Decluttering our Kitchen

We have a good size island in the kitchen, it used to have a cooktop built into it, but I removed it when I bought the house and I put a butcher block top on it. I just love my island! On one side it has 3 drawers and 3 cupboards. One cupboard is for mixing bowls, one cupboard is for the tupperware and lids and one is for the baking dishes. They are all really tidy, with me going through the tupperware on the regular because that is one of my pet peeves. This side of the island faces out, and it what a guest sees when they are talking to me in the kitchen. The other side of the island is a different story. It is kind of like washing up on a desert island beach, you see all the tropical plants, the coconut laden trees and the white sandy beaches, it seems like a paradise. However looks can be deceiving.....because on the other side of those trees lurks a menacing presence that is just waiting for you to step into the jungle.... The other side of my island is like the menacing presence. You see where the cooktop was, there is a partial pipe that comes up, preventing an efficient organizing system. So on one side of the cupboard I have crammed in some plastic drawers containing everything from cooking cutters to canning funnels....and no I don't can. On the other side where the pipe protrudes, I have shoved in my baking sheets, cake pans and metal bakeware. Once upon a time it tried to be organized, but when things started falling behind the pipe, instead of crawling back there...I just let them hide. This is my deep dark kitchen secret. With your support, I am determined to turn over a new leaf! I am going to purge those canning funnels along with any shreds of the illusion that "someday" I am going to take up canning. I am going to take the win with my my batches of homemade pasta sauce that I freeze from our garden tomatoes. I am going to pat myself on the back and say yep I could if I wanted to, but I would rather play with glue and paper, so it's going! I have assmebled some tin snips, and some packages of self sticking vinyl floor tiles (the cute kind with the fun pattern that I love but am too afraid is trendy, so I stick with white subway tiles) and I am going to pull everything out of that big ol cupboard, I am going to cut that pipe with the tin snips (it was a venting pipe for the cooktop, not electrical or gas) and I am going to vinyl the bottom of the cupboard with the cute tiles. Then I am going to organize the shizzle out of what goes back in there. I am even willing to make a pilgrimage to Homegoods to find just the right organizer, because I am selfless like that. My kids are going to be shocked at this transformation. They will ooh and ahhh at the gloriousness of my organization skills...who am I kidding they aren't even going to notice. But I am going to notice! A few of those baking sheets might even find their way into the college care package I am getting ready for my firstborn who will fly the nest next year. I will report back when I have completed my mission!

And I am not joining the book purging, because you have to draw the line somewhere...and my line is at book pages!

@Christopherpines you are such an entertaining writer. I loved your story. I will try to be just as creative, TRY! Thanks for sharing. Hey can send you some book pages, girl! or some old ugly books. I know where you live. They might just show up on your doorstep begging to be let in out of the cold or heat depending on where you live. IT IS HEAT here. 108F we have been under an excessive heat warning for weeks.

My house sold and I am moving 203 miles south of Phoenix. Hence the need to clean out my kitchen. I did some decluttering back in AUG when were trying to sell the house. I put all my sunflower corelle dishes in the give away pile. The cups were high up and I didnt pull them out yet. Hubby pulled out 4 when were drinking champagne to celebrate the closing of your house on Sept 10th. Now I wonder if I really want to get rid of this retired set. Ok so the items I keep Keep need to bring me joy. And the dishes I kept do. Ok so it is time to get rid of the sunflower stuff in my kitchen, GASP.

But I am keeping my fondu pots!

I am short, I need a step ladder to reach the top shelf where the sunflower corelle cups are stored. To my surprise I had 12 of them. Then not at all surprised because I had 8 kids so needed 10 for dinner. My adult daughter said she would take 2 cups and some dishes. She has a small apartment.
I did do a give away pile, or yard sale pile Hubby said we are having a yard sale OCT 2nd. I think that is just one more thing to do. I packed our coffee mugs, I kept out 2 each, for use to use plus a travel mug.

In the cabinet, I found old hot cocoa in a canister. and some old coffee. I am not done with my cabinets. I have one over the fridge with vintage dishes from my grandmother, and I dont think I need to keep them. They have been up there 18 years. I havent used them.

