Creative Organizing in the Kitchen
Organizing

Creative Organizing in the Kitchen

April 10, 2018 /

I have never been lucky enough to live in a house with a pantry.  It didn’t matter much when we were first married because we didn’t have much to put in the cabinets.  But as our family has grown and we acquired more possessions, this became more of a problem. I have had to be creative in organizing our stuff. The house we live in now has a very small kitchen.  It was built in the 60’s and like most houses built in that era, the kitchen was not given much space or thought.  I have very little counter space, even less that is usable.  There are not many cabinets, and they are not laid out well.  There is a small broom closet, but no pantry.  My grandparents lived in this house before us and my grandfather had put small shallow shelves in the closet.  He kept his house tools and cleaning supplies in the closet.  I was used to that, so that is where I put my tools, cleaning supplies and other junk I didn’t have anywhere else to store when we moved here.

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I stored my food in the cabinets and on top of the refrigerator.  As the family grew, so did the amount of food we needed to keep in the house.  We live out in the country, so we try to keep most of the basic supplies on hand because we can’t just run to the store to pick up something we don’t have.  We closed in the carport a couple of years after we moved here creating another living area, laundry room and second bathroom.  We added cabinets in the laundry room, so I was able to move some of the extra items stored in the closet out to the laundry room.  Because the shelves in the closet are shallow, they still didn’t hold much.  The door is very narrow, so I couldn’t add any of the over the door organizers to the closet.  The original kitchen door is still in place, but rarely used.  It just stays open against the wall.  I finally realized that I could add an Over the Door Organizer to the back of that door for extra storage.  It is amazing how much stuff can be stored in an otherwise unused area.

Creative Organizing in the Kitchen

Sometimes you have to think out of the box to figure out the best way to get more storage out of thin air.  I don’t use a lot of organizers but do think that they have a place when they can help you solve a problem.  I am a functional organizer.  I want to find the best way to store the items we use on a regular basis.  I want them to be easy to locate when we need them and easy to put away when we are done with them.  It doesn’t have to look pretty and all match, it just needs to work.  It is an ever changing process.  The types of food we eat changes all the time.  This happens in every house.  Sometimes there is a medical reason, such as being diagnosed with an allergy or disease that forces you to make a change.  Other reasons include diets, deciding to eat healthier, becoming a vegetarian or a vegan.  Anyone who has kids has experienced the ever changing craziness of kids likes and dislikes.  One day all they eat is peanut butter and jelly sandwiches, then all of a sudden chicken nuggets are king.  They start on formula or breast milk, transition to cereal and baby food, then real food.  Since the food is always changing, so is the way you need to store it.

My kids still change the items they want me to buy even though they are long past the toddler/preschool picky phase.  My daughter decided a couple of years ago that she wanted to start taking her lunch most days.  So we had to have a way to store her lunch supplies so that they didn’t get eaten up by other members of the household.  I purchased a Clear Tote Box with a lid and that is where she keeps the stuff I buy for her lunch that doesn’t need to be refrigerated.  It also makes it easier for her to pack her lunch since all the items are in one place.  My son has practice for either football or soccer most days after school, sometimes both on the same day.  He needs food that he can eat after school so he packs stuff in his backpack everyday.  A couple of months ago, I purchased another Clear Tote Box for his protein and granola bars, packages of tuna, and other healthy snacks.  It takes up a less space and is much neater when you take the items out of the boxes and place in another container.  It also makes it easier for him to grab 2-3 different items and throw them in his backpack without opening a bunch of boxes.

Since the shelves are shallow in the closet, I use the walls on each side to store more items.  There are hooks on the left that hold vacuum accessories, grilling tools, extra lighters, and a small brush and dustpan.

Creative Organizing in the Kitchen

On the right wall, I have 2 Wrap Storage Organizers that hold zipper bags and wraps.

Creative Organizing in the Kitchen

I recently added another Bag and Wrap Organizer  on a higher shelf to hold the extra boxes that didn’t fit in the ones on the wall.

Creative Organizing in the Kitchen

I cleaned off the top shelves and got rid of a lot of the items that we hadn’t used since we moved here, moved a few to the laundry room and then placed some items on the top shelf that we rarely use but I am not ready to get rid of.  Now I store a slow cooker, pancake cooker, jars and most of our canned food on the other shelves.

Creative Organizing in the Kitchen

The bottom shelf holds my house tools and trash bags.  Under the bottom shelf, I installed a cup hook that holds a large plastic bag where we place the smaller plastic store bags until it is full.  When I get 2-3 bags full, we donate them to an organization in town that uses them to distribute food to the needy every month.  The vacuum cleaner, accessories  and drinks are in the floor of the closet.

Creative Organizing in the Kitchen

I don’t have a lot of storage room in my kitchen, so I try to make the most of the space I have.  I move items around if I think something will work better.  That is the best way to figure out what works the best in your house.  If you think something will work better, try it.  If it works, great, if not try something else.  Organizing doesn’t have to be permanent or expensive, but sometimes investing in certain organizing items make your house work better.

Any tips?  Ways you have made storage space work better for you?  Leave a comment below to let others know what works for you.

You might enjoy my other posts on organizing – How to Get ALL Your Papers Organized and Clean and Organize a Little at a Time.

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