The Guide to Decluttering Your Kitchen

Whether you love or hate cooking, having cluttered kitchen countertops does not inspire anyone to pick up a frying pan, much less hang out in there. If you have ever felt stressed around a chaotic kitchen countertop, know it’s been shown that clutter triggers the stress hormone cortisol. Who needs another reason to feel stressed out, right?

Decluttering isn’t just good for your stress levels, but you’re actually more likely to lose weight in a kitchen with organized counters and cabinets. A study found that people eat twice as many calories in cluttered kitchens compared to organized kitchens.

Never underestimate the mind’s role in the bingeing. Feeling out of control brings about many unhealthy habits, but luckily decluttering is a surefire way to defeat out of control areas. So, let’s start taming and decluttering your kitchen with these easy steps so you can get back to enjoying the heart of your home.

4 Steps to Decluttering Your Kitchen

Depending on how bad your kitchen is, get ready for some pretty satisfying work. It’s a lot and not easy, but there’s something about transforming a messy and confusing kitchen to a fresh and organized one. Even if your kitchen is only somewhat untidy but you’re starting to avoid spending time in there, just a bit of organization in your kitchen can make a big difference.

Don’t waste time setting up, only to realize you’re missing a cleaning rag, or you grabbed the wrong spray, etc. Get your cleaning supplies together first to forgo the pause & go process.

Also, get in clothes that you don’t care for just in case you end up with bleach stains. If your kitchen cabinets are full to the brim with kitchen appliances, pots and pans, canned goods, old coffee makers, or you don’t remember when the last time you saw the tops of the cabinet shelves was, be ready for anything to go down.

Here are things you need to declutter your kitchen efficiently:

• Trash: Trash bags… For obvious reasons…
• Space: Somewhere to lay everything out so you can examine things to keep or get rid of.
• Boxes: For storing things in the attic or as donate, sell, or recycle boxes.
• Cleaning Supplies: Get your favorite cleaning products. For example: vinegar or dish detergent for grease, a couple rags to keep in rotation to ensure you always use a clean one, paper towels, etc…

✨ Looking for tips on cleaning your kitchen? Check out our Spring into Spring Cleaning guide!

You should declutter your kitchen going top to bottom by sections that can be either left to right, or whatever sections you want to start with that are unique to your kitchen. It’s not really to make sure you don’t miss any area as we’re pretty sure you’ll see what you missed pretty easily when you have all the cabinets open and staring at you, but more so you don’t waste time jumping around to random cabinets in your kitchen.

How to Declutter Kitchen Cabinet:

1. Start by taking things out from the top of the cabinets, and work your way down.
2. Wipe the objects down before setting them to the side.
3. Place objects onto a big surface such as a kitchen table to help organize by use.
4. Clean the cabinet the kitchen items were in.
5. Repeat as you declutter your kitchen in sections.
6. Don’t put anything back until everything is out and in organized piles.

Before you start throwing everything back into your cabinets and kitchen counters, let’s set you up for success and talk about what’s worth putting back. The most important step to achieving a clutter-free kitchen is sorting. You can go about creating a minimalist kitchen and have just the kitchen essentials, or declutter enough so your countertops are clear-er.

You need to make four piles: keep, trash, recycle, donate. Some items are going to be so easy to just say “pfft, trash.” but boy, some of these little gadgets you may have acquired over the years are going to test you. It’s strange but sometimes you’ll find a weird attachment and not want to get rid of the old microwave you’ve had since college. Like, who cares? It’s a freaking microwave. But it was your microwave.

So, it’s important to remember how much space your ideal clutter-free kitchen counters have and how much stuff your kitchen is limited to in order for it to be clutterless.

You’re only allowed to put in the “keep” pile are things that answer reasonably to the following questions: Do you have more than one of these? Do you use this item at least once a week? If no, when you do use it, how often is that and is it worth the space it’s taking up?

Don’t skip decluttering your pantry! Even if it looks like you took way too many trips to Costco, sort through it and make sure you’re not stockpiling things that you are never. ever. ever. going to cook. Take these items to a homeless shelter where people are actually going to eat them instead of letting them sit in the back of your pantry.

