The first step to organizing your kitchen cupboards is to remove the current items from the cupboards. In a small kitchen, the organization process can be accomplished in a relatively short amount of time. If you have a large kitchen with many cabinets, you may want to approach this project in small increments.
Once you have all of the items out of the cabinets, you can take an inventory of what you have. Sometimes, it is easy to forget about seldom used items. When you begin to return the items to the cupboards, do so in a way that places the most frequently used items in the most convenient location. Cups, glasses, plates, and bowls should be place in a cabinet that is closest to the sink or dishwasher. If you have holiday dinnerware, place it in an upper cabinet or possibly at the back of a bottom cabinet. Usually, there is a large cabinet near the stove. If so, store your cookware in that cabinet.
The cabinet under the sink is generally used to store cleaning products. If the cabinet is under a double sink, you can use a portion of the cabinet for storing dish detergent and household cleaning supplies. By adding some stacking baskets, hooks, or a small, over the door storage unit inside the cabinet, you can use a portion of this cabinet to store sponges, cleaning brushes, trash bags, and numerous other small items.
Storing grocery items in a logical, organized manner will enable you to see when you need to restock a particular item. It will help prevent you from buying something you already have a supply of but simply couldn’t find in a disorganized cupboard. Your food organization plan will depend largely on the amount of cabinet space you have. There are some general suggestions that will work in an kitchen. Obviously, the number of items you have will vary according to how many people share your home, your shopping habits, and how frequently you prepare meals at home.
Designate a specific shelf or cabinet for canned food items. Stack the cans neatly in the cupboard with labels facing forward. Rotate the cans when you add more to the cabinet. Put the most recently purchased items at the back of the cabinet. Prepackaged items such as boxes of macaroni and cheese, oatmeal, instant potatoes, cake mixes, and similar items are easy to stack in a cabinet. Make sure you position them so that it is easy to read the contents of the box.
If you store items such as flour, sugar, and cornmeal in a cupboard, use air tight, clear glass storage jars. The items will be easy to locate. And, you will be able to see when you need to add the item to your shopping list. The same idea works for cereal and pasta.
There are numerous products available to help you organize your cupboards. Use as many of these as you find necessary to help with the organization process. You can find wire shelving units that fit into a cabinet that provide space for you to stack plates, saucers, and bowls without having to place them directly on top of each other. Organizers that fit over the door provide space for tin foil, wax paper, or rolls of plastic wrap. Spice organizers are wonderful. You can find what you need at a glance.
Cooking is a more pleasant experience when you have organized cupboards. Organized cupboards make it easy for everyone living in your home to find specific items without having to frantically search for something they want.
