How To: Organize your kitchen

Learn how to organize your kitchen.

You might cook more if your kitchen weren't so cluttered. Okay, maybe not. But, still—wouldn't it be nice to have an organized cooking space?

You Will Need

* An ability to part with things you don't need
* Baskets
* Compartmentalized drawer organizers
* Plastic place mats
* A door-mounted caddy
* Tiered shelves
* A vase of flowers or bowl of fruit
* An ability to part with things you don't need
* Baskets
* Compartmentalized drawer organizers
* Plastic place mats
* A door-mounted caddy
* Tiered shelves
* A vase of flowers or bowl of fruit

Step 1. Pare down

Throw out long-expired food before it poses a national health threat, and donate anything you dislike.

Step 2. Store items

Unless you're Martha Stewart, chances are you don't use your big roasting pan or bread maker that often, so cover them and store them in the attic or basement.

Step 3. Find extra space

Make use of the dead space between the tops of cabinets and the ceiling for storing infrequently used items.

Step 4. Group items

Bring order to your cupboards by grouping like items—coffee stuff, snack foods, condiments—in baskets.

Step 5. Straighten drawers

Use compartmentalized drawer organizers to sort out your cutlery and junk drawers.

Step 6. Install shelving

Install a multi-shelf, door-mounted caddy on a cabinet door for small items like spices.

Step 7. Create more room

Put two-tiered organizers in cabinets that have lots of wasted space between short food items, like soup cans, and the shelf above.

Step 8. Add a centerpiece

When you're done organizing your kitchen, put a vase of flowers or a bowl of fruit on your countertop. Research shows it inspires us, subconsciously, to keep the area around it clean and uncluttered.

Fact: According to one survey, a whopping 97% of homeowners wish they could renovate their kitchen.