Keep your Kitchen or Dining Room Table Clutter-Free

Conquering Kitchen Clutter: How to Organize Your Kitchen One Area at a Time

Kitchen or dining room tables can easily become a catch-all for everyone's belongings. Mail, school books, car keys, pens, pencils, and other miscellaneous items can quickly appear, and at dinnertime, end up in a large pile of clutter somewhere else in your household.

To curtail this habit, try organizing a central area for everyone's belongings right inside the door to your house. Install hooks on the wall so that purses, coats and backpacks can easily be hung upon entry. A bench or short shelf can be placed directly underneath the hanging area for clearly labeled catch-all bins for each member of the family. This will also help during the course of the day when picking up around the house. Items found around the house can be placed in these bins, and each family member should get into the habit of making sure items are emptied from the bins and properly put away each evening.

If your kitchen table doubles as an arts and crafts studio or location for your kids to do their homework, make sure that there are bins, shelves and containers nearby that neatly organize school, office and arts supplies, and keep them within easy reach. Help establish good habits in your children by ensuring they are held responsible for putting these things away as soon as they are done using them. Make sure snacks are kept on plates and drinks are kept on coasters to ease cleanup time.

A nicely decorated table spread is also an ingenious way to keep the table from becoming cluttered. Spread a nice tablecloth and place a large centerpiece on it, or even set four or six formal place settings on a dining room table that is not used for meals each evening. Your family will be less likely to lay things on these tables since they can see there are already things there. You'll also be ready for company at the last moment this way.

Optimize your Kitchen Organization and Simplify your Life

Our kitchens are easily the busiest room in our homes. From cooking and entertaining to a place for your kids to do their homework, play board games or work on their arts and crafts projects, it can be easily overrun with art supplies, outdated spices and unused or damaged utensils.

Go through your kitchen and discard anything you don't use, along with any food, spices or medicines kept in the kitchen that are beyond their expiration dates. Then take everything out of your cupboards and drawers, and wash the insides with warm soapy water. Rinse, let dry and replace cupboard and drawer liners with fresh, new ones.

Store pots, pans and cooking utensils near the stove, nesting the pots and pans together to conserve space. Make sure each one you choose to keep has a matching lid. This is also a good time to make sure handles are securely fastened, so keep a screwdriver handy to tighten down skillet handles or pot lids if necessary. Keep your dishes and silverware near your eating area or your dishwasher to shorten meal preparation or cleanup time. Plastic storage containers should be inventoried to ensure each has a matching lid and that they are free from cracks or other damage. Store them near your refrigerator to ease meal cleanup time.

Alphabetize your spices and keep them near the stove on a spice rack or in a nearby cupboard on a revolving rack. Store food items that you use on a daily in a place you can easily grab them when needed. Organize your pantry so that similar canned goods are in the same place and can be found easily when it's time to cook meals. Make sure your children an easily reach items they use on a regular basis, and make sure items such as knives, scissors, and household chemicals are out of reach and secured in a locked cabinet. Utilize airtight food storage containers to lengthen the shelf life of your foods.

If you have small appliances on your kitchen countertop that you don't use on a regular basis, remove them and store there in a nearby cupboard or pantry. A countertop storage cabinet for those appliances that are used on a regular basis keeps them out of site and helps reduce the countertop clutter.