If you’re like most people, you probably have way more kitchenware than your drawers and cabinets can hold. You’ve crammed your spoons, forks, and a bunch of other things in there, and more often than not, you probably can’t even find what you’re looking for.
But worry not! Here, you’ll learn how to organize kitchen drawers so that everything fits.
So, let’s dive into the most essential tips and tricks and start the journey towards the optimal organization!
Wait no more — fight the mess!
Take All Out to Start Your Kitchen Drawer Organization
When the time comes to reorganize your kitchen stuff, there are a couple of steps you need to take before actually getting down to organizing your drawer content:
Throw Away What’s Not Needed
Take everything out and evaluate what you should keep and what needs to go. Sort through the things you have and decide what you use regularly, what can be stored elsewhere, and what you’ll never use again.
Be ruthless in your decision-making! If you don’t use it, get rid of it (donate or sell it).
Group Kitchenware Smartly
Group similar items together. For example, baking utensils (e.g., baking paper, aluminum foil, etc.) and other items you use together should be stored together.
Plan Where Things Need to Go
To make your life simpler, store kitchen supplies, utensils, and appliances near where you’re most likely to use them. For example, keep pots and pans you frequently use in the drawers closest to the stove and oven.
Kitchen Drawer Organization Tips
Now that you’ve decided what items to keep, it’s time to organize them in the most efficient and accessible way possible!
Here’s how:
How to Organize Small Kitchen Drawers
Smaller drawers are ideal for storing various utensils, spices, teas, kitchen towels, etc.
But how can you arrange them to see what you need and grab it easily?
Here are a few ideas:
- Use flat containers that can slide side by side to organize your drawers. Choose clear containers to be able to see what’s inside easily.
- Organize shallow kitchen drawers with small drawer organizers. They’re excellent for storing silverware and other smaller utensils.
- Bins, shallow baskets, and organizers are excellent for organizing spices, silverware, and other small items. They’ll allow you to separate utensils by section (e.g., spoons, forks, peelers, knives, etc.). Plus, they help keep your drawer organized and tidy.
How to Organize Deep Kitchen Drawers
Deep drawers offer more vertical space than regular drawers, so it’s only smart to make good use of it. Due to their size, they’re perfect for storing large cookware like pans, casseroles, mixing bowls, etc.
To make everything fit easily, you can use:
- Drawer organizers
- Racks
- Dividers
- Roll-out trays
- Different containers
Internal Drawer Racks
Drawer racks come in all sizes and shapes and can definitely help with the organization. For example, you can install vertical lid or plate holders or an internal pan rack that’ll hold pots and pans in place, vertically or horizontally.
Installing such racks into your drawers won’t only secure your cookware in place, but it’ll also allow you to avoid the horrible rattling noise while pulling the drawers out.
Drawer Organizers
Organizers work wonders in small drawers. Due to their strategically positioned compartments, you can use them to neatly store smaller items that can easily get lost in the pile of others.
Best of all — these organizing tools aren’t reserved for shallow drawers. A stackable deep drawer organizer can help you store a multitude of smaller (and even larger) items in deeper drawers.
Drawer Dividers
Using drawer dividers is an excellent way to store your kitchenware vertically by creating many compartments for different items. Unlike organizers and racks, they don’t take much of your precious drawer space and make you get the most out of it!
For example, you can use them to separate lids and pans or even to stack your cutlery vertically.
Roll-Out Trays
Installing roll-out trays is a smart way to organize drawers in the kitchen. They’ll enable you to use the vertical space in a deep drawer fully and practically make two drawers out of one.
You can place smaller things (e.g., utensils, measuring cups, baking sheets, etc.) on the tray and larger items like pots and pans at the bottom of the drawer.
Plastic Containers
Plastic containers or stacking bins can be used to hold a variety of items. You can find stackable plastic containers suitable for spices, silverware, small things, or dry food, like pasta and rice.
If you want to be able to instantly see what’s inside your drawers, use clear containers.
How to Organize Large Kitchen Drawers of a Corner Cabinet
Corner cabinets don’t have to be particularly tricky to organize despite their unconventional shape. All you need to make the most of them are inner dividing systems suited for awkward corners.
Alternatively, you can DIY them by vertically placing a piece of plywood across the middle section of the drawer, where the tip of the awkward corner is.
This way, you’ll get a large rectangle section in the back where you can store bulkier items (and that you can further organize in any of the above-described ways) and two identical triangular sections in the front for storing smaller miscellaneous items.
Final Tip — Don’t Overclutter Your Drawers!
If you have items that don’t fit into your newly organized kitchen cabinet drawers, don’t try to cram them in! Instead, consider relocating them to another area in your kitchen or home.
Here’s how to deal with the following items:
- You can place smaller items like cups and spices in cupboards or your pantry.
- You can store some items on the counter. Get a knife holder for your favorite set of knives or a cup holder for your coffee cups.
- Install hooks below the top shelving units in your cupboards and place your pans there.
- Place lid holders on the doors of your kitchen cabinets.
- Place cooking spoons, ladles, and other big utensils in a large mason jar on the counter.
- Install small open shelves (or opt for any of the small kitchen shelving ideas) on one of the kitchen walls and keep coffee, tea, sugar, salt, etc., on them.
- Instead of figuring out how to organize kitchen utensils in drawers, use a magnetic pegboard to hang the ones you use the most.
Conclusion
Now that you know how to organize your kitchen drawers, it’s time to get started! And don’t procrastinate — the sooner you start, the sooner you’ll be able to enjoy their neatness. And who knows, you might even enjoy cooking more when everything is in its place.
So, what are you waiting for? Get organizing!
If you need more tips on kitchen organization, check out our ideas for under-the-sink storage.
FAQ
What do you put in kitchen drawers?
First and foremost, cutlery (e.g., spoons, forks, knives, and similar items) belongs in the top shallow kitchen drawers. But you can also use your drawers for storing kitchen towels, baking sheets, spices, dry food and other cooking supplies.
Furthermore, you can also store your favorite book of recipes there or create a junk drawer for miscellaneous things.
However, drawers aren’t necessarily reserved for such light items only. You can also keep plates, cups, pots, pans, baking sheets, etc., in deeper drawers.
Are kitchen drawers better than cupboards?
The truth is, you need both to get your kitchen organized efficiently.
That being said, kitchen drawers are more space-efficient and can be modified with various accessories that enable better organization (e.g., peg system for dishes, etc.).
They work best for base cabinets, as they can hold heavier kitchen appliances, kitchenware, and utensils. They also allow for a better overview of the things you store in them since you can pull them out entirely.
On the other hand, cupboards with doors and standard shelving are the best for upper kitchen storage. They’re best suited for storing lighter, more breakable items, such as crystal glasses.
How many drawers should a kitchen have?
You should have at least one cabinet with stacked drawers in your kitchen. Ideally, you should have one drawer cabinet per double-door cabinet.
How do you store pots and pans in drawers?
Choose a deep drawer for storing pots and pans, preferably the one near your cooking stove.
But how to organize your kitchen drawers to fit all your pots and pans?
There are plenty of horizontal racks, dividers, organizers, and other products you can use for this.
For example, you could install several rods or pieces of plywood into your drawers to create a filing system of sorts in which you could store your pots and pans vertically. Or, you can simply store your pots and pans with lids on in a drawer in one layer.
Additionally, you can use internal pan racks to save space and boost accessibility.
