Kitchen declutter/organizing/cleaning
This week we will learn how to declutter, organize, and clean the kitchen.
Again, since this is not your home, please make sure that you double check with your parents before you throw things away or move things around. I am sure they will be blessed by your venture to help make life easier and better organized.
The kitchen can be a catch all for the entire family. The kitchen counters can easily get crowded with papers. Cupboards get jammed with items that we hurriedly set in and hide away. Food gets pushed to the back as we replenish and add more to the pantry. Refrigerators and freezers get full with new foods, while leftovers get lost in the frozen abyss.
Having a regular schedule of decluttering and organizing your kitchen will keep it in shape without becoming overwhelmingly chaotic.
I would take a cupboard and drawer one at a time and organize it. Take everything out, wipe down the insides and sort through your items. Have one pile for trash, one to give away, and one to put back. Organize the items neatly when you put them back in the areas. Work in a clockwise pattern around the room, from top to bottom. This may take you some time to do. Decide how many of each item that you really need. The more items that you have, the more work it is to clean up.
When it comes to cleaning supplies and food, try and organize like items together for easier finding. If you have multiple items of one thing, put them together. If you have opened foods that spill easily, pour them into plastic or glass containers. I use square ice cream buckets for holding my dried beans and plastic coffee containers to hold items like chocolate chips and coconut. It keeps my pantry neatly organized and with one look, I can see how much of one item that I have.
When you are finished with the insides, work on the counters. It takes more work to maintain a kitchen that has items out on it. Consider putting some of your appliances that are not regularly used away. Make sure that you wipe down each appliance to remove any caked on foods. Pay careful attention to the back splash behind the countertops. Food can accumulate on that area sometimes unnoticed.
Wipe down all major appliances with an all purpose cleaner. For stoves, wipe out underneath any burners carefully. If the inside of your oven needs cleaning, use a store bought cleaner. I know, I don’t usually ever recommend using chemicals, but I have learned that it is almost next to impossible to clean an oven with anything other than strong chemicals. Use an exhaust fan to remove any odors and do it overnight, when the kitchen is less likely to have people in it. You can wipe it down first thing in the morning. Use an old rag and rinse it out in between wipes.
Your oven may have a self-cleaning option. Which is great, it heats the oven up to a high temperature and burns off the foods. I have found that prevention is the best thing, but that is not always possible. Usually once per month, I have to go this route and use chemical cleaners.
Finish up by wiping the entire appliance face and door. Pay attention to the knobs and handles.
For refrigerators work from the inside top to the bottom. Remove items off of the top shelves and wipe with an all natural cleaner. Wipe any walls as well. After that shelf is thoroughly cleaned, move onto the next one. Continue working down, this allows any food to be dropped and you can end with picking it up. If you have any drawers, remove those and clean with soapy warm water in the sink. After you are finished with the shelves, work on the doors. Remove all of the items and wash out bins. Check along the bottom of the door and remove any grime that has accumulated.
This is a great time to go through leftovers and see what needs to be thrown away. If you have multiple bottles of condiments, combine them together. You can add a little bit of water to help remove all of the sauce from the containers. Set the leftovers in an area that can be seen, so they can get eaten up.
Do the same for the freezer. Move any “lost” foods to the front, to be used up.
After the inside is done, wipe the entire outside of the refrigerator down. Do the top and sides. Use an appliance brush to clean underneath the refrigerator. It will help to clean off the dust which can clog and cause your appliance to fail. If you don’t have a brush, you can use the attachment crevice hose on your vacuum. This should be done at least two times per year.
If you own a microwave, the best thing to do is to put a glass measuring cup filled with about ¼ cup of baking soda and 1 ½ cups of water into it. Turn it on for five minutes. When it finishes, let it sit for about another three minutes while you clean the face and handle of the microwave. Open the microwave and wipe the inside all around with a clean sponge. All of the dirt will just wipe away effortlessly.
Sinks can be scrubbed with the all natural scrubbing powder that we made for the bathtubs. Scrub all around the corners and the rim. You can sprinkle about ½ cup of baking soda into your drains, then pour 1 cup of vinegar afterwards. This will help remove odors and help clear pipes.
Now that most of your kitchen is cleaned, go around and wipe off the faces of the cupboards. Pay careful attention to the handles and corners that get touched most frequently to be opened. Get on your hands and knees to wipe the bottom ones. You will be surprised at how much dirt is on the bottom areas.
A place for everything, and everything in its place.
This will help cut down on disorganized chaos in your home, especially your kitchen, the biggest catch all area.
Try and not have junk drawers or junk baskets in here. By returning things where they go and having a place for everything, will result in a much neater home.
