Do YOU have beautifully tidy drawers and cupboards? I need help! *pics*

[GimbleInTheWabe]

Oh tidy ones of MN, please heed my call.

My drawers and cupboards are a mess. Disorganised, dirty, hard to find anything- a mess. And I need help!

I've seen lots of impressive looking pots and Tupperware, dividers and storage bins online but I don't know what is tosh and what actually works. I think I need something to properly store all the pasta and rice and then all the breakfast things and different oils. I love to cook and would like to think I'm quite adventurous so I often have weird and wonderful stuff kicking about in there. We're in a compact one bed flat and there's a carousel cupboard (that stores all the pots and pans and is actually organised quite well) and then basically the big cupboard and three drawers as shown in the photos.

From shopping around it looks like it could end up costing a lot to store everything well but I'm on a massive budget (we have a 7 month old and are saving to move) so would love to knows your tips and tricks if you are a tidy person.

Please, thank you and you're the best.

(Last drawer pic)

My cupboards aren't perfect but they work for us. My top tip is to bin anything you don't need, don't use or are keeping "just in case". It's much easier to keep them tidy if the stuff isn't all rammed in so you can't actually see what you've got!

Packets/jars/sauces/condiments that you haven't touched in a few months? Bin them. Look at it this way, if you were genuinely going to use them one day you would have already!

I have lots of tupperware and baskets to keep everything tidy and organised. It doesn't matter too much what sort really; as long as it works for you.

I'm pretty ruthless with getting rid of stuff. I'd rather see 'space' than lots of things.

A couple of photos:

A couple more (H has just watched me taking photos of the cupboards and thinks I've finally lost my mind 😂):

Ooh @MarsBarsAreShrinking you are amazing. Thank you for the photos the men in white coats will be here soon.

I guess you're right about using whatever Tupperware that I have and grouping things together. Your cupboards look so nice and clean too, it must be easier to keep on top of when you can just lift out a box and clean underneath it. I could definitely be more ruthless with throwing stuff, you're right. And also if things are stored better then there won't be so much wastage due to stuff going stale either.

I need to follow this thread I'm the same as you gimble.we also have "stuff" everywhere top of cupboards etc I just don't know how to organise everything

Welcome @Butterflysprinkles, let us de-clutter together.
Tbf looking back at my pictures of the cutlery drawer I'd say that only 10% of that stuff actually gets used, the rest is anyone's guess.

I'm not actually a messy person in the rest of the flat, I try and keep organised and as it's a small 1 bed DP and I are pretty strict about chucking stuff and not buying more 'stuff'. The kitchen is just fair game for some reason!

Is it my laptop playing silly buggers? Have both lots of photos posted or just the first lot?

@GimbleInTheWabe - get that other 90% in the bin then! That's so true too, the less stuff you have = SO much easier to clean and keep clean. I wipe the insides of my cupboards weekly but it literally takes minutes so it's not a huge job. I'll just do one or 2 while I'm waiting for the kettle to boil or toast to pop up out of the toaster etc... That way it never becomes a huge "task".

@Butterflysprinkles - go through it all first, before you start thinking about how best to organise it, and get rid of anything that doesn't get used regularly or you can't remember the last time you used it.

Mars - cupboard envy, or what?! Wow!

Since reading Marie kondo's book, I have also arranged things like spices in plastic baskets. Then you can pull the whole basket out to get what you need, rather than scrabble around looking for the right one for ages. Also I use cupboard shelves from Ikea to arrange tins of food: www.ikea.com/gb/en/products/kitchen-products/kitchen-organisers-shelves/variera-shelf-insert-white-art-60136623/

I've invested in a few of these from Lakeland.

They are designed specifically for standard kitchen units and are lifechanging! Brilliant for all the herbs and spices, baking ingredients etc. Really easy to lift down from wall cupboards to access whatever you need.

I also read Kondo and also started putting my spices in plastic baskets.

They are grouped in what belongs together for my own style of cooking. So all Mediterranean style together, Indian spices together and so on. (Of course there is a bit of overlap there, but you get the idea).

