Clutter - how do you maintain it?

my kitchen counters are constantly cluttered. from my TV to my knife block, to my vase with the stirring spoons, to the coffee pot and MAIL!
GEEZ!


don't have enough drawer space to eliminate the utensil vase, maybe i could get rid of butcher block, but what do YOU do with the mail?

PLUS! how do you clean your ceramic top stove? i can't get it clean! it's so annoying!

Re: Clutter - how do you maintain it?

I am a catalog junkie - my counters were overflowing. I try to go through stuff once a week. If I like something in a catalog - instead of dog-earing the page and keeping the whole thing, I'll rip out the page and put it in a folder. My fodler contains random recipes, items, coupons for random stores that I'll "maybe" shop at, etc.

Can you get one of those magnetic strips to put on the wall for your knives?



If you can swing it - maybe try getting a flat screen for the kitchen? A 19in or something?

I bought scrubby things for the ceramic cooktop and I use them with Cooktop Magic cleanser. I actually ask DH to clean the cooktop b/c it requires a lot of elbow grease (at least in our house it does).

Re: Clutter - how do you maintain it?

I go through my mail everyday. Junk mail goes in the garbage asap.

I called all complanies that send catalogs & asked them to stop sending them.

Any bills that I don't pay online I bring to work with me & pay them when the time comes - I only have 2 bills that still get paid with checks.

I have all appliances that I don't use frequently in a cabinet - like the blender, the Kitchen aid etc.

I would get rid of some of the cooking spoons. You don't need a vase full of them imo. I have 1 wooden set of spoons - 3 in total, a slotted spoon and a large metal cooking spoon.

I would just go through everything & really determine if you use them enough to have them out. If not and you can't part with anythng - store them in a clear plastic container in the pantry so if you do need them you can grab them from there.

I clean my stove every night to avoid grease build up. I use fantastik and just keep wiping until I see no grease build up. Than again, I wipe as I cook so it doesn't get caked on by the time I'm done cooking. I have ocd/cleaning issues.

Message edited 7/14/2010 9:57:02 AM.

Re: Clutter - how do you maintain it?

LOL...I have really no clutter. We thankfully have enough counter space and drawer space... Our mail is opened and then put in our office for payment or thrown out if it's junk...
My suggestion would be to maybe get a wall organizer for the mail. Can you incorporate a storage cart in the kitchen??

My glass stove I always windex first then soft scrub, then windex again.

Re: Clutter - how do you maintain it?

I'm with Sabrina! Go through the mail every day! I either recycle paper or put bills or things that need my attention in a folder by my computer. I deal with them 2X a month.

Kitchen appliances are in the cabinets except for the toaster and coffee maker since I use those daily.

My mom covered the kitchen table with crap so it's my mission to make sure the kitchen table is not like that. Just a small vase and placemats.

Re: Clutter - how do you maintain it?

Have you tried flybaby.net. She has been a life saver. Check her out.

Start with the babysteps. Link

Message edited 7/14/2010 10:37:36 AM.

Re: Clutter - how do you maintain it?

Re: Clutter - how do you maintain it?

we have a hard time with this as well with our large island in the kitchen. It's the first place when you come in the house to put everything down and down it goes. We do go through our mail everyday....it's either bills that go into the office, paperwork to be filed or papers/envelopes to be recycled. But it's the other things that stay on the counter. It's hard. But we are going to be working on our office room over this weekend, so we hope to be able to find homes for things easier in the future. A lot of it is about purging your things sometimes. Whether it's the kitchen drawers or counters or other rooms to help you stay clutter free in other rooms in the house. Baskets might help out in some way or a mail system. You just need to find something that works for you. Maybe a corkboard inside some of your cabinets with push pins. Young House Love did this for recipes and other paperwork they wanted in the kitchen. It's a great idea. Just buy some square corkboard tiles and glue them inside your cabinet doors. GL! And FlyLady has some great ideas as well. Cool site.

Re: Clutter - how do you maintain it?

Re: Clutter - how do you maintain it?

I don't control the clutter, the clutter controls me...

Re: Clutter - how do you maintain it?

Re: Clutter - how do you maintain it?

Junk mail + garbage.
I don't even bother opening it.

Catalogs = garbage

Pennysavers and the like = garbage.

Bills are put in a small organizer on the far table - When THAT thing gets out of control (b/c for some annoying reason, DH won't throw away or file the damn bill after it's alreayd been paid - it just sits there FOREVER) I get crazy and go through them and they also end up = garbage !!

Re: Clutter - how do you maintain it?

Re: Clutter - how do you maintain it?

Posted by rkoenke

Posted by racheeeee

I don't control the clutter, the clutter controls me...

Another random question... if you have that lazy susan corner cabinet on the floor, what do you put in it. it's a complete waste of space for me. i have the toaster oven in there and my colanders and pampered chef vegetable steamers.. that's it! i have so much more space. can't put knives down there, my kids will kill themselves. maybe i can put my spoons in there?

my tv is flat screen with the stupid FIOS box that is needed.

I have a coupon problem. i am trying to figure out where / how to store these for future... i can't throw them out, i have a severe problem with them.

Re: Clutter - how do you maintain it?

I hate clutter and DH loves it! It's a never ending battle in our house. Once he comes in everything gets dumped on the kitchen island and I hate it.

I go thru the mail once it arrives. All junk goes right into my garbage can and the bills (most are paperless) go right into my work bag bc I pay them from work. If it's something else that I need to keep I put it in my letter bin along with Keys, Sunglasses and Phones

They all go here: (which is in my kitchen...right by the island ;)



I have the office organizer, letter bin (for other mail that needs to be filed upstairs) and the dry erase/cork board.

As far as appliances, I keep everything we dont use daily in the cabinets. My counters are clear. We only have out our toaster oven, soap and hand cream dispensers, caddy with spoons and spatchlers and stuff and in the corner are out knives.

Message edited 7/14/2010 1:45:39 PM.

Re: Clutter - how do you maintain it?

I wish I knew too. My biggest problem is that I got rid of my "office" and moved the computer and everything out into the island in the kitchen. I thought it would be a great idea...use the computer while DH and DD are watching TV, always be involved, be able to monitor what DC are doing on the computer, etc. Well, it was the worst idea I ever had!! Now all the paperwork, bills, etc. are in the kitchen all the time. I do have a file cabinet in my bedroom closet to file all the "stuff" in, but it takes a long time to get in there, and it is a project by the time I get to it. I keep trying to be more on top of things.

Baby steps...

One suggestion I saw on Rachel Ray to clear out the cooking utensils drawer/canister was to put all the cooking utensils into a cardboard box. Anything you use, you can place back into its drawer/canister. After a month, anything still in the box should go. This would only work for me if I did it over 6 months since I don't cook that often!