This List Will Help You Declutter Your Kitchen in Just 20 Minutes

Taryn Williford
Taryn Williford
Taryn is a writer, editor, content strategist, and homebody from Atlanta. I might have helped you declutter your apartment through the magic of a well-paced email newsletter. Or maybe you know me from The Pickle Factory Loft on Instagram.
Follow
updated Oct 14, 2019
pinterest
comments
We independently select these products—if you buy from one of our links, we may earn a commission. All prices were accurate at the time of publishing.
Post Image
Credit: Mackenzie Schieck

There’s no kitchen in the world that’s big enough. No matter how many cabinets you have, or whether your countertop is better measured in inches or acres, I guarantee that if you’ve been living in your space for a while, your kitchen storage is full.

Maybe it has something to do with the way the kitchen is the heart of the home. People gravitate towards the cookhouse when you’re hosting a party, so your things probably enjoy ending up there, too.

But it’s a good idea to take regular stock of the things you’re storing there — so that’s exactly what we’re going to do today.

Credit: Jessica Isaac

Your Assignment: Do a 20-minute decluttering sweep of the kitchen.

Set a timer, grab a basket, and go through your kitchen looking for things that are either out of place, or ready to be tossed and given a new home far away from yours.

But first … there are a few places not to look: The fridge, freezer and pantry can be spared today. We’ll come back to those spaces another time, we’re sure.

Where to Look:

  • cabinets
  • drawers
  • on the counter
  • on top of the fridge or cabinets
  • any freestanding furniture, like a hutch or island
  • the bar or bar cart
  • anywhere you store cooking and serving supplies, even if it’s not “in” the kitchen
Credit: Mackenzie Schieck

What to look for:

  1. Anything that belongs in another room
  2. Broken cups, mugs, and plates
  3. Multiples you have too many of
  4. Kitchen tools you never use
  5. Duplicate kitchen tools or measuring cups
  6. Small appliances that you never use, or that you use so infrequently you can probably find an alternate technique or borrow from a friend
  7. Baking sheets, pans, pots, and cutting boards that sit untouched
  8. Holiday-themed serving pieces that didn’t get used last holiday
  9. Novelty accessories
  10. More than two-ish bottle or wine openers
  11. The fifth and sixth water bottles you never get to
  12. Old, gross cleaning supplies
  13. Old, stained, or extra plastic containers
  14. Takeout condiments, plasticware, and stray menus
  15. Out-of-date invitations or event announcements
  16. Expired coupons
  17. Excessive collections of paper or plastic bags
  18. Expired medication
  19. Bottles of liquor that don’t ever seem to get drunk
  20. Cookbooks that haven’t been cracked open in more than a year

A lot of these things can be recycled or donated, so don’t opt for the trash can unless you have to.

This post originally ran on Apartment Therapy. See it there: Use This List to Declutter Your Kitchen in 20 Minutes

Filed in:
video