12 Custom Storage Solutions for a Clutter-Free Kitchen
There’s a lot to consider when designing or renovating a kitchen. To ensure your kitchen meets your storage goals, I recommend researching and budgeting for custom storage during the planning stages. While storage products can be added after construction, working with your pro team and investing in solutions early on will ensure that everything fits, complements your style and satisfies your needs. By investing in custom storage now, you’ll be able to enjoy an organized and clutter-free kitchen for years to come.
Take an inventory of your current kitchen supplies. I recommend reviewing all of the food prep and other kitchen tools you currently own. This might be a good time to pare down items that are unnecessary, impractical or rarely used.
When planning your new kitchen, make sure there’s enough storage for all the kitchenware you plan to keep. Measure the dimensions of bulky items such as pressure cookers, stockpots, large serving trays and platters, tall drink dispensers and party-size serving bowls to make sure your new cabinets can accommodate them. If possible, designate a permanent home for all of your kitchen supplies before your plans are completed.
Consider your lifestyle. Your kitchen’s design should support how you live and how you plan to use the space. If you have a large family with growing children, you may want to add a walk-in pantry to accommodate your food storage needs. You may want to talk with your design team about providing adequate storage for all of your party supplies if you often host large social gatherings.
Research custom storage solutions. As a professional organizer, I see great benefit in installing storage that makes it easy to locate and put away your kitchen supplies. Keep in mind that adding custom solutions to a new kitchen adds to the price tag. Read on for a few of my favorite storage ideas to consider when designing a kitchen. (Be sure to discuss additional costs with your architect, kitchen designer or cabinetmaker before making any decisions.)
1. Flatware drawer organizer. In my opinion, a built-in flatware drawer organizer is preferable to one purchased later, as it’s often difficult to find one that fits the drawer’s exact dimensions. Most flatware sets are similar, so the design can be relatively simple. Some drawers are designed with a top inner drawer for smaller items, like the one in this project by Everingham Design, which might be beneficial for infrequently used items.
2. Kitchen tool drawer. I also recommend including a built-in cooking utensil drawer. The drawer organizer in this photo (also from Everingham Design) has diagonal dividers to accommodate longer items like rolling pins. You may want to measure some of your larger utensils so your new drawer is designed with adequate space.
I suggest keeping the drawer design relatively simple. Over time, you may replace old utensils for new ones in different sizes, so it’s best to not make this drawer overly customized.
If you own a lot of cooking utensils, you might consider installing a tall, narrow drawer next to your stove. In this photo from Ritchie Construction, utensils are stored vertically in built-in utensil containers.
3. Knife drawer. Some of my clients have customized knife drawers, which is a smart idea if space allows. Make sure the drawer isn’t overly customized for your current knife set, because your knife choices may change over time. This tiered drawer by Dura Supreme Cabinetry features silverware on top and a knife block below.
4. Lid storage. It’s been my experience that lids for pots and pans are often awkward to store. Consider installing dedicated lid storage to keep yours organized. This example by Everingham Design features a shallow inner drawer for lids on top of the main drawer.
A narrow built-in divider in the front of a pots and pans drawer is another solution for storing lids, as seen in this example by Bilotta Kitchen and Home. This could be a great option if you’re worried that drawer dividers won’t stay in place after installation.
5. Vertical storage for large, thin items. A cabinet outfitted with vertical dividers is useful for storing items such as cookie sheets, cutting boards, trays and platters. The dividers, like the ones shown in this Everingham Design project, keep items upright and make it easy to access what you need.
6. Lower corner cabinet storage. A lower corner cabinet is usually deep and difficult to access. Installing pullout storage makes the space much more usable and prevents items from getting lost in the back of the cabinet.
7. Docking drawer. You might consider installing a drawer like this one by Docking Drawer for storing and charging laptops, tablets and cellphones. Your countertops will be less cluttered and it will be easy to find your electronics when you need them.
8. Shallow cabinet for tall cleaning tools. Think about installing a tall, shallow cabinet to stash a broom or cordless vacuum cleaner and a few cleaning supplies. Install an electrical outlet if any of your tools require charging. Handy access to cleaning tools and products simplifies cleanup of crumbs, spills and other messes.
9. Spice storage. Many of my clients are avid cooks and use a large variety of spices and oils. For them, I recommend installing a narrow pullout organizer like this one in a project by KraftMaster Renovations. Spices and oils are easy to reach and aren’t taking up valuable drawer or cabinet space that can be used for other items.
10. Storage for a stand mixer. If you’re an avid baker, you know how awkward it can be to take out a large stand mixer every time you want to bake. You may want to talk with your kitchen designer about installing specialized storage for your mixer, like the example in this photo from Dura Supreme Cabinetry.
11. Pullout storage under kitchen sink. Cleaning supplies can get lost under a kitchen sink because access is difficult. I recommend installing a rollout drawer like this one by Shelf Confident inside the cabinet.
12. Food storage. A walk-in pantry is almost always optimal if your budget and square footage allows. However, this is not possible for many of us. Other options exist for making your pantry items more accessible. This photo from ShelfGenie National shows a standard-size pantry cabinet with built-in drawers, which will make organizing and locating your food much easier.
This pullout drawer by Castle Kitchens and Interiors is another great solution for food storage.