6 steps to decluttering your kitchen

The kitchen is the heart of the home, a place of creativity, comfort, and connection. But, let's face it, it can also become a cluttered chaos if not managed properly.

If you're tired of digging through overstuffed drawers and playing hide-and-seek with pots and pans, it's time for a kitchen decluttering.

Make it easier to cook and clean up with less stuff in the kitchen.

Here are 6 steps to declutter your kitchen.

6 steps to declutter your kitchen

1.Plan your decluttering strategy

Do you have time for a day of decluttering or to do a bit at a time. Decide if you want to invest in a ‘one and done’ approach or do an category in the kitchen, like pots and pans, in each session.

If you decide to do it all on the same day, you might want to do it by category e.g. all the pots and pans. The risk with emptying out all the cupboards is that you feel overwhelmed by the extent of stuff to sort through. Also doing it by zones means that if you run out of time there should be limited stuff to deal with and put back.

2. Create ideal zones based on how you use your kitchen

Have regularly used things near where they are used. Dishes should be stored near the dishwasher if possible.

Don’t store that hardly ever used salad bowl in prime kitchen space.

Examples of kitchen zones are:

• baking supplies

• meal supplies

• coffee and tea supplies

• pots and pans

• crockery

• cooking utensils

3. Empty the cupboards

Rather than Marie Kondo and take everything out - why not start small and choose a couple of cupboards with like things in them to declutter e.g. food cupboards. Empty the cupboard.

First - throw out expired food or any trash.

Second - declutter remaining items by asking :

• Do I use this regularly?

• Do I have anything that does the same thing? e.g. if you have 5 wooden spoons - how many do you think you need?

• Try to reduce ‘one-use’ items where they aren’t often used like the egg slicer.

• How many pots and pans do you need? How many multiples of kitchen utensils do you need?

Kitchens that have excess stuff in cupboards are hard to keep organized. Reduce what you have to fit into the cupboard space .

4.Organise cupboards

Use dividers, bins, and trays to keep utensils, gadgets, and ingredients neatly arranged. This prevents items from becoming a jumbled mess.

Install hooks, shelves, or racks on walls or inside cupboard doors to utilize vertical space for hanging pots, pans, and utensils.

Lazy Susans can be really good for storing things like sauces (especially in fridges if they can fit). Shelf racks can help maximize storage space in a cupboard with lots of vertical space.

5. Borrow motivation

Let’s face it - decluttering can be hard work. Try putting on some energizing music or listen to a podcast.

Watch a youtube video on kitchen decluttering.

Decide a reward for finishing the decluttering or at progress points.

6. Do another sweep of the cupboards if necessary.

Decluttering can be hard work. Sometimes it takes a while to build up to deciding to get rid of stuff. Sometimes you might need a couple of goes at certain cupboards (like my plastic container cupboard!).

One strategy is to put stuff you don’t think you need into a box. If you haven’t gone back and used it after a couple of months then maybe you no longer need it.

The best way to keep your kitchen decluttered is to think carefully about what you bring into your kitchen. When you are tempted to buy something - think about whether:

• you really need it,

• where will you store it

• do you have something that can do the same function already.

Once your kitchen is decluttered, you might want to do some spot maintenance. What areas are not working and why? Is there too much stuff? Are the baskets or dividers not working? Does it just need to be reorganized.

I sometimes do a 5 minute tidy of a cupboard if I am cooking dinner and have time. Its surprising how much can be done in 5 minutes if a cupboard has been decluttered and it just needs a bit of a tidy up.

Planning more decluttering?

If you are planning on doing more than decluttering your kitchen, I have a decluttering checklist (two versions) on my ETSY store where you can write what you want to declutter and check it off.

Check it out here.