Flat surfaces are dangerous for most of us. We see a counter and find something to put on it. School work, craft projects, folding laundry – just about everything but a regular meal happens at the dining room table.
Think about how you use the flat surfaces in your kitchen.
- Are the counters cluttered with kitchen items that are rarely used?
- Do you have stacks of mail, kids’ schoolwork, or electronics on the bar?
- Could you have dinner at your dining room table tonight without a major cleanup?
Clear surfaces allow us room to work, enjoy good meals with family and friends, and clean up easily.
Today’s decluttering goal is to simply pick up the paper and excess stuff on your counters and find a home for it.
- If you pay your bills in the kitchen or the kids do their homework at the dining room table, make sure you have a system for it.
- Is it convenient for you to recycle? If not, you’ll be cluttered again in no time.
- Do you keep a blender on your counter even though you rarely use it? Find a place in your pantry or cabinet to store it.
Make your kitchen counter truly a food prep area and not a storage facility. Think about where these things are going and how you can keep them stored properly going forward.
My goal for decluttering the counters today centers on mail, electronics, and kitchen appliances.
We stack mail on the bar and charge cell phones, cameras, and the Kindle there. My purse is usually on the barstool below. What does all this mean? My bar is unusable for its intended purpose. I’m not sure the bar stools have been used more than 2 times since we bought them 3 years ago.
Because I live in a townhouse, space is at a premium. No need to keep appliances on the counter if I’m not going to use them every day.
How will you declutter your kitchen counters and table surfaces today?
For a list of all the decluttering articles, click here.
About Betsy
90% of the stuff that gets piled up on my desk can be thrown away. I don’t know why I allow it to pile up because every time I clean it I feel more focused and productive.
I have noticed that more there is desk surface, more clutter it invites.
For example, I had a big desk in my bedroom (only temporarily). It gathered lots of clutter.
However, when I bought a small and convenient nightstand, things started to get better, since there is now much less flat surface than before.
So, smaller the flat surface, less clutter there is.