We have a galley style kitchen {the cabinets line both walls}. This type of kitchen is typical in older homes. We have a decent amount of cabinet space, but nothing extraordinary. We have 8 upper cabinets and 7 lower cabinets, and 5 kitchen drawers {6 including the one on the island}. I'm going to start with the upper cabinets, then move to the lowers, and finish up with the drawers. I am including labeled pictures as we go because if you're anything like me, you're a visual learner. The following tips are just a guideline since everyone has a different kitchen size + layout. To begin, here's a picture of our kitchen for a visual.
Tip 1: if your cabinets are old like ours {1957 baby!}, add a liner to the shelves. I used this self-adhesive black and white liner from Big Lots for $2 a roll {Dollar Tree also carries shelf liner}. I measured the cabinet shelves {most were about the same size} + cut the liner to size for each. This was semi-time consuming, but very well worth it.
Without Shelf Liner
With Shelf Liner
The upper cabinets to the left of the sink house ceramic + plastic bowls that we use daily, and it contains our everyday use plates {including Emerson's little plates}. The top shelf holds a drying rack for sippy cups. Tip 2: Arrange everyday use items in the same cabinet. Plates + bowls should be located near the silverware drawer for easy access to all necessary items.
The upper cabinets to the right of the sink house tupperware stacked by size + style on the top/middle shelves, and the bottom shelf houses tumblers + larger plastic water bottles. Tip 3:ONLY KEEP WHAT YOU USE both for tupperware + tumblers! Anything that's hanging out in there simply because you think it's "cute" or it "might get used one day", get rid of it. There is nothing worse in the kitchen than having stuff fall out of your cabinets when you open them {this used to be tupperware for us}; maybe you can relate.
Moving to the other side of the kitchen, from far left to right. The small cabinets above the fridge hold serving platters + casserole dishes. I don't use these very often at all, so I keep them out out of the way. Tip 4: Try to placed seasonal or only used on occasion items in the hard to reach cabinets, so they don't take up valuable, daily cabinet space. I did not take pictures of this space.
The cabinets directly above the coffee tray house coffee tins on the top shelf {we have several different kinds of coffee}, Emerson's sippy cups + snack cups on the middle shelf along with our few extra drinking glasses +mason jars, and on the bottom shelf are all of our coffee mugs + vitamins {plus my 21 Day Fix containers + info}. Tips 5 + 6: Keep coffee mugs beside the coffee pot or at least very close by. This is helpful for guests and/or for those tired mornings. ;) Also, only keep mugs that get used regularly. Coffee mugs are so popular with lots of people, but don't be a hoarder. Keeping them stock piled in a cabinet doesn't do anything for anyone. So, if it's not getting used, donate it.
The small cabinet directly above the stove houses all of our spices. This is an atypical feature, since most newer houses have a pretty hood vent. Tip 7: If you don't have a spice cabinet, use a spice rack or a magnetic strip to contain spice jars to one small area. Otherwise, try to keep your spices out of sight, as they can make a kitchen appear cluttered.
The far right cabinets house nice dinnerware + glass mixing bowls on the top, while the bottom shelf holds plastic mixing bowls and our knife block. Tip 8: If you have children, try to keep your knives stored either in an upper cabinet or out of reach/out of sight.
You still with me?
The lower cabinet to the left of the sink houses our electronic kitchen appliances, like the toaster, toaster oven and crockpot. We don't use the toaster everyday, so it stays stored away and we just pull it out when needed. It is stored near an outlet though. Tip 8: Keeping electronics "hidden" until needed prevents your counters from looking overcrowded, plus it provides you with much more counter space. These items are one of the main ways counters look/feel cluttered + chances are you aren't using them all nearly as frequently as you think.
The cabinets under the sink store our blender and our Kitchen Aid mixer on the left, and paper products + daily used cleaning supplies on the right. I keep 2 cleaning sprays, sponges/brushes, dishwasher detergent + dish/hand detergent underneath the sink. All other cleaning supplies are stored on a shelving unit in our front hall closet. I did this intentionally to keep them out of reach from little hands. I never have to worry about her getting into cleaning supplies because she can't reach them and/or she doesn't try to get to them. If you have more curious children in this department, I suggest keeping cleaning supplies stored up high.
Tip 9: Do not clutter your sink with brushes and sponges and dish soaps. I just repurposed a hand soap dispenser and I keep dish soap with hand renewal in it. It doubles as hand + dish soap. I also keep a plastic sponge holder in the sink, so that the sponges/rags aren't draped all over the sink. This keeps the sink area tidy and organized.
The lower cabinets closest to the fridge hold a tupperware container filled with my breast pump, bottles, and other baby items not currently in use. It also holds some of Emerson's snack foods + large pots that are rarely used.
The lower cabinets to the right of the stove hold pots and pans {stacked by size + style} and their matching lids are housed on a desk organizer in the same cabinet {like the one seen below}. Tip 10: Keep pots and pans in lower cabinets because kids love them. Also, keep lids organized rather than keeping them on the pot they belong too. You can't put many pots + pans together if you leave the lids on, thus taking up far more cabinet space than is necessary.
Really quickly, because this is turning into a novel. I used a different liner for the drawers {purchased at Dollar Tree}. The silverware drawer is to the left of the sink. Again, it's in close proximity to our daily used plates + bowls. I use a silverware organizer to sort it all. I also keep measuring spoons + a dish drying mat in this drawer {because it's next to the sink}.
The drawers on the opposite side of the kitchen are organized as follows from left to right. "Junk drawer" {which actually doesn't house a ton of junk, but mostly useful random items}, Cooking utensils organized using another silverware organizer, plastic sandwich/snack bags + aluminum foil/parchment paper, and finally kitchen towels/rags.
Reuse old pill bottles to hold smaller supplies, like paperclips, safety pins, etc.
Tip 11 is to keep your drawers and cabinets organized according to usage. Keep like-minded items grouped together for easy storage and location. Basically, you don't want your cooking utensils opposite of the stove because that's mostly where they get used. You don't want your coffee mugs far away from your coffee station and so forth. As far as drawers go, keep them simple + don't be afraid to use little containers inside your drawers. They're great for keeping things separate + neatly organized. Don't overcrowd them. If something isn't used often, GET RID OF IT! I can't preach that enough.
My final tip is in regards to countertops. The less you have to keep on the counter the better. Countertops are another cluttered area that people don't even consider. Cleaning off your countertops can do wonders for making your kitchen appear larger + cleaner {even if it's not really all that clean}. Only keep the necessities on the counter {for us that's the coffee pot, the spatulas, the microwave {because we don't have one above the stove}, a candle, and the fruit bowl. Literally, that's it! Everything else that we could possibly need is purposefully and thoughtfully stored in our cabinets. It's never been an issue to keep most things in the cabinets instead of on the counters. It gives me more room to cook + it is FAR more appealing to walk into a kitchen with cleared countertops than cluttered ones. So, my FINAL TIP {#12} is to keep your countertops cleared off + only display the necessities!
I hope this has been helpful and if you are still reading, hats off to you. Go rest your eyeballs now. :) Join me next Monday for another post in this series all about organizing your pantry + linen closet! XO!
Great tips Chelsea! As you know, I hate clutter and cannot function unless things are well-organized! Yet, when I read your blog I always learn something that I haven't tried! Fabulous ideas and I love how you present them with visual ques! Looking forward to your next post!
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