5 Easy Kitchen Organization Tips

Here are 5 easy kitchen organization tips that will help create more usable space in the kitchen while keeping your tools and items accessibility which is very important.

I personally use these tips in my own kitchen and I often recommend them to my clients as well. These are simple and cost-effective tips that work for both renters and those who own their homes.

Here is a summary of the 5 tips:

Maximize space with additional shelving
Utilize turntables
Alternate item placement
Store pans upright instead of stacked
Add drawer dividers and inserts

Tip 1: Maximize space with additional shelving

Shelf dividers solve so many problems in the kitchen. These items solve the space problem and the accessibility challenge. Get more out of your cabinets by creating removable shelving. These shelves allow you to utilize the space better while making the items a lot more accessible and seen in the cabinet. I use these to store different types of plates. In my home I use both the good dishes and the everyday microwavable plates. When I’m in the mood to use the good stuff I access these just as easily as I do the everyday dishware. A shelf divider allows for this flexibility and it has been a game changer in my kitchen.

Tip 2: Utilize turntables

Reaching for items in the back of the cabinet is a pain point that can be easily solved with a turntable or rotating tray. Items facing the back of the cabinet easily are accessible on the rotating tray with a small turn. I love a turntable for a few reasons. You can see what’s in the back of the cabinet and you can access the entire tray in seconds compared to shoving a bunch of items in your cabinet making it difficult to view all the items in a quick glance. There is a drawback of the turntable. Because the shape is a circle, you do lose some space in the cabinet compared to a square or rectangular storage bin. This is a small price to pay for accessibility in my opinion and well worth the investment due to ease of use.

Tip 3: Alternate item placement

This is a simple trick, but an effective one. If you are short on space in your kitchen cabinets, try storing your stemware or glassware in an alternate facing pattern from the top of the glass to the base. More glasses can be stored in the same amount of space just by using the alternate storage approach. This is simple, but I also do this for other tools in the kitchen. For example, I have two sets of tongs and I alternate the position so both snuggly fit into my drawer inserts. This tip can also be applied to shoe storage to maximize the space.

Tip 4: Store pans upright instead of stacked

The pain of stacked pots and pans is like no other, yet so many kitchens I’ve seen stack these heavy items, one on top of the other. Accessibility is a must in the kitchen and when you store heavy items in this manner, you’re likely to grunt with frustration when trying to grab the item at the bottom of the stack.

I found that using sturdy metal dividers helps immensely to both keep the items accessibly and organize the items for ease of use.

Pots and pans can easily be stored vertically rather than stacked. This device also helps with other kitchen items such as muffin pans, cutting boards, and casserole dishes.

Tip 5: Add drawer dividers and inserts

We call it a junk drawer, but our kitchen drawers that we stuff with odds and ends doesn’t mean it is junk. This is generally where things that don’t have a designated home go to live and hang out. These drawers also work double time because there is no structure. Our items need a home and the best way to do this is by using drawer dividers and drawer inserts. Creating structure allows us to assign a spot for our items. It also makes it easy to put our items back where they belong.

There are many different options for drawer dividers, but the ones that I really like to use are sturdy tension roads that divide a drawer with flexibility and are renter friendly. I personally use them for separating snacks and for larger cooking utensils.

Drawer inserts are also a personal favorite because you can create any number of combinations when you find inserts that fit the space in your drawer. The inserts are interchangeable from one drawer to the next and you can create the structure you need while having the flexibility of rearranging the inserts as you change the items that live in the drawer.

These bamboo ones are so fun to mix and match and the variety of options works with so many different items you would find in a kitchen.

Conclusion

I challenge you to try out at least one or all 5 easy kitchen organization tips in your home. Each tip is low cost and budget friendly so it would be a fun exercise to take action on right away. Here are some of my favorite places to visit to get home organization tools and supplies.

The right tools make the daily tasks of life so much easier so I’m happy to share these tips with all of you. Let me know in the comments which one you’re tried and plan to try soon!

Please note: This post contains affiliate links and I may earn a small commission if you choose to purchase something with the links.

Southern California based Professional Organizer, Sandy Park, owner and founder of Tidy with SPARK shares her joy of organization with her clients.

She serves clients in Orange County as well as the hundreds of thousands of followers on her combined social media platforms.

Connect with Sandy through her website or by connecting through her social channels.