Help me conquer this clutter magnet

[Letmesleepalready]

In my quest to tidy up I'm starting to notice the big offenders that attract mess.
Exhibit A is this piece of counter top above the washing machine. Ideally I'd like to keep it empty but in a small flat all surfaces are important.
So what would you put here? We've tried putting cookbooks but we don't use them there. If we could find something that lives there we might be able to keep it clear of unwanted mess. At the moment it's just full of clutter.

I think I would just try to keep it clear with nothing but... maybe a plant?

What kind of things are you putting there? Could you not tackle this in reverse and work out where the cluttered items should be ending up?

That might work, it's just that whenever we clear it, it gets full up v quickly!

For me it would be a nice way to keep the washing powder/liquid/softener.

Hadn't thought of that! Would free up a lot of cupboard space too.