Glass Containers in the Kitchen

Today I'd like to share a few of my favorite organizations ideas for the kitchen. 

A few years ago I started buying glass containers for my fridge and pantry. I found that my pantry items would get a strange smell from some of the plastic storage containers and I feared it seeping into my food also.

This is a picture of the drawer I store my fridge containers in:

These are readily available at Marshall's, Home Goods and TJ Maxx. Pricing is very reasonable, and starts at three or four dollars and up.

When I do my weekly grocery shopping, I try to clean out the fridge before I go. This is a great time to get rid of things that may have expired and wipe your fridge down. Wash your empty containers so they are clean and ready when you bring your groceries in.

Once I bring my groceries in and put away my pantry staples, dairy and etc., I wash my fruits and veggies, cut, chop or dice them up, and put them into my glass containers. This makes my week go so much more smoothly in so many ways! Not only is meal prep easier, a quick salad for lunch takes seconds, a quick stir fry or fresh fruit for your yogurt or oatmeal is all ready for you! Dinner time prep is also greatly reduced. Everything is ready and clean for your side salad or casseroles. And it's easier for everyone to grab healthy snacks throughout the week. If we have leftover meat during the week, I put it in a small container for a fast taco salad at lunch or salad with chicken or what have you. I do feel the shelf life of my fresh produce extends in the glass containers which is an extra bonus.

As you see in the picture, I keep any fresh meats in a glass pan of some sort as well. This way you don't have it leaking or dripping in your fridge, causing food borne bacteria. It's also best to store meat on lower shelves for this reason.

I like  to have fresh citrus in a bowl for easy access for snacking or for my water.

I hope these hints will make your week a little easier. It may take extra time on grocery day to get it done, but it will be totally worth it the rest of the week!

Blessings from Kim ~ "With Jesus in her heart and coffee in her cup."

"Hi! I'm Kim ~ Blessed wife of Eric, mom of four and Nonnie to a sweet little grand daughter with another expected in January!  I'm a coffee enthusiast, baker, organizer and DIYer. My home style tends to lean towards traditional but, I must say, I can be a bit eclectic. Anything that makes me smile. Surround yourself with your favorite things and be sure you use the good dishes! Always look for extraordinary in what may seem ordinary. ~ Blessings to you and yours!" 

My New Kitchen Command Center

Hi all!

This month, we are working on cleaning and organizing kitchens. I can't believe that February is almost over already!  WOW!! If you missed the organizing challenge, you can read all about it HERE.  I'm inviting you to join in on the challenge and create a cleaner, more organized home this year.

A while back, I shared my sisters kitchen command center with you and I promised to show you mine as well.  It took me a while to finally get to this post, but here it is:

My husband had a piece of sheet metal cut to size.
We ordered the sheet metal from our venting company.

We glued the sheet metal to the side panel.

With this glue.

Here are some closer up photo's of what I have on here.

I made the dry erase boards.

and they are great quality and come with magnets on the back.
 I have a couple of them in Posh + Tattered right now.

You can find the notepads in my zazzle shop HERE.  These are not magnetic.  I added magnets to mine.

 Find the magnetic pencil holder HERE.

I create my boy's chore chart too.  This is used every.single.day.  I am a huge believer in chores for children.  You can find lots and lots of printable chore charts in my Etsy Shop.

I love my kitchen command center.

Tell me, do you have a kitchen command center?

May you be a little inspired!

Until next time,
DaNita 
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View more of my Most Recent Projects HERE.
 

Kristin's Kitchen

In my opinion, moving is one of the best times you can purge. It gives you the opportunity to put your hands on everything you own, and decide if you truly need it.

Even after doing a giant kitchen purge a year prior to our move, as well as getting rid of several items while packing, I still managed to take an additional 3 boxes to Goodwill last week. There is something about living with most of your possessions in storage for 8 months that makes you realize what you can live without! 

Since February’s challenge is Organizing and Cleaning the Kitchen, I thought I would share our brand new kitchen with y’all. Plus, a couple of tips I have for keeping it organized and clean.

Instead of uppers, we opted to do a big window above the kitchen sink. I still have plenty of cabinets on the other side of the kitchen and in our butler’s pantry so I haven’t missed them at all. I found this old brick mold at a local antique mall and knew immediately that it would be perfect for storing our mugs. I am trying to keep things simple so all of the colorful mugs are in a cabinet, and I am on the hunt for some fun and unique white mugs to display.

One thing that helps me decide where I want items to go is visually seeing them in their place. Since I often change my mind a thousand times and don’t want to move heavy dishes until I know for sure where I want them, I use post it notes. I simply list on each one the items I want to store together and move those around until I find the perfect arrangement. I found these post it notes a couple of weeks ago and thought they would be perfect for just that.

