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As a military spouse, I have lived in all kinds of houses, both big and small. However, our house at Fort Cavazos has the smallest kitchen we’ve ever dealt with
The entire kitchen is 72 square feet (12 feet long by 6 feet wide). There are 6 upper cabinets, 6 lower cabinets, only 2 drawers, and no pantry.
One of the goals on my Deployment Bucket List was to organize the kitchen and I finally took the time (and money) to get it done!
Counter space is extremely limited. So, I want to keep them as clear as possible to have room for preparing meals. That means maximizing cabinet space is crucial.
I became slightly obsessed with Netflix’s show ‘Get Organized with The Home Edit’ when it came out in 2020. So, I used their process and some of their products to organize this small kitchen.
(Wal-Mart now carries a line of storage bins from The Home Edit and it’s embarrassing how excited I am about it.)
Here’s how I ‘Home Edit-ed’ my small kitchen!
The Home Edit: Conquering the clutter with styleThe Home Edit: A Guide to Organizing and Realizing Your House Goals
Upper Cabinets in Our Small Kitchen
Spices, Oils, & Condiments
Initially, this cabinet had spices, baking supplies, and random paper goods in it. However, I moved our baking supplies to a different cabinet and put the oils and condiments in this one on shallow turntables.
I tried a spice rack, but there was no way to access the spices on the top shelf without knocking over the spices in front. So, I used turntables for them too.
Then I was able to move the trays stored on the top of the cabinets to the top shelf inside the cabinet and the paper goods were consolidated in a different cabinet!
It worked out so well! Pretty much everything is visible and much easier to access.
Lazy Susan Turntable Organizer – for Kitchen, Pantry, Cabinet, Dining Table, Refrigerator, Countertop – Clear Spinning Lay Susan- 11.5 Inches – by Homeries (2 Pack)Tiblue Lazy Susan – 2 Pack Round Plastic Clear Rotating Turntable Organization & Storage Container Bins for Cabinet, Pantry, Fridge, Countertop, Kitchen – Spinning Organizer for Spices, Condiments
Baking Supplies
After moving the oils and condiments to the cabinets with the spices, this cabinet became home to all of our baking supplies. (Plus the peanut butter, because I couldn’t figure out where it fit in.)
This cabinet also has our flavoring/dressing packets because they wouldn’t fit with the spices.
The far left side of the cabinet is in the corner of the room and is pretty inaccessible. So, I used it for our ‘backstock’ of sugar and flour, ice trays, and things that we don’t use very often.
Chef’s Path Extra Large Plastic Food Storage Containers with Lids for Flour & Sugar (4 PC, 175 Oz) – Airtight Kitchen & Pantry Organization for Bulk Food Storage, BPA-Free Kitchen CanistersPack Of 4 Plastic Kitchen Organization Pantry Storage Bins – Fridge Organizer, Cabinet Organizers, Household Food Storage Baskets for Countertops, Cabinets, Refrigerator, Freezer, Bedrooms, Bathrooms
Boxed & Bagged Foods
This cabinet has all of our boxed and bagged foods. It was the easiest cabinet to organize. Everything seemed to fit in the containers so effortlessly.
This cabinet is in the opposite corner from the baking supplies. Thus, the far right side of the cabinet is inaccessible, so I’m using it to store more ‘backstock’ and dishes that we don’t use very often.
Hudgan 8 PACK Stackable Pantry Organizer Bins (3 sizes) – Clear Fridge Organizers for Kitchen, Freezer, Countertops, Cabinets – Plastic Food Storage Container with Handles for Home and OfficemDesign Plastic Stackable Kitchen Organizer – Storage Bin with Handles for Refrigerator, Freezer, Cabinet, and Pantry Shelves Organization – Food Container – Ligne Collection – 2 Pack – Clear
Canned Goods, Pasta, & Rice
Before this mini-home-edit, this cabinet contained our canned goods, bread, and bags of chips.
I bought the can organizer years ago and it works well for us, so I decided to leave it. The top shelf now contains our dried goods containers and boxed pasta. The bread and chips are in a new spot.
Plastic Wrap, Foil, & Storage Bags
I’m not sure what everyone else keeps in the cabinet over the stove, but us having tumblers and water bottles up there was NOT working out. The kids were constantly climbing on the counter to get them and then knocking them over to reach the ones in the back.
Instead, I put the plastic wrap, aluminum foil, storage bags, etc. up here. So far, it works out much better since I’m the only one who uses this stuff anyway.
GEDLIRE Kitchen Cabinet Shelf Organizer Set of 3, Large (15.7 x 9.4 inch) Metal Wire Pantry Storage Shelves, Dish Plate Racks for Cabinets, Freezer, Counter, Cupboard Organizers and Storage, WhiteSONGMICS Cabinet Shelf Organizers, Set of 4 Kitchen Counter Shelves, Stackable, Expandable Spice Racks, Metal and Wood, Black and Natural UKCS10NB
Kids Dishes, Water Bottles, & Dish Towels
When we unpacked, this cabinet became a catch-all for random things.
