Getting Organized In The Kitchen

If you’ve been living in your house for more than a year and every time you go to get a glass from the kitchen cupboard you find yourself standing in front of the wrong cupboard, chances are your kitchen organization is just not in sync with the way you would naturally use it.

There are logical places for items in the kitchen - cutlery in the top drawer, pots and pans near the stove. It’s all for the sake of improved efficiency.

To improve the efficiency and ease of use of your kitchen, review these organizing tips and ideas:

Kitchenware

• Frequently Used Items - store at eye or hand level, as close as possible to the area where they will be used
• Dish Towels & Dish Cloths - store close to the kitchen sink
• Drinking Glasses / Cups - store closest to the source of beverages (refrigerator)
• Cereal Bowls - keep them close to the cereal
• Cooking Utensils & Cutlery - in the top drawer beside the stove or cooktop, or in a container that sits on the counter beside the stove
• Cookware / Pots & Pans - store in, on, under or as close as possible to the stove
• Infrequently Used Items - you have to have them, but you don’t use them very often - those high kitchen cabinet shelves are perfect for storing these items
• Baking Supplies - store them all together - mixing bowls, measuring cups, measuring spoons, baking ingredients, cookie sheets, cake pans, etc.

Food Storage

Obviously you store all items requiring refrigeration in the fridge. It’s only logical then that you should store all food items not requiring refrigeration together as well. Designate specific cupboards or cabinets in one area to food storage. This makes creating a grocery list easier - you only have to look in two areas to see what you need - the fridge and the food storage area. Putting those groceries away becomes a much quicker exercise as well.

Dry Mixes, Opened Cereals, Crackers, etc. - choose square, stacking, re-sealable containers. Square containers are easier to store inside square cupboards and cabinets and you’ll be able to fit in more square containers than you can round containers.

Cleaning Supplies

If you must store cleaning supplies in the kitchen, make sure you keep them completely separate from food storage. A common spot is under the sink. To keep small hands out of dangerous cleaning supplies, install a childproof latch on any/all cabinets containing these supplies.

Ultimately, the decision on where to put things is entirely up to you. We hope that these kitchen storage and organization tips will help get you moving in the right direction to improve the efficiency of your kitchen.