Top Tips for Kitchen Flow

Often find you kitchen in disarray? Visit a few friends or family members unannounced and you’ll find you’re certainly not alone. But there’s always that one friend, or cousin Catherine who seems to always have it all together. What’s their secret to a well-kept kitchen? It’s all about finding your flow, my friends. We’ll help you discover better functionality and clutter free countertops and with these top tips for better kitchen flow.

A home for every thing

It’s part of decluttering 101 – “A place for everything, everything in its place”. Instead of inviting clutter to creep in on your kitchen, create designated places for every essential item in your kitchen. Use containers to organize and separate or pair “like” items or objects with common functionality. You’ll also want to keep in mind how you use these items when you’re assigning their new homes. Incorporating custom cabinets with pull out, multi-tiered shelves for dishes and spice racks can go a long way in your organizational efforts, but make sure they’re in a place that makes sense for how often and where in the kitchen you’ll be using them. For example, those spices should live near your stove, along with oils, utensils, cutting boards and pots.

Create stations

While it may seem instinctive to attempt to clear countertops entirely, you’ll find this to be counterproductive (no pun intended).  While you do want to rid your countertops of things that do not belong in your kitchen, be sure to leave room for the things you use on a daily basis. Grind your own coffee beans for your french press cup of perfection each morning? Consider a designated counter space that allows you to easily access all the essentials. Situate your press and grinder on a tray for easy cleanup. You can even work with a designer to create coffee mug racks under upper cabinets to further optimize space.

Cater to cleanup

In the the first section of this blog, we mentioned your cutting boards should live somewhere near the stove. Working with a kitchen contractor to add an under the counter garbage and compost compartment nearby, and optimally on the way to the sink, can create a flow for going from food prepping to cleaning up.

Strategically placing your dishwasher adjacent to you sink should be  a no brainer, but you should also consider where your top used items will go after they’re clean. Unloading can be made even easier if you’re not having to walk back and forth to the other side of the kitchen to put away your frequently use dishware, glasses and silverware.

All in all, to ensure better kitchen flow, it’s a great idea to work with a designer who can help you visualize your kitchen not just as a whole, but as set of designated areas where specific tasks are accomplished. Improved functionality is something we specialize in at The Kitchen Man. Our team has the experience to help you plan and build the customized kitchen of your dreams. Give us a call today to schedule a FREE in-home estimate.