Are you fed up with your kitchen looking untidy or dirty? Before thinking of changing everything, let’s have a look at less drastic but practical solutions to say goodbye to your messy kitchen.
Why is your kitchen dirty?
We spend lots of time in the kitchen. This is where we cook our meals and eat them, and let’s face it, from breadcrumbs to splashes of liquids, food becomes messy quickly!
Depending on your habits, the kitchen can also be the room where you have multiple activities: you catch up with your family, the children do their homework, you do your paperwork… You get the idea. If you keep around a few things for each activity (I’m looking at you, the pile of mail waiting to be sorted!), the kitchen is challenging to keep tidy.
In fact, you feel like you’d need to clean it daily to prevent it from becoming messy. So what do we do? Do we accept we can’t change anything? No, it’s more about being strategic to have the biggest impact.
The 1st step: Clear off the kitchen table
Clearing the flat surfaces makes any room look tidier. In the kitchen, the most visible is the table. So, let’s start with it!
You should clear it after each meal. Bring the dishes to the sink and put them in the dishwasher or wash them. Then, put away what’s left on the table and wipe it. The kitchen table is a clutter magnet. If you don’t manage to keep it tidy between the meals, aim for a clean state once daily. That will prevent the mess from piling up on your table.
Once your kitchen table stays clean most of the time, build the habit of wiping the countertops daily. Besides its immediate advantage of keeping them clean, this habit will prevent you from having to scrub dry stains later.
How to prevent kitchen floor mess?
The kitchen is among the rooms where the floor gets dirty the quickest. To prevent floor messes, sweep it daily, and keep a cloth at arm’s reach to wipe any splash as soon as possible. Rinse the cloth thoroughly after use and let it dry so it doesn’t become a breeding ground for germs.
How to make the most of the storage spaces in your messy kitchen?
The kitchen, messy or not, is a space where we have many things to store, and the spaces aren’t always the most practical. That’s the time we need to find creative solutions!
Regarding food storage, we often end up with cabinets filled with bags and boxes of various sizes. In that case, decanting food helps get a tidier look. It also avoids having bugs feast on our food.
High kitchen cabinets can also be a challenge to organize. To make the best of them, I love shelf risers that make what’s in the back visible and limit rummaging through the cabinet to find the spice we need for the next meal.
A lasting solution: declutter your kitchen
From food we don’t like to gadgets we don’t use, there are often things that could have their merry life elsewhere. Decluttering the kitchen will help you organize your items without squeezing them in your cabinets. The 1st step will be to donate items you didn’t use last year.
Then, put food that’s expired or that you don’t like in the trash. I know I don’t want to throw away food, but what are the chances you’ll eat it more in the future than you did in the past? To avoid forgetting food in the future, I suggest using a food inventory like Kitty’s Count & Categorize. Knowing what will expire soon so you can eat it before that date will help you save money and maybe become more creative in the kitchen!
Make your messy kitchen come clean
Having a messy kitchen isn’t a fatality. With a few habits and a new organization, you’ll be able to have a tidy kitchen that doesn’t require more than minutes to stay that way. Depending on your preference, you can start small with the table and improve daily, or you can clean your whole kitchen and keep it clean after that. Both have advantages, and both are valid solutions! So clean your table today and choose what fits you more for the days after!
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