Kitchen Organization Ideas – An Illustrated Guide

Want kitchen organization ideas to make your kitchen look clean?

Do you feel that you need a bigger kitchen?

Are you finding it difficult to cook in your cluttered kitchen?

When it comes to the kitchen, the questions above resonate well with most of us.

Everyone believes that they have the smallest kitchen. But have you wondered what the problem really is?

Is it the size of the kitchen or is it because you need to work on organizing everything properly? That is what we will discuss today.

I believe, a home is not a home without a kitchen. I call mine- ‘the nourishment station of my home’.

My kitchen also happens to be the place where I create my ‘masterpieces’. You must have heard the saying that the moment a child is born; a mother is also born. In my case, the chef in me was also born!!!  Anyone can be a good cook, if you add dash of love in everything you cook and if you just love your kitchen.

Any good day of mine starts at my kitchen table listening to my favorite classical music tracks with a hot cup of coffee or warm water or some yummy fruits.

You see, my kitchen is not just used for cooking, it is more of a family room/entertainment zone.

Other than cooking trials, my kitchen is the space where I listen to my hubby’s and my son’s non-stop talks. It is where I catch up with my close friends and Skype with my sisters. It also happens to be one of the favorite playing spots of my little man, as he uses the kitchen sink for playing.

Kitchen is a place where I sing and dance.

Do you sing and dance like me in kitchen?

I like to spend my time in kitchen though there are some boring days when I keep away from there.

Whenever my friends or guests visit home, they often go all “aahhww” and “wow” when they see my kitchen. Then comes the standard question “Do you really cook in this kitchen? If this question was asked before my motherhood phase, I would have agreed 😛

But now how can I go without cooking with a toddler around!!!

That is when I realized that I could help other moms out there, by sharing my tips and tricks. But this article has been pending for a long time as I was not so confident about writing it.

But after getting so much appreciation from my Bumps n Baby team, I thought of writing about my kitchen organisation ideas and how to keep kitchen spic and span.

So without wasting any more time let us start…….

Creative kitchen organization ideas(along  with storage options):

After marriage, I moved abroad with my hubby. We have been living in a rented apartment for the past five years. I do not own a modern kitchen, but it is a very simple, lovely and lively kitchen.

As the years passed, my kitchen items have also piled up. I guess that it is normal, we do pick up a lot of new kitchen equipment, cutlery, crockery etc. With the new additions to the kitchen, I was finding it difficult to store everything with the limited storage that I had.

I wished that I could expand my kitchen so that I could accommodate everything. A big kitchen would help, or so I thought. But then I realized that with a few tweaks and creative storage ideas I could do the seemingly impossible task. So I put together some storage ideas and made a lot more room for everything and was able to cater for all my kitchen stuff.

Here are a few creative storage tricks and organization tips that I have been using and I am sure it will help to make your kitchen clutter-free.

#1. Kitchen backsplash area

Use your kitchen backsplash area as much as possible. This will create more counter space and more space in kitchen drawers.

Have you heard about wall rails? I bought mine from IKEA. It’s very cheap and it comes with hooks.

This wall rail has many uses. You can hang your coffee mugs, your ladles, pans, and so many other baking and cooking utensils.

Pans and lids of pan/pot take a lot of space. So this is one clever solution to hang your pans on the rails. All you need to do here is to fix the hooks on to the rails and you are good to go. Apart from being a clever storage idea to put away all your pot lids and ladles, it will also allow quick and easy access.

If you don’t find wall rails in your area where you stay, then just buy towel bars and a few hooks and fix it in your kitchen. As these too work the same way.

#2. Coffee mugs

Are you a coffee lover like me?

If yes, then you will be having lot of colorful china/glass mugs. So if you want an idea to hang those and make your kitchen colorful, do check the picture below.

It is a very easy idea and will keep the cups from getting in harm’s way.

#3. Kitchen sink with dish drying rack/drainer

In the sink area, place the dish cleaning gel, a small bowl to use the gel, a sponge in a soap holder and a dish drying rack. Most importantly fix a bar above your sink so that you can hang your ladles and pots.

#4. Paper towel holder and cloth hanger

I use a lot of paper towels in kitchen. If you use paper towels, fix a paper towel holder just above the sink area to put those tissue boxes.

Yes, cloth hangers can also be used in kitchen to hang your kitchen cloth towels and to dry your wet kitchen clothes. If you look at the picture below, you can see that I have hung my kitchen towels here for easy access.

#5. Kitchen storage cabinets and drawers

• Utensil drawer

Partition your drawers by placing drawer dividers, small baskets or small cardboard boxes. Then arrange the things. This will not only make it easy to keep everything organized, it will also make it look neat. You can use cabinet storage organizers for your cabinets too.

Check here for ideas.

• Spice jars 

I have organized all my spice jars inside the cupboard. I have also stuck labels as it helps me to have easy access, as most of the spice powders can be confusing when you look at it due to their reddish/brownish color.

• Pantry items

All my pantry staples are stocked in the cabinet as shown in the image.

