Only then did I make decisions. I wanted to be able to unload the dishwasher quickly and easily so everything that gets washed the most; plates, silverware, and glasses, is located close by.

Drawer Organization

My drawers are wide, but shallow. So, I was limited in the drawer organizers I could use. Before I went online, I measured the drawers. Only then did I know what would fit. I know that some people want to install organizers for every inch of the drawer, but I’m happy using the “negative space” around organizational tools.

Utensil Drawers

Here you can see how I organized by two utensil drawers. They are a little cluttered, but hey, that’s life and I honestly use everything in these drawers. I didn’t feel the need to remove items to make it picture perfect to show you.

The organizers I used are from Amazon and you can find them here and here.

Many of my other drawers are small enough that they require no organizers and are simply holding on genre of item. The drawer to the left of my stove holds pot holders and the one to the right holds towels. This makes it easy to find and grab items when I need them.

Counter Organization

I really try to keep things off my counters. However, there are two big exceptions. The first is my spice rack.It’s meant to be mounted on a wall. We have a tile back splash so this is not an option, so I simply leaned it up against the area next to the stove.

The second is a two tier basket I keep on my island. This is where I store my fresh items that need to be eaten quickly to avoid going bad. You never know what you’re going to find in here; items from my garden, farmer’s market finds, or even baked goods.

 

Tea Drawer

I’ve always wanted a tea drawer. It’s such a dorky thing to want and love. However, until now I’vealways had a hard time storing, utilizing, and organizing my tea in a way that I’ve been happy with. I installed two drawer dividers that I purchased on Amazon. From there, I added drawer organizers from Three by Three for the smaller items. Anything that might leak and be sticky, like honey sticks, is in an organizer that I could wash out in the sink.

One of the things I am still working on is the drawer where I keep my food storage bags and wrap. The drawer is so shallow it’s hard to fit the boxes into it. I don’t want to remove everything from their boxes, but I also refuse to fight with the drawer every time I open it. One of the solutions I have some up with is moving my plastic wrap to a special container designed to hold and cut it. The Fast Wrap holds a roll up to 13 inches. It has rubber feet so it stays in place while you’re pulling. I love it because there’s no chance you’ll cut your hand on it (I have no love for those sharp edges of boxes.)

Don’t Change The Channel

Part two of our kitchen tour is coming soon!