Decluttering Your Kitchen
The kitchen can be the most daunting room to pack. There are tons of dishes, silverware, things you haven’t used in years, not to mention the food! Moving is THE time to declutter so arm yourself with these tips and get started!
First Thing’s First
Get started early! A hastily packed kitchen is a recipe for broken dishes and spilled sauces, so plan well in advance of your move. Now is the time to be bold! Be strong! Be discerning! Cabinet by cabinet, drawer by drawer, follow these tips and you could have a minimized, organized and ready-to-pack kitchen in no time!
- Say NO! to Expired Stuff! – Check the dates on all food items, if it’s old, toss it in the trash. No excuses!
- Stuff You Haven’t Used In Months – Maybe you bought that fish sauce for some stir fry months ago and just haven’t had the nerve to use it again, so now’s the time to say goodbye! If it’s not a regular part of your repertoire, let it go!
- Stuff You Haven’t Opened – If you don’t see yourself using it in the next 3 months, consider giving it to a neighbor or food bank who might! Food should never go to waste, be real with yourself and give someone else a chance to eat it!
- Sentimental Stuff – That shot glass from Cancun, that wine glass from cousin Jenny’s wedding 18 years ago, if you aren’t actively using it, maybe a photo for the memory will do (better to use space on your phone than space in your cabinet!)
- Chipped Dishes – Sure that plate you dropped in the sink a few months ago is still mostly good, but chipped dishes are a ticking time bomb for cracks and breakage – the time is now! Let it go and replace that thing!
- Dish Towel Check – Dish towels, they go through a lot! Use them for packing glassware, but afterwards maybe it’s time to relegate them to the garage and get new ones! New Home New Towels!
- Cookbooks – We’ve all probably got a couple cookbooks we love that one recipe from, but that’s about it. Take a photo of that recipe and gift that book to someone you know will use it!
- Gadgets, Gadgets, Gadgets – Remember last summer when you were all about homemade ice cream cones? Yeah, that was fun, but if you made so many you can never look at one again, gift that waffle cone maker to someone else!