Kitchen Organization Day 2: Let’s Tackle Those Cabinets!

Woohoo! You made it to day 2 of our kitchen organization series! If you missed day 1, here is the link. I hope you are ready for our first big day of organizing.

I want to start out by saying I am SO proud of you for making this step. It can be so hard to get your house and life under control but here you are, killing it.

Now, it is time to brew up your coffee so we can start!

We will start with cabinet organization!

Cabinets are probably my least favorite thing to organize. If you are like me they are “doom” areas and you just try not to think about them. 

I have even contemplated going to all open shelving so I’m held accountable to their organization!

HOWEVER, once I got them organized, it was a game changer so that is where we are going to start.

1. Organizing your plates, bowls, and cups

Yes, ALL OF THEM. 

If you haven’t already, pitch or donate any “extras.” I kept enough for my family and another family if we had company. Everything else went bye-bye. 

Now, sort them all by kind and size and then designate them a spot in the cabinet. Before putting them back, wipe out the cabinet and put shelf liners down if you prefer.

 This will now be their forever home. If it gets taken from there, it gets put back there and nowhere else.

2. Organizing those pots and pans

If you opted for a storage solution such as a pot rack or hooks, now is the time to install it! 

Double-check that you don’t have any more pans you can pitch. (Yes, I know. You’ll get tired of the “pitch it” reminders real soon.) 

If you are returning the pans to the cabinet, get them all stacked inside of each other to maximize your space. 

Next, take a basket (or whatever you prefer) and put all of the lids together in that beside your pans. 

If you opted for a hanging solution for your pans, get them all hung up how you want them and find a place to store the lids that keep them all together. 

Done. This is now their home.

3. Organizing the dreaded spices

Your spices may be in your pantry instead of your cabinet, if so, I’m sorry! Just skip this section for now and refer back to it later. 

The best way to organize your spices is to put labels on the lids and slide them in a basket or container! By doing this, you can just pull your basket out and grab what you need without having to pull them ALL out. 

No more throwing them in the cabinet and shutting the door really fast before they fall out. 

Is that just me? No? Okay, good. 

4. Organizing under the sink

We can’t forget about organizing under the sink! 

If you are like most people, this generally consists of cleaning products. Pull ALL of those out. 

As you’re pulling them out, pitch any that are almost empty or you never use. No reason to keep them under there. 

Sort them all out so you know what you have. Glass, all-purpose, cleaning tools, etc. 

You can also get caddies and sort them by room. All of your kitchen cleaning supplies in one caddy, bathroom cleaning supplies in another, you get the point. 

Organize them by what works best for YOU. 

When you are done, wipe the cabinet out and put them all back in their new homes. 

5. Organizing any doom cabinets

You might be asking “What is a doom cabinet?” If you are, GOOD FOR YOU. 

I have always had a doom cabinet. I still do. It is just more organized now. 

This “doom” cabinet could have anything from A to Z in it. Anything that doesn’t have a home. The best way to tackle this is just to pull it all out and then wipe out the cabinet. 

After you get that done, look through all your items. Pitch any you really don’t need and then notice if anything that is left can go to a spot you have recently organized. 

If not, decide how you want these items put back in the cabinet. For small items use a basket with a label. If you need to install another shelf in the cabinet, do that. 

This step will vary so much from person to person that you really just need to use your best judgment here. 

However you organize it, just make sure it works for you and that everything is easily accessible and easy to put back without much thought. 

Until Tomorrow…

Once again, I will update you tomorrow with Day 3 of the kitchen portion of this mini-series. 

I think we have made great progress already and I can’t wait to continue this journey with you. 

Now, go take a bath or relax in your chair for a while with the rest of your coffee and I will see you tomorrow for our next organizing post.

As always, I can’t wait to hear your comments, questions, or concerns.