One Clutter-y Thing You Should Pack Away with Your Decorations
For those of us with limited kitchen space (or a penchant for minimalism), designer and blogger Melissa Coleman of The Faux Martha has a genius tip: When it’s time to put away holiday decorations, pack your specialty cooking supplies with them.
The premise: Why take up valuable real estate in your home with cookware and gadgets that only get used twice a year, at best?
“For years, I’d dig past the once-a-year Christmas cookie cutters and the twice-a-year turkey tools to get the thing I actually needed, the spatulas,” says Coleman, who authored “The Minimalist Kitchen” earlier this year. “As I started to intentionally pare down my kitchen, I realized these special occasion items were taking up precious, limited space of the items I use every day.”
As she continued her journey of minimizing clutter to maximize space and efficiency, Coleman developed a system that worked for her: “Soon enough, I started categorizing spaces (and items) into either ‘everyday’ or ‘special occasion.’ In fact, I often remind myself now to protect the everyday spaces to keep things running efficiently.”
Her solution? Designate a specific bin or tub in your storage space for your holiday-specific cooking items and festive tableware. That could mean the gingerbread man cookie cutters, the bundt cake pan that looks like a wreath, or just the extra wine glasses that you only really get to using during the holiday party each year. Not only will you enjoy more space in your cabinets and drawers, you’ll probably also be surprised by how much easier it is to accomplish what you want to without the hassle of digging through mounds of gadgets first.
“I now store my once-a-year Christmas kitchen tools with the decorations in a clear bin for easy visibility, where the rest of the special occasion items are stored,” she says. “It’s freed up space and removed a layer of frustration from the kitchen.”
Do you do this? Do you have a simple tip that makes holiday organizing easier? Share your secrets in the comments!