Monday 24 June 2019

De-cluttering my kitchen cupboards

How to declutter your kitchen cupboards and create a tidy, clean and clutter-free pantry-style kitchen. Storage solutions for small homes and how to store all your food and utensils neatly

Hands up if you've not cleaned out your kitchen cupboards in five years?! Keep your hand raised if you can't close your drawers, yet instead of doing anything about it you just shove in more junk and walk away? Finally, keep those hands up if you definitely own a George Foreman grill but can't find it anymore because its stacked behind 450 saucepans. OK that last one's probably just me, but to say a kitchen cupboard declutter is overdue would be understatement of the year.

If you follow me over on Instagram you'll know that every Sunday evening for the last couple of months I've been cleaning out each one of my kitchen cupboards (all the videos are still available over there in my highlights if you missed it). Its something I've been meaning to do for ages, but struggled to find the time, so I thought tackling one a week might be more manageable. Turns out I've become completely obsessed with it, and have genuinely looked forward to revamping a new one every week. I know, what's happened to me?!

Now that I'm all finished, I thought I'd share how I got on, with some before and after pictures, and my top tips on the best way to tackle such a big task. 

First up, here's how my small kitchen is laid out, with details of what I store in each cupboard:
How to declutter your kitchen cupboards and create a tidy, clean and clutter-free pantry-style kitchen. Storage solutions for small homes and how to store all your food and utensils neatly

Kitchen cupboard 1 - Tea & Coffee/Cereals & crisps
The wall cupboard, previously a 'chuck it in and shut the door' space, has been transformed into a tea and coffee station. I now store everything in separate jars, giving a clean and tidy pantry look (one day I'll have my dream pantry!)

The floor cupboard is where we keep cereals and crisps. Again, I've decanted the cereal packets into storage tubs, and a large wire basket from Homebase now stores packets of crisps rather than have a large multipack taking up the space.

How to declutter your kitchen cupboards and create a tidy, clean and clutter-free pantry-style kitchen. Storage solutions for small homes and how to store all your food and utensils neatly

How to declutter your kitchen cupboards and create a tidy, clean and clutter-free pantry-style kitchen. Storage solutions for small homes and how to store all your food and utensils neatly



Kitchen cupboard 2 - Dry Foods/Pots and Pans  
This wall cupboard was the only one that I'd previously attempted to organise, so I've added some more baskets and given each shelf a different purpose - the top shelf is baking, middle is for spices and rice, and the bottom shelf is for cans. I've also grabbed some storage jars from Tesco to store rice, raisins and cocoa powder in.

The bottom cupboard was the worst one by far - I'm actually ashamed to share how filthy it was! After a huge clean (thank god for Cillit Bang, eh?) I've re-stacked the baking trays and pans in a more orderly fashion. I'm on the lookout for a small pan stand to tidy this up even more, but for now isn't it an improvement?!

How to declutter your kitchen cupboards and create a tidy, clean and clutter-free pantry-style kitchen. Storage solutions for small homes and how to store all your food and utensils neatly

How to declutter your kitchen cupboards and create a tidy, clean and clutter-free pantry-style kitchen. Storage solutions for small homes and how to store all your food and utensils neatly


Kitchen cupboard 3 - Under the sink 
This was the one I was dreading, as it was SO horrendous, but turns out all you need is some pretty storage tins from The Range to transform it into your favourite cupboard. We now keep all cleaning products in the wire basket on the bottom shelf, along with dog food which has been given the storage-tub treatment. Cleaning sponges/dusters and dishwasher tablets are now stored in the two tins on the top shelf.

How to declutter your kitchen cupboards and create a tidy, clean and clutter-free pantry-style kitchen. Storage solutions for small homes and how to store all your food and utensils neatly


Kitchen cupboard 4 - Glassware
This one is one of those round-the-corner cupboards that hides a multitude of sins, but can often be lost space. After another declutter - why do I own so many cocktail shakers?! - I've used the top shelf for glassware and vases, and popped some IKEA baskets on the other shelves to store food packets and bread, meaning no need for a bread bin in this already tiny kitchen.

How to declutter your kitchen cupboards and create a tidy, clean and clutter-free pantry-style kitchen. Storage solutions for small homes and how to store all your food and utensils neatly


Kitchen cupboard 5 - Crockery
This cupboard have been saved by a bargain IKEA find in the shape of those amazing shelf dividers, meaning I can store everything in here in a much neater way - no more stacking mugs on top of each other!

How to declutter your kitchen cupboards and create a tidy, clean and clutter-free pantry-style kitchen. Storage solutions for small homes and how to store all your food and utensils neatly


Kitchen cupboard 6 - Drawers
Lovingly labelled the 'drawers of doom' by Mr Dove, these were probably my least favourite. Awkwardly shaped and difficult to clean, all four had become that 'crap drawer', burst to the seams with all the stuff that has no home anywhere else (think random cables, batteries and matches).

Again, I started by giving each drawer a clear purpose, making it much easier when working out what would go where. The top drawer is now cutlery and utensils, and second one down is stationary such as envelopes, pens and brown parcel paper. The third is everything baking related, and the bottom drawer is now home to tableware.

How to declutter your kitchen cupboards and create a tidy, clean and clutter-free pantry-style kitchen. Storage solutions for small homes and how to store all your food and utensils neatly

How to declutter your kitchen cupboards and create a tidy, clean and clutter-free pantry-style kitchen. Storage solutions for small homes and how to store all your food and utensils neatly

How to declutter your kitchen cupboards and create a tidy, clean and clutter-free pantry-style kitchen. Storage solutions for small homes and how to store all your food and utensils neatly

My top de-cluttering tips: 

  • Break the job down into manageable chunks - By tackling one cupboard or drawer every week, it never felt like a chore, and each one only took maximum twenty minutes
  • Be brutal - if you haven't used it in the last couple of years, chances are you don't need it and its simply taking up valuable space so its got to go! And don't forget to donate to charity or recycle rather than chuck out. 
  • Use pretty storage - keeping everything in its own place will prevent drawers becoming cluttered, meaning you don't have one of those 'random crap' drawers. It also looks good (probably the key to getting me interested!), and means you don't need to spend 40 minutes looking for a light bulb
  • Regularly tidy up - Don't let it get bad this again, regular de-cluttering will mean you can keep on top of the mess
I've shared before about how I feel towards my kitchen (its definitely not the most insta-worthy one out there!), but getting the inside of these cupboards has made me feel much better about it.

Do you try and regularly clear out your kitchen cupboards? How do you tackle such a huge spring cleaning job?

Thanks for reading,
Sam Xx

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