It’s been a year since the professional organizers came and worked their magic in our house. In the middle of just moving in and renovating, the house was a mess, so it was exactly what we needed at the time, and it completely changed our lives. I remember being emotional during their reveal because I didn’t think I understood the weight the dysfunction caused until it was removed. Since then, the house has evolved, our lives have evolved, and we’ve made some changes here and there. So I thought it would be fun, and hopefully useful, to share some kitchen organization that works (and doesn’t).
The organizers did wonders, but I also have to give a lot of credit to Jean Stoffer and her team for installing built-in systems in the closets. They were so thoughtful and intentional in creating this kitchen for us and our lifestyle! Let’s get into it.
1. Upper glass cabinets
First on the list are these top glass cabinets on either side of the hood. I absolutely love these cabinets for storing our everyday dishes and housewares. This works so that we have all the space we need (and more), but we haven’t created a suitable place for each set. I want to find the sweet spot of giving each kit a home that looks good on the outside as well. The other thing we desperately need in this kitchen is a chair! Chris is tall enough to reach the second shelf from the top, but I’ve borrowed a chair from the dining room every time I needed to borrow some height.
To solve this problem, I searched and found the perfect solution (sneak peek here).
2. Shelves in the corner of the assortment
Task Lamp | Honey Pot | Salnica | Sconce | Kitchen sources
These built-in corner shelves are the cornerstone of everything Chris cooks. They keep his essential spices and oils at hand while he cooks and are thus an integral and unobtrusive part of the kitchen!
3. Lid drawer for pots and pans
We could never have guessed how life changing it would be to have a drawer (within a drawer) for all the pots and pan lids. The main drawer holds pots and pans, and then you can slide out the drawer stacked on top of the lid. That’s what I mean by “Jean Stoffer and her team are geniuses.”
4. Drawer for knives
Another of our favorite drawers is this knife drawer. Chris is a connoisseur of knives. He is a collector, he is a fanatic; he loves knives! In past kitchens we’ve had a magnetic strip for hanging knives (which is a great solution), but I prefer this pretty drawer to that. 10 of our 10 we recommend.
5. Drawer for spices
Spice Jars | Labels
This spice drawer is something the organizers did for us! They put everything in these beautiful jars and labeled them all. It’s so nice to open it up and see everything clearly, instead of reaching into the cupboard for cumin. Been there, done that.
6. Drink Station Cabinet
Bottle holders | Clear Bins
Above the drink station we keep all of our protein powders, supplements, shaker bottles, Stanley cups, etc. It works really well, but I’m glad I got a little more range with this thing I just bought. The bottle holders are something that has already sold out, but is back in stock! Couldn’t recommend enough.
7. Refrigerator bins
When our fridge finally arrived, we were so clumsy about organizing all the food and making a designated place for everything. For the most part, we continued like that, but some things need to be tweaked a bit. For example, berry bins. One thing we’ve noticed in general since moving to North Carolina is that produce goes bad much faster than it does in Idaho! However, the berries go bad very quickly and I need some tips to help them stay fresh longer!
Of course, our favorite part of the fridge is the egg tray. It’s incredibly useful to clearly see how many eggs we have at any given time, and allows for a quick grab without removing the entire box. It’s all about the little things that make a big difference!
Fridge Organizers
Kitchen organization that DOESN’T work
I wish we had taken a picture of what this tissue and napkin drawer looks like now (this was fresh after the professional organizers arrived) because it is almost unrecognizable. I think we could actually benefit from purging the contents of this drawer since the sheets and cloths are overflowing.
If you saw my Instagram stories last night, then you know that the last and biggest non-functional space in our kitchen is… the junk drawer. Are we surprised? No. Are we looking for solutions? Yessss!