Now, it’s home to the kids’ plastic dishes, tumblers/water bottles, and dish towels. It’s so much better having the kids’ stuff where they can reach it!
Lifewit Stackable Water Bottle Organizer for Cabinet, Water Bottle Holder, Kitchen Pantry Organization and Storage, Plastic Fridge Wine Racks, Tumbler Travel Mug Cup Holder, 2Pack, Hold 6 BottlesZIJUND Water Bottle Organizer for Cabinet, 2 Pack Stackable Plastic Water Bottle Holder, Wine Racks for Kitchen Pantry Organization and Storage, Holds 8 Bottles
Dishes
The dishes didn’t change too much. I just straightened them up a little.
I also added a large basket to the top of the cabinets to try to hide some of the mess up there.
The Bottom Cabinets in Our Small Kitchen
Pots and Pans
The cabinet with the pots and pans didn’t change much either.
I moved a few things around and put the pots that I use the most closer to the front. I also added an over-the-door basket to hold our plastic bags.
BesChase Pots and Pans Organizer, Expandable Pot Rack with 12 Adjustable Dividers, Kitchen Organization for Cabinet Countertop Cupboard Kitchen Organizer,BlackiDesign Steel Over-The-Cabinet Waste Basket or Storage Bin, The Axis Collection, 7.1
Cleaning Supplies & Small Appliances
The cabinet under the sink was the one I dreaded most!
Since there’s no cabinet space for our small appliances, the ones that I use often (electric grill, crockpot, hand mixer, and griddle) were under here. In addition to the cleaning supplies, sponges/brushes, plastic grocery bags, and the drying mat for the dishes. It was a mess!
Using more over-the-door baskets helped get a lot of the little things out of the bottom of the cabinet. I also moved some of the appliance accessories to the basket on top of the cabinets to make more room.
JUNCHU CHERRY 2 Pack The Cabinet Door Organizer,Hanging Wall Mount Storage Wire Basket, Grid Storage Basket for Kitchen,Cabinet,Bathroom,Pantry,BlackTalented Kitchen 144 Pantry Labels for Containers, Food Storage, Preprinted Black All Caps Fine Line on Matte White Vinyl Stickers + Numbers for Minimalist Style Kitchen
Corner Cabinets with Lazy Susans in Our Small Kitchen
Cereal, Snacks, & Bread
I have a love/hate relationship with these corner cabinets. Thankfully, they have big lazy susans in them, but the kids were constantly putting things in here where they would get knocked off and have to be fished out of the back of the cabinet.
Adding containers to store the cereal, chips, and crackers made things a lot neater and easier to access.
But the bread savers are a GAME CHANGER! Being able to store the bread upright instead of having to lay it down saves so much space.
Buddeez Bread Buddy Bread Box – Bread Container & Bread Storage for Kitchen Counter, Sandwich Bread Holder, Bread Saver & Bread Keeper, Bread Bin & Breadbox Countertop Storage, Red Lid, (Pack of 2)FreshKeeper Cereal Containers Storage Set, Airtight Food Storage Container with Lid 4L/135.2oz,4PCS BPA-FREE Plastic Pantry Organization Canisters for Rice Cereal Flour Sugar Dry Food in Kitchen
Tupperware & Trash Bags
Before this mini-home-edit, this cabinet contained random snacks that wouldn’t fit in the other cabinet and our tupperware.
Now, it has our tupperware, trash bags, and dishwashing packs instead of that stuff being mixed with our snacks (which was a terrible idea in the first place).
Expandable Food Container Lid Organizer,Large Capacity Adjustable 10 Dividers Detachable Lid Organizer Rack for Cabinets, Cupboards, Pantry Shelves, Drawers to Keep Kitchen Tidy,Black(Patent Pending)Fullstar 50-piece Food storage Containers Set with Lids, Plastic Leak-Proof BPA-Free Containers for Kitchen Organization, Meal Prep, Lunch Containers (Includes Labels & Pen)
Small Kitchen Drawers
Silverware
Since there are only 2 drawers in the entire kitchen, I tried to maximize the space as much as possible.
The expandable silverware tray helped a lot. And I put our knives back behind it to hopefully keep the kids from accidentally grabbing them when they reach in here.
Everything Else
This drawer has to hold everything else that isn’t silverware or a knife. Adding 2 small drawer organizers to hold the small items helped, but it’s still pretty full.
HIWARE Kitchen Utensil Organizer Silverware Organizer Silverware Tray For Drawer, Expandable Bamboo Kitchen Drawer Organizer, Large Utensil Cutlery Organizer/HolderLifewit 25 PCS Drawer Organizer Set Clear Plastic Desk Drawer Dividers Trays Dresser Storage Bins Separation Box for Makeup, Jewelries and Gadgets, Bedroom, Bathroom, Office
Organizing this small kitchen was quite a challenge, but these ‘edits’ have made it much more functional.
Bouncing from rental house to rental house in the military has honed my problem-solving skills in so many ways. And dealing with small spaces is one of them!
