While open floor plans are becoming increasingly popular, kitchens are a true representation of the heart of someone’s home. We use them every day, and so it’s imperative the space is functional beyond the basics. No matter your kitchen layout, there are endless creative possibilities to reorganise your space to be the best it can be. Tailoring your kitchen to your specific lifestyle has aesthetic and practical benefits. It promises everything has a place, making cooking a fun, hassle-free experience.

ORGANISATION IS KEY

There are numerous benefits to customising your kitchen’s storage so that everything remains organised and easily accessible. Natalie Russo explains that “great kitchen organisation not only allows for everything to have a place, but it also gives you clear visibility of your items.” This means you won’t create more clutter searching for necessarily items, nor will you squander money replenishing ingredients that are mischievously hidden in a messy pantry.

By ensuring that your kitchen is organised, Russo attests, it improves functionality of the space. “Everything has a place and it’s the optimal way to make use of the space,” which eases the burden that often comes with a disorderly kitchen. Some more common clutter culprits in the kitchen, Russo tells us, are drawers for cutlery, Tupperware, pots, and pans, and of course the pantry. Tackling those easily messy spaces can make a kitchen easier to clean and maintain. It can also be aesthetically pleasing for those who love a minimalist style. And with so many contemporary home designs creating a focal point out of their kitchens, it’s important that everything remains pristine.

When a kitchen is messy and disorganised, it can be a safety hazard too. Items can catch on fire if left near the stove, and nobody wants to risk tripping over open drawers while carrying knives or hot things! An organised kitchen is a clean kitchen, which is ultimately a safe kitchen as well.

When your kitchen is well organised, it saves time and effort that would otherwise be wasted cleaning, searching for utensils or ingredients, and ultimately declutters the mind just as much as it does the physical space. For many, the kitchen is the epicentre of life in the home, and so it’s important to reflect that. Ultimately, a clean and organised kitchen is incentive to spend more time there, making cooking joyous, rather than a hindrance.

EVERY NOOK AND CRANNY

If you are in the position to design your kitchen to be storage conscious from the ground up, then incorporating structural organisation choices during the planning stage is ideal. Russo cites “picking the right architect, designer or cabinet maker” that specialises in your chosen accessories. This will help “tailor your kitchen design to suit your needs and lifestyle”. For example, Blum offers a ‘Kitchen Test Drive’, which Russo explains “allows you to bring in your plans and your kitchen design is simulated by real life mobile cabinets”. This is an immersive way to see if your kitchen layout, design, and storage are optimal for you.

When building your kitchen from scratch, homeowners can utilise every nook and cranny and customise the level of storage to what will be ideal for them. That may mean creating zones for common kitchen activities such as prepping, cooking, and cleaning so that the design has flow, and the layout itself feels organised. This could be as simple as placing the dishwasher near the sink, to as intricate as an ergonomically accessible preparation station that has everything within an arm’s reach. Other examples include a separate pull-out drawer for your rubbish, recycling, and compost bins or an under-sink drawer that utilises the corners of dead space around the bottom of the basin.

To tackle overlooked or underused space, customising the cabinetry to be ‘smart’ by installing a nifty gadget in corner cabinetry to access clunky pots and pans is a common solution. Blum’s own SPACE CORNER seamlessly integrates with the existing angle of a corner cabinet but is designed to pull out so that all utensils are accessible and visible. Other innovative built-in options include Blum’s SPACE TOWER, SPACE STEP and Pull-out shelf lock, products that integrate inner pull-out storage for various purposes, utilising awkward spots that would otherwise go to waste. Simply by getting a little creative, homeowners can elevate their kitchen storage and optimise their organisational design dreams.

IN A TIGHT SPOT

Not everyone has the time or budget to install a brand new kitchen, or even to renovate their existing one. While built-in storage solutions can be great, Russo believes there are just as many benefits to reorganising your kitchen without changing the structure.