And lastly, a few other tips that may help you keep your kitchen clean and organized:

-Do a load of dishes every day so that you start your morning with an empty dishwasher. This prevents dishes from piling up in the sink throughout the day.

-Placing knives, spoons, and forks each in their own section in the dishwasher keeps you from having to separate them as you unload dishes.

-Keep a mini vacuum nearby! I keep mine on the charger in the pantry so that it’s ready to go at a moments notice.

-Use olive oil to prevent fingerprints on stainless steel appliances.

-Load your coffee in the filter the night before so it’s ready to go first thing in the morning.

I enjoyed showing off my kitchen to y’all and would love to hear some of your best kitchen tips and tricks!

Hi! I'm Kristin from The Orderly Home.  I love all things organization and I'm a sucker for pretty storage solutions and anything that makes life easier for me and my family. A little about me: I'm 27, married to my best friend, and mama to a precious little boy. I'm a Texas girl who enjoys cooking and baking, spending time outdoors, and barre workouts. My idea of fun involves an iced coffee, some good music, and a label maker. My style has evolved over the years, and currently I am gravitating towards anything simple, clean, and neutral. 

 

Dresser Redo

In honor of welcoming our second boy into this world (Atlas Frey, born on January 9th), I felt it was appropriate to share the dresser I refurbished for his nursery. I wanted to find something that would double as a changing table so I was excited when I found this piece for 30 dollars. 

Here's the before photo:

I was itching to try Annie Sloan Chalk Paint so I picked up a container of Pure White and got to work. My vision for the nursery was light, airy colors. I applied three coats of paint and loved how stark white it turned out. I used the Annie Sloan Clear Wax and applied it on the dresser with a lint free cloth. I still need a little practice with the wax (or maybe I need to buy the brush) because there were some spots that were a little tacky. I believe it will be tacky if you use too much wax in one area. 

I picked up some new hardware from Hobby Lobby while they were 50% off to give it an updated look. 

This was a very easy and fun project! 

If you've been hesitant to use Annie Sloan Chalk Paint, I highly recommend it! I love how my nursery turned out and I think the little man is loving it too ;) Thanks for stopping by!

Jodi

"Hello! My name is Jodi from The Whispering Pines.  I love to decorate, refurbish old furniture, create small crafts and come up with unique party ideas. I also have a knack for organizing and enjoy experimenting with new recipes. My style is rustic with a touch of farmhouse. If you ask my husband, I could live in antique shops and home decor stores. I love being inspired by others and hope, you too, can gather a little inspiration for your home!" 

Our Farmhouse Kitchen

As my bio states, we've been renovating a 1940's farmhouse for about a year and a half now. We have a long way to go but I have been enjoying the process. The renovations continue but I'll give you a peek at our kitchen, which is about 75% complete. 

 

It may be small but I really love it, especially when we look back at what it looked like when we purchased the home.

This is the BEFORE:

That's all there was for cabinets and counter space. No good. We removed a doorway to free up an entire wall for cabinets and appliances and tore down a wall to open it up to the rest of the house. Everything came out of the kitchen and we started from scratch.

We went with simple white cabinets up to the ceiling, butcher block countertops, an apron-front cast iron sink, and stainless steel appliances to make it a little more modern.

Most recently we installed our island. My husband built a base for a very special piece of butcher block: my parents received it as a wedding gift and it was where we ate a lot of our meals growing up. I remember sitting at it while my mom braided my hair before school and then coming home for an afternoon snack in the same spot. Dinner, homework, birthdays...all around the kitchen island. When they renovated their house, it no longer fit and was moved into storage. When they offered it to us, I was thrilled to have a part of our childhood, especially since we've moved from my home state of New Hampshire to Minnesota. Now our kids can grow up at the same table and I hope they can have many great memories around it too. My mom gave me the idea to put toys in one of the baskets under the island since I have young kids at my feet while I cook so I plan to do that soon.

A few of my favorite features: my wooden spoon, rolling pin, and cutting board collections and our copper Kitchen Aid mixer that we spray painted!

Still to come: a light fixture above the island, baskets underneath, a range vent and hood, a completed pantry, and maybe some color, perhaps. That's definitely something I struggle with! I also struggle with keeping the drawers and cabinets organized, especially my pots and pans, so I will definitely be following along with the Delightful Order Organizing Challenge this month. I hope you've joined in on the fun too!

"Hello, I'm Ashley from Three Wooden Spoons, a blog featuring my adventures in the kitchen and following our renovation of a 1940's farmhouse in Minnesota. I love to cook and bake, write, explore thrift and antiques stores, drink strong coffee, and dabble in home design. I would describe my style as simple and classic, but also eclectic. I love finding second-hand furniture and home decor, as well as antiques from various eras, and making it all come together for a cohesive interior."

