As you might remember from the numerous times I have shared, my kitchen is not my most favorite place in the world. It’s small, has only two drawers, and very little counter space. But I did some of my favorite kitchen organization hacks to help me fall in love with my kitchen again. I spent some time reorganizing the space, clear the countertops, and adding some personality to the kitchen. It really helped that I didn’t have to spend much to fall in love with my kitchen again, as I just shopped my house for things like a decorative platter to hold the salt, pepper, and oils.
Once I started to reorganize the space, I needed to take things off the countertops, so I decided to put them in cabinets. This led to me having to rearrange a few cabinets to meet the needs of our “new” kitchen space. As I was rearranging the cabinets, I pulled out some of my kitchen hacks to make things stay organized but still look pretty and functional. These are tricks I typically do with my clients, but realized I have yet to share these hacks with you! So today I am sharing my favorite kitchen organization hacks to keep you kitchen organized, while looking pretty!
10 Kitchen Organizing Hacks
This post may contain affiliate links. I may receive compensation, at no cost to you, when you choose to use any of the links provided.
Tupperware
Tupperware can be a challenge to store, especially plastic Tupperware, so I suggest storing lids together and piling up the containers. Start by gathering all the lids. Then, take a large container and place the lids inside the container with the largest lids in the back, and the smallest lids in the front. Store this container next to the Tupperware containers that area stacked together. When you need a Tupperware, just grab the container you need, then you can get an idea of where the matching lid will be from the container holding the lids, as you store them in size order.
As for glass Tupperware, I suggest keeping the lids and bases together and stacking them from biggest to smallest in a cabinet. I recommend this as the glass Tupperware does not stack within itself as nicely as the plastic Tupperware does. I also don’t recommend having a lot of Tupperware. You only need a few sizes, instead of one in every size. Think about which size Tupperware you use. Then, scale down your Tupperware to keep only those sizes. Add to your collection by only buying Tupperware in the sizes you use. This will help keep the unnessecary Tupperware out of your space, so you can find what you need easily.
Stackable Containers
Using stackable containers to hold all your snacking products not only saves space, but it also keeps you food fresh for a longer period of time. My favorite are the OXO Pop Containers because they are easy to clean, easy to open, and really do keep the snacks fresh! I also like the OXO Pop Containers because they stack really nicely on top of one another. This helps reduce the amount of clutter I have on my countertops and can easily find the snacks I need in our pantry. I have found these at Home Goods, Target, and Amazon!
There are many other brands of stackable containers that work just as well. Find some that will fit into your space, look pretty, and can easily be opened. Those are my three requirements for purchasing any containers, especially food containers. The last thing you want is to not be able to open your container to get the food out! (And, yes, this has happened to me with another brand of containers!)
Cereal Containers
Keeping your cereal in an airtight container can help keep cereal crunchy and fresh. It also helps keep your space looking aesthetically pleasing. No one likes to look at the cereal boxes, unless they have some fun puzzle to do on the back. But keeping them around can take up valuable space in your pantry. I recommend storing your cereal in cereal containers. Add cute labels so you know what is in the container, and you have a great way to keep your kitchen organized. My favorite is the Klip-It Cereal Container. We have yet to have cereal fall all over the floor because the lid has come undone (which happens all the time with just keeping the cereal in their boxes), and the kids can pour the cereal themselves, which I love!
Gadgets In Bins
Are you a hoarder of kitchen gadgets like my husband? Because we have almost every gadget that ever was created for the kitchen taking up space in our cabinets. So when we first moved into our house, I found some great wire bins that would be used to hold all the kitchen gadgets. This has been such a life-saver as it makes things so much easier to find the lid to the Ninja blender, along with all the parts that come with it. I make sure to label all the bins so that the correct parts stay in the correct bins. Then, when we need to use a gadget, we find the bin, pull it out so we can grab all the parts that go along with that kitchen gadget!
To get yourself organized by using bins, grab all the parts that go with one kitchen gadget. Get an idea of how big the bin should be to hold all the parts. Continue to do this process with all the kitchen gadgets you have. Then find bins that are easy to clean that can hold all your gadget parts. Make sure you don’t buy bins that are too big for your space either. I have found that with finding the right bin for kitchen gadgets just takes a lot of trial-and-error, until you find the right bins for your space and your gadgets.
Plate Stands
Our kitchen plates didn’t fit into the cabinets when we first moved in, so we decided to remove the cabinet doors and display our plates, and bowls since they are so pretty. But the big, dinner plates didn’t fit in any of our cabinets just stacked, so we had to get creative, which makes for the perfect kitchen organization hacks. I found two plate drying racks that could be used as plate stands to hold the plated upright in the cabinet. Not only do I love how it looks, it is incredibly functional. It makes getting the plates off the shelf much easier, finding the right color the kids want to use way more manageable, and gives more visual appeal to the space.
