At one time, the kitchen was purely a place where food was prepared and where we occasionally ate. Nowadays, however, it has become the hub of the house and has such has acquired many uses and as a result become a repository for all our junk. Anything from keys, to books, to backpacks are commonly found in the kitchen. One area that is a magnet for kitchen clutter is the kitchen drawers. Open most kitchen cupboard drawers and you will be faced with an array of junk, often to the point where they are unusable and any item that should be in their is now usually stored on the kitchen worktops, leading to disorganization and an untidy look.
So we need to look at re-organizing the kitchen, getting rid of some of this junk and freeing up the humble kitchen drawers and using them for their intended purpose. First of all, we need to tidy up the work surfaces. Look at all the equipment lying around and ask yourself, do I really need this? Items such as bread-makers, juicers and mixers that, although you would like to use regularly, in reality do not get used often. These should be stored away in a cupboard or, if you do not use them at all, sell them.
Take a look in your kitchen cabinets, and any items you do not use more than once a month, place them into a container to be stored away, together in one cupboard or cabinet.
The next is the kitchen drawers – empty all the contents out onto the work tops and begin to sort. For the drawers nearest the stove, put all the utensils in their that you would use for cooking. These include, stirrers, wooden spoons, oven mitts etc. When emptying the drawers, you will often find items that you either never use or have not used them for years. Get rid of them – you don’t need them! Selling them is a good option, especially on a site like eBay. With the money you could buy new items to replace the old, broken utensils that you do use regularly. Not only are you getting rid of junk but you are updating your kitchen at the same time.
You will find a lot of items that just don’t belong in the kitchen. Move them out and put them away in their rightful place. I often use separate drawers for various, such as a drawer for serving items such as napkins, napkin rings and table mats or a drawer for baking items. In that way I know where to go to straight away to find a particular item. It makes cooking a breeze and less stressful.
De-cluttering is actually a good exercise to free up space and it also, surprisingly, helps clear the mind. I like to think of it as the Zen of Kitchen Drawers – try it, you’ll like it.