• Steel utensil rack and other utensil holders

I place all my pan/pot lids, tumblers, wooden ladles, spoons, cooker weights in a steel utensil rack near the stove. This is because these are the things that will be needed mostly while you are in the thick of cooking.

Check the images for ideas.

• Magnetic spice rack

I bought this one also from IKEA. It’s really a brilliant one as it helps to save space. And it is not just utensils that finds it place here.

Check this out, I have even kept a key there.

• Other storage ideas for shelves

I have partitioned the area below the counter shelves with racks and have put the plates and all other vessels here. This helps to keep the area organized and neat. I also gives easy access.

Check the images below.

#6. Oils, vinegar and seasoning items

Gather up the oil in a basket and place it near the stove. You can use cruets to pour oil for daily usage. I have put the seasoning spice containers in a small wooden rack just above the stove. This is so that I have easy access while cooking.

In the picture you can see, I have used a wall paper to cover behind the stove backsplash area for easy cleaning.

#7. Knife blocks or magnetic knife racks

Using knife blocks or magnetic knife racks have been really helpful to me. This is because it helps to keep all your knives/scissors safely and out of reach of little children.

#8. Microwave oven

Make use of the space on top of the oven. I keep all my microwaveable glass containers and my cookbooks (I always need those for cooking) in a basket on the top of the oven.

#9. Polythene covers /water cans/heavy iron pans

It’s always a big issue where to keep our polythene covers. I did a bit of DIY there. I made a bag out of my old t-shirt and hung it behind my kitchen door. All my polythene covers go here!!!

I keep all the big water cans behind my kitchen door as it really helps to save a lot of space in your kitchen.

#10. Vegetables that do not require refrigeration

There are a few veggies like onions, potatoes, garlic etc that should not be refrigerated. I use a steel wire rack to store all these items and other snack items. I have used some spare metal chocolate and cookie boxes to keep them separate.

Check the image below.

#11. Refrigerator

You can use your fridge top for storage of medicines or anything you want to keep away from your kid/kids. I have used three colourful flower pots above my fridge. Inside those, I store many tiny things which I want to hide from my naughty chap. You can also decorate your fridge doors using some magnets.

#12. Dining in kitchen

Dining in kitchen is a perfect idea if you have space to put dining table in kitchen.

By doing so, you can double up your work space and can have your food peacefully without the intrusion of television.

It will also help to encourage family bonding. Indeed, a healthier way, don’t you think?

#13. Overall ambience

• Go Green

You can change the outlook of your kitchen with plants!

Take a mason jar. Fill it with water and put money plant in it and keep near your kitchen window. It brings positive energy and natural ambience to your kitchen. The green aspect really livens up the kitchen and makes it pleasant to be in.

I also grow a few plants in pots in the small patio of my apartment to amp up the green quotient.

Also Read: Kitchen gardening- Pesticide-free vegetables throughout the year.

• Reminder/message boards

I made a colorful message board with a cardboard shoe box and fixed it on my kitchen wall using hanging hooks. I stick all my reminder notes there.

I also have a small menu board hung on my kitchen door. I write my daily food menu over here. Just for fun, because there is no rule that says your kitchen should be boring!

#14 Trash can

Last but not the least, without this little guy we can’t survive in kitchen. I place mine in a corner of the kitchen. It’s always best to get a trash can with lid to avoid flies and smells!!! Try to empty the garbage bags daily or at least on alternate days. This helps to keep the stench away and is also a healthy practice. After all, it is called garbage for a reason.

Also Read: Reduce trash at home in 10 simple but effective ways.

How to get rid of flies- 50 tips that work.

Daily/ weekly/ monthly/ kitchen cleaning

I don’t like waking up to an untidy kitchen. So before bedtime, I clean my kitchen religiously. Here is my daily cleaning checklist.

Do not forget to clean the shelves and cabinets on a weekly basis to avoid dirt buildup. This is what I do on a weekly basis to ensure a clean kitchen.

And now for the monthly cleaning checklist.

Tip: I use a mixture of baking soda and water to wipe away most of the grease from the stove top and backsplash area. White vinegar or sliced lemon is also a good option.

Also Read: 10 tips to organize baby clothes without breaking a sweat.

Conclusion

Organizing a kitchen is not tough, if you do it wisely and systematically. Many a times, I came across these lines in social media websites that goes like this –

“Good moms have sticky floors, messy kitchens, laundry piles and happy kids.”

I totally agree with this as it is a bit difficult to ensure.

But at the end of my day, I always make sure that my little one wakes up to non-sticky floors and clean kitchen to roll and play, making the floors and kitchen sticky & messy again & again.  Remember, they won’t be small for a long time to make our floors and kitchen sticky & messy.

So here goes my version:

Another thing that I wanted say, before I say bye is that, it is not the size of the kitchen that matters. You can have a huge kitchen that is messy or a small kitchen which is tidy. It all comes down to proper organizational skills. If there is no proper organization, your kitchen will definitely look messy and sticky.

Use the comment section below to share your brilliant and innovative kitchen organization ideas to help all the lovely mommas out here. Also do let me know how you liked this post and how it has helped you.