Unconventional Thinking for a Clean Kitchen Counter
If your kitchen counter is like most, it’s like the community dumping ground. All the mail, including magazines and daily newspaper gets piled there. Keys, cellphones, clean dishes, and bread are just a few of the regular squatters. And here’s the problem, once clutter takes over, it becomes “noise” that you don’t see, but your guests will.
Time to take back your kitchen counter.
Remove Everything
First, remove everything from your counter unless it’s too big or too heavy, like your microwave or Kitchen Aid. Everything else does not belong on the counter. I know, you’re thinking “what about my cooking utensils and other things I use nearly every day?” Find another home for them. Try it out for a week. After awhile, you might like how clean your counter looks without the clutter.
This means that your rice cooker, coffee maker, and toaster oven which are easy to carry need new homes. Find a shelf in your cabinet to store them and bring them out only when you are using them. This may seem like a lot of work but think about it. If you only use your coffee maker for 15 minutes a day, why is it on your counter for 23.75 hours?
Cabinet Sorting
To make room for your appliances, you’ll need to clean out your cabinets. Any broken appliance should be tossed and duplicate appliance donated. Put the most frequently used items on the shelf closest to you and less frequently used items in back or bottom shelf. For example, coffee maker in the front. Panini grill and ice cream machine in the back.
Utilize Wasted Space
If you have top cabinets and you need more space, you can use your backsplash area or top cabinets to hang mugs or utensils. It still frees up your counter space and if you have pretty utensils, it adds visual interest.
Photo via Visual hunt
Maintenance of Counter
Now that your counters are clear, make a habit of wiping them daily. Do not let mail accumulate. Mail should go straight to your desk or trash. Do not start a “I’ll get back to it later” pile because that is the beginning of clutter.
Try it for a week. I would love to know what you think. Is your kitchen counter clutter-free? Does it make you feel better to be in an open and clean space?
About Terri Dux
Bringing together stories, rooms, life. 