Does a neat, ordered and fresh kitchen sound like a dream? If it’s about time you knuckled down and organised your kitchen, SheKnows Australia is here to help. These hard-working products will make your life easier and hopefully make your time in the kitchen more enjoyable.
Your most
efficient kitchen yet
Lazy Susans
Not just for Chinese restaurants, Lazy Susans are fantastic for making food and other kitchen tools easily accessible. Place it on the corner of your counter, in a cabinet or even in your pantry and load it up with items that you use often, like rice, sugar, or spices. If you think you’ll be giving your Lazy Susan a whirl a few times a day, go for one made of steel.
Top buy: Linus Lazy Susan (Howards Storage World, $28)
Pull out baskets
If the space under your sink is a hoarder’s paradise or — on the other end of the spectrum — a little underused, installing some pull out baskets can help to organise it better. Depending on the size of your cabinets, you may be able to add one or two baskets brimming with cleaning supplies. Conveniently, most homewares stores sell baskets in all shapes and sizes so finding one to fit your “under the sink” area should be a breeze.
Top buy: Pull Out Organiser (Howards Storage World, $15)
Knife strips
Counter space is precious in all kitchens and knife blocks can hog a fair amount of space. Plus, unless you’re a real connoisseur, they aren’t that pretty to look at. Whether you want more room to move (and the chance to make a mess) or you just want to ditch the block, a wall-mounted magnetic knife strip is a handy solution. These strips are available in varying lengths and some of the longer ones can hold 10 or more knives.
Top buy: Grundtal Magnetic Knife Rack (Ikea, $13)
Storage containers
If you want to keep your dried foods fresher for longer — and in an era of creeping supermarket prices, who doesn’t? — then invest in a few food storage containers. Clear and resealable, these simple inventions keep non-perishables like pasta, cereals and dried fruit in tip top condition and make life easier when you’re hunting for a snack. The best containers are the square and rectangular ones because they fit plenty of products and are easy to stack.
Top buy: Rectangular Rosti Storer (Howards Storage World, $17)
Check out how to create a family chores list >>
Spice racks
If you can avoid it, try not to just store your spices on a shelf in your pantry. Pantries are dark and dinners are rushed, so you may find yourself adding turmeric to your latte instead of cinnamon. For a few dollars, you can pick up a new-age spice rack that will add an organised flavour to your kitchen and save you the hassle of searching for the right seasoning.
Top buy: Maxwell & Williams Spice it Up Carousel (House, $40)
Plastic baskets
In case you hadn’t noticed, baskets are the key to kitchen organisation. When it comes to getting your fridge in order, they can be very useful. Separate fruits, vegetables, meats and condiments by storing them in different baskets. Try to buy baskets that are clear or are “holey” enough to see what is in them. You can also use plastic baskets in the pantry to distinguish between carbs (pasta, rice, quinoa), baking goods (muffin cases, icing sugar), sweets (biscuits, chocolate) and savoury stuff (chips, crackers).
Top buy: Interdesign Lattice Basket (KitchenwareDirect, $14)
Drawer organiser
Is your top drawer full to bursting? Is the cutlery mixed up with the wooden spoons and tongs? Utensils may be small, but they definitely take up a lot of room — and far too much time to rummage around. Enter drawer organisers. Made with plastic, wooden or metal materials, these trays have a bunch of sections that can be used to divide the forks from the knives and the spoons from the peelers.
Top buy: Drawer Insert (The Storage Shop, $22)
Tray dividers
It’s the bane of every baker’s existence: storing sheets, trays and cutting boards. If you line them up vertically, it’s only a matter of time before they fall over with the crashing sound of failure. If you stack them horizontally, you’ll always need the one at the very bottom. The solution? Tray organisers! These clever dividers create separate slots or shelves for your trays, so choosing one will be almost too easy.
Top buy: Rev-A-Shelf Chrome Tray Divider (Fishpond, $29)
Want to be even more organised?
- Be ruthless in choosing which products and appliances stay on display and which ones can go into hiding. For example, if you only make smoothies once a week but have toast every day, keep your toaster on the bench but store your blender in a cabinet.
- If you have a range of clanky pots and pans, look at buying lid stackers or adding some shelving to a cabinet. That will solve the problem of making a racket every time you want to find a matching pot-and-lid set.
- Store similar items in the same space. So, plates go with bowls, cups go with mugs, and cutlery goes with utensils.
- Designate space based on convenience. If you’ve got a coffee machine in pride of place in the middle of your bench, try to store the cups, mugs and sugar sachets in a cabinet above it, rather than in one on the other side of the kitchen.
More cleaning tips
What are you cleaning your home with?
Tips for creating an eco-friendly home environment
10 Tips: Remove clutter and refresh your home for spring
Leave a Comment