Kitchen Organization 101: 6 Steps to Improve the Heart of Your Home

Whether you're a cook or not, your kitchen is likely the central gathering spot in your house that all family members use every day. The potential for a well-organized kitchen is vast, offering benefits for both individuals and families. The kitchen is the heart of real living, and a well-planned schedule is key to making the most of it. With all the cooking, eating, and socializing that occurs here, it's no surprise that clutter can accumulate. But don't worry, JCPenney’s got you covered with this 6-step plan to stay organized and improve your kitchen experience.

Step 1: Declutter

It may seem daunting at first because it involves observing every item in a space with a quick glance. However, decluttering everything is actually the most effective (and sole) method to fully understand your possessions, allowing you to assess and make informed choices regarding what to retain, where to keep it, and how to organize it.

Step 2: Categorize and Sort

After you've gathered all the items from every corner of your kitchen, you can start to categorize them based on their types and organize your belongings by grouping similar items. This process will need you to come up with categories that suit your own needs, but here are some common categories most people usually deal with:

• Dinnerware
• Pots and pans
• Silverware
• Kitchen gadgets
• Appliances
• Spices
• Cutting boards
• Food storage
• Towels
• Cleaning supplies

Step 3: Throw Out or Donate

Once you've cleared out a space and sorted everything into groups, it's the moment to make decisions on what to throw away or give away. If you're uncertain about whether an item should be donated or simply discarded, here are a few things to think about as you go through your kitchen and pantry items:

• Food that has passed its expiration date, canned items, or spices
• Any food or kitchenware that doesn't align with your current lifestyle or dietary needs
• Spatulas and cooking tools that have melted or are damaged
• Mugs or dishes with cracks or chips
• Items you already have but don't need
• Seldom-used appliances

Bonus Tip: Now that you’ve de-cluttered, categorized, and removed the items you don’t need from your kitchen, take a moment and take stock of what you have and what you need. Maybe you need a new set up pans, or perhaps now’s a good time to buy a new set of cutlery or silverware? Whatever it is, JCPenney’s kitchen and dining collection is the perfect place for restocks and additions to your kitchen.

Step 4: Designated Kitchen Zones

Too often kitchen items can feel randomly placed, without rhyme or reason. Drawers become chaotic catch-alls, dishes and glasses get stacked precariously high, and items get shoved carelessly into cupboards. To create a real flow in your kitchen, roadmap out where different items should live based on your routine. As you do this for your kitchen, think about your lifestyle and the flow of the space you’re in. Are you someone that cooks a lot? Or order in most nights? Do you need a kids’ zone? The goal is to tailor the layout of your kitchen to your needs, so you can save time and energy daily. These are the General Guidelines to zone out any kitchen:

Step 5: Efficient Space Utilization

Once you have your Designated Zones sorted out, next up is making them as efficient as possible. Different areas require different things to keep them organized. Thankfully, JCPenney has an amazing collection of kitchen organization essentials to help structure the flow of your kitchen in good shape. But if you’re not sure where to start, here’s a list of items to keep your kitchen spaces organized and optimized:

Step 6: Décor and Maintenance

After assigning a dedicated place for each item and category in your kitchen, you will always know where to return them after using them. With organizational systems in place, it can be hard not to maintain them, but it does require commitment. So, regardless of the approach you take to tackle your kitchen, what’s most important is that you choose a system that’s going to work for your needs; think about how you operate in your kitchen as you zone, categorize, and select products.

Remember, small daily habits make all the difference. With the guide above, along with access to plenty of kitchen and home products at online JCPenney, you should be able to start off on the right foot for your re-organized kitchen.