Whether you’re starting from scratch in a new home or looking for a way to reorganize your existing kitchen to make it more efficient, the following tips will prove invaluable.
An efficient kitchen is essentially one that reflects your lifestyle. It’s about organizing systems that meet your daily needs and help streamline your activities. An organized and efficient kitchen is also clean and tidy because everything has a purpose and a place.
Let’s go over the five key steps to making your kitchen flow better.
Step 1
Stop by your kitchen and be ruthless. Give away or sell things you don’t use. Discard foods, spices, and medicines that are past their expiration dates.
Step 2
Remove everything from your kitchen cabinets and drawers. Wash all shelves and interiors with warm soapy water. Rinse, let dry, and add new shelf and drawer liners.
Step 3
Designate certain zones for each task you perform in your kitchen. Each zone should also have a related storage area that includes all the tools needed to perform the tasks performed in this particular area of your kitchen.
For example, store pots, pans, and cooking utensils near your stove. Place pots and pans close together to save space, or hang a pot rack. Cookware can also be hung on hooks, stored in drawers with dividers, or if you have the space, stored in a container on the kitchen counter.
Things like everyday dishes and cutlery should be kept near the kitchen table, as well as the sink and/or dishwasher. Side shelves make it easy to retrieve everyday dishes (no need to remove lunch plates to get to dinner plates), and divided silverware trays help maximize drawer space.
Step 4
Keep similar items together, for example, canned goods, baking supplies, snacks, etc. Sort the spices alphabetically so they are easy to locate.
Store the foods your family eats every day in an easily accessible place. One of the first foods our children accessed on their own was cereal. If they got up early, it was nice to know that they could easily retrieve their own bowls, cereal, spoons, sugar, and milk.
step 5
Clear your counters of excess clutter. Remove large and infrequently used appliances. Store them in an appliance garage or kitchen cabinet. If the appliance is used infrequently, dispose of it completely or at least store it elsewhere in your home.