Organize Your Kitchen for Form and Function

Daniel Hale By Daniel Hale
on October 10, 2017 at 1:38 PM, updated October 10, 2017 at 1:41 PM
One of the most annoying spaces in the kitchen is the corner cabinet space.

When it comes to organizing the kitchen, things can get a little bit tricky. It's important that you have access to everything you need so that the kitchen is easy to use. You don't want to waste time looking for certain utensils or ingredients while something is cooking on your stove, after all. Those who enjoy cooking understand that not adding specific ingredients at the right time can kill a dish.


However, form is important as well. You don't want your countertops cluttered with spices just so that you can find what you need while you're cooking. A cluttered kitchen space is going to make it less pleasant to use and can lead to disorganization as well. To help balance function and form, use the following tips to keep your kitchen organized:

Store Items Based on Zones

The kitchen tends to be divided into at least three zones based around the stove, the sink and the refrigerator. It's a good idea to store your kitchen foods, containers, appliances and utensils based on what zones they are used in.

For example, instead of hanging your cooking utensils near the fridge, store them near the stove where you will need them. Store your cups, plates and eating utensils near the sink or the dishwasher. This way, once you wash and dry your dishes, you can easily put them away without having to walk across the kitchen.

Store Lesser Used Items in Harder-to-Reach Spaces

The top shelves of your kitchen cabinets or the very back of areas of those lower cabinets are hard places to reach. Because of this, you shouldn't store anything that you use on a regular basis. Instead, use these areas to store items that you only use on occasion, such as your special holiday dinnerware.

Use Your Wall Space

The problem with kitchen cabinets is that not everybody has enough of them. Additionally, items often get lost in the back of deeper cabinets, while top shelves can be tough to reach. You can complement your cabinets by using your wall space for additional storage. The following are a few ways that you can do this:

  • Add shelves - Shelves are great because they don't have to be very deep if you just want to use them to hold things like your spices or your coffee mugs. Shelves are perfect for smaller everyday items such as these since you can easily grab them and put them back without much effort. Additionally, you can use them to add to the visual design of your kitchen by putting up a few decor items, such as a small vase of flowers or a framed photograph, to name a few ideas.
  • Add hooks - Hooks can work just as well as shelves, especially when it comes to hanging items such as coffee mugs or pots and pans. Some homeowners even hang containers filled with their eating utensils from hooks so that they are more accessible and easier to put away (as opposed to the traditional method of storing them in a drawer).  
  • Add a wall garden - The wall is a great place to grow a vertical garden. Not only does a wall garden help to add a natural look to your kitchen (which helps take the edge from all those stainless-steel appliances), but it allows you to grow fresh herbs that you can use while cooking.

Use Corner Carousels

One of the most annoying spaces in the kitchen is the corner cabinet space. You can get around how awkward it is to use by installing a corner carousel. This way, you can make better use of the storage space available to you in these corner cabinets while also making it much more accessible.

Hang Items from the Back of Cabinet Doors

While you may fill up your cabinets with dry foods and dinnerware, odds are you're not making use of the backs of your cabinets. You can add hooks or racks to the backs of your cabinet doors. In fact, the back of the cabinet door is a popular place to hang a spice rack, thereby keeping your spices organized and easily accessible. 

Light Your Kitchen Properly

Lighting is very important to the organization of your kitchen, not to mention its overall aesthetic. Consider using LED strip lighting for underneath your upper cabinets so that you can see your countertops clearly. You can even use lighting strips with motion sensors in your kitchen drawers so that you don't have to fumble around in search of what you need.

The kitchen is arguably one of the most used spaces in your home, which is why you should take the effort to make sure everything is organized in a way that is accessible and that contributes to your kitchen's overall visual design.