@AZmom875 you don't have to send the books, just throw them out into the universe and they will find me...they always do! My daughter takes the recents for her collection or to trade at the used book store, We have a little free library out by our goat pen, for all the visitors who stop by to see Rick, Annie and Billy (my children were terribly inventive and original goat namers) and I put a nice selection out there, but the vintage books, I have totes of them in my studio, I have at least 3 more totes of them in the garage, and I craft with them with wild abandon. I make book page envies, or stitch up the sides to make cute sleeves for swaps, I share them and tear them, but to toss them I simply cannot bear. I have informed the children that we will also have a yard sale come October, we will purge the outgrown skis, we will sell the soccer and volleyballs, we will get rid of the extra furniture cluttering up the garage, We will put out those bins and bind of weird sprinkler and plumbing parts we inherited with the house, The old wagon is going, the twin bedding (for a twin we no longer have) is outta here, those canning funnels can go, the 37 cupcake carriers (because I was that mom...room mom, team mom, 4H mom, snack mom...) can find a new bright eyed an eager mom...because I am turning over a new leaf! I also told them that I will help them set it all up...and then I am going in the house to play with paper...and they are in charge of all the yard sale things...they can keep the money...just don't bother me. For evey question you ask me I will charge you a dollar and at the end of the day we will see who comes out ahead!

Oh sewing on the pages, is very inviting. Might just keep some for that.

On my kitchen today. I did the Tupperware. Threw a ton of the cheap stuff away. We had saved the containers that the Chinese food sauces comes it. They worked great but it was time. Lots of lids missing bottoms. A few bottoms so ugh, I tossed them.

We had two hand mixers, and I know why. Hubby got inpatient one holiday. He was making mashed taters and could not find the mixer. He went out and bought one at the store. Now that makes me wonder which store was open, and what holiday.

I cleaned the spice cabinet, Threw "VINTAGE" stuff away. Packed one box, and kept out the basics (20 is the basics) to cook with. Hubby was checking to see if I did indeed leave out the basics.

Hi ladies, it's been a very busy week but I will be working on my kitchen this week and will join in on this swap and make a proper comment when I complete my task!

My kitchen is bare. Empty shelves. Cause I am moving. I am now working on the pantry, which is not in the kitchen. Dang the top shelf was back up items, like salad dressing, mayo. People in the house would not search up there, to get another container of Ranch or Mayo, and would just go buy another one. I am short. I could not see too far back there. But yesterday I had to throw away expired mayo and ranch, and a few other salad dressings. what a waste. I wont do that again in my new house.

My husband has a hard time finding anything. It is like he doesnt even live here. I mean we have lived here 18 years and he cant find anything.

I really need to clean out under my kitchen sink. I dont want to. UGH. I have not found much in my kitchen to use in my craft room . I found a cute snowflake plunger style cookie cutter. IF. you press down then the cookie cutter would cut the cookie but also indent a pattern in the cookie. I tried using to paint on a master board back ground. It didnt work very well. I cleaned it up and donated it.

My kitchen is pretty empty now. I was disgusted at the brittle rubber gloves under my sink, that I had to throw away . I seldom used them. I kept most of the chemicals under my sink. I want to saved the shelves on the doors that I used to hold things. I will remove them and take them to my new house. I am thinking of soaking them in soapy hot water first.

Nothing under there that I can craft with.

I started clearing out my storage shed in my back yard.

Oh no, I almost forgot to come back here and report my kitchen update! My kitchen is very small, so I am forced to keep it organized and tidy, however, I did reorganize the pantry and donated some canned good to our local pantry. I had bought tons of canned goods at the start of quarantine, thinking that there would be chronic shortages, but there never really were in our area (except for yeast??) I also bleached my teaspoons in a mixture of hot water, baking soda and vinegar. They get darkish well, from sitting in tea! I also discarded some expired spices and refilled the ones I own. I have them all on a lazy susan in a cupboard. My kitchen is probably the neatest room of my apartment and the hubby knows it's the one room that I'm obsessed with keeping organized. It's one thing both my mom and grandmother taught me through the years.