Reasons to declutter/organize the kitchen :
- It saves a lot of time.
- It'll make you want to cook more, because it cuts down on the looking-for-stuff time.
The kitchen was first on my list, because my kitchen is was the most disorganized and the messiest. Well, I even have a magnet on my fridge that says something along those lines.
Here are some of the tips, that have worked for me on my quest for a de-cluttered kitchen. These tips are from Marie Kondo's first book "The Life-Changing Magic Of Tidying Up". Her tips were mainly for clothes, books etc,but they fit perfectly well with organizing the kitchen too.
1) DON'T ORGANIZE YOUR STORAGE. IT'S A TRAP. INSTEAD, LOOK CLOSELY AT WHAT IS THERE
She says in her book that storage methods do not solve the problem of how to get rid of clutter. Instead, look closely at what you have in the kitchen. Go through every single thing in the kitchen and choose what you want to keep and what you want to get rid of. Open that dreaded shelf, the shelf that contains everything you have never, ever used and some more. We all have THAT drawer or THAT shelf. Open it, pull everything out and spread it on the floor and look at it. In Marie Kondo's words, you are supposed to look at every single thing and ask yourself "Does it spark joy?". Well, you can't really look at your 5 year old unused spice jar and ask if it sparks joy, but try? Donate or get rid of things in the kitchen that you have never used in the last one year.
2) "SOMETIMES" MEANS NEVER
How do you decide which ones to donate? Well it's simple. If you are looking at something and thinking, you are going to use it "sometime" soon, it's time to donate it. Is it that waffle maker sitting in the kitchen, taking up space, in the hopes that you'll throw a brunch party one day? Well, if it hasn't happened in the last one year, it probably is not going to happen in the near future.
3) DESIGNATE A PLACE FOR EVERYTHING
Sounds easy, right? But, there have been so many times when I haven't bothered to put things back where it belongs. I didn't realize how much time I was wasting by just looking for things.
4) PUT SIMILAR THINGS TOGETHER
Things that are spread out are harder to find and if your memory is like me, then good luck trying to remember where things are. Grouping like things together, makes the kitchen more organized and makes things easier to find. Like, I store all my spices needs for Indian cooking together and spices for non-Indian cooking together. Same goes for baking. Group all-purpose flour, sprinkles, icing dispenser and tips etc together.
She says in her book that storage methods do not solve the problem of how to get rid of clutter. Instead, look closely at what you have in the kitchen. Go through every single thing in the kitchen and choose what you want to keep and what you want to get rid of. Open that dreaded shelf, the shelf that contains everything you have never, ever used and some more. We all have THAT drawer or THAT shelf. Open it, pull everything out and spread it on the floor and look at it. In Marie Kondo's words, you are supposed to look at every single thing and ask yourself "Does it spark joy?". Well, you can't really look at your 5 year old unused spice jar and ask if it sparks joy, but try? Donate or get rid of things in the kitchen that you have never used in the last one year.
2) "SOMETIMES" MEANS NEVER
How do you decide which ones to donate? Well it's simple. If you are looking at something and thinking, you are going to use it "sometime" soon, it's time to donate it. Is it that waffle maker sitting in the kitchen, taking up space, in the hopes that you'll throw a brunch party one day? Well, if it hasn't happened in the last one year, it probably is not going to happen in the near future.
3) DESIGNATE A PLACE FOR EVERYTHING
Sounds easy, right? But, there have been so many times when I haven't bothered to put things back where it belongs. I didn't realize how much time I was wasting by just looking for things.
4) PUT SIMILAR THINGS TOGETHER
Things that are spread out are harder to find and if your memory is like me, then good luck trying to remember where things are. Grouping like things together, makes the kitchen more organized and makes things easier to find. Like, I store all my spices needs for Indian cooking together and spices for non-Indian cooking together. Same goes for baking. Group all-purpose flour, sprinkles, icing dispenser and tips etc together.
"Happiness is a place between too little and too much" - That's a good motto for life and the kitchen ;)
Have you read the book?
This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.
ReplyDeleteI saw that documentary too. I am totally in minimalist and declutter mode as well. I am pretty good with my kitchen. I just need to get rid of all the random stationary and greeting cards and all the stuff which I feel I will look at one day, but never do.
ReplyDeleteAlso, whenever I feel I want to shop something (out of want) I try and recall my minimalist mantra and do I need this or am I just adding to the global wasteland. I know pretty dramatic but it works for me.
P.S. The above comment," This comment has been removed by a blog administrator." - looks like I had posted something scandalous :D Hehe
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Yeah, ever since our podcast on French Style, I have been going through this de-clutter mode. I thought it was just a phase, but no. Now, I can actually say NO to something at the store and walk away. That's a miracle! I like your mantra. I need to do that with my kitchen!
DeleteAlso, yes..That comment looks scandalous :p Sorry, you had to go through this trauma because of my accidental deletion of your very normal comment :p lol...