You aren’t alone. With cooking, baking and entertaining, our kitchens take a hit during the holidays. But just like taking down the Christmas tree, making an annual ritual of organizing the kitchen is a good January resolution.
Ohio resident Marcia Cianchetti pointed to her kitchen table covered with the remains of the holidays – containers of candied cherries for fruitcakes she never baked, a bread machine her daughter dragged out of storage to take to college, a food basket her husband received as a gift, an empty cookie tin that a neighbor sent over, newspapers, dishes, and gifts.
Because her family eats in the dining room, the kitchen table and its nook have become a quasi-storage area and dumping ground for her family’s stuff.
“Honestly, I just have too much stuff. Thirty-one years ago, I had half the cupboard space I have now and I had plenty of room. Now, I have twice the space and I still don’t have room for everything,” she said.
The 58-year-old retired baker said the holidays are particularly challenging because of all of the new items that come into the house as gifts, and because her youngest daughter was home from college and she wanted to make sure the refrigerator was well-stocked with her favorites.
Professional organizer Jamie Escola, of Calm and Collected Organizing of Canton, Ohio, said Cianchetti’s situation is typical. “It’s human nature. If we have the space, we will fill it up,” she said.
She likes to practice a technique known as SPACE, created by organizer Julie Morgenstern:
S — Sort through your stuff.
P — Purge anything that is expired, broken or unused.
A — Assign everything a home.
C — Containerize your items.
E — Equalize your space.
In Cianchetti’s case, her kitchen offers ample storage – two large pantry cupboards (one for food and one for equipment) and a generous number of cupboards. All of them are filled.
Escola said to begin by sorting all of it and purging.
For food in the pantry, refrigerator and freezer, get rid of expired packages, stale items or food that you know won’t be eaten. Particularly during the holidays, when food gifts are common, we tend to end up with food that we may not actually use. If you know a bottle of exotic vinegar is not something you will open, don’t be afraid to donate it to a food pantry or give it to a friend who will. Otherwise, it will probably get shoved to the back of the cupboard, where it will be forgotten until it expires and eventually is thrown out anyway.
Escola advised Cianchetti to edit out about 25 percent of what was in her pantries. That means examining what she has and eliminating items she doesn’t use. For items that are used but infrequently, like holiday platters, Escola recommends storing them in the basement, attic or garage.
“Make sure the things in the kitchen are things you are using at least once or twice a week,” she said.
But deciding what to keep and what to toss can be difficult. Escola said saving items such as baskets or tins isn’t always a bad idea, because it does cost to replace them and most of us may need one from time to time. But you can’t realistically save all of them. She suggested setting a small number to keep — no more than five — to be stored in the basement. “That way, you’ll have one on hand if you want to make a gift basket for someone else,” Escola said. But when basket No. 6 enters the house, it’s time to get rid of one.
When it comes to storing in the basement or garage, Escola said again it is important to set a limit; otherwise you will fill up the basement. Assign three basement shelves for kitchen overflow. When that space is filled, it’s time to purge again, she said.
Sometimes, Escola said, you just have to give yourself permission to get rid of things, and donating is always a good option.
“Ask yourself, ‘Is it something I really need or that adds to the enjoyment of my kitchen?’ If it does, you need to create a home for it ,” Escola said.
Assigning everything a place is the next step, and it is crucial to getting and staying organized. If you always put coupons and receipts in the same place, then you’ll always know where to look for them, Escola said. The space doesn’t have to be a perfectly organized file. It can be just a box, basket or drawer.
The time to buy plastic bins, containers and other organizers is after you have given everything a home, so that you will buy the right container for the job. “Resist the temptation to go out and purchase new containers, products and organizing tools, because then you have to organize around them. Take stock of what you have first,” Escola said.
She is a big fan of baskets or plastic bins for holding like items. They keep supplies together, and can be pulled in and out, essentially creating drawers.
The final step, equalizing, is about maintaining the new order. Eliminating the multiples is a great way to create space and will help to stop food waste, too.
Before going grocery shopping, Escola said, “Shop your pantry first.” If you have three bags of rice, then plan some meals using rice to help pare it down. Knowing that you have three bags at home already also should stop you from bringing home a fourth.
Once you have a plan, getting started can be the hardest part. Escola recommends starting with all flat surfaces — counters, islands and tabletops. Eliminating the visual clutter will immediately transform the kitchen’s appearance, and it will give you space to tackle what’s inside the cupboards and drawers.
Countertops are a constant trouble spot, but they also can be an indication of what a kitchen is lacking. If your counter is cluttered with keys, mail, sunglasses and cellphone chargers it’s probably because there isn’t an assigned spot for those items. Find them one.
