Is your kitchen looking a little less than pristine? Are you resisting cooking as your kitchen worktops are just to crowded to be able to prep? Have you stopped loving your kitchen and started to avoid it? Unsure of how to organise your kitchen?
Having an untidy kitchen can have a determinantal effect on how we enjoy our homes, and in more extreme cases, even our health and wellbeing. As a space which often serves more than just the purpose of being a place to prepare meals, whether you have a huge kitchen or a small one, it’s an area that can easily become cluttered.
Think about it. Our kitchens are possibly one of the multi-functional areas of our home. They are a room where we need to store food, cooking utensils, cutlery and crockery. We need space to cook, prepare, washup, and often do laundry. In many cases, your kitchen may also be the area in which you eat your meals, socialise with friends or where the kids do their homework.
With so much going on in our kitchens, keeping on top of things can feel like an uphill struggle. However, with some clever organising, it’s easy to keep your kitchen looking clear and clutter-free without the need for loads of effort.
Declutter your kitchen
Before embarking on a campaign to get your kitchen organised, you firstly need to take a long hard look at the items that you have. Are you hiding a pasta maker that hasn’t seen the light of day since you first purchased it? Is there a specific crockery set which you never use but save “just in case”?
If you are running out of kitchen cupboard space, it is wise to consider what you are actually storing in your kitchen and how often you use it? Channel your inner Marie Kondo, and decide whether items you may be hanging onto “spark joy” or are actually likely to stay at the back of the pantry for another ten years unused.
If you are struggling for kitchen storage space, also think about other areas of the home in which certain items could potentially be housed. For example, could that “special set” of glass wear potentially be relocated to a living room?
Create kitchen zones
You may have heard about kitchen zones – areas of your kitchen that serve specific purposes. Whether your kitchen is large or small, it can be extremely helpful to think of in terms of zones.
Break the spaces in your kitchen down into “work zones”. For example, food storage space, your cooking and prep zone, dishware storage and your cleaning zone (kitchen sink and dishwasher area).
The key to organising is to make sure that any items have a “home”. This helps to both ensure that you are never struggling with where to put things away, and also helps you to get the whole family on board too.
Another great tip is, when thinking about zoning your kitchen, don’t think about accessing items to get them out. Instead think about how easy they are to put away. Oftentimes, we are quite happy to make a bit of effort to find a certain gadget or utensil, but can struggle to put it back if it’s “home” is difficult to access.
Get the most out of kitchen storage
The absolute key to having a zen feeling kitchen is to have free worktop space. Any clutter which sits on the top of your kitchen units, will make the entire kitchen area feel untidy. Therefore making the most of storage which is hidden inside your units is key. This is often the reason that kitchen designers suggest integrated appliances too, as it gives a uniformity to the space that just makes the kitchen “flow”.
If you are low on storage space in your kitchen, there are plenty of clever kitchen accessories that can help you to make more of your existing units. For example, make your kitchen corner units work for you by inserting a corner mechanism that makes accessing those hard to reach corners super easy. Kitchen carousels are also an amazing way to make use of what may otherwise be “dead space”.
How to make more floor space in the kitchen
Having adequate space to move around your kitchen is important and maintains the safety of your kitchen area, after all, no one wants to be juggling a hot pan while also trying to avoid hitting one’s knees on a kitchen door handle.
If you are short on floor space in your kitchen, consider whether certain items can be removed or placed elsewhere. Items such as kitchen waste bins can take up more space than necessary and can be replaced with a pull out waste bin which sits within a kitchen unit.
Whatever the size or shape of your kitchen, getting organised will help you to better enjoy your space, making your kitchen the true heart of the home.
