{Let’s Organize: 2012} Week 1: Kitchen Countertops & Sink

This week, we start our year of organizing in the kitchen, organizing our Kitchen Counter Tops and Sink. Anyone else have a cluttered counter top like me? Yeah, thought so.

Think About it.
What you use your counter space for: do you cook and clean? Is the kitchen a hang out spot? A homework or study area? What is crowding it – and why? What’s a storage alternative for those excess spices, utensils, and appliances you have lying around?

Be Inspired.
This week, check out HGTV’s 9 Ideas to Keep your Kitchen Functional and Organized. I am especially loving their vertical wall storage ideas:

& their “spice drawer”:

Set the Rules {& Keep them!}
This week, I’m telling myself:

1. If you don’t use it everyday, put it away.
2. If it’s a common item {baking sheets, appliances, etc} you don’t use at least once every 3 months, give it away.
3. If it’s a seasonal item {cookie cutters, cake pans, holiday aprons} you don’t use it at least once a year, give it away.
4. If it’s broken, THROW IT AWAY! Seriously, do it.

I am really bad about having a clean counter & usable space in the kitchen – dirty dishes and unused appliances seriously crowd the space. So, I’m excited to not only clean up this week, but attempt to stick with a system I can use from now on to keep it clean!

What challenges do you face? What rules are you setting for yourself? Check back later this week, when I recap the project, share photos, & give you a chance to link to your projects.

Happy Organizing!