kitchen utensils offer more than just functionality when it comes to cooking and dining. Cutlery and other kitchen utensils can be a statement of style, class, fashion, or even taste. Sadly, to achieve these functions, the kitchen utensils must be properly organized.
Organizing your beloved utensils is not the simplest thing, at least until now. Throughout my research, I came up with the ways in which you can get the job done with much ease. In this article, I am going to share these with you, as well as other tips on making sure your utensils do not clutter the kitchen.
Ways of Organizing Kitchen Utensils
To organize utensils in the most convenient ways, you need to consider a few things. These include the frequency of use and the type of kitchen utensil.
What to Consider Before Trying to Organize Your Kitchen Utensils
Not every piece of cutlery can tuck away comfortably in those drawers. Think about these two factors before deciding where each item goes.
1. Frequency of Use
Trust me, you do not want to place your chop board on top of the highest cabinet. A chopping board is one of the most frequently used items in preparing a meal. It should then not be placed far from reach.
Come up with a list of all the utensils that you frequently use. These should be arranged somewhere you can reach easily. The countertop is usually the best place for some of them, but you need to do it cleverly, rest everything looks cluttered.
2. The Type of Utensil
There are usually two types of kitchen utensils- cooking and dining utensils. Below are examples of each type.
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Cooking Utensils
These are used for cooking. They include ladles, graters, serving spoons, tongs, kitchen knives, presses, etc.
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Dining Utensils
Also known as silverware, these are utensils used on the dining table. They include forks, spoons, and knives.
3. Available Space
There are many storage options you can use. These differ in size and so does the utensils. For example, cooking utensils come in various sizes and shapes. They are also not uniform making them take up a lot of space. Whether you have a drawer, or a cupboard, or whatever storage option, store in it items that utilize the available space optimally.
4. Visual Appeal
More often than not, people opt for storage options that reflect their style and taste. Make sure the style you adopt is visually attractive to you, otherwise you stay in the kitchen shall always bore.
5. Ease of Cleaning
Storage options like drawers, containers, and cupboards pick up tiny bits of dirt over time. You go for an easy-to-clean option. A permanently fixed and impervious container can be hard to clean. It’d be worse if such a container was wooden.
Storage Options
Having considered and planned out how your kitchen utensils should be arranged, perhaps it is time we look at the different storage options available. Some of these are things you can pull off by yourself. Here is a broader classification:
- Containers
- Wall mountings
- Drawers
- Rotating utensil caddy
- Portable kitchen island
- Cabinets and cabinet doors
- Magnetic fridge
1. Storage Containers
Containers are quite versatile in storage. They also come in options like minimalist containers, tins, baskets, cookie jars, utensils caddy, and even countertop utensils holder.
Putting tools is a stainless pitcher, especially a vintage –style type can be amazing for your utensils storage.
A countertop utensil holder is something you can either make by yourself or order from Amazon. Should you choose to make one, design it simple. You could have a divided wooden box and then cover it entirely with a vinyl paper.
A utensils caddy can be of two types; stationary and mobile. The stationary type is just a caddy with a solid base to stay on the countertop. The caddy is designed with a handle so you can easily carry everything. A utensils caddy is best for storing silverware, right on the countertop
Cookie jars and minimalist designer containers all work bets for silverware too. You can just pick a tin, clean, and paint it to match your kitchens color profile. That can make a cheap but awesome option.
If you still don’t like the jars and containers all over the countertop, toss them all in an attractive basket.
2. Wall Mountings
Are you struggling with large pans and serving spoons in your tiny drawers? Think of the vast selection of wall mountings that can sort you out efficiently. Such mountings include hooks, a bar for hooks, pegboard, a rake utensil holder, a towel bar and canister, a floating utensil shelf, wall-mounted dishware and silverware cupboard, a lazy Susan, a DIY rack, and mountings on cabinets doors.
Hooks are the easiest to implement wall mountings. With these, you can send pans and serving spoons out of your drawer space permanently. Hooks on kitchen walls, back of the door, and on the cabinets doors are good for just about anything with a provision for hooking.
Hooks can also be hung independently on a bar designated for that purpose. A farm rake can also double as a utensils holder in the farmhouse kitchen. A pegboard work in a similar manner by providing attachment space for hook and other items.
Another genius idea would be to strap a nice canister with a wire and then hang it on the towel bar. It is not only beautiful this way, but can also hold an entire cutlery set.
Just like with hooks, a floating utensil shelf can be a great space saver for storage. The shelf can store cups and plates, as well as large cookware items like pots. A wall-mounted dishware and silverware cupboard works similarly.
You could also install a Lazy Susan under your cabinets. It has hooks from where your serving spoons should hang. A Lazy Susan is handy where your items are larger than the cabinet doors, making that option unusable.
3. Drawers
Drawers are best for storing dining utensils, others with relatively definite shapes. Drawers can either be with or without dividers. Other modifications involve pullout drawers that are cabinets on the inside.
Drawers with dividers are good for storing cooking utensils without creating a clutter inside the drawer. When designing drawers for your utensils, it is best to adopt shallow drawers. They are easier to organize and maintain that way, rather than having a large pit-like drawer where you toss everything.
There are drawers with built-in silverware dividers. If yours doesn’t have the divider, use a basic tray to get the job done. A pullout drawer on the other hand is suitable for larger pieces of utensil. You open the storage just like pulling drawers. Instead of storing items lying the drawer, there are attachments for hooks and keeps to let the long pieces remain in vertical positions.
When using the drawer for long pieces of utensils, arrange them diagonally so they can comfortably fit in.
4. Rotating Utensil Caddy
This is just like an upright Lazy Susan with hooks for hanging and recessions for placing utensil containers. It can swivel through 360° so you can reach anything without straining.
5. Portable Kitchen Island
If space is the least of your concerns, consider introducing a wheeled kitchen island. It not only relieves the kitchen of some utensils but can also be good for outside catering. A typical portable kitchen island should have a bar for suspending some utensils, a drawer or two under the top part, and possibly a create on the lower side.
6. Cabinets and Cabinet Doors
Cabinet can be used to store the less frequently used utensils, making the cooking area more manageable. The cabinet doors can also be mounted with hooks or a bar for hooks to carry extra items within the cabinet.
7. Magnetic Fridge
Do you still have that old fridge with a magnetic rack? It is time to buy a sleek magnetic organizer. The organizer can be used to hold the items you need while cooking.
Conclusion
Organizing kitchen utensils is just but a task of the mind. If you make the considerations highlighted in this article, chances are you might discover your ways or organizing the utensils. Make use of those discussed here for a quick start.