Also, if your home has ever raised little ones, you’re bound to find old baby bibs or even small baby toys that got forgotten in the back of a drawer somewhere. Give them a good cleaning and then donate them!

Your taste in cooking might have changed and something that you used to use all the time is forgotten somewhere now, or you find that you had a million and one different types of measuring spoons. It’s time to send those items to a donation center or maybe they’re destined for the garbage can. If you’re not sure how to properly dispose of your kitchen clutter, keep on reading.

Once you’ve decided what to keep on your kitchen counters, you need to get rid of everything that didn’t make the cut. It’s very important to note that kitchen appliances like stovetops, ovens, refrigerators, grills, toaster ovens, and more need to be recycled.

Some states have a system for picking up old kitchen appliances but you need to call your local waste management company and ask about their pickup days. Sometimes it’s free, sometimes there’s a fee.

If the blender, stovetop grill, microwave, knife set, etc. are in good enough condition, you can donate them to a local charity or donation center. A few places do offer pickup services for bulky things that are being donated, but usually for a fee and with a long wait time.

So, keep in mind that if you don’t own a truck, you’re going to be waiting around for someone else that does have one to become available.

You can also hire a junk removal company like LoadUp to pick up your kitchen clutter and bulky household items. When you book a removal appointment with us, you get professional movers as soon as the next day, that quickly but safely haul your unwanted goods out for responsible disposal.

The best part, LoadUp strives to dispose of all removed goods in eco-friendly ways whether it be through taking it to recycling centers, donation centers, or the next best available option. We believe that the environment takes care of us, so we should take care of it too.

✨Looking for a more detailed guide on how to get rid of kitchen appliances? We’ve got it here!

Try and keep the mickey mouse waffle maker and sugar blowing kit type stuff to a minimum and only have things that you really use. In case you’re not sure what a basic kitchen set looks like, here’s somewhere to start:

Here are your kitchen essentials:

Now that you’ve narrowed down the number of things you own, you’re way more likely to be able to have clutter-free countertops. As you put things back, leave the counter space only for the ones that fulfill your aesthetic needs as well as how often you use them.

Group items by use and put them as close as you can to where they’re used. For example, since dishes are in and out of the dishwasher a lot, we suggest putting them in the cabinet closest to the dishwasher for ease of loading and unloading.

At first, put as few things on the counters as possible. After everything is put away, you can always reassess what you want to leave out on the counter and what you want to be hidden in the cabinets. The kitchen countertop organization is what makes or breaks the minimalist kitchen look. If you really have to put more than a handful of things out, research kitchen counter organizers or assemble them in an aesthetic way to offset the clutter with a pattern.

For example, if you hate bending down for your cutting board, purchase one that you like to see and lean it against the wall alongside some plants so it doubles as use and decoration.

Avoid putting the blender, the teapot, crockpot, juicer, waffle maker, all lined up on the countertop to the point that your kitchen looks like breakfast at the Holiday Day Inn.

Invest in organizers to layer things in more efficiently in your cabinets and drawers. They help keep everything in sight and your most-used utensils and dishes organized and in reach. You can find plenty of drawer organizers at stores like Target and Walmart. Make sure you measure your kitchen drawers to ensure the utensil holders will fit nicely.

Good Luck and Happy Decluttering!

Just imagine how refreshing it’s going to feel walking into your organized kitchen after a long day. There’s nothing in your face, fighting for your attention, stressing you out. Plus, once you get in the groove of removing and throwing things out, you might even have a hard time stopping. But hey, if you end up decluttering the rest of your house, we won’t stop you. In fact, we’ll help you.

More from the Trash Talk Blog:

• Declutter After Moving in Together
• The Ultimate Holiday Decluttering Guide
• The 40 Bags in 40 Days Decluttering Challenge
• Clutter and Anxiety: How to Break the Vicious Cycle
• Our 2020 New Year Resolutions: Decluttering Your Home