Is there ever enough space in the kitchen? It seems as though, just when you thought you had enough cabinet space, there’s another pan or appliance needing a home. I will show you how to maximize kitchen cabinet space to help make the most of your small kitchen. After having a small kitchen, I’ve picked up some organizing hacks to share with kitchens everywhere.
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Small Spaces Make Creative Organizers
When my husband and I first bought a house I organized and reorganized the kitchen. He finally asked that if I was going to keep moving things around, that I use sticky notes to label the cabinets so that he could find what he needed. I laughed at this request as I continued reorganizing the kitchen cabinets. Eventually I figured out how I liked things and I quit reorganizing. Then we moved and it started all over again. I’ve come to accept that when he unloads the dishwasher, half of the dishes will be left on the drying mat. It’s not that they are wet. He just doesn’t know where they go.
My kitchen in the first house was pretty small. We had no pantry so everything had to fit in the kitchen cabinets. At the new house we have a pantry and I was overjoyed. Somehow space still seems to be an issue. I think appliances and muffin tins must multiply during the night. I’ve had to get creative to get everything to fit.
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How to Maximize Kitchen Cabinet Space: Pots & Pans
My biggest tip for pots and pans is to use wire shelf dividers. They can literally double your space. They are truly a space saver when you have deep kitchen cabinets or tall shelves.
For cookie sheets and muffin tins, a tall cabinet can be maximized by standing them up on their end. This utilizes the height of the space. Lid holders work really well for this. It holds the pieces up and makes them easy to access. This also is great for cutting boards and cooling racks.
How to Maximize Kitchen Cabinet Space: Spices & Food
Storing food in the cabinet often feels like the adult version of tetris. Can I stack the boxes just so? How can I do it so that I can open the door without an avalanche of food falling out everytime I open the door? I’ve found the best way to maximize kitchen cabinet space when it comes to food is by taking things out of the original packaging. I’ve found that by using my own storage containers, things fit much better and I can fit a lot more of them in the cabinet.
Some things look nice when sitting out in mason jars. Food storage that doubles as decoration is always a good way to go. It really maximizes all of the space in the kitchen. For example, flour, sugar, beans, noodles, and salt all work well in mason jars. The rest of the food can go into less decorative containers that stack up well on the shelves. I like to use square and rectangular containers inside the kitchen cabinets to make best use of the space.
Spices come in all shapes and sizes of jars. Once again switching them all into matching jars can help you to maximize the space. Spice racks can help make it easy to find what you’re looking for, but they also maximize the space by utilizing vertical space. It’s similar to using the vertical space to store pots and pans. The same idea applies to spices. For the spices you use most often, get a rotating spice rack that can sit out on the counter. Similar to the mason jars of food, they look pretty sitting out.
How to Maximize Kitchen Cabinet Space: Cleaning Supplies
Storing all of the cleaning supplies under the kitchen sink is great, but not the best use of space when it is not well organized. The cabinet is too deep to be able to cram stuff in and hope you can find what you need later. Once again we are going vertical to use the entire space.
Put a set of plastic drawers under the sink to hold all of the extra sponges and small cleaning supplies. Mine holds sponges, rags, vegetable brushes, plate scrapers, and the supplies to clean the glass stovetop.
Use a mason jar or vase to corral scrub brushes. It not only maximizes the vertical cabinet space, but it gives the water someplace to go and evaporate. Plus it is easy to wash when needed.
For jugs and bottles, try using the wire shelf dividers. Most of them are adjustable in length, so you could do just part of the cabinet and leave the rest so that there’s room for the drawers or tall bottles.
How to Maximize Kitchen Cabinet Space: Plates, Cups, & Bowls
As I’m sure you guessed, the wire shelf dividers are a must for plates, cups, and bowls. Often the stacks of these things are very tall so there is a lot of wasted space. Use it up by filling it with the dividers. Then you can put twice as much in the space while keeping it easily accessible. Stack like things together, and then use the dividers to keep it accessible.
We have lined most of the upper cabinet with a shelf divider to maximize the kitchen cabinet space. This allows the plates, bowls, cups, and tubberware to all fit in a single long cabinet. I don’t know where I’d be without these dividers. When it comes to stacking the dishes, make sure you are doing so in a way that is both functional and accessible. Puting the bowls behind the cups or the plates behind the tupperware doesn’t make sense because it creates more work to use them. The key is to stack, but not crowd the dishes.
How to Maximize Kitchen Cabinet Space: Utensils
This is another place where I utilize vertical space and display frequently used items. There are so many drawer dividers for silverware it’s almost a no-brainer to keep them in a drawer. I suggest using an expandable organizer to make the best use of the drawer space. Be sure not to overfill a space and allow the boundaries of the container to determine how much of something you need. If 30 forks won’t fit in a single space, try 20. This prevents you from keeping more than needed and gets you to declutter the unnecessary items.
For cooking utensils, vases, jars, pitchers, and baskets can be used to hold them standing up. Once again we are utilizing the vertical space. Keep the most used items on the counter near the stove. This maximizes the kitchen cabinet space and makes for a functional kitchen.
The site may contain links to affiliate websites, and we receive an affiliate commission for any purchases made by you on the affiliate website using such links. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases. As a Revive EO Affiliate I earn from qualifying purchases.
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