My kitchen is small and my preference is to walk in and see clutter-free counters so it doesn’t make my kitchen look even smaller. Plus, just by my nature, I don’t like to see too many things out all at once in any area of my home. I believe the kitchen is a very important room to keep organized and functional so we can prepare meals quickly and easily. The more we have to push past stuff and search for stuff, the harder it is to work efficiently. Since cooking isn’t my favorite task of the day, I’d rather get in and get out!
Here are 5 Strategies to Clear Your Kitchen Counter of Clutter so you can work efficiently whether you love to cook, bake or not so much!
Decluttering Strategy #1: Throw Away Trash
- Grab a trash bag and look for all the trash that can be tossed on the spot: food wrappers, fast food containers and recycle items such as pop cans (OK soda cans East Coast, I hear ya) and beer bottles.
Decluttering Strategy #2: Let Go of the Extras
- Go drawer by drawer, cupboard by cupboard and let go of items that you have too much of or that you no longer use. Kids no longer using sippy cups? Let them go. Do you have 30 coffee mugs when you can get by with 10, let 20 go. Chipped dishes that you never use? Let them go.
- Letting go of the extras will free up space to put things away and not leave them out on the counter.
Decluttering Strategy #3: Stow Small Appliances
- Have your counter tops turned into small appliance parking lots? Only keep the most frequently used small appliances out within easy reach. For most of us, this will include a toaster and a coffee pot. Use that extra space you created in the cupboards to store less frequently used items such as juicers and waffle irons.
Decluttering Strategy #4: Stretch Your Space
- Use organizing products to your advantage to stretch your space to hang up your paper towels & hand towels.
Decluttering Strategy #5: Keep a Flow Going
- Make sure dishes don’t end up on the counter and in the sink because the dishwasher needs to be cleaned out. Be sure that someone in your home (or you) has dishwasher duty so you can load it up instead of backing it up.
