Kitchen Declutter

Three white orchids in one pot - two have flower shoots coming up - exciting!

I love browsing homes for sale online, as you never know what perfect gem might turn up.  Plus I find staged homes very motivating.  They look so magazine-like and inviting.  I love the way staged kitchens have nothing on the bench apart from one or two items.  This was my goal when I decided to declutter, organise and clean our kitchen.

The kitchen hasn’t had this much attention since I posted about it in February 2012 so a bit of focused organisation was long overdue.  Being a place that is used 3-4 times a day (at least) to prepare meals and hot drinks, it is no wonder things migrate around and stuff gets jammed in the same old place even if that place is already full.  Items that are used frequently are also left out which adds to a messy, non-magazine look and that is not the look I am after.

Here we go, and I hope the Before photos are not too upsetting for you.

Pantry - Before

Pantry - After

Our kitchen is more than twenty years old but I don’t care, I still want it to look stylishly simple.  I love to keep it clean and organised, and even though we’re still paying off our mortgage, I think of it as mine.  If it was all new and wonderful that would be amazing of course, but I truly am just as happy with it as it is right now.

First up was the pantry.  The glasses, cups and plates on the top shelves were good, they were recently sorted through earlier in the year here.  The bottom three shelves (which includes the pantry floor) had everything taken out.  The shelves were wiped clean - I use Huggies unscented baby wipes for lots of jobs and they were great for this.  Usually I would use Spray & Wipe and a clean cloth.  I put what was going back in an orderly fashion.  Coralling like items in baskets is my preferred method.

Then it was onto the cupboards.

Frequent use cupboard - I didn't take a before picture as it was nice and tidy then, but I kept only the daily use items in this cupboard and put the plastic containers in the bottom (from the pantry).  I use these containers for taking food to work, making freezer portions and organising my pantry.

Large corner cupboard - Before

Large corner cupboard - After.  I was cooking with my orange Le Crueset when I did this, so had to shuffle to fit it in after dinner!

I weeded out items as I went.  Items that we hadn’t used in forever went straight to our guest bedroom which is my decluttering outbox ready for re-distribution.  Firstly I check with family members if they want any of it and then the rest is donated to a charity shop.

Here's a lovely long view of the kitchen.  It looks quite bare afterward (without the cat biscuit and vitamin decorations) but I can't tell you how luxurious it feels to get everything out to prepare dinner and there is bench space galore.

Kitchen - Before

Kitchen - After

Microwave area - Before

Microwave area - After.  Isn't that a thing of beauty?  It's my favourite transformation in this little project.  The plastic drawers were handy but oh so ugly.  They are now in the bottom of the pantry and may go altogether.

I was so enthused by my kitchen project that I couldn’t wait to take Before photos, as I knew the After photos would be here soon enough and look fabulous.

 

Underbench area at the other end of the kitchen - Before.  Cat biscuits and vitamins on display.

Underbench area at the other end of the kitchen -After.  And breathe out.  So calming

And in exciting news, I picked up my copy of TheLife-Changing Magic of Tidying book from the library today.  It couldn’t have turned up at a better time.  I’m only up to the preface and am already seeing that this will be a very motivating title.  Yippee!

This little ceramic dish was a 50c op shop find which is perfect for keeping the soap, sanitiser and lotion neatly in one spot by the kitchen sink.  I'm sure Martha Stewart would do exactly the same thing.

Have you been streamlining an area of your home lately?  Do share.