Kitchen Counter Organization

This week we will be working on kitchen counter organization.

In the past 4 weeks, we cleaned the pantry, the fridge, and the freezer, tackled the storage room (garage, attic, or any storage room), decluttered and organized the kids’ toys, and cleaned out the makeup drawer. I really hope you feel you are making progress at getting your home organized and the clutter under control.

Before I begin I have to say, the kitchen is my least favorite place to organize. I feel overwhelmed by the number of gadgets, pots, pans, plates, cups, and utensils. It’s all too much. Maybe it’s because I spend a good amount of time in the kitchen, cooking, setting up, cleaning dishes, and putting groceries away, that if I have some free time to organize, I don’t want to spend it in the kitchen. Makes sense, right?

When we first moved into our current house, I was happy to see all the counter space I had to work with, I didn’t know what to do with my life! And I set up all of my gadgets on it. It was an arrangement of appliances, fruit bowls, mail station, coffee station, pasta station, etc.

As I was getting adapted, and performed my daily tasks in the kitchen, I realized that I did not need all that setup. Here are some good tips to help you with your kitchen counter organization and decluttering.

1. Use Vertical Space

Adding a two or three-tier tray, helps you use vertical space, saving you counter space.

I noticed that my fruit bowl was ridiculously big and wide, but too shallow so I needed to get another one for extra storage. And then, there were two. That made my counter look cluttered. I purchased a two-tiered fruit basket and saved myself some space.

This three-tiered tin tray has been gorgeously arranged by Chelsea from Two Twenty One.

2. Create a Coffee Station

If you are coffee-obsessed like me, a corner of the kitchen counter should be reserved for a coffee station. I am drooling over this gorgeous coffee station from Hi Sugarplum!.

If you are short on counter space, eliminate the fixings (mugs, coffee, coffee pods, sugar, creamers, and sweeteners) and keep them inside a cabinet or a drawer nearby.

3. Store Some of the Appliances

Look at your kitchen counter and check for appliances that you haven’t used in a while. After a few months of being in our new home, I realized that I had not used the blender, nor the stand mixer. So, I put them away inside a cabinet and I only pull them out when I need them.

Same thing with the electric can opener. Although it’s used often (twice a week or so), I chose to put it away inside the cabinet that is right under the counter area where I do my food prep.

4. Create a Food Prep Station

Speaking of food preparation. If you cook at least one meal a day, you need to have one of these setups. Here is mine. That is counter space well used.

Grab a small tray and make a food prep station with the following staples: salt and pepper, cooking oils, and any other spices you use often when cooking, such as garlic powder or dried oregano. On the side, making room for a jar for your most-used utensils. Keep the station next to your stovetop.

5. Create a Mail and Charging Station

Nothing clutters countertop space in the kitchen like paper and electronic gadgets. Use a mail sorter to organize your gadgets. Or you can DIY your own charging station like fellow blogger Kristyn from Lil’ Luna did.

Keep the station in a corner where all family members can access it, and away from heat and water (sink and stove/oven) to avoid damage to your electronics.

If you want to avoid countertop clutter build-up, I suggest you adopt a new routine in your days that I adopted around a year ago. 

Discard and/or file the mail as soon as it comes home.  Make decisions on the spot:

• Toss flyers, coupons, and catalogs of things you know you won’t be needing.
• File important correspondence that does not need you take any action
• Place your bills in a special and safe place (tray, mail sorter, home office), that way you’ll know where to find them when you need them.

For more in-depth info on how to deal with paper clutter, check out my post 8 Tips for Organizing Papers at Home.

Now, I think you are ready to tackle and clean out the clutter from your kitchen countertops. Basically: use the space wisely, learn from your activities and tasks in the kitchen and see what’s working for you and what isn’t.

Have a great week!