Behind your kitchen cupboard doors, there are things hiding that you haven’t used in years.  Maybe some of it you’ve never used!  When things are shut away behind closed doors it’s easy to forget about them and not notice they are accumulating.

I am asking you to take a tour of your kitchen.  Open each cupboard and every drawer and look in all the corners at everything you have stored in your kitchen – even the stuff stored way in the back or way up high.  Use a step-stool if you must.  I want you to see what you’ve got in there.

Now that you’ve surveyed the situation, what you can let go of?  Clutter is anything in your home that you don’t need, don’t use and don’t want.  And I guarantee you’ve got some of that in your kitchen.

*Appliances you haven’t used in two years (panini presses, smoothie makers, food processors, electric knifes, mixers, pasta makers, etc)

*Mismatched dishes and serving ware (okay, so you bought it on clearance a few years ago and yes, it’s cute….but have you ever used it?)

*Kitchen tools and utensils that are hardly ever used (a garlic press seemed like a good idea at the time…so why hasn’t it been used in the last 2 years?)

*Cookbooks that are never referenced (only keep the ones that are used on a yearly basis)

*Surplus water bottles, travel coffee cups (you know you have too many)

*Spices that are more than 3 years old (if a particular spice has been hanging out in your cupboard that long, chances are it’s no longer very flavorful and you likely don’t use it enough in recipes to justify replacing it)

*Surplus cookie cutters (if you actually do make roll-out cookies, how many choices do you really need?  Try to keep your collection to fewer than 10.  If you don’t make roll-out cookies, then get rid of them altogether)

*Pots, pans and cookie sheets that are warped, stained, or just getting tired looking.

*Tupperware that is warped, stained, or missing its lid.

By now you should have a good box or two (or more!) of things gathered up that can be donated, tossed, or given to a friend or family member.  There, now doesn’t that feel better?

I thought so.

It’s called Rightsizing.  Finding that perfect place between too much and too little.  Now that you’ve done it in your kitchen, why not give it a try in other rooms of your home?