CharlieD said:
Me too. I've been telling my wife we should hire the profeccional organiser, she doesn't want to do it, buit I feel like we need one. And not only for kitchen.
Boy my OCD would come in handy for you and money to boot......send me a train ticket and I'm on my way
.
I try to put things in cabinets that are by things I use.
For instance:
Coffee Cups
Coffee
Tea
Sugar
Etc...
are in the cabinet directly above the microwave. I have some free space on the upper cabinet shelves and I use those for my mixing bowls that I don't always use.
My spice cabinet is directly by my stove.....I keep my oils, vinegars and spices in this cabinet.
On the other side of the stove is my baking cabinet.....I keep all my baking ingredients in here....minus the sugar, flour, brown sugar and powder sugar. I have those in my stainless steel canisters that I have on my counter.....that is except for the powder sugar I keep that in my lazy suzy corner cabinet because I don't always use that.
I keep the dinnerware in one cabinet and the glassware in another one but directly by each other and near the kitchen sink.
Its kind of hard to put this all into words. When I set up my kitchen I thought of it in work stations. Where do I want to prepare my coffee/tea in the morning. What work surface will I be using to do my baking......thats why I put that baking stuff directly above that....same with the spices.
In my lazy susan corner cabinet I keep my can goods on the top shelf and the boxed goods on the bottom.
I have a small pantry cabinet that I keep all the cereal and snack stuff in..... along with the paper plates and napkins.
Make sure your silverware drawer and misc. utensil drawer is near the stove also. For utensils I use often I keep them in old crocks that I have sitting on my counter......they are just so easy to reach for.
I try not to keep items in my kitchen that I don't use alot. For instance my roasting pan that belonged to my parents that I only use for Easter, Thanksgiving and Christmas. I store that in the basement and bring it up when I need it. Same for dishes I only use in the holiday seasons......no since wasting space with stuff I only use a few times a year.
Lets see what other tips....... ummmmm if I haven't used something ... utensil appliance in a year it goes in the rummage. I figure I lived without it for a year I can live without it forever.
Did you know that the drawers on the bottom of your stove....well most stoves is suppose to be used for storage. I just learnt that for the first time several years ago and I feel stupid but I truely thought it was a broiler drawer.....don't ask I guess because when the stove was purchased new thats where the broiler pan was stored so I just assumed. And no I never tried to broil anything down there
. Well guess what.....that drawer is the perfect place for me to put my cookie sheet and pizza pan along with the lids to my saucepans.
I try to eliminate any clutter because I can't stand clutter......thats my biggest things. I grew up in a household where my father saved everything and I think I went the opposite......I have to live and cook in an organized, clean space.
I'm sure if you went to your local library they'd have some books that can give you more advice.
Hope some of this helps at least.