Our kitchen has a lot more counter and cabinet space than in our old apartment, but it wasn’t quite enough for me to be able to keep everything from getting cluttered. Now that I finally have the kitchen set up the way I like it, I thought I’d share my kitchen organization tips and tricks with you.
We set this microwave cart ($30, from Target) in between the sink and oven, and keep our most-used appliances and cutting boards there (excuse the poor lighting…the cart sits right in front of the window!). The cart is near an outlet, so it is easy to pull out what I need and use it right there. There are hooks on the far side of the cart that hold our pot holders, etc. I highly recommend putting some hooks up in your kitchen enough for towel and pot holder storage!
We also ordered this island from Target’s website. The bar at the end conveniently holds our dish towels.
The right drawer of the island is reserved for tea (yes, I have a tea problem 
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and the left drawer holds things like plastic baggies, aluminum foil and our reusable snack bags. It also holds the labels and pen I use to label…
my bulk containers! I use assorted plastic containers and Ball canning jars to hold everything I buy in bulk (which is most dry goods). Since they are all transparent and well-labeled, I can have multiple ‘layers’ of containers behind one another and still find things easily. It saves a lot of space!
I use this wire basket to corral all of my dried spices, and have another basket on the island for all the small bags of things like chocolate chips and dried fruit.
We got these great cutlery organizers using some of our Crate & Barrel gift cards from the wedding. One holds all our spatulas, measuring cups & spoons, etc, while the other holds our silverware and the stand mixer attachments.
And finally, we have our cabinet ($50, from Target), which serves as our pantry. I divide the food up by category to make things easier to find: cooking (oils, bread crumbs, etc), baking, snacks, and canned goods. I use a cheap canvas tote to store the loose granola bars, etc on the snack shelf.
One of my favorite pieces we own is this stellar Craigslist find. We keep it in our entryway and use it to display some of our favorite dishes.
I thought it would be annoying to keep some of our dishes outside of the kitchen, but it really hasn’t been a problem. And I love being able to display our pretty bowls and platters!
What are your best kitchen organization tips and tricks?
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I have a SUPER small kitchen with almost no counter space. I think the best thing I have ever done is put my cutting board (which is made to fit over my sink for extra work space), wine rack, spice rack, cookbooks and potholders on the wall. I also put extra cookbooks, coffee maker, microwave and toaster on a microwave cart next to the kitchen counter. I mounted a rack for my coffee mugs underneath my cabinets. I have an entire extra cabinet for all baking supplies in my dining room. I try to have only my dish drying rack on the counter at all times. It’s not easy actually using my small gallery kitchen, but I make it work for me!
Great idea! Use the vertical space.
I LOVE THIS! i need to look into a microwave cart for my kitchen, for SURE. Or some sort of island/high table – i have so little counter space!!! Maybe one day you can help me design a kitchen layout?
im thinking that if i move those two black bakers racks that are undearneath the chalk board, I could get some sort of counter thing to put there… maybe i could put the bakers racks in the dining area?
i may need you to hold my hand through this…ha.
Will do. It was fun, so I would like getting to do it again!
I keep my toaster oven in the laundry room- close enough to still use all the time, but doesn’t take up valuable counter space.
Love the ‘thinking outside the kitchen’
OMG! I see the bowls I gave you on your “display cabinet”! Everything looks wonderful Jules. I can’t wait to see it in person!
No joke, we use those bowls AT LEAST once a day. Usually more. Love them!
I have my spices up on the wall with magnets. Love it! Thanks for the tips!
I’ve seen spice racks like that, and they look like they’d save a lot of space! Hope unpacking and organizing your new house goes well.
You need a label maker for the canisters
I have tons of cabinet space but I do have my pantry organized with baskets for spices, snacks, baking goods etc.
I also use a big tupperware bowl to store all the lids of the smaller pieces, that way they are in one spot and stay pretty neat.
GREAT idea for the lids!
Love this post and love how everything is organized! I need to go through my kitchen again!
Omg everything is so organized!! Wow you make my kitchen look like a mess haha. I need to get some of that organizing mojo going on! Love your blog btw!!
Thank you!
What helped me finally organize our whole kitchen was getting rid of some things! I had multiple sets of measuring cups, spoons, bowls, plates, cups, etc, that I didn’t use. We had old cookie sheets and 2 coffee pots…a juicer we never used. So I donated that stuff, and now suddenly I have room in my cupboards and drawers to organize!
I do what you do, put things together (I have a tea drawer too!), use drawer organizers and I have a big basket to hold loose clif bars, larabars, etc.
I really like your kitchen island!
Glad to hear I’m not the only one who keeps enough tea around to fill a drawer
as others have mentioned, our spice “rack” is all magnetic containers that live on the side of the fridge. my tea took up too much space in the original boxes, so i put all of it in bags (with the label flap of the box for ID) in a large tin i got for 50 cents at goodwill. =) for storing bulk things, i’m in LOVE with the OXO square containers with pop-up locking lids. they stack so nicely, being square and made to do so, and come in great size selections. we’ve labeled them (label makers are fun!) so all the ambiguous white powders can be distinguished. =) we have a craigslisted ikea kitchen cart with a butcher block top that doubles the work space of our kitchen, and store our wine collection (extensive, when including my husband’s homemade hard cider) in world market racks that double as our living room end tables. we’ve just moved and awaiting the arrival of our belongings, and i’m excited to start the challenge of setting everything up in an organized, functional and aesthetically pleasing way. =)
Love this! You never see many posts about the behind the scenes of all the food in the blogs:the kitchen! Thanks, such great ideas! I am a first time visitor, and am enjoying your posts!
Thank you, I’m glad you like the blog so far!
My daughter just moved and her kitchen is a bit smaller with no counter space. She opted to put her less used appliances and dishes in her hall closet/Linen closet freeing up more room in her kitchen for items she uses the most.