February Challenge - Organizing & Cleaning the Kitchen

Hi all!

We're into February now, which means we will be organizing & cleaning our kitchens!  

How did you do with the January Challenge?  If you did everyday last month, awesome, good for you! Pat yourself on the back.  If not, don't worry, we'll be organizing basically everything throughout the year.  Remember, a little bit of organizing in your home is WAY better than none at all.  You are more organized this year than you were last year and that is huge. 

Organizing & Cleaning the Kitchen

There are oodles of ways to organize a kitchen.  You must create a space that will work for you and your family.  Now is a good time to step back, look at your entire kitchen and figure out what will be the best way to organize it, in a way that will work for you.

For a little kitchen inspiration, I'm including some links to blog posts that I've written up in the past. Simply click the link beneath the photo to be directed to the full blog post.

Labeling the Pantry

Organizing the Baking Cabinet

Organizing the Sippy Cup Drawer

Organizing Paper Tableware

Medicine/First Aid Cabinet

Organizing Under the Kitchen Sink

Organizing Favorite Recipes

More Organizing in the Kitchen

Kitchen Command Center

Another Kitchen Command Center

More Command Centers

The process to Organizing a Kitchen consists of 4 easy steps...

1 - Remove Everything
Take everything out one at a time, group like items together on the counters or tables.

2 - Wipe it Down
Wipe down the entire interior and exterior of the space with hot soapy water. Doors, shelves and drawers.

3 - Purge
Simplify - Throw out expired foods, donate any items that you no longer use or need.

4 - Place Items Back In
Keeping like items together (just as you grouped them together when you took them out) place items in baskets, bins, containers, jars, etc. (if possible) and place back into your zoned spaces, keeping categories together.


Solutions, Tips & Tricks in the Kitchen

Create Zones in the kitchen - Prep Zone - Cooking Zone - Baking Zone -Cleaning Zone
Storage Zone - Food Zone

Tupperware or glass jars are great for storing dry foods

Use a basket to store packet items

Seperate Lids from Bases

Use Pots & Pans Dividers, Baking Sheet Racks, Lid Dividers or Lid Racks

Use a Knife Block or Mount a Magnetic Knife Rack on the Wall in the Prep Zone

Drawer Organizers are great for organizing utensils, kitchen tools and junk drawers

Get Creative with Spices. Mount a magnetic spice rack to the wall.

Baskets are great for containing like items together in the pantry, cabinets and even under the kitchen sink

Magazine holders work great to keep cookbooks organized

If you have a smaller pantry add a clear plastic over the door shoe organizer for more food storage

Lazy Susan rounders are perfect use for corners

Island carts  add more counter space and more storage space as well

Add open shelves on the wall and store pretty jars filled with flour, sugar, brown sugar, oats, etc.

Create a coffee bar or coffee station

Use command hooks to hang gloves inside the cabinet door under the kitchen sink

Mount a basket inside the cabinet under the kitchen sink to hold sponges

Store plastic bags, saran wrap, tin-foil etc. in a drawer near the refrigerator

Use a lower drawer or cabinet that children can reach and organize childrens cups, plates and bowls.  Use baskets to seperate the cups, lids, plates and bowls

Hard to reach spaces in a cabinet is the perfect place to store items that you don’t use often  (small appliances, crockpot, roasting pan, serving dishes, party platters, etc.)

Remove most everything off the front of the refrigerator door.  It’ll make a big difference in how “clean” the kitchen looks.

Command Center - create a command center in your kitchen. 

KEEP counters clear - if you don’t use it daily, store it elsewhere.  Clean and clutter free counters will keep the kitchen feeling clean and organized

To keep a clean kitchen, practice these everyday chores: afer each meal, clear the counters and wipe them down. Do the dishes in the morning and load throughout the day. Put the dishwasher going in the evening.  Sweep or vaacum the kitchen in the evening.

So there you have it.  Tips, Trick & Solution to a cleaner, more organized kitchen. 

Now onto the kitchen checklist... I've created a FREE printable for you to print out for this February Challenge.  Print the list and check off the items as you finish them.

(simply click HERE to print the checklist)

Looking for more kitchen organizing inspiration?  You'll find lots of kitchen posts on my Organizing Page.

This post is part of the Monthly Organization Challenge. You can join the challenge at any time. Go HERE to see all the posts and bring Delightful Order to your home and life this year.

To stay connected, you can sign up to receive emails when new posts are published or follow along on Instagram or Facebook. (Please note that Facebook has made some changes, and you may or may not see all the posts there.)  I also have a Monthly Organization Challenge board set up on Pinterest, so you can follow along there as well. 

May you be a little inspired!

Until next time,
DaNita 
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View more of my Most Recent Projects HERE.