How to Organize Kitchen Cabinets

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Whether you’re moving into a new home or renovating your current space, you should always have an organized system for your kitchen cabinets. In fact, even if you’re not doing any current adjustments to the fixtures or items in your home, it’s still a good idea to take stock of your current cabinet organization system and see how you can declutter them. Here are some tips for organizing your kitchen cabinets. 

1. Clean them out first. One of the first things you’ll want to do when organizing your kitchen cabinets is to clean them out. Learning how to clean kitchen cabinets doesn’t take much skill, so even if you’re not the most handy of homeowners, you can still get the job done easily. Cleaning out your kitchen cabinets will also help you determine what you have so you can organize better. It’s a great way to identify duplicates of items and discover items you thought you’d lost forever.

2. Decide what you’re keeping, donating or trashing. Identify the items that you have multiples of, and determine how frequently you actually use them. Some items, such as spatulas, spoons and even tongs, are necessary to have duplicates, especially if you live alone and don’t need to wash your dishes every day. Consider which items are in good enough condition to donate versus throwing them out. If there are items of sentimental value that you have but never use (such as your grandmother’s hand painted casserole dish), consider getting a display cabinet or even putting them into storage. 

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3. Place your items into categories. Of the items you have remaining, sort them into different categories. Some examples include bakeware, non-perishables, spices and cookware. The purpose of doing this will help you as you stock your cabinets back up after cleaning them out. It’s important that you take similar items and place them together.

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4. Consider how you use your kitchen. A well-organized kitchen is one that makes sense for your family. What items are you and your family most likely to grab first? Those will need to be easily accessible since they’re used most frequently. Which items does your family use least? Those can be placed in areas that are more difficult to reach since you don’t use them that often, such as the cabinets above your fridge or stovetop. 

5. Take note of where your appliances are. Your appliances will also guide you in your organization. For many, you’ll want to place cookware and bakeware near the stove (or even underneath it if you have a storage tray). Additionally, items such as dishware and cutlery will need to be near your fridge and your stove since that’s where most of your food will come from. It’s important to have cabinets that work well in your space for your needs. If, during the course of your cabinet organization, you realize you need to replace your cabinets, our Wolf Classic cabinets fit seamlessly around all your current appliances! 

Typical Cabinet Storage Layouts

There are some consistencies amongst kitchen cabinet organization. There are different items that should be stored more in upper cabinets versus lowers. Here are some of the most frequent layouts we see. 

Uppers: In your upper cabinets, you’ll typically see the following stored there:

• Drinkware: Most people store drinkware in their upper cabinets, especially if they have cabinets directly above their dishwasher. That way, when they empty the dishwasher or drying rack, they can easily put them away. For wine glasses and other alcoholic beverage glasses, many people install racks above their sink to easily hang the glasses by the stems. 

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• Dishware: Your dishware should go in one of the upper cabinets near your stove, ideally in the space between your fridge and stove for easy access while cooking. 
• Storage containers: Similar to dishware, you want your storage containers to be easily accessible for when you’ve finished plating food and need somewhere to place the leftovers.

Lowers: Your lower cabinets are great for storing larger items. Here are some of the most common items stored in lower cabinets:

• Cleaning supplies: Directly under your sink, consider storing your kitchen cleaning supplies. This way, they’re easily accessible when you need to clean the stovetop or add a rinse agent to your dishwasher.
• Cookware and bakeware: Any large items you use to cook with should go in the lower cabinets. Usually, the lower cabinets have less shelves so you can place larger items there without worrying whether or not they’ll fit.