Corner Cabinets
Corner cabinets need turntables, or a Lazy Susan is another kitchen organization hack. It is just a must-have. You are able to store so much more, which allows you access to things way in the back. This way, you are not wasting space or loosing things way in the back of the cabinet. By using a turntable, you are able to have items stored, have easy access to items way in the back, and it makes your cabinet look put-together.
Another option for corner cabinets is to use bins to store items that fit in that space. There are many options of bins to use in a corner cabinet to hold things like your kitchen gadgets or Tupperware. The Container Store has a corner cabinet organizer that will allow you to access items way in the back of the cabinet, so you don’t loose things! It also has shelving so you can see everything in your corner cabinets.
Spices
The best places to store spices are in a drawer, pantry, or cabinet for kitchen organization hacks. I don’t like recommending to store spices on the counter, as they create a lot of visual clutter and are difficult to organize. If you are storing your spices in a drawer, I love to use spice drawer organizers to keep things tidy. Face the labels out so you can see, and keep the spices close to where you use them, like by the stove or work space. If you are storing your spices in the pantry, I love using the pantry door for storing spices. The spices are visible, nothing is hidden in the back of the shelves, and you don’t have to worry about using a pantry shelf just for spices! If you are storing spices in the cabinets, I just love the Spice Stacks. Put your spices in the drawers, label, and now you can find spices easily just by pulling out a drawer that holds the spices.
Fridge Liners
I always thought that fridge liners were silly, until I decided to use some plastic placemats as make-shift fridge liners. Now, I cannot help be suggest everyone should be using these. I shared how I used the placemats as fridge liners in this post about organizing a fridge. By using fridge liners, you are able to keep your fridge shelves clean. If something spills, just pull the fridge liner out of the fridge, wash it, then put it back in. You no longer have to stand inside your fridge to scrub the shelves. The fridge liners also hold spills to just that shelf. If we had juice or milk spill, it would always end up all over our fridge. By using fridge liners, they keep the mess in one place, so I no longer have to worry about messes in the fridge.
Labeling Shelves
I recommend labeling everything. Label your bins. Label your shelves. Label your drawers. This is to help you stay organized. By labeling everything, you are giving your items a designated “home”. By giving everything a “home”, you now have a place to store everything. Once everything has a place to be stored, you are able to put things away quickly, find things easily, and keep yourself organized.
Label your shelves in your kitchen. I love using Name Bubbles Write-On labels, or chalkboard label stickers. They make the perfect labels for labeling things in the pantry, kitchen, and anywhere that you change out frequently. I recommend using erasable labels for areas or bins that change frequently, like bins to store snacks. I use pretty labels for containers that remain the same, such as my baking flours. For these containers, I use my Silhouette to cut vinyl letters to make labels.
Thinking Outside The Box With Kitchen Organization Hacks
The last kitchen hack I have for you is to be creative with how you use the space. Just because you have a pantry located near your kitchen, doesn’t mean that you have to keep all your food in that one location. If the space isn’t working for you, figure out a way to make the space work for you. I shared how to rethink a pantry when you don’t have the space for one in your kitchen, which is an easy way to think outside the box when organizing your pantry.
If your kitchen cabinets are not working for you because the cabinets are too small, take the doors off, paint the inside, and display your decorative platters, plates, or anything pretty to make the space work for you. Just because your kitchen is set up a specific way, doesn’t mean you can’t adjust things to make them work for you. Adjust the shelves, add more or take away shelves, paint, and get creative with how you store things in your cabinets will allow you to utilize more space in your kitchen.
Those are my top 10 kitchen organization hacks that I love sharing when organizing my home, or those of my organizing clients. Storing Tupperware lids in a large Tupperware bin is an easy way to tame the pesky cabinet or drawer that holds all your Tupperware. Stackable containers to hold snack foods, and labeling them with write-on or chalkboard labels will help you keep your food fresh and allow you to swap out what you place in each bin because the labels are erasable. Store your kitchen gadgets in bins so you can find all the parts easily. Remove doors of cabinets and use plate stands to hold plates up to give visual interest to your kitchen. Use fridge liners to keep your fridge clean. A turntable is a great tool to stop things from hiding in the back of a corner cabinet. Use cereal containers to keep your cereal fresh, and reduce visual clutter in your kitchen. Finally, think outside the box to make your kitchen work for you. Move shelves or take off doors to allow you the space you need to utilize your kitchen effectively.
I encourage you to try some of these kitchen hacks to make your kitchen work for you. Test out some or all of these tips and see which works for you and your space in your kitchen. Make it a New Years’ Resolution to get yourself organized for 2016 by trying some of these tips!