Most importantly, any bottles which tend to drip and leave sticky or oily patches are contained. That is, all the bottles of cooking oil are standing in a shallow tupperware container that has a paper towel sitting inside it. Any oil dribbles go into the paper towel, which I replace occasionally. If it gets really bad, I can clean the tupperware container as well.

Same goes for things like bottles of soy sauce, Worcestershire sauce, and so on.

Ah @CakeUpWall that is exactly what I was after! Thank you! What you can't tell in the photos is that the second shelf upwards in the cupboard is really high (and I'm not that short!) so some stuff I just can't reach without probably dropping it on my head. Those caddy things would be awesome. Orders eight immediately

Great tip RE the paper towel, will definitely be copying that @anzu66 - thank you. I actually have my spices in magnetic jars secured on a magnetic board on the wall (it really is a small kitchen!) so they're all v easy to grab and find but I'm totally just going to group everything else together, like oils etc, and store them in Tupperware or the caddy boxes.

I had seen the cupboard shelves online @BrutusMcDogface so I'm glad that you recommended them as I thought they looked good. Especially for shallow things like breakfast jars and tons as you say. Thanks for the link.

And yes I got all the photos thanks @MarsBarsAreShrinking. Still
Envious of your clean and tidy cupboards.

Going to try and get at least a shelf done tomorrow during DSs nap if I can, then it's just keeping on top of it and not getting lazy. Still not sure what to do in the drawers. Hopefully after chucking all the useless crap it'll be easier to decide. Has anyone found a good way of storing baby bottles and tears? DS is bf but I sometimes express so I only have maybe 3 bottles but the kids and teats etc always end up lost!

OP - Yes, the caddy boxes are ideal for high cupboards, means you can access the contents without them falling on your head. Don't bother buying the lids though, you can fit much more in them without.

(Love your username btw, one of my favourite poems!)

The Caddy handle wastes a lot of space & you can get nicer/cheaper boxes/baskets.

I have most things in boxes on the second shelf as I’m so short it’s hopeless otherwise.

Definitely go through those draws & declutter, then use some of your existing containers to group things (like lids & teats).

Joining as i need inspo and have been tackling my cupboards also this week.
I agree start by throwing anything you dont use. I took so much to the tip for recycling on the weekend out of the kitchen it felt great finally taking some bits away but the getting organised parts the battle lol x

I like those Lakeland caddies - they're good for the higher shelves in wall cupboards. Three fit nicely on the shelf of a 50cm cupboard. I use mine for jars/bottles of peanut butter, honey, oil, soy sauce etc. They're not big enough for tins though, and I don't find them great for spice jars either as you can't fit many in.

I also love the faux rattan baskets (also Lakeland). The large ones are great for organising large under-counter cupboards and the small ones are good for tins and packets.

Took me a long time to get the kitchen in order so it worked, I'd second decluttering and going through it all then correcting what bugs you. So for me it was opened packets so glass jars sorted that out, then spice jars being different sizes and lids not closing so I got glass ones, then cereals so found a solution for that, baking etc.

It's not perfect but it works. What surprised me was how little I needed stored in there. I mostly cook from fresh so the fridge and freezer are stuffed (but organised), we'd never be classed as preppers but we don't need loads on a weekly basis.

And spices...

Another fan of pull out caddies here.... Wilko sell good one which are great for spice packets etc: www.wilko.com/en-uk/wilko-storage-basket-with-carry-handle/p/0328744

I came across these caddy baskets with handles earlier on Amazon - they're probably not as good quality as the Lakeland or Wilko ones but the price is great and the reviews are good:

www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B00IRCVU3Y/ref=od_aui_detailpages00?psc=1&tag=mumsnetforum-21&ie=UTF8

I have the same caddy baskets as Cake. And all my under-the-sink cleaning stuff is in two bigger stroage baskets so I can pull them out easily. Not yet cracked a good option for the bottles cupboard of oils and vinegars etc. They need sorting.

Thanks everyone.
So hard to find the time to get started with a very active 8mo DS but he's napping so I'm going to start one shelf at least and see how I get on. I actually love organising and labelling so hopefully this will be very satisfying and make me forget how tired I am, why do babies not sleep at night?

Before!

Why is everyone not putting ketchup in the fridge 😳 (misses point of thread)

My ketchup is in the fridge @Goldenpombear!