Before we attempt to conquer the kitchen clutter, we should consider why we have a kitchen to begin with. The primary function of a kitchen is to have a place to prepare food. And sometimes it also provides us with a place to eat the food that has been prepared. The only reason why I mention this fact (which seems redundant), is that these days, most kitchens look more like a place to store appliances.

Now is the time to use some kitchen organization to bring it back to its original purpose, the warm inviting place in the home for the family to get together, cook and enjoy a meal.

We will begin by clearing space on the counter. Most people complain that they do not have enough kitchen counter space. For instance, two of the appliances that are used the most are the toaster and coffee maker. Although, most people keep them on top of the counter all the time, they are usually only used in the morning. They are taking up valuable space.

So my suggestion is, after they are used and cooled off, then put them away in a cabinet. You should also do this with any other appliance you use. Better yet, before you store each of the items, really think about the last time you used them and if they are actually worth keeping, If you only use the appliance once a year, then maybe you can live without it. Now may be a good time to get rid of any appliances that you really do not use.

Next, we will start to clean the kitchen cabinets.

The cabinets tend to get overloaded because we keep too many unnecessary items. For example, how many cups does a family really need? I am sure that some of the cups probably belong to a set of dishes. If you have all of the dishes in the set and use if on regular basis, then you should definitely keep the cups. But if you do not have the entire set, then maybe you really do not need all them cups.

Use this same process with all of the items in your cabinets. Most people have dishes that are seldom used because they may be cracked, chipped, or just do not match your other dishes. If you do not use these dishes – and have enough of others for your meals – then either throw them out or donate them to charity.

In addition, if you cannot remember that last time you used a particular pot, pan, or casserole dish, then you probably do not need it.

Now, let us turn our attention to the dreaded refrigerator. If your refrigerator looks anything like mine used to, then it is full of leftovers that sit there until

Joyce Laroche