a simple kitchen

I’m not a kitchen design expert.

But I am an expert at using kitchens and knowing if they work well for our family. That might be worth more.

I had three main objects with our modern farmhouse kitchen redesign. And they were all a result of living in 13 different homes with kitchens that functioned poorly with a few good ideas mixed in. My main goals for our kitchen were to have a lot of counter surface, natural light, and places to sit. I knew a sink and stove and storage would naturally get worked in so I didn’t focus on those.

But I did plan for one morning altering decision:

how to organize a kitchen

I planned for the dishwasher to be right next door to the storage for the stuff that we wash in the dishwasher.

how to organize your kitchen

For some reason unloading the dishwasher is a dreaded chore in our house.

It’s a pain to dread something that needs to be done daily.

When I dread something that needs to be done daily, it’s a red flag. It’s an opportunity to evaluate if I’m helping or hurting the situation just by something simple that I can change.

how to organize your kitchen

For years it never occurred to me that I have an intentional say in where stuff goes in my kitchen and that I didn’t have to be at the mercy of whoever helped me unpack my kitchen and their decisions of where my glasses and knives should go or the fact that on TV all the dishes and glasses are always high up in the upper cabinets or that we’ve always had our plates ‘there’ so why would I change it?

What worked well last year might not work for me this year. That’s not bad, that’s life.

organize your kitchen

You get to evaluate the best placement of your stuff and if a change needs to be made, you can change it right now! It’s okay if your family is confused for a few days while they get used to the change. They’ll thank you later for a mindful kitchen.

organize your kitchen

Now, everything but pots and pans can be unloaded from the dishwasher without even taking a step. Dishwasher unloading takes about 90 seconds and even the 16-year-old thanked me for planning out the kitchen to make unloading the dishwasher super fast and non-dread-inducing.

organize your kitchen

I had a moment where I wondered if the silverware should be closer to the table since that’s where we use it. But then I figured it would be best to cater to the chore I dread the most. Which isn’t grabbing the forks to put on the table, but rather putting away the forks from the dishwasher.

organize your kitchen

how to organize your kitchen

The point of this post isn’t that I believe that everyone should have their dishes next to their dishwasher. Oh no. I really don’t care where your dishes are. But I do care that your kitchen works best for you. Two methods that work for me in my home:

Cater to the chore you dread the most.

Question everything & expect to re-evaluate for the current best solution.

Is there something you hate or dread about your kitchen? Accommodate for that one thing and make a change to help your attitude with that, even if it means it might not make as much sense for something else. If you can lower your dread, you raise your happy.

Here are a few other ideas I’ve implemented in a hard working, mom of three boys kitchen :: simple solutions to everyday issues.

summer caldrea

 

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