Clutter is defined as a collection of things lying about in an untidy mass. The word is often associated with a disorganized home. While clutter can appear anywhere, it tends to intensify in well-used areas of the home, such as our kitchen countertops. Often clutter can crowd out counter space and make it more difficult to perform ordinary kitchen tasks such as cooking. Many may ask, what is the key to keeping a clutter-free countertop? Here are some secrets from three professional organizers that you should know:
Organizer #1 – It’s not difficult to keep a kitchen clutter-free. I generally analyze the organizing issues with my clients by observing what is on their countertops. If they have a lot of appliances stored there that they don’t use, I encourage them to only keep what they use and need. The rest can be stored away or donated.
Organizer #2 – You need to set some basic rules up and stick to them. For example, one of my clients tended to throw mail and papers on their countertop. Over time, the papers accumulated into big messy piles. By creating a system for sorting mail and providing a designated area for the mail to be filed and stored outside of the kitchen, we solved the paper clutter issue that previously consumed the kitchen.
Organizer #3 – Procrastinating was a major issue for one of my clients. He would let dirty dishes pile up. He also had many things on the counter that he intended to put away elsewhere but never got to it. We established a rule that all dirty dishes get rinsed and put into the dishwasher immediately. Because he was a procrastinator, he didn’t put things immediately away. So, we found ways to make the job easier for him. We dedicated a few clean empty vases to hold and store kitchen utensils and created an easily accessible place on a nearby bookshelf to hold his cookbook collection.
In the above instances, kitchen countertop clutter was the main issue that the organizers observed. Each client had a unique reason as to why their countertops were cluttered. They included storage issues, lack of adequate routines, and procrastination. By assessing and addressing their distinctive situations, each homeowner was able to reach the same ultimate goal, to enjoy a clean, well-functioning, and organized kitchen – largely clear of countertop clutter.
