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The kitchen, by its nature, is probably the most heavily trafficked and most popular room in your home. It’s where the family gets together during meals, friends gather during dinner parties, and you get each day off to a fresh start. A well-organized kitchen allows you to enjoy more fully every moment you spend in it.
Since the kitchen is where memories as well as meals are made, you’ll need to consider both functionality and aesthetics as you organize each element inside. Does your present setup work for you?
Take this kitchen efficiency test:
Make a list of your kitchen appliances - the blender, toaster, food processor, mixer - and note where each one is and how you use it. For instance, if your study shows that you’re walking across the kitchen to carry bread to the toaster, then the toaster isn’t housed in the most convenient place for you. Move it closer to the bread box or whereever you store bread. Do the same for other items whose locations aren’t convenient to its purpose.
A Place for it All
1 Organize drawers by grouping your most frequently used cooking tools in ceramic jars or other attractive holders on countertops. The drawers will be neater - with more space for other things - and you’ll be able to get to these must-have utensils quicker. Clear canisters with airtight tops can hold and display such frequently used foodstuffs as bread bagels and pasta on countertops. When you can see a particular food item, you’re more likely to eat it before it spoils. And you won’t buy more of what you don’t need.
2 Keep countertops uncluttered while using them for decor. Place an attractive, shallow wicker basket, small wooden crate, or other container on a counter to hold treats for the kids or fill it with the snacks you like to grab on the run. Use antique, decorative tins or old-fashioned colored-glass mason jars to store your collections of tea bags and matchbooks--or as “hiding” places for dog biscuits and kitty treats.
3 Fruits and vegetables can take center stage in an attractive, breathable basket or metal mesh container on the kitchen table or windowsill instead of taking up space - and being left to spoil unseen - in the back of the refrigerator.
4 Let the fridge do double duty as a family message center. A magnetic message board on the doors will remind everyone in the family of the day’s appointments and the week’s schedule. The sides are a great place to display kids’ artwork, family photos, and take-out menus. Who needs a desk in this busy place when a little creativity and a few magnets will do? To keep phone messages from becoming lost, keep a pad by the phone and secure a pen to it. If you have a space-saving telephone that mounts on the wall, be sure there’s a writing surface and supplies nearby.
5 Inside drawers use plastic sectional organizers or small oblong boxes to hold scissors, tape, and coupons in place - and to make them easier to find when you need them. These types of containers also work well for organizing large spoons, salad tongs, carving knives, corkscrews, and bottle and can openers.
6 If your cabinet shelves are not adjustable subdivide the space with wire racks. It makes getting to pots, pans, dishes and pie plates easier than when they’re piled all the way to the shelf above. This wire-rack system works equally well with items in the cupboards or pantry. You might also consider installing a corner cabinet carousel or rolling shelves. Store your holiday cookware and the cake tins or roasting pans you use infrequently in those hard-to-reach cabinets high above the fridge.
7 Sort food - wherever you’ve stashed it - by category to make things easy to reach. You’ll also have a better idea of what needs restocking before you head out to the grocery store. Put baking items - such as flour, sugar, and baking soda and powder - in one area and cereals and canned fruits and vegetables in another.
8 Instead of copying recipes from magazines or cookbooks onto file cards, create a recipe index in a small notebook. Jot down the names of your favorite recipes, the cookbook or magazine they are in, and the page number where you can find them. Place the index with your recipe books or magazines to make sure there will be no more frustrating searches when the last-minute dinner get-together is at your house. Keep recipes clipped from magazines or downloaded on line in a file with folders labeled “Hors d’Oeuvres,” “Main Dishes” and “Desserts”.
9 Tame newspaper clutter by placing a small basket or bin in a pantry area to handle the day’s discarded editions. Or make your own holder using a cardboard box. Simply cut slits down the the center of each of the four sides of the box, place string through the openings and across the box; when the box is filled, tie the loose ends and remove the bundle for recycling.
10 To make everyday cleanups quicker assign one large cabinet and one drawer near the dishwasher to serve as home for the daily dishes and silverware. If you have extra sets of dishes and far more place settings than you have household members, stock this area with just enough dishes and utensils to get everyone through the day and to make unloading the dishwasher less of a chore. Store the rest of the service in a place that’s less convenient but still accessible, so it’s handy when your meals require more dishes and glasses than you’d planned for.
