Organizing Your Kitchen

Around this time of year, you can realize how disorganized your home really is. With so much cooking and baking going on in the kitchen, as well as so many house guests visiting, you really can see where you need to declutter and get organized.

When baking over Thanksgiving, I realized some things, in terms of cabinets storage and food prep, really didn’t make sense in my kitchen. Therefore, I moved things around a little bit to make my own kitchen a little more functional.

Ramona Creel, a professional organizer and accountability coach, offers this tip sheet for organizing your kitchen. She says everyone should start by setting up five stations for the basic kitchen activities — cleaning, cooking, food prep, food storage and service.

Five centers

• set up a “station” for each of the five basic kitchen activities
• keep your equipment nearest the appropriate center making it easier for you to perform kitchen duties
• cleaning (sink, dishwasher, trashcan, soap, rags, sponges, etc.)
• cooking (stove, pots, pans, microwave, toaster, etc.)
• food prep (countertop, mixing bowls, blender, measuring cups, etc.)
• food storage (refrigerator, Tupperware, canned foods, etc.)
• serving (dishes, linens, candles, flatware, glasses, etc.)

Following the triangle theory

• pay attention to your movement from one center to the next
• you should be able to reach major appliances in only a few steps
• set up your kitchen as a triangle, moving from stove to sink to refrigerator
• keep these paths clear of obstacles (trash cans, dog dish, etc.)

Honey, is this good?

• remember that even non-perishable foods go bad
• go through your cabinets and clean out everything
• get rid of anything rancid, old, stale or hairy
• follow some basic guidelines about how long food stays edible
  • canned foods (2-5 years)
  • cereal (6 months)
  • pasta (1 year)
  • spices (6-12 months)
  • flours (3-6 months)
  • grains and legumes (1 year)
  • dried herbs (6 months)
  • condiments (1 year)

Kitchen design

• ask some questions that influence the design of your kitchen
  • how often do you shop for groceries?
  • do you buy in bulk?
  • what do you normally buy (more boxed, frozen, fresh, etc.)?
  • do you eat in the kitchen or in the dining room?
  • is the kitchen a social and family center?
  • do you have need of a computer in the kitchen?
  • do you want a TV or CD player in the kitchen?
  • how many meals a day do you cook?
  • how many people do you cook for?
  • do you do much large-scale entertaining?
  • do you prepare many elaborate or complicated meals?
  • do you bake often?
  • do you want a “pass-through” to the dining room?
  • what items do you use most frequently in your kitchen?
  • how many recipe books do you have?
  • how often do you use your recipe books?
  • do you have any physical limitations?
  • are you tall or short (determines high and low storage)?

Organizing your cabinets

• limit yourself to one category of paraphernalia per area
  • ex: glasses on one shelf, dishes on another, appliances separate
• avoid storing food and cookware together in the same cabinet
• group your foods together in categories for easy access
  • ex: canned vegetables, baking goods, breakfast foods
• alphabetize spices in a rack to make them easier to locate
• keep small packets (gravy, Jell-O, sauces) together in a basket
  • ex: canned vegetables, baking goods, breakfast foods

Transform your existing storage space

• storage tools can do wonders with your current spaces
• stepped shelving makes use of the back space in a deep cabinet
• drawer dividers keep utensils under control
• rectangular storage containers take less space than round ones
• choose containers that stack
• line up pot lids and flat cookware in a vertical rack
• use overhead bins, cup hooks, and racks for hanging storage
• use pullout racks and stacking bins to make use of dead space
• save your counters for items you use daily

Tips provided by OnlineOrganizing.com — offering “a world of organizing solutions!” Visit www.onlineorganizing.com for organizing products, free tips, a speakers bureau, get a referral for a Professional Organizer near you, or get some help starting and running